My proposal was not that there be mandatory assessment, but that the level be met. That's broadly in line with the rest of the IETF, which doesn't assess someone's ability to do Internet engineering, or check credentials or qualifications to be able to do so, either. (Which may explain the design of the protocol the reader immediately thought of.) In both cases, assuming everyone is capable works well - except in those cases where it clearly doesn't. Lloyd Wood http://about.me/lloydwood ________________________________________ From: Arturo Servin [arturo.servin@xxxxxxxxx] Sent: 09 March 2014 21:15 To: Wood L Dr (Electronic Eng) Cc: Scott Brim; <ietf@xxxxxxxx> list Subject: Re: IETF working language On Sat, Mar 8, 2014 at 1:53 PM, <l.wood@xxxxxxxxxxxx<mailto:l.wood@xxxxxxxxxxxx>> wrote: I'm more concerned with reading and writing. And I more concerned about the lack of empathy that native English speakers have regarding non-native. Also, as a non-native speaker of English that has put a lot of effort to learn a second language I found very insulting that I would need to be assessed in my understanding and use of English to participate in the IETF. Regards, as