英语听力小短文走遍全世界39: 美国的辍学问题

英语听力原文：

Articles in magazines and newspapers and special reports on radio and television reflect the concern of many Americans about the increasing dropout rate in our junior and senior high schools.

报刊杂志上的文章以及广播电台的特别报道反映了许多美国人对中学日益增长的辍学率的担忧。

Coupled with this fact is the warning that soon we will no longer have workforce to fill the many jobs that require properly-educated personnel.

伴随而来的警告是，我们很快将缺乏足够的劳动力以满足那些需要受过一定教育的人员所从事的工作。

The highest student dropout rate is not a recent development. Ten years ago, many urban schools were reporting dropout rates between 35 and 50 percent. Some administrators maintain that dropouts remain the single greatest problem in their schools. Consequently, much effort has been spent on identifying students with problems in order to give them more attention before they become failures.

不是最近才大道最高辍学率的。据报道10年前许多城市学校的辍学率就在35%到40%之间。有的管理者坚称辍学仍然是他们学校仅有的最严重的问题。结果是，为了在学生失败前给予更多的关注，学校花费了更多的努力找出有问题的学生。

Since the dropout problem doesn't only start in senior high school, special programs in junior high school focus on students who show promise but have a record of truancy, that is, staying away from school without permission. Under the guidance of counselors, these students are placed in classes with teachers who have had success in working with similar young people.

由于辍学问题不仅仅发生在高中，在初中，一些特殊项目也在开始关注那些有前途但却有逃课记录的学生，逃课也就是未经许可而缺课的行为。

Strategies to motivate students in high school include rewarding academic excellence by designating scholars of the month, or by issuing articles of clothing, such as school letter jackets formally given only to athletes.

按照咨询师的建议，这些学生被放在某些教师的班级中，而那些教师曾有过成功教育类似青年的经验。在高中，激励学生的措施包括评选月度奖学金获得者以作为对学生学术成果的回报，奖励服装类商品，如只把校服正式授予校运动员。

No one working with these students claims to know how to keep all students in school. Counselors, teachers, and administrators are in the frontlines of what seems at times to be a losing battle. Actually, this problem should be everyone's concern, since uneducated, unemployed citizens affect us all.

没有一个和这些学生打交道的人宣称知道如何把所有的学生留在学校。咨询师、教师和行政管理人员冲在这场有时看似必输的战争的前面。事实上，这是我们每个人都应该关心的问题，因为未接受教育的、无职业的公民会影响我们所有人。

英语词汇整理：

1. reflect v. 反映，反思

eg: I have reflected upon his suggestion.

我已经认真思考了他的建议。

短语：

reflect on 思考;反省;回想

reflect upon 考虑(回想;回顾)

2. dropout n. 退学学生

eg: I was harvard's most successful dropout.

我是哈佛最成功的辍学生。

短语：

dropout student 失学儿童

college dropout 大学辍学者

3. junior adj. 下级的，年少的 n. 三年级生，年少者

eg: Their youngest daughter Amy's a junior at the University of Evansville in Indiana.

他们最小的女儿埃米是印第安纳州埃文斯维尔大学的三年级学生。

短语：

junior high school 初中

junior student 大三学生

junior staff 初级人员;资历较浅的员工;基层员工

4. senior adj. 年长的，资格较老的 n.长辈，大四学生

eg: The position had to be filled by an officer senior to Haig.

这个位置必须由一名职位比黑格高的军官来填补。

短语：

senior high school 高中

senior management 高级管理

senior staff 高级职员

senior executive 高级执行官

senior citizen 老年人

5. workforce n.劳动力，职工总数

eg: Only about half of the original workforce remains.

只剩下大约原来一半的劳动力。

短语：

workforce capability 劳动力能力

workforce Planning 劳动力规划

Workforce Level 劳动力水平

6. personnel n. 人员，职员:

eg: There has been very little renewal of personnel in higher education.

高等教育事业中人员更新很少。

短语：

technical personnel 技术人员

personnel training 人员培训

service personnel 保修人员;服务行业人员

7. urban adj.城市的，都市的

eg: For a small state it has a large urban population.

作为一个小州，其城市人口算是很多了。

短语：

urban population 城市人口

urban life 城市生活，都市生活

8. maintain v. 维修，保养

eg: The house costs a fortune to maintain.

维修这房子花费巨大。

短语：

maintain contact with 与......保持联系

maintain in 维持......;保持......

maintain order 维持秩序

9. consequently adv.所以，因此

eg: She was a bright and eager student and, consequently, did well in school.

她是个聪明好学的学生,因此学习成绩很好。

10. identify v. 识别，鉴定

eg: There are a number of distinguishing characteristics by which you can identify a Hollywood epic.

通过其诸多与众不同的特点,你可以识别出好莱坞的史诗影片。

短语：

identify oneself 证明自己(的身份)

identify oneself with 认为......等同于，与一致

11. truancy n. 逃学，玩忽职守

eg: Truancy is common at this school.

在这个学校旷课是很普遍的。

短语：

truancy officer 劝学员

internal truancy 校内逃学

recessive truancy 隐性逃课

12. permission n. 同意，许可

eg: With your permission, he'll go.

如果你允许，他会去的。

短语：

without permission 未经许可

with one's permission 如果......允许的话

ask for permission 征求许可;请求允许

grant permission准许

13. guidance n. 引导，指导

eg: Under his guidance, we finished the work smoothly.

在他的指导下，我们顺利地完成了工作。

短语：

under the guidance of 在......的指引下

take someone under one's guidance 使某人受自己的指导，置某人于自己的庇护之下

14. motivate v. 激发，刺激

eg: They are motivated by a need to achieve.

他们被成功的需要激励着。

短语：

motivate the action 促进这项活动

motivate one's pupils 激励学生

15. designate v. 指定 adj. 指定的

eg: She designated the place where we were to meet.

她指定了我们将会面的地点。

短语：

designate sb as 称某人为......

designate sb for (to) some office 任命某人担任某职

佳句采摘：

Consequently, much effort has been spent on identifying students with problems in order to give them more attention before they become failures.

结果是，为了在学生失败前给予更多的关注，学校花费了更多的努力找出有问题的学生。