VOA慢速：美国人糟糕的数学技能令人担忧
America’s Poor Math Skills Raise Concerns
刘立军 供稿
TRANSCRIPT
Many Americans joke about how bad they are at math. But, labor experts and others in the United States are not laughing. They say the nation’s ever-decreasing math skill threatens U.S. economic competitiveness and national security.
Jim Stigler is a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. He studies the process of teaching and learning subjects, including math. He said, “The advances in technology that are going to drive where the world goes in the next 50 years are going to come from other countries, because they have the intellectual capital and we don’t.”
The Education Reporting Collaborative, a coalition of eight news agencies, is documenting the math crisis facing schools. Members of the Collaborative are AL.com, The Associated Press, The Christian Science Monitor, The Dallas Morning News, The Hechinger Report, Idaho Education News, The Post and Courier in South Carolina, and The Seattle Times.
The U.S. military has called for a major program to support education in science, technology, education, and math (STEM). It argues that the U.S. is dangerously behind other nations. The Defense Department says China produces eight times as many college graduates in these study fields as the United States. It says Russia produces four times as many engineers as the U.S.
Government labor experts say the number of jobs in areas requiring math skill will increase by more than 30,000 each year through the end of 2030. That is much faster than most other kinds of jobs.
“Mathematics is becoming more and more a part of almost every career,” said Michael Allen. He chairs the math department at Tennessee Technological University.
But most American students are not prepared for those jobs. In the most recent Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) tests in math, U.S. students tested lower than students from 36 other education systems around the world. Students in China tested the highest.
Only one in five American high school students planning to attend college is prepared for college-level study in STEM, say experts at the National Science and Technology Council, a government group.
However, students from other countries are preparing to lead in these areas, reports the National Foundation for American Policy, a non-profit organization. It says only one in five graduate students in math-heavy fields at U.S. universities are American. The rest come from other countries. Most will leave the U.S. when they finish their programs.
In Massachusetts, employers are expecting a shortage over the next five years of 11,000 workers in the life sciences alone.
“It’s not a small problem,” said Edward Lambert Jr. He is director of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education. “We’re just not starting students, particularly students of color and from lower-resourced families, on career paths related to math and computer science and those things in which we need to stay competitive, or starting them early enough,” he said.
“This is not an educational question alone,” said Josh Wyner, a vice president of the Aspen Institute, a think tank. In July, it warned that other nations are gaining near to America’s technological power.
It urged decision makers to make education an important national security goal. “We are no longer keeping pace with other countries, particularly China,” the Aspen report says, calling this a “dangerous” failure.
I’m Gregory Stachel.
VOCABULARY
1. coalition n. a group or alliance formed for a specific purpose or goal, usually involving different organizations or individuals coming together to work together and achieve a common objective. 同盟，联合体
2. vice n. a position or role in an organization or institution that is subordinate to a higher-ranking position, typically used as a prefix to indicate a secondary or assistant role. 副职，副的
3. keep pace with: idiom. to stay at the same level of progress or development as someone or something else; to not fall behind. 与……保持同步，跟上……的步伐，不落后于……
QUESTIONS
Listen to the news and choose the best answer to each question you hear.
1. What does the U.S. military argue is a significant concern regarding STEM education in the United States?
A. Lack of technological advancements in the U.S.
B. Insufficient international collaboration in STEM fields.
C. A dangerous lag behind other nations in producing STEM graduates.
D. Overemphasis on math education in American schools.
2. According to the article, what is the primary consequence of the declining math skills among American students?
A. Increased diversity in STEM fields.
B. A decrease in demand for STEM-related jobs.
C. A potential skills gap in the job market.
D. Greater emphasis on non-STEM careers.
3. According to government labor experts, how is the demand for jobs requiring math skill changing?
A. It is decreasing each year.
B. It will increase each year through the end of 2030.
C. It remains stable with no major changes.
D. There is no information given on this matter.
4. What is the situation of graduate students in math-heavy fields at U.S. universities?
A. All are Americans.
B. Only one in five is American, and most foreign students will leave the U.S. after they finish their program.
C. Almost all are from China and Russia.
D. The majority are planning to stay in America.
5. According to the text, why should education be considered an important national security goal?
A. Because the U.S. is producing more engineers than other countries.
B. Because the U.S. is leading in the field of STEM education.
C. Because only a small percentage of high school students are planning to attend college.
D. Because the U.S. is not catching up with other countries, especially China, in terms of technological power.
KEY
1. What does the U.S. military argue is a significant concern regarding STEM education in the United States?
A. Lack of technological advancements in the U.S.
B. Insufficient international collaboration in STEM fields.
C. A dangerous lag behind other nations in producing STEM graduates.
D. Overemphasis on math education in American schools.
【答案】C
【解析】细节题。根据原文第四段：It argues that the U.S. is dangerously behind other nations. 因此，美国军方认为美国在STEM教育方面严重落后与其他国家，这令人十分担忧。
2. According to the article, what is the primary consequence of the declining math skills among American students?
A. Increased diversity in STEM fields.
B. A decrease in demand for STEM-related jobs.
C. A potential skills gap in the job market.
D. Greater emphasis on non-STEM careers.
【答案】C
【解析】细节题。第六段中提到，But most American students are not prepared for those jobs. 美国很多学生对需要用到数学技能的工作并不具有相关技能。这是美国学生数学能力下降的重要影响。
3. According to government labor experts, how is the demand for jobs requiring math skill changing?
A. It is decreasing each year.
B. It will increase each year through the end of 2030.
C. It remains stable with no major changes.
D. There is no information given on this matter.
【答案】B
【解析】细节题。第五段中提到，Government labor experts say the number of jobs in areas requiring math skill will increase by more than 30,000 each year through the end of 2030. 政府劳工专家说，到2030年底，需要数学技能的工作数量将每年增加超过30,000。
4. What is the situation of graduate students in math-heavy fields at U.S. universities?
A. All are Americans.
B. Only one in five is American.
C. Almost all are from China and Russia.
D. The majority are planning to stay in America.
【答案】B
【解析】细节题。第九段中提到，It says only one in five graduate students in math-heavy fields at U.S. universities are American. The rest come from other countries. Most will leave the U.S. when they finish their programs. 在美国大学数学重点领域的研究生中，只有五分之一是美国人，大多数外国学生在完成学业后将离开美国。
5. According to the text, why should education be considered an important national security goal?
A. Because the U.S. is producing more engineers than other countries.
B. Because the U.S. is leading in the field of STEM education.
C. Because only a small percentage of high school students are planning to attend college.
D. Because the U.S. is not catching up with other countries in terms of technological power.
【答案】D
【解析】推理题。原文提到，由于美国在技术实力方面无法与其他国家特别是中国保持同步，因此教育应被视为重要的国家安全目标。
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