VOA慢速英语--美国学校英语学习者人数不断上升

Number of English Learners in US Schools Keeps Rising

The number of English language learners in American public schools continues to rise.

About 9.5 percent of public school students were English language learners in 2015, the U.S. Department of Education reports. That was about 4.8 million students across the country.

That number had risen from 8.1 percent – or 3.8 million students – in 2000, the department’s National Center for Education Statistics¹ said.

The results were also reported by the Pew Research Center.

English language learners, also known as ELLs, are students with limited English abilities. American public school systems seek to identify these students and develop programs to help them improve their English.

The goal is to give students the language skills they need to fully² take part in educational activities and help them succeed in the classroom. Studies have shown clear links between English-language proficiency³ and improved educational results.

The state with the highest number of ELL students is California. Twenty-one percent of its public school students were English language learners in 2015. The next highest states were Texas and Nevada. Nearly 17 percent of both states’ students were ELLs.

In eight states, ELLs made up 10 percent or more of the total public school students.

Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia saw a rise in the number of ELL students from 2010 to 2015. The largest increase – 3 percent – was reported in Massachusetts.

In 14 states, the percentage of ELLs fell in 2015 compared to 2010. The largest drop, which was 4 percent, was reported in the western state of Nevada.

Spanish is by far the most common language spoken at home by ELLs. About 77 percent of the students said they mainly spoke⁴ Spanish at home, the education report said. Twenty-one percent of Spanish-speaking ELLs live in California.

Arabic is the second most common language spoken at home by ELL students. Across America, 2.4 percent of English learners reported speaking mainly Arabic at home. But that percentage was much higher in some U.S. states. For example, about 24 percent of ELLs reported speaking Arabic at home in the northern state of Michigan.

Chinese is the third most commonly spoken language by American ELL students. About 2 percent of the total – or about 101,000 students - identified themselves as Chinese speakers at home. Pew’s report also noted⁵ that across all 50 states, Chinese is among the five most common languages spoken by ELLs.

Vietnamese is the fourth most common language. About 81,000 ELL students reported speaking Vietnamese at home. That is 1.7 percent of all ELLs.

In Hawaii and Alaska, however, the most common language spoken by the states’ ELLs were none of the major languages reported across the country. Instead, the most commonly spoken languages match each state’s main immigrant⁶ or indigenous⁷ populations, the Migration⁸ Policy Institute reported.

In Hawaii, 21 percent of students reported speaking Ilokano, a language native to the Philippines. In Alaska, 40 percent reported speaking Yupik – a family of languages used by the Yupik indigenous population.

About 14 percent of ELLs live in cities, the National Center for Education Statistics reported. Nine percent live in suburban⁹ areas. And around 6.5 percent lived in small towns, while 3.6 percent were in rural¹⁰ areas.

Not surprisingly, most English language learners were in lower grade levels. In 2015, 67 percent of students were either in kindergarten or grades 1 through 5. The other 33 percent were in sixth through 12th grades.

However, 62 percent of American public school districts reported having at least some high school English language learners.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

proficiency – n. the ability to do something very well

indigenous – adj. having always lived or existed in a place

originate¹¹ – v. come from a particular place or begin during a particular period

suburban – adj. relating to an area outside the city where people live

1 statistics   

n.统计，统计数字，统计学

参考例句：

• We have statistics for the last year.我们有去年的统计资料。
• Statistics is taught in many colleges.许多大学都教授统计学。

2 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

3 proficiency   

n.精通，熟练，精练

参考例句：

• He plied his trade and gained proficiency in it.他勤习手艺，技术渐渐达到了十分娴熟的地步。
• How do you think of your proficiency in written and spoken English?你认为你的书面英语和口语熟练程度如何？

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 immigrant   

adj.(从国外)移来的，移民的；n.移民，侨民

参考例句：

• Life in the USA was very hard for almost every new immigrant.美国的生活几乎对每一个新移民都很艰难。
• I'd like to obtain some information about applying for an immigrant visa.我想取一些申请移民签证的资料。

7 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

8 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

9 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

10 rural   

adj.乡下的，田园的，乡村风味的

参考例句：

• He lived a rural life.他过着田园生活。
• We left the city for a rural home.我们离开城市，去农村安家。

11 originate   

vi.起源于，来自；vt.创造，创始，开创

参考例句：

• All carbohydrates originate from plants.所有的碳水化合物均来自植物。
• All theories originate from practice and in turn serve practice.任何理论都来源于实践，反过来为实践服务。