通勤、通学中に聞く、読む、使う (普段はメンバーオンリー)

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http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/theclassroom/articles/american_culture/Worlds-Population-Reaches-7-Billion-134696423.html

[audio:http://nippondream.com/voa/population_article.mp3|titles=population_article]

http://nippondream.com/voa/population_article.mp3

Words Eigonodo symbols Meaning
populations P-O-P / P-IU-l / l-eI-SH / SH-i_-NZ 人口(じんこう)
economies #-i_-K / K-O-N / N-A-M / M-I-Z 経済(けいざい)
low birth rates l-O-w_ / B-E_r_th / r_ eI-TS 出生率(しゅっせいりつ)が低い(ひくい)こと
billion B-i_-l / y_-u_-N  =1,000,000,000
largest l-A-r_J / J-E-ST 最も(もっとも)大きい(おおきい)
youngest y_-u_-NG / G-E-ST 最も(もっとも)若い(わかい)
aging #-eI-J / J-I-NG 平均年齢(へいきんねんれい)が高くなりつつある
million M-i_-l / y_-u_-N  =1,000,000

The United Nations estimates that there are now seven billion people on Earth.

Populations are growing faster than economies in many poor countries in Africa and Asia. At the same time, low birth rates in Japan and many European nations have raised concerns. There may not be enough people to fill jobs in the future.

Population experts at the United Nations estimate that the world’s population reached six billion in October 1999. They predict it will reach nine billion by 2050, and ten billion by the end of the century.

China has a population of 1.3 billion, which is currently the world’s largest. India is second at 1.2 billion. But India is expected to pass China and reach 1.5 billion people around 2025. India will also have one of the world’syoungest populations.

In India, young people will gain many skills in their country’s growing economy. At the same time, other countries will have aging populations. But economists say that current growth rates, although high, may not create enough jobs.

Also, the public education system is failing. There are too many students in many places. Schooling is often of poor quality. Another concern is health care. Nearly half of India’s children under the age of five are malnourished. Sarah Crowe at the United Nations Children’s Fund in New Delhi says these two problems “could keep India back.”

SARAH CROWE: “That child is unable to really grow to its ability and will remain in a state of stunting and not be able to learn when it goes to school — when he or she goes to school, and indeed later earn and really pay back and pay into the economy and help the country and the region move forward. We have, you know, out of every two hundred million children who start school, only ten percent complete grade twelve.”

Michal Rutkowski is the director of human development in South Asia at the World Bank. He says the seven billionth person was likely to be a girl, born in rural Uttar Pradesh. Uttar Pradesh is one of India’s poorest and most crowded states, with nearly 200 million people.

He says reaching seven billion people in the world is a good time for a call to action.

通勤通学中に聞く、読む、使う

Work Hours in the U.S.

Voice of America’s Learning English Service  19 September 2011

http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/theclassroom/articles/american_culture/Work-Hours-in-the-US-130114803.html

[audio:http://nippondream.com/voa/work_article.mp3|titles=work_article]

http://nippondream.com/voa/work_article.mp3

Words Eigonodo symbols Meaning
survey S-E-r_ / v-eI-Y_ 調査(アンケート)
spend their time SP-E-ND_ / T-AI-M 時を過ごす
average #-a_-v / v-E_-r_ / r_-i_-J (合っているかどうかジーナに確認中) 平均
socialized S-O-SH /SH-u-l / l-AI-ZT 社交をした
averaged #-a_-v / v-E_-r_ / r_-i_-JT (後ろに続く数値が)平均だった

 

 

What are the usual work hours of Americans?  How do Americans spend their free time?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics asked Americans these questions in a survey.  The American Time Use Survey began in 2003.  It shows how Americans spend their time.

Rachel Krantz-Kent is program manager of the American Time Use Survey.  She says that employed men worked, on average, more hours than employed women.

“One of the interesting things we know from the American Time Use Survey is that, on average, American men spend more time working for pay than American women.  However, while men work more hours than women, we also observe that women are spending more time providing childcare and doing household work such as cleaning and food preparation.”

Based on the 2010 survey, employed people work an average of seven and a half hours a day.  Full-time male workers average 8.2 hours a day.  Women average 7.8 hours a day.

More people work on weekdays than on Saturday and Sunday.  82% of employed people work on weekdays.  35% work on weekends.

From 2005 – 2009, over 50% of American workers started their jobs each day by 8:00 a.m.

The report also tells how Americans spend their time away from work.  On an average day, nearly everyone watched television, socialized, or exercised.  People spent an average of 2.7 hours a day watching television.

Adults 75 years and older averaged 1.1 hours of reading a day on weekends.  People between 15 and 19 years old averaged about six minutes of reading a day.  People 15 – 19 years old spent more time playing games or using a computer.

通勤通学中に聞く、読む、使う (普段はメンバーオンリー記事です)

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Comparing American and Chinese Parents

Voice of America’s Special English  28 March 2011

http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/theclassroom/articles/american_culture/Comparing-American-and-Chinese-Parents-118780719.html

[audio:http://nippondream.com/voa/tigermom_article.mp3|titles=tigermom_article]

http://nippondream.com/voa/tigermom_article.mp3

 

Words Eigonodo symbols Meaning
Battle Hymn B-a_-T / d-l-#-# / H-I-Y_M 戦歌
stuffed animals ST-u_-FT / T-a-N / N-i_-M /M-u-lZ ぬいぐるみ
insult i_-N / S-u_-lT 馬鹿にする
sleepover SL-I-P / P-O-v / v-E_r_ お泊り
playdate Pl-eI-Y_ / D_-eI-T 会って遊ぶこと(プレーデート)
abusive u_-B / B-IU-S / S-i_-v 乱用的、いじわる、暴力的、(精神的)苦痛を与えるような
makes fun of M-eI-K / F-u_-N / N-u_-v からかう
eased #-I-ZT 軽減する、楽にする の過去形
retreat r_-I-T / Tr_-I-T 引き下がること
fragility Fr_-u_-J / J-i_-l / l-i_-T / d-I-Y_ 傷つきやすいこと
stirring of ST-E_r_ / r_-I-NG / G-u_-v テンションがあがること

 

Some American parents might think their children need better educations to compete with China and other countries.  But how much do the parents themselves need to change?

A new book called “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” by Amy Chua has caused a debate about cultural differences in parenting.  Ms. Chua is a professor at the Yale Law School in New Haven, Connecticut, and the mother of two daughters.  She was raised in the American Midwest by immigrant Chinese parents.

In the Chinese culture, the tiger represents strength and power.  In her book, Ms. Chua writes about how shedemanded excellence from her daughters.  For example, she threatened to burn her daughter’s stuffed animals unless she played a piece of music perfectly.  She would insult her daughters if they failed to meet her expectations.

Ms. Chua told NBC television that she had a clear list of what her daughters, Sophia and Louisa, were not permitted to do.

“Attend a sleepover, have a playdate, watch TV or play computer games, be in a school play, get any grade less than an ‘A.’”

Many people have criticized Amy Chua.  Some say her parenting methods were abusive.  She even admits that her husband, who is not Chinese, sometimes objected to her parenting style.  But she says that was the way her parents raised her and her three sisters.

Ms. Chua makes fun of her own extreme style of parenting.  She says she eased some of the pressure after her younger daughter rebelled and shouted, “I hate my life!  I hate you!”

Ms. Chua says she decided to retreat when it seemed like there was a risk that she might lose her daughter.  But she also says American parents often have low expectations of their children’s abilities.

“One of the biggest differences I see between Western and Chinese parenting is that Chinese parents assume strength rather than fragility.”

Stacy DeBroff has written four books on parenting.

“I think that the stirring of this intense debate has to do with what does it mean to be a successful parent and what does it mean to be a successful child?”

Ms. DeBroff says Amy Chua’s parenting style is not limited to Chinese families.  She says it represents a traditional way of parenting among immigrants seeking a better future for their children.

But she also sees a risk.  When children have no time to be social or to follow their own interests, they might not develop other skills that they need to succeed in life.  Stacey DeBroff advises parents to develop their own style of parenting and not just repeat the way they were raised.

 

 

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