English teenagers 'worst in Europe' at languages But France, where students' English skills were tested, also performed badly, perfoming second-worst in all three disciplines (reading, writing, listening). The study reported: "England and France were among the lowest performers overall." The study, which was conducted as part of the European Union's European Survey on Language Competences (ESLC), tested around 1,444 pupils in 53 schools in England. Responding to the report, a Department for Education spokesman said: "We are addressing the chronic lack of attention paid to foreign languages in schools. It is vital young people start studying a language at an earlier age. That is why from next year we are ensuring that children learn a language from age seven. They can then build on that at secondary school - where the EBacc is reversing the decline in the number of pupils studying languages. Last year the Government announced that for the first time all primary school children will have to learn a foreign language from age seven. Currently about one in ten state primary schools offers no language lessons at all and a further 20 per cent only offer it to some year groups, according to the most recent official figures. The move to make languages a requirement from age seven will take effect next year. The study was released on the same day a new report from the British Academy found that the UK's poor foreign language skills were hurting the economy. The report said a "vicious circle of monolingualism" was taking place, as the dearth of necessary skills forced British employers to "sidestep language issues," removing incentives for new language students. "It is clear that the UK still has a long way to go in order to catch up with our European neighbours and international competitors," said Professor Nigel Vincent, Vice-President of the British Academy. Languages are vital for the health and wellbeing of the education and research base, for UK competitiveness, and for individuals and society at large. It also found that the current focus on French, Spanish and German was too narrow to meet modern global business needs. "Indications of future demand show that a growing number of languages will be needed as the UK expands its global connections and responds to new economic realities," it says. These include not only world languages such as Mandarin, Arabic and Russian - but also Turkish, Farsi and Polish.