We believe that there is more to education than preparation for a job. Children must be prepared for all aspects(方面) of their future work, personal relationships, creative activities, dealing with money matters, independence, and parenthood.
But it would be unrealistic(不现实的) to provide an education which took no consideration of the needs of employers.
What type of training does the business world regard as important?
Many young people applying for jobs were, in the employers’ opinions, very weak in the basic skills of handwriting, grammar and spelling. “Though additional education at university level improved the students’ general ability,” a report states, “in basic skills the standards remained stubbornly low.”
There are different opinions about whether standards have gone down in recent years. What is certain is that employers do not believe the standards are now high enough. Do technological changes make greater demands upon the students’ abilities?
We should also remember that the job expectations of young people have increased. Girls who would have once become shop assistants or hairdressers now want to be secretaries. Boys who sought an apprenticeship (学徒工作) 20 years ago now desire to have an engineering degree. But it is still the same girls and boys with the same degree of ability. No wonder there are problems in reaching the “necessary standards” of the business world.
Many employers believe that it is important for teachers to have experience outside the world of college and school. They should work for a while at some other kinds of job “to see how the world of business is different from their own”. The teaching occupation and society in general need a greater understanding of manpower needs and therefore of “the desired” direction of the education system.
【小题1】The article mainly talks about _________.| A．no education among young people |
| B．meeting the educational requirements of employment |
| C．the problem of unemployment |
| D．the weaker standards of education |
| A．pay more attention to students’ academic ability |
| B．only meet the needs of employment |
| C．be suitable to all aspects of being an adult, including employment |
| D．center on grammar |
| A．those who are likely to be unemployed |
| B．those who have just left middle school |
| C．those who are looking for jobs far beyond their abilities |
| D．those who might have become shop assistants, hairdressers and apprentices in the past |
| A．never change their jobs | B．improve their teaching methods |
| C．spend more time on their school work | D．get some work experience outside school |
