PBS高端访谈:论学习的真正目的

 　　GWEN IFILL:Next: the challenge of getting students ready for the working world.

　　While most high schools focus on preparing students for college, businesses in one community outside Chicago are rallying around a different approach, preparing students for work.

　　Special correspondent John Tulenko from Learning Matters has our report.

　　JOHN TULENKO:From the outside, Hoffer Plastics in Elgin, Illinois, looks about the same as it did when it was founded back in 1953. Inside, it's a different story.

　　Bill Hoffer is the CEO.

　　BILL HOFFER,Hoffer Plastics Corporation:We have got job after job that 20 years ago would be a full-time¹ operator. Now it's a robot.

　　JOHN TULENKO:There are fewer workers, but they're required to do more.

　　BILL HOFFER:They need to be able to read blueprints². They need to follow procedures, document what they're doing. And that's all very important.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Right now, finding employees who can do all that is a challenge for Hoffer Plastics and for 40 percent of U.S. companies. The result? A revolving³ door of workers that cost businesses billions.

　　PAT HAYES,Fabric⁴ Images:Why do we keep spending money to solve the same problem over and over and over again?

　　JOHN TULENKO:Pat Hayes is founder⁵ of another local company, Fabric Images, a textile printer. Filling 150 positions here the usual way, relying on diplomas and GPAs, left Hayes frustrated⁶.

　　PAT HAYES:What does an A mean to an employer today? I got an A in math. What does that mean? Nothing. Where did you go to school? What level of course? Was it accelerated? Was it a college prep course? I don't know.

　　JOHN TULENKO:To get a better read on an applicant's skill level, both Fabric Images and Hoffer Plastics turned to a job-readiness test called WorkKeys.

　　PAT HAYES:WorkKeys, it's an assessment⁷, what you have accomplished⁸ in math, in reading and locating for information. Those three characteristics are in about, I don't know, 98 percent of the jobs at some level.

　　JOHN TULENKO:More specifically, WorkKeys, developed by ACT, the nonprofit behind the college entrance exam, uses actual workplace scenarios⁹ to measure how well individuals can decipher charts, graphs and other visual information, convert ratios, measurements, and make calculations across a variety of situations, and effectively comprehend memos¹⁰, instructions and other authentic¹¹ workplace documents.

　　There are also tests of visual observation and listening comprehension.

　　PAT HAYES:In our company, we can profile every job that we have based on these core skills. For the first time, I saw a commonality of what an individual had and what I needed, and I could start putting the two things together.

　　JOHN TULENKO:More than 1,000 companies use WorkKeys. Though it hasn't been evaluated by independent researches, company testimonials describe sharp declines in employee turnover¹² and training costs.

　　And businesses may not be the only winners. Recent high school graduate Sarah Rohrsen was accepted at a four-year college, but she found the tuition beyond her reach and decided¹³ instead to look for a job.

　　SARAH ROHRSEN,recent high school graduate:It was kind of a disappointment. The only options really were was fast food or, if you're lucky, seasonal¹⁴ work.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Sarah wound up behind the counter at a Wendy's restaurant and kept looking. Nine months later, she applied¹⁵ for a job at Hoffer Plastics, which requires applicants¹⁶ to take WorkKeys. Sarah's top-notch scores landed her a well-paying full-time job with benefits as an inspector¹⁷.

　　SARAH ROHRSEN:I wasn't happy working at Wendy's, and to come in here thanks to WorkKeys and to be able to know each week my paycheck is going to have 80 hours on it, since we're paid biweekly, it's pretty awesome¹⁸.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Conventional wisdom has held, the answer to closing the skills gap is to send more people to college. But Sarah Rohrsen's experience points to a different solution: expanding the talent pool to include some 36 million Americans who got into college, but never finished.

　　PAT HAYES:Are they to be thrown away? Why can't we understand where they are? Why can't we get them to some level and utilize¹⁹ them?

　　JOHN TULENKO:And how does WorkKeys help those folks?

　　PAT HAYES: It defines where they are. I have something that says, I achieved this level.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Based on their scores, test takers can earn a work force readiness certificate. In Elgin, more than 100 local businesses have gotten behind the certificate called an NCRC for short, putting signs like this one on their doors.

　　And the businesses lobbied the schools, so high school students would have a chance to test for the certificate, too.

　　JOSE TORRES,U-46 School District:The reason that we have WorkKeys is because I listened to the community, to the business community.

　　JOHN TULENKO:In 2010, local school superintendent²⁰ Jose Torres made earning NCRC certificates a crucial part of his five-year plan.

　　JOSE TORRES:Our goal in our district is to have 75 percent of our kids about above a gold, which is almost the highest level.

　　JOHN TULENKO:So we went to Elgin High School, a predominantly low-income school where administrators²¹ say half the students go directly into the work force, to see how they were doing.

　　Raise your hand if you have heard of something called an NCRC certificate? No hands. OK.

　　It was like this in virtually every classroom we visited, and this was four years after the district adopted the 75 percent goal.

　　Where are you today?

　　JOSE TORRES: We're at 22 percent.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Why are so many students missing the mark for work force readiness? It comes down to priorities.

　　LAURIE NEHF,Elgin High School: I'm not told to have them job-ready. I'm told to have them college-ready.

　　JOHN TULENKO: Like math teachers everywhere, Laurie Nehf follows a curriculum designed to prepare students for college-level calculus²².

　　LAURIE NEHF: I'm focusing on linear functions, quadratic functions, polynomial functions, higher-level types of questions fromWorkKeys.

　　JOHN TULENKO: WorkKeys doesn't go there, because it's math most students are unlikely to use on the job.

　　Surveys indicate 90 percent of all jobs, including many that pay well, do not require this kind of math. Advanced math is used in most science and technology jobs, but, even with expected growth, they will make up just 5 percent of the nation's work force.

　　LAURIE NEHF: Is it important that they know that a negative under a square root creates an imaginary number? No, that's not really that important.

　　JOHN TULENKO:The impact that math has on many students is important.

　　How often is it that teachers will help you see how what you're learning in class is applicable outside of school?

　　CURTIS MAJKA,student: I don't think very often. A lot of school subjects, like, you don't use, and a lot of people believe that. A lot of people don't try in math because they don't think they're ever going to use it.

　　JOHN TULENKO:To others, that's a misunderstanding.

　　JOSE TORRES: I'm no math expert, but, algebra²³, what it does, it helps you to think, think critically, think logically. And that is exactly what people need in the workplace. They need to be able to think critically and logically.

　　JOHN TULENKO:Trouble is, those lessons aren't getting through. Across the country, 75 percent of 12th-graders scored below proficient²⁴ in math.

　　At Elgin High School, it's not much better. Last year in math, 60 percent of students missed the mark. A number of teachers here told us it's not uncommon²⁵ they find students in their classes who have yet to learn the math taught in middle school. Regardless, these students are placed in algebra and geometry.

　　LAURIE NEHF: They just shut down. They get very frustrated. We won't accept meeting kids where they're at and helping²⁶ them where they're at.

　　I would love to spend all my time working on percentages, fractions, all that stuff with number sense. That number sense skills is what matters in the real world.

　　JOHN TULENKO:But, right now, providing alternatives to the traditional high school math could be risky²⁷. Historically, this math has been a gatekeeper. It's what's tested on college entrance exams, the SAT and, ironically, the ACT, made by the developers of WorkKeys.

　　And unless that changes, there's little incentive²⁸ for high schools to do more with the kind of math most of us will use on the job.

1 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

2 blueprints   

n.蓝图，设计图( blueprint的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Have the blueprints been worked out? 蓝图搞好了吗？ 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• BluePrints description of a distributed component of the system design and best practice guidelines. BluePrints描述了一个分布式组件体系的最佳练习和设计指导方针。 来自互联网

3 revolving   

adj.旋转的，轮转式的；循环的v.（使）旋转( revolve的现在分词 )；细想

参考例句：

• The theatre has a revolving stage. 剧院有一个旋转舞台。
• The company became a revolving-door workplace. 这家公司成了工作的中转站。

4 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

8 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

9 scenarios   

n.[意]情节；剧本；事态；脚本

参考例句：

• Further, graphite cores may be safer than non-graphite cores under some accident scenarios. 再者，根据一些事故解说，石墨堆芯可比非石墨堆芯更安全一些。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Again, scenarios should make it clear which modes are acceptable to users in various contexts. 同样，我们可以运用场景剧本来搞清楚在不同情境下哪些模式可被用户接受。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

10 memos   

n.备忘录( memo的名词复数 )；（美）内部通知

参考例句：

• Big shots get their dander up and memos start flying. 大人物们怒火中烧，备忘录四下乱飞。 来自辞典例句
• There was a pile of mail, memos and telephone messages on his desk. 他的办公桌上堆满着信件、备忘录和电话通知。 来自辞典例句

11 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

12 turnover   

n.人员流动率，人事变动率；营业额，成交量

参考例句：

• The store greatly reduced the prices to make a quick turnover.这家商店实行大减价以迅速周转资金。
• Our turnover actually increased last year.去年我们的营业额竟然增加了。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

15 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

16 applicants   

申请人，求职人( applicant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were over 500 applicants for the job. 有500多人申请这份工作。
• He was impressed by the high calibre of applicants for the job. 求职人员出色的能力给他留下了深刻印象。

17 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

18 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

19 utilize   

vt.使用，利用

参考例句：

• The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
• You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。

20 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

21 administrators   

n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 )；有管理（或行政）才能的人；（由遗嘱检验法庭指定的）遗产管理人；奉派暂管主教教区的牧师

参考例句：

• He had administrators under him but took the crucial decisions himself. 他手下有管理人员，但重要的决策仍由他自己来做。 来自辞典例句
• Administrators have their own methods of social intercourse. 办行政的人有他们的社交方式。 来自汉英文学 - 围城

22 calculus   

n.微积分；结石

参考例句：

• This is a problem where calculus won't help at all.对于这一题，微积分一点也用不上。
• After studying differential calculus you will be able to solve these mathematical problems.学了微积分之后，你们就能够解这些数学题了。

23 algebra   

n.代数学

参考例句：

• He was not good at algebra in middle school.他中学时不擅长代数。
• The boy can't figure out the algebra problems.这个男孩做不出这道代数题。

24 proficient   

adj.熟练的，精通的；n.能手，专家

参考例句：

• She is proficient at swimming.她精通游泳。
• I think I'm quite proficient in both written and spoken English.我认为我在英语读写方面相当熟练。

25 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

26 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

27 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

28 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。