The Guardian has weighed in with an editorial suggesting that the UK government should “cherish and preserve” the British Council. I imagine that they will soon step in to provide favorable terms for repayment of the British Council’s large debt. They might even kick in more funding as well. The Council does good work, and I’ve recently enjoyed learning about it via the “Our World, Connected” podcast (do check it out). Soft power can be a valuable thing, and for very obvious reasons many populations still view western European governments with suspicion that they don’t have for, say, the government of Russia. The British Council can help to remedy this.
But before funding is increased, CEO Scott McDonald should probably be queried about challenges related to language testing. Even following its exit from the lucrative Indian market, revenue from the IELTS test remains a major part of how the BC funds its activities. This revenue is at risk: regulatory changes have wiped out most of the old IELTS monopolies and (more importantly) competing tests are increasingly attractive to both test takers and score users. There is a very real chance that IELTS revenue will decline year after year. IDP Education shareholders might have a few thoughts to share on this possibility.
So while the UK government can create stability in the short term with more funding and more favorable loan repayment terms, it is entirely possible that some future CEO will also appear, hat-in-hand, looking for a bailout.
What’s the plan, then?
A few months ago, the IELTS team received plaudits for stating that they are “cautiously curious” about AI in language testing. And that they think AI “has a lot of potential.” But among the plaudits there was some snark*, as Pearson has successfully been using AI in the PTE for 15 years. And Duolingo has been doing so in the DET for a decade. Some have suggested that the IELTS test is falling behind the times. There was a bit more snark** late last year when the IELTS team made an “important announcement” about switching from pencils to ballpoint pens.
I spoke to a colleague with some experience in the industry a few weeks ago. She said: “Everyone is worried about Duolingo but do absolutely nothing about it. Not with product development, marketing, nothing.”
The plan is unclear.
What’s worse is that some of the people responsible for handing out hundreds of millions of pounds of public money don’t even seem to know that tests like the DET even exist. It is perhaps unfortunate that these issues weren’t explored in more depth when Scott McDonald appeared before the Foreign Affairs Committee last month.
*not from me!!
**a little bit from me