In another recent competitiveness report Thailand ranked 54th out of 56 countries globally for English-language proficiency, the second-lowest in Asia.

ECONOMIST: Education in Thailand

Fifty-five percent of New York students met the English Language Arts proficiency standards in 2012 by scoring at least a 3 on a scale of 1 to 4, and 65 percent scored at least a 3 on the math tests.

WSJ: Some NY parents to boycott new, harder state tests

There were 4.7 million students classified as "English language learners" those who have not yet achieved proficiency in English in the 2009-10 school year, or about 10 percent of children enrolled, according to the most recent figures available from the U.S. Department of Education.

NPR: Instruction Of Students Learning English Bleak

Another is the 2008 executive order requiring city agencies to implement language access for New Yorkers with limited English proficiency.

WSJ: NYC offers other cities immigrant outreach ideas