VOA慢速英语2018 美国人口普查:美国人受教育程度创新高（在线收听）

US Census: Americans are More Educated than Ever Before

The United States Census Bureau is reporting two major developments involving education.

美国人口普查局报告了两项关于教育的重大进展。

For the first time in history, 90 percent of Americans over 25 years of age have finished high school. In addition, more than one-third of Americans over the age of 25 have a college degree or higher.

25岁以上美国人有90%完成了高中学业，这是有史以来的首次。此外，25岁以上美国人有1/3获得了大学以上学位。

That is a big change from 1940. At that time, a Census Bureau study found that less than 25 percent of the U.S. population had completed at least four years of high school. It also found that just 4.6 percent had earned a four-year bachelor’s degree or taken additional classes after completing a study program at a college or university.

这是1940年以来的一项重大变化。当时，人口普查局的一项调查发现只有不到25%的美国人完成了至少四年高中学业。调查还发现，只有4.6%的人士在高校完成学习课程后获得了四年制学士学位或是参加了额外的课程。

Born inside the U.S. vs outside

美国海内外出生人口的对比

The new study found that, in 2017, 54 percent of Americans who did not complete high school were born outside the United States. The numbers are even higher among Hispanic men and women. Seventy-six percent of Hispanics born overseas did not have a high school degree.

这项新研究发现，2017年，54%未完成高中学业的美国人出生在美国以外。西班牙裔男女中的数字甚至更高。76%在海外出生的西班牙裔不具备高中学历。

Higher percentages of foreign-born people from all race and ethnic groups have not finished high school. Yet nearly the same amount of foreign-born Americans as people born in the United States have a college education.

来自各个种族和民族的海外出生人口有较高比例未完成高中学业。然而，美国出生人口和外国出生人口接受过大学教育的人数几乎等同。

Thirty-four percent of U.S.-born Americans have a four-year college degree. That rate is similar to the 33 percent of those born in other countries.

34%的美国出生人口拥有四年制大学学位，这一比例与海外出生人口的33%的几乎相等。

Recession and school

经济衰退与深造

The value of a high school degree has changed a lot since the 1940s. Today, a high school education is often required for workers in the U.S. job market.

自上世纪40年代以来，高中学历的价值发生了很大变化。如今，受过高中教育是美国就业市场对工人的常态化要求。

The Census Bureau information showed that the 2007 to 2009 recession led more Americans to go to college.

人口普查局的信息显示，2007年到2009年的经济衰退导致更多美国人去上大学深造。

During the recession, there was a 33 percent increase in students registering at two-year colleges. Those new students may have decided to return to school to improve their skills or learn new ones during a time when labor market conditions were worsening.

在衰退期间，两年制大学的注册学生提高了33%。在劳动力市场状况恶化时期，这些新学生可能决定重返校园提高他们的技能或是学习新技能。

Twenty-nine percent of all students were registered at two-year colleges in 2010, but that number had dropped to 25 percent in 2015.

2010年有29%的学生在两年制大学注册，但是这一数字在2015年降到了25%。

As the labor market improved, fewer Americans left their jobs to go to college. However, the number of students registered at two-year colleges was still 10 percent higher in 2015 than in 2006.

随着劳动力市场改善，离职去大学深造的美国人的人数减少。然而，2015年在两年制大学注册的学生人数仍然比2006年高出10%。

The Census Bureau found that people can earn more money if they go to college. In 2016, people with high school degrees earned an average of $35,615 per year. Those with a four-year college degree earned $65,482, and people with advanced degrees took home an average of $92,525.

人口普查局发现，人们如果上大学可以赚到更多钱。2016年，拥有高中学历的人士的年均收入是35615美元，拥有四年制大学学位的人士赚到了65482美元，而拥有更高学位的人士平均赚到了92525美元。

There is still a big difference between men and women. Men with a college degree earned an average of $79,927 in 2016. Women with the same level of education were paid an average of $50,856.

男女之间仍然存在很大差异。2016年，拥有大学学历的男性的平均收入为79927美元，受过同等教育的女性的平均收入是50856美元。

I’m Phil Dierking.

Words in This Story

degree - n. an official document and title that is given to someone who has successfully completed a series of classes at a college or university?

bachelor - n. a person who has received a bachelor's degree?

hispanic - n. coming originally from an area where Spanish is spoken and especially from Latin America