What is language proficiency?

Language proficiency refers to functional language ability – basically, what a speaker can do in a language. 

• Proficiency depends not on knowing about various aspects of a language, but rather on the ability to use the language in real-life scenarios.
• Memorizing tables of verb conjugations will not necessarily increase your proficiency, unless you are able to use the new verb forms to understand and communicate information.
• For example: Can you introduce yourself to someone? Can you schedule an appointment? Can you return or exchange an item that you purchased? Can you fill out a simple form or write an email to a friend?

Rating Proficiency

There are different ways of measuring and describing proficiency:

• At the Five College Center for World Languages, we talk about proficiency in terms of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines. ACTFL stands for the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.
• We focus especially on the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines for Speaking. You can find all of the guidelines for speaking, writing, listening, and reading on ACTFL’s website.

ACTFL also publishes Can-Do Statements that students can use for self-assessment. For more information, see Self-Assessment with Can-Do Statements or access the Can-Do Statements online.

Other scales that are based on proficiency include:

• The Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) Scale used by the U.S. government
• The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)

Depending on your career goals, you may find it helpful to become familiar with one of these scales.