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VOA慢速英語: 全世界通曉英語的人數(shù)增長

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[00:05.36]On today’s Words and Their Stories we talk about a common word, a small word, but a word that is completely necessary for human life. [00:18.12]In fact, without this simple, everyday material, all humans would die. [00:28.12]Scientists know it as sodium chloride. We know it as salt. [00:35.09]You may think, salt is just a simple cooking element we shake on our food for a little extra taste. [00:43.45]But salt is much more than that. [00:46.85]Without salt our muscles would not move. [00:50.99]Our nervous systems would not operate. Our hearts would not beat. Salt means life. [01:00.45]But do not think rubbing salt in a wound will help. [01:04.88]Doing that would be painful and not heal the wound. [01:09.79]To rub salt in a wound is an idiom that means to purposefully make a bad situation worse. [01:19.15]Early humans got the salt they needed to stay alive from the animals they killed. [01:26.64]But advances in agriculture led to a diet low in salt. So, humans needed to find others sources. [01:37.54]Those who lived near the ocean or other natural sources for salt were lucky. [01:44.76]Those who did not had to trade for salt. [01:49.55]In fact, people used salt as a method of payment in many parts of the ancient world. [01:56.44]The word “salary” comes from the word “salt.” [02:01.15]Salt also played an important part in population movement and world exploration. [02:08.92]Explorers understood that if they could keep food fresh, they could travel longer distances. [02:16.62]So they used salt to preserve food and explored the world. [02:22.69]Salt meant movement. [02:26.09]Salt also changed the way nations fought. [02:30.31]With preserved food on ships, nations could sail to distant lands … and then attack them. [02:38.35]Salt meant power. [02:41.49]Salt was so important that, according to food historians, it was traded pound-for-pound for gold. [02:50.31]Today, people still use the expressions to be worth one’s salt or worth one’s weight in salt. [02:59.51]The expressions describe a person whois useful, a person of value. [03:05.46]A person might also be called salt of the earth. That description means he or she is dependable and trustworthy. [03:16.49]The phrase comes from the Christian Bible. Jesus called his loyal group of followers -- or disciples -- the salt of the earth. [03:27.53]But one of these disciples was not so loyal. The disciple Judas betrayed Jesus. [03:36.33]In his famous painting “The Last Supper,” Leonardo da Vinci shows Judas spilling a bowl of salt. [03:44.75]Spilled salt is a sign of bad luck and trouble. And trouble is exactly what Judas gave Jesus. [03:54.70]Even today, some people throw salt over one shoulder if they spill it. [04:01.41]They believe throwing salt behind them scares any devil that has been following them -- or at least blinds it for a second while they run away. [04:12.74]But these stories about bad luck should be taken with a grain of salt. [04:18.64]In other words, listen to a story or an explanation with suspicion and distrust. [04:26.04]But you don’t have to take the information you find on VOA Learning English with a grain of salt. We do our research. [04:34.58]And this research led to some interesting facts about salt in other cultures and religions. [04:42.69]In 2200 BC, the Chinese emperor Xia Yu created one of the first known taxes. He taxed salt. [04:54.59]And Egyptians preserved dead bodies with salt, creating mummies. [05:00.75]The Catholic Church uses salt in many of its rituals. Buddhists use salt to prevent evil. [05:09.22]In Japan, the Shinto religion uses salt to clean an area of evil. [05:16.15]In the U.S. Southwest, the Pueblo people worship the Salt Mother. [05:22.33]And in 1933, the Dalai Lama was buried sitting up in a bed of salt. [05:29.73]Today in India, salt is still a symbol of good luck. [05:35.48]What about your culture? Do you have any idioms or expressions about salt? [05:42.60]In the comments section, share a story of salt from your culture. [05:47.30]I’m Jonathan Evans. [05:49.17]And I’m Anna Matteo.

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Understanding of English Improves Worldwide

全世界通曉英語的人數(shù)增長

The world’s understanding of English appears to be getting better. The private education company EF recently released a report called English Proficiency Index. The report ranks English language proficiency in 63 countries into five categories or classes. They are: “very high proficiency, high, moderate, low and very low.”

全世界懂英語的人水平越來越高。私立的教育機(jī)構(gòu)——英孚教育最近發(fā)布一篇英語水平指數(shù)的報(bào)道。報(bào)告把63個(gè)國家的英語水平排名分為五個(gè)類別：非常高、高、中、低、非常低水平。

Minh Tran is EF’s Director of Research and Academic Partnerships.

Minh Tran是英孚研究和學(xué)術(shù)部的主任。

“At the global level, we are seeing a consistent improvement year after year. I think that many countries that are looking outward, that are looking to internationalize their economies are seeing the importance of English.”

“全球范圍內(nèi)，我們可以看到英語水平逐年在持續(xù)提升。我認(rèn)為許多國家在尋求經(jīng)濟(jì)全球化，同時(shí)也認(rèn)識(shí)到英語的重要性。”

The English Proficiency Index says Denmark is the top country for English as a foreign language. Poland and Austria have joined Denmark and other northern European countries with the “very high proficiency” ranking.

英語水平指數(shù)顯示作為一門外語，英語水平最高的國家是丹麥。波蘭和奧地利已經(jīng)加入到丹麥的行列，其它一些北歐國家英語水平也是接近“非常高水平”的排名國家。

Malaysiaand Singapore have the best ranking in Asia with “high proficiency” in English. Joining them is Argentina, the only Latin American country to rank as “high proficiency.” English levels in the rest of Latin America remain low.

在亞洲，馬來西亞和新加坡是高水平英語級(jí)別的國家。而阿根廷是拉丁美洲唯一一個(gè)英語高水平排名的國家。拉丁美洲其它國家的英語水平仍然比較低。

South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong have invested a lot of time and money in English education. But these countries have not improved since the last study came out in 2007.

韓國、日本、臺(tái)灣和香港在英語教育方面已經(jīng)投入很多時(shí)間和金錢。但是自從2007年的調(diào)查研究結(jié)果出來后，這些國家英語教育水平并沒有取得什么進(jìn)步。

Minh Tran has this to say: “I think they are not improving because they have not made any significant reform to the way they teach English. In Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong. They still rely quite heavily on rote memory. And there’s a strong focus on grammar and vocabulary acquisition, but not so much on the actual communicative skills.”

Minh Tran說：“我認(rèn)為他們英語沒有取得進(jìn)步的原因是在英語教學(xué)方面他們沒有做出切實(shí)有效的改革。”在韓國、日本、臺(tái)灣和香港，他們?nèi)匀豢總鹘y(tǒng)的記憶模式路線。他們太關(guān)注語法、詞匯的掌握，而不是真正的交流技巧。

English language proficiency has actually fallen in many countries in the Middle East and North Africa, partly because of wars in the area.

中東、北非的很多國家，由于地區(qū)戰(zhàn)爭的影響，英語水平已經(jīng)下降。

For its report, EF used online test results from 750,000 adults in 63 countries. The test takers were adults who chose to take the company’s online test. They were not a random sample of the total population. For that reason, the results might be biased toward people who are interested in English and use the Internet.

英孚教育使用36個(gè)國家的75萬成人在線測試結(jié)果得出這個(gè)結(jié)論。測試人員都是選擇英孚在線測試的成年人。他們不是從63個(gè)國家的人口中隨意挑選出來的。所以，測試結(jié)果也許偏向于那些對(duì)英語感興趣以及使用互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的人群。

Dr. Clive Roberts is the Director of Assessment, Analysis & Research at ELS Educational Services. He does not know about the report’s research methods, but he thinks the study is helpful.

克萊夫·羅伯特博士是ELS教育機(jī)構(gòu)的評(píng)估、分析和研究部的主任，他不知道這篇報(bào)道的調(diào)查方式是什么，但是他認(rèn)為調(diào)查研究是有用的。

“…Conducting such research enables countries, regions, organizations to sort of assess their own position relative to other places. What trends are happening…, then they can sort of re-assess their own situation and figure out a strategy.”

“進(jìn)行這樣的調(diào)查研究可以讓一些國家、地區(qū)和組織相較于其它國家，評(píng)估自己的位置。接下來會(huì)有什么發(fā)展趨勢，他們可以重新評(píng)估他們的情況，找出應(yīng)對(duì)策略。”

Improvements have also been noted on average scores for the TOEFL, the Test of English as a Foreign Language, and IELTS, the International English Language Testing System.

英語水平的提升還體現(xiàn)在托福的平均成績上，托福是檢定非英語為母語者的英語能力考試。

Eileen Tyson is Executive Director of Global Client Relations at the Educational Testing Service. ETS produces the TOEFL. Ms. Tyson agrees that English proficiency is rising worldwide. Average TOEFL scores have risen by two points in the past nine years. But she thinks it is not wise to compare countries by average TOEFL scores. She says many things can influence test results.

艾琳·泰森是美國教育測驗(yàn)服務(wù)社的全球客戶關(guān)系的執(zhí)行董事。美國教育測驗(yàn)服務(wù)社舉辦托福英語考試。泰森贊同英語水平在世界范圍內(nèi)有所提升這一觀點(diǎn)。但是她認(rèn)為通過平均的托福成績來比較各國的英語水平有點(diǎn)不明智。她說很多因素會(huì)影響測試結(jié)果。

“For example, the age at which students start to learn English. …Some native languages are closer to English…How many hours per week a student spends learning English, and what kind of curriculum they use. So all of these combine …we feel strongly that you really can’t use TOEFL scores for comparing general proficiency across countries.”

“例如，學(xué)生什么年齡開始學(xué)習(xí)英語…一些本土語言更接近英語…學(xué)生花多長時(shí)間來學(xué)習(xí)英語，他們使用哪種課程。把所有這些因素綜合起來考量，我們認(rèn)為不能僅僅用托福成績來比較各國的英語水平情況。”

In 2005, ETS made big changes to the TOEFL. It went from a paper test to a test that required use of a computer and an Internet connection. Notably, ETS cut the grammar section and required test takers to record spoken responses to questions.

2005年，美國教育測驗(yàn)服務(wù)社對(duì)托福進(jìn)行了大的變革。從紙質(zhì)測試變成一個(gè)需要用電腦和互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的考試。很明顯美國教育測驗(yàn)服務(wù)社把語法部分砍掉，要求參加測試的人用口述表達(dá)來回答這些問題。

Eileen Tyson thinks the new TOEFL encouraged many teachers to make their classes more interactive.

艾琳·泰森認(rèn)為新的托福考試方式會(huì)激勵(lì)很多老師讓他們的課程更多一些互動(dòng)。

“We think it did help teachers to look at how they were teaching English, to make it more communicative, to make sure they were teaching speaking and writing. And we’re actually kind of proud of the fact that we’ve helped to influence language teaching and language learning worldwide.”

“我們認(rèn)為這樣的托福考試確實(shí)會(huì)讓老師去尋找他們教授英語的方式，讓英語更具交流性，確保他們教授英語的讀說、寫能力。對(duì)于在全球范圍內(nèi)影響到英語語言的教學(xué)，我們感到非常自豪。”

The British Council estimates that 1.75 billion people speak English today. The group expects that number to grow to two billion by 2020 -- about one-fourth of the world’s population.

英國文化協(xié)會(huì)估計(jì)當(dāng)今有17.5億人講英語，預(yù)計(jì)到2020年，這一人群數(shù)量會(huì)增長到20億——占全球人口總數(shù)的四分之一。

I’m Jonathan Evans.

我是喬納森·伊凡斯。

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

proficiency - n. the state of being good at something

rote – n. mechanical or unthinking routine or repetition; the use of memory with little intelligence

acquisition – n. the act or process of gaining skill, knowledge, etc.

random sample – n. a sample in which every person in the population has an equal chance of being chosen

bias – n. to have a strong and often unfair influence on (someone or something)

re-assess – v. consider or assess again, especially while paying attention to new or different factors

Understanding of English Improves Worldwide

Teachers practice interactive English teaching methods at the University of East Timor in Dili.

The world’s understanding of English appears to begetting better. The private education company EF recently released a report called English Proficiency Index. The report ranks English language proficiency in 63 countries into five categories or classes. They are: “very high proficiency, high, moderate, low and very low.”

Minh Tran is EF’s Director of Research and Academic Partnerships.

“At the global level, we are seeing a consistent improvement year after year. I think that many countries that are looking outward, that are looking to internationalize their economies are seeing the importance of English.”

The English Proficiency Index says Denmark is the top country for English as a foreign language. Poland and Austria have joined Denmark and other northern European countries with the “very high proficiency” ranking.

Malaysia and Singapore have the best ranking in Asia with “high proficiency” in English. Joining them is Argentina, the only Latin American country to rank as “high proficiency.” English levels in the rest of Latin America remain low.

South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong have invested a lot of time and money in English education. But these countries have not improved since the lasts tudy came out in 2007.

TOEFL and IELTS scores 2007 and 2013

Minh Tran has this to say: “I think they are not improving because they have not made any significant reform to the way they teach English. In Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong. They still rely quite heavily on rote memory. And there’s a strong focus on grammar and vocabulary acquisition, but not so much on the actual communicative skills.”

English language proficiency has actually fallen in many countries in the Middle East and North Africa, partly because of wars in the area.

For its report, EF used online test results from 750,000 adults in 63 countries. The test takers were adults who chose to take the company’s online test. They were not a random sample of the total population. For that reason, the results might be biased toward people who are interested in English and use the Internet.

Dr. Clive Roberts is the Director of Assessment, Analysis & Research at ELS Educational Services. He does not know about the report’s research methods, but he thinks the study is helpful.

“…Conducting such research enables countries, regions, organizations to sort of assess their own position relative to other places. What trends are happening…, then they can sort of re-assess their own situation and figure out a strategy.”

Improvements have also been noted on average scores for the TOEFL, theTest of English as a Foreign Language, and IELTS, the International English Language Testing System.

Eileen Tyson is Executive Director of Global Client Relations at the Educational Testing Service. ETS produces the TOEFL. Ms. Tyson agrees that English proficiency is rising worldwide. Average TOEFL scores have risen by two points in the past nine years. But she thinks it is not wise to compare countries by average TOEFL scores. She says many things can influence test results.

“For example, the age at which students start to learn English. …Some native languages are closer to English…How many hours per week a student spends learning English, and what kind of curriculum they use. So all of these combine …we feel strongly that you really can’t use TOEFL scores for comparing general proficiency across countries.”

In 2005, ETS made big changes to the TOEFL. It went from a paper test to a test that required use of a computer and an Internet connection. Notably, ETS cut the grammar section and required test takers to record spoken responses to questions.

Eileen Tyson thinks the new TOEFL encouraged many teachers to make their classes more interactive.

“We think it did help teachers to look at how they were teaching English, to make it more communicative, to make sure they were teaching speaking and writing. And we’re actually kind of proud of the fact that we’ve helped to influence language teaching and language learning worldwide.”

The British Council estimates that 1.75 billion people speak English today. The group expects that number to grow to two billion by 2020 -- about one-fourth of the world’s population.

I’m Jonathan Evans.

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

proficiency - n. the state of being good at something

rote – n. mechanical or unthinking routine or repetition; the use of memory with little intelligence

acquisition – n. the act or process of gaining skill, knowledge, etc.

random sample – n. a sample in which every person in the population has an equal chance of being chosen

bias – n. to have a strong and often unfair influence on (someone or something)

re-assess – v. consider or assess again, especially while paying attention to new or different factors

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