國小英語列入小學正式科目是近年來一件重大的教育政策，而小學英語教學要能有效實施，英語老師的專業素養更是一大關鍵。本文旨在探討小學英語教師的英語能力對於個人專業成長之重要性，並針對教育行政單位、師資培訓機構、以及在職與職前小學英語教師提出相關建議。

Among the many competencies required for primary school English teachers, one which has recently received much attention in the literature is teachers’ proficiency in the target language. In this paper, it is argued that English proficiency is a crucial factor in determining one’s professionalism and that language improvement should be a major concern for non-native, both pre- and in-service, English teachers. Teachers’ command of the target language is especially important in the Taiwanese context where elementary school English teachers are often recruited from many different sources and in a rush. Given the importance of proficiency in teacher qualification, the implications for the central and local government, training programs, and pre- and in-service teachers will also be discussed. It is hoped that more efforts will be devoted to English teacher education to lead to the success of the early start policy of English education in Taiwan. Meanwhile, teachers themselves need to prioritize the development of their proficiency in their quest for professionalism.