Comparison of Teaching English as a Foreign Language in Turkey with Denmark, Hungary, and Portugal

Abstract

In this study, systems of teaching English as a foreign language in different countries were compared. The focus country was Turkey, which has low achievement in English. Other countries compared were Denmark, Hungary, and Portugal, which had considerably higher achievements in teaching English. The selection of these countries was based on the mean scores for five years of Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and Education First Proficiency Index. The study was designed as a qualitative research. The data related to targeted countries were gathered from the web sites of the studied countries’ education ministries and governments, curriculums, Eurydice and OECD resources, and published articles. The data was analyzed using document analysis technique. The comparisons were made in terms of general educational systems, aims and goals, content, teaching and learning process, and evaluation. As a result of the study, Turkey’s more centralist structure was observed among countries. Moreover, Turkey’s primary objective in primary school is the positive attitude towards English. Finally, the system in Turkey views the language as a combination of four skills while other countries emphasize the communicative aspect of language. 

Keywords

• teaching English as a foreign language,comparison of countries,Turkey,TOEFL,Europe

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