Learning English Podcast for Wednesday September 27, 2023

Welcome to Learning English, a daily 30-minute program from the Voice of America. I'm Dan Friedel. And I'm Katie Weaver. This program is aimed at English learners, so we speak slowly and we use words and phrases, especially written for people learning English. Today on the program, Dan Novak looks at a return to traditional teaching methods in Sweden. Then, you'll hear Mario Ritter Jr.'s story about U.S. President Joe Biden's visit with striking autoworkers in Michigan. We close the program with a lesson about the English word conservation from Brian Lynn and John Russell. But first, this story on ancient building materials. Researchers have found a structure that may be the oldest evidence yet of early humans building with wood. The structure is simple, two logs fitted together with a notch. It is half a million years old. It provides a rare look at how ancient human relatives were working with wood and changing their environments, researchers wrote in a study published recently in Nature. Larry Barham of the University of Liverpool in Britain was one of the writers of the study. Barham said, It took me a while before I appreciated what we were looking at. He added about the structure, It didn't look very nice, to be honest, but it is much more complex than I thought. Barham and his team dug up the log structure, and several wooden tools, from a riverbed area that sits above a waterfall in the African country of Zambia. They think the crossed logs could have been the base for a bigger structure, like a walkway or a platform. Barham explained that wood usually rots quickly due to the weather. As a result, little evidence remains of how our ancient relatives used the material. But the log structure that researchers found had been below the river's surface, which helped save them. So when Barham's team found the logs in 2019, they were still able to see signs that early humans had shaped them. Everything just looks so fresh, you think, it cannot be this old, Barham said. It was difficult for researchers to estimate the age of the wood structure. Traditional dating techniques could not get deep enough into the past. In this study, researchers used a new method called luminescence dating. Luminescence dating uses tiny minerals in the sand to estimate how long materials have been buried, explained study writer Jeff Duller. Duller is an expert in dating methods at Aberystwyth University in Wales. The log structure was made at least 476,000 years ago, while the wood tools are slightly younger – under 400,000 years old. That places the materials in a time before our species, Homo sapiens. The earliest known Homo sapiens bones date from roughly 300,000 years ago, in Morocco. The Colombo Falls logs were determined to be from about 476,000 years ago. Early objects would have been made by another kind of early human relative, possibly Homo heidelbergensis, which was around in Africa at the time, the study's writers said. Homo heidelbergensis had a bigger brain case and flatter face than early hominins, species on the human evolutionary lineage. If these ancient humans were putting effort into building these structures, it suggests they may have stayed for a while, or made repeated visits. In other words, they were not just groups of hunter-gatherers, said Dirk Leder of Germany's Lower Saxony State Office for Cultural Heritage. Leder was not involved with the research. Monomika Milks of Britain's University of Reading was also not involved in the study. Milks said about the finding, it's an important window into what these humans were capable of. I'm John Russell. As children returned to school in Sweden last month, many of their teachers were putting a new importance on some traditional skills. These included reading printed books, quiet reading time, and handwriting practice. Teachers were spending less time with digital devices, online research, and typing skills. The return to traditional ways of learning might be the answer to questions raised by politicians and experts. They have questioned the country's dependence on electronic technology in education. For example, schools in Sweden have introduced tablets in preschools, but critics say students are not learning basic skills as well. Lotta Eldholm is the Swedish minister for schools. She took office 11 months ago as part of a new center-right government. She was one of the biggest critics of the level of technology in schools. Sweden's students need more textbooks, Eldholm said in March. Physical books are important for student learning. The minister announced last month that the government wants to reverse the decision made by the National Agency for Education to make digital devices required in preschools. The ministry told the Associated Press that it plans to stop digital learning for children under the age of six. Sweden's students score above the European average for reading ability, but an international test of fourth-grade reading levels, the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, showed Sweden's children had lost ground between 2016 and 2021. Some learning loss might have resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. The losses could also be a result of a growing number of immigrant students who do not speak Swedish as their first language. But an overuse of electronic devices during school lessons may cause kids to fall behind, education experts say. Sweden's Karolinska Institute is a medical school centered on research. There is clear scientific evidence that digital tools impair rather than enhance student learning, the institute said in a statement last month. The institute added that schools should instead center on teaching using printed textbooks and teacher knowledge. Information from digital sources may not be accurate, it said. The expansion of digital learning in schools also has drawn concern from the United Nations Education and Culture Agency. In a report published last month, UNESCO issued an urgent call for appropriate use of technology in education. The report urged countries to speed up internet connections at schools. But it also warned that technology in education should be used in a way so that it never replaces in-person, teacher-led instruction. Online instruction is a highly debated subject across Europe and in other parts of the world. Poland, for instance, just launched a program to give a laptop paid for by the government to each student starting in fourth grade. In the United States, the coronavirus pandemic pushed public schools to provide millions of laptops to students. But there is still a digital divide, which is part of the reason why American schools often use both print and digital textbooks, said Sean Ryan. He is president of the U.S. School Division at textbook publisher McGraw-Hill. Teachers are less likely to use only digital textbooks because some households lack the technology or internet connection at home, he added. To answer Sweden's decline in fourth grade reading performance, the Swedish government announced $64.7 million in book purchases for the country's schools this year. Another $45.3 million will be spent yearly in 2024 and 2025 to speed up the return of textbooks to schools. Not all experts think Sweden's move away from digital technology is only about what is best for students. Criticizing the effects of technology is a popular move with conservative politicians, Neil Selwyn said. He is a professor of education at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. The Swedish government does have a valid point when saying that there is no evidence for technology improving learning, but I think that's because there is no straightforward evidence of what works with technology, Selwyn added. Technology is just one part of a really complex network of factors in education. I'm Dan Novak. I'm Dan Friedell, and you're listening to The Learning English Podcast. Dan Novak joins me now to talk more about today's education story. Welcome Dan. Great to be here. Your story today was about efforts by one country, Sweden, to reduce the amount of time students use digital devices. The current Swedish government wants to reverse a decision made by the country's education agency that makes digital devices required in preschools. Why is Sweden changing course? In a measure of reading scores for European schools, Sweden's scores dropped from 2016 to 2021. Sweden's Swedish minister for schools, Lotta Edholm, argues that a big reason why scores decreased is that there has been too much electronic technology in the classroom. And so now, Swedish schools are going back to traditional ways of learning, teaching handwriting and using printed books, for example. Is there evidence that more time with digital devices caused a drop in reading scores? Well, I think that's where the story gets more complicated. Sweden's Karolinska Institute, a medical school, said there is clear evidence that digital tools hurt learning, but whether they actually caused a drop in reading scores, that's harder to say. There were other factors at play, not least of which the pandemic and the switch to online learning. UNESCO, the United Nations cultural organization, also recently came out with a call for the appropriate use of technology in education. What more can you tell us about this? A new UNESCO report calls on governments to make sure digital learning never replaces in-person instruction. UNESCO said few governments have laws about how digital tools are used in the classroom. Essentially, UNESCO is arguing that technology should be used in ways to help teachers, but not replace them. So, I guess schools around the world should hang on to their books, papers, and pencils. Thanks Dan. You're welcome. Thanks for having me. You're listening to the Learning English podcast from the Voice of America. We'll be right back, but first, this message about one of our educational programs for children. VOA Learning English has launched a new program for children. It is called Let's Learn English with Anna. The new course aims to teach children American English through asking and answering questions and experiencing fun situations. For more information, visit our website, learningenglish.voanews.com. American President Joe Biden joined members of the United Auto Workers, or UAW, on a picket line as they continued their strike against U.S. carmakers Tuesday. Biden's action represents the strongest presidential support in history for striking workers. You deserve the significant raise you need, Biden said, after arriving at a General Motors parts center west of Detroit, Michigan. He walked along the picket line, exchanging fist bumps with striking workers. He said, yes, when asked if UAW members deserved a pay increase, one of the demands that the union has made. No deal, no wheels, workers said loudly as Biden arrived. No pay, no parts. Candidates have appeared at strikes to show support for union members. During his 2020 Democratic primary campaign, Biden and others joined a picket line of casino workers in Las Vegas, Nevada. But sitting presidents have to balance the rights of workers, businesses, and economic concerns. They have long avoided such appearances. No president has ever walked a picket line before, said Eric Loomis, a professor at the University of Rhode Island and an expert on U.S. labor history. Loomis added that presidents saw themselves more as mediators. They did not see it as their place to directly intervene in a strike or in labor action. Biden's action represents the strongest presidential support for striking workers since 1902. In that year, University of Texas historian Jeremy Suri said, President Theodore Roosevelt invited striking coal workers to the White House. Biden joined the striking workers one day before former President Donald Trump plans another event with autoworkers in Detroit. Trump is the leading candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, and will likely face Biden in the general election. The UAW strike against three major American carmakers started 12 days ago on September 14. The UAW targeted General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis, the maker of Chrysler and Jeep. 13,000 autoworkers went on strike that day, and another 5,600 joined them last week. The labor union is asking for fewer working hours, improved benefits, and a 36 percent raise in pay over four years. The group is also asking for union representation at new electric vehicle battery factories. The group said workers had given up raises for many years to help auto companies through the 2007-2009 financial crisis. American auto companies also received government support at the time, but have since become very profitable. The three companies have received net income of $164 billion since, and $20 billion this year. On Monday, Biden said, I think the UAW gave up an incredible amount back when the automobile industry was going under. They gave everything from their pensions on, and they saved the automobile industry. He added that workers should benefit from carmakers' riches. Americans believe Biden's push for electric vehicles, or EVs, is unpopular with autoworkers. In a statement on Tuesday, Trump accused Biden of stabbing autoworkers in the back. Biden's EV push, he said, will hurt the U.S. auto industry and cost jobs. The auto industry and its labor unions usually play an important part in elections in Michigan and other Midwestern states. In 2016, Trump captured the White House by winning the state of Michigan, among others. Biden won Michigan in 2020. I'm Mario Ritter, Jr. In this report, Brian Lynn talks to us about a bird, the Atlantic puffin. We learn about problems that the Atlantic puffin population is facing. Pay careful attention to the word conservation. We will explore the word in greater detail after the report. Scientists studying the Atlantic puffin population off the coast of Maine say the birds are now recovering after suffering major losses in 2021. Atlantic puffins look and walk similarly to penguins. Wildlife officials say reproductions for the animals on islands off the coast of Maine fell sharply in 2021. But last year, about two-thirds of puffins in the area produced young. While the numbers did not reach that same level this year, the birds still had a better year than in 2021. The main reason for the decreasing numbers is a drop in the population of small fish puffins feed on, such as herring. Two years ago, puffin colonies suffered one of the lowest reproduction rates in many years because of a lack of those fish. Only about one-quarter of the birds were able to raise young in 2021. Environmental groups have linked the lower fish populations in the area to warming ocean temperatures. The Gulf of Maine, which has puffin colonies on its islands, is warming faster than most of the world's oceans. Some recent years have been especially warm, and local climate officials have said this summer appears to have been still unusually warm. Bill Seidman is the president and chief scientist at the Farallon Institute, a conservation organization based in California. He told the Associated Press the reasons for the puffin population drop include deadly heat waves, loss of food, loss of islands to sea level rise, and an inability to reproduce or breed. The problem with climate change is these breeding failures and low breeding productivity years are now becoming chronic, Seidman said. There will be fewer young birds in the population that are able to recruit into the breeding population. Maine's puffins are the only breeding Atlantic puffins in the United States. Worldwide, the species lives in the North Atlantic from Maine and Canada to Europe. Other countries with large puffin populations, such as Iceland, have also seen their bird populations drop. The Maine puffin population once fell to only about 70 pairs in an area known as Matinicus Rock. Hunters who went after the birds for their meat and feathers had nearly destroyed them by the early 1900s. Stephen Kress is a scientist with the Autobahn Society who has sought to grow puffin colonies since the 1970s. His attempts included moving young puffins from Canada to Eastern Egg Rock, another small island in the area. Wildlife officials say adult birds in the colonies appear fairly strong, and it's likely the population is stable and it could still be growing, said Don Lyons. He is the director of conservation science at the National Autobahn Society's Seabird Institute in Brayman, Maine. The difficulties facing seabirds make successful breeding seasons especially important, said P.D. Bursma. She is a University of Washington professor of biology and director of the university's Center for Ecosystem Sentinels. What that means is we should be more cautious and concerned about reproductive failures and things like that to make sure that in good years, everyone that wants to has a chance to breed and do well, Bursma said. I'm Brian Lynn. Before the report, we asked you to pay careful attention to the word conservation. Can you remember when you heard the term? You heard conservation a couple of times in the report. Here is one example. Bill Seidman is the president and chief scientist at the Farallon Institute, a conservation organization based in California. Let's start by breaking apart the word conservation. We have conserve and the ending ation. Conserve is a verb. The online etymology dictionary says that conserve, meaning to keep safe or preserve from loss or decay, dates to the late 14th century. It comes from the Old French conserver, which in turn comes from Latin. From the verb conserve, we drop an e and add an ation ending to get the noun conservation. The word first appeared in the mid-15th century, the online etymology dictionary tells us. Conservation has been used since then when talking about local authorities who had charge of rivers, sewers, fishing areas, and so on. In the early 1900s, English speakers began to use conservation when talking about the preservation of nature and wild places. In the present day, we generally use conservation to mean the act of keeping something in good condition—animals, the environment, natural resources. But you might also hear conservation used to talk about keeping objects, such as artwork or furniture, in good condition. So, we have conserve, a verb, and conservation, a noun. Did you notice something about how I stress different parts of the words? In the verb conserve, I stress the second part of the word. Listen again, conserve. In the noun conservation, I stress the first part of the word. Listen again, conservation. We hope this lesson will help you remember and use the word conservation in the future. And that's the lesson of the day. I'm John Russell. That's the Learning English podcast for today. Thank you, John, for that lesson, and thanks to Brian Lynn for the report on the Atlantic Puffin. Most importantly, thank you for listening. For more, visit our website at learningenglish.voanews.com. I'm Katie Weaver. And I'm Dan Friedel.