Higher Education: Meeting The Need For A Skilled Workforce

1._________________ in general has grown greatly. Census data shows that in 1980, only 32% of US

adults under 25 had 2._______________ or completed any college coursework. By 2000, this number had

jumped to 52%.

The main driver behind the increase in higher education is the huge change in the overall 3.

_____________ of the US over the last fifty years. Changes in technology and globalization of the economy

means the once-large manufacturing base of the United States has dwindled. Those jobs 4.

______________ 40% of workers in 1950, but by 2000 had shrunk to include only 18% of the

5.____________. Most workers are now employed by the service sector, where more specialized skills are

often a necessary requirement for finding a job. As a result, some 6. ________________ is now seen as

critical for workplace viability by a majority of the population.

And a majority of the population is now online: in 1997, less than 20% of US households had Internet

access. By 2007, that percentage had grown to 61.7%. Internet access took only 7 years to reach 25% of US

households, compared with 35 years for the television and 46 for household electricity. As with music,

television, and newspapers, higher education needs to move to 7. ________________ if it wants to expand

its user base. Also, 8. _______________ are having trouble maintaining 9. _________________ that meet

the growing college populationʼs 10.______________. While the 11._________________ of running an

online degree program arenʼt tremendous (or at least arenʼt a driving concern for university officials), itʼs

generally easier for colleges to move programs online than it is for them to build extensions to their

campuses.

The sagging economy has also been good for online education. The Sloan Consortiumʼs findings revealed

that many institutions expect more working adults to turn to 12. _____________ to build new skills or

enhance existing ones to better their chances 13.________________, and also to avoid paying higher 14.

________________ as commuter students.

This is probably a safe bet: nearly 90 million adults participate in some form of continuing education every

year even during good times, according to Census data. The convenience of being able 15.

___________________ without giving up 16. _______________ makes online education attractive to working

adults. As those adults strive to continue earning, theyʼll want to continue learning.

Exercise 6. Translate the texts into English

Text 1