et到了吗？- 2 [中英双语]。
看完奥巴马这场演讲, 你还会觉得上学无用吗？上学的真正意义,你Get到了吗？- 2 [中英双语]
英文演讲阅读

In September 2009, just as the new school year began, President Barack Obama delivered a speech titled "Why We Go to School" at Wakefield High School in Arlington County, Virginia. This speech was broadcast live on television, targeting primary and secondary students nationwide, with the aim of inspiring them to cherish educational opportunities, clarify personal responsibilities, and emphasize the importance of education for the country's future. Students from kindergartens to the third year of high school across the country watched the speech together through the live television broadcast.

2009年9月，正值新学年开学之际，美国总统奥巴马在弗吉尼亚州的阿林顿郡韦克菲尔德高中发表了题为《我们为什么要上学》的演讲。这场演讲通过电视直播，面向全国中小学生进行，旨在激励学生们珍惜教育机会，明确个人责任，并强调教育对国家未来的重要性。全国各地的中小学生，包括从幼儿园到高三的学生，通过电视直播共同观看。

Obama mentioned that every student has their own strengths and talents, and education provides opportunities to discover these talents. He encouraged students not to fear failure, as the most successful people in the world often have experienced the most failures. Obama also emphasized the responsibilities of families, schools, and governments in education, but above all, he highlighted the responsibility of the students themselves.

奥巴马提到，每个学生都有自己的长处和才能，教育提供了发现这些才能的机会。他鼓励学生们不要害怕失败，因为世界上最成功的人士往往也经历过最多的失败。奥巴马还强调了家庭、学校和政府在教育中的责任，但最重要的是学生自己的责任。

Education is the cornerstone of personal growth and development, enabling students to discover their talents and potential. It represents the hope for a country's future, as what students learn in school will determine how well the nation meets challenges in the future. Everyone should shoulder their own responsibilities in education, cherish learning opportunities, and strive for success.

教育是个人成长和发展的基石，能够帮助学生发现自己的才能和潜力。教育是国家未来的希望所在，学生们在学校中学习的内容将决定国家在未来迎接挑战时的表现。每个人在教育中都应承担自己的责任，珍惜学习机会，努力追求成功。

This speech not only had a widespread impact at the time, but also provided invaluable inspiration and motivation for educators and students in later generations.

这场演讲不仅在当时产生了广泛的影响, 也为后来的教育工作者和学生提供了宝贵的启示和激励。

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. The future of America depends on you. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.

这并⾮只对你个⼈的⼈⽣和未来意义重⼤。可以毫不夸⼤地说, 教育给你带来的益处将决定这个国家的未来, 美国的未来取决于你们。你们今⽇在校学习的知识将决定我们作为⼀个国家是否能够迎接我们未来所⾯临的最严峻挑战。

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical-thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.

你们将需要利⽤你们通过⾃然科学和数学课程所学到的知识和解决问题的能⼒来治愈癌症、艾滋病及其他疾病, 开发新的能源技术和保护我们的环境。你们将需要利⽤你们在历史学和社会学课堂上所获得的知识和独⽴思考能⼒来抗击贫困和解决⽆家可归问题, 打击犯罪和消除歧视, 使我们的国家更公平、更⾃由。你们将需要利⽤你们在所有课堂上培养的创造⼒和智慧来创办新公司，增加就业机会，振兴我们的经济。We need every single one of you to develop your talents and your skills and your intellect so you can help us old folks solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that -- if you quit on school -- you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.

我们需要你们每个⼈发挥你们的聪明才智和技能，以便帮助⽼⼀辈⼈解决我们⾯临的最棘⼿问题。如果你们不这样做，如果你们辍学，你们不仅仅是⾃暴⾃弃，也是抛弃⾃⼰的国家。

Now, I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.

我⾃然知道要做到学业优秀并⾮总是易事。我知道你们许多⼈在⽣活中⾯临挑战，难以集中精⼒从事学业。

I get it. I know what it’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mom who had to work and who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us the things that other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and I felt like I didn’t fit in.

我明⽩这⼀点。我有亲⾝感受。两岁时，我⽗亲离家⽽去，我是由⼀位单亲母亲抚养成⼈的，母亲不得不⼯作，并时常为⽀付⽣活费⽤⽽苦苦挣扎，但有时仍⽆法为我们提供其他孩⼦享有的东西。有时，我渴望⽣活中能有⼀位⽗亲。有时我感到孤独，感到⾃⼰不适应社会。

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been on school, and I did some things I’m not proud of, and I got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.

我并⾮总是像我应该做到的那样专⼼学习，我也曾做过我如今不能引以为豪的⼀些事情，我曾惹过不应该惹的⿇烦。我的⼈⽣原本会轻易陷⼊更糟糕的境地。

But I was -- I was lucky. I got a lot of second chances, and I had the opportunity to go to college and law school and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, she has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have a lot of money. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.

但是, 我当年际遇不错。我有过许多第⼆次机会, 我有幸能上⼤学，上法学院，追求⾃⼰的理想。我的妻⼦，我们的第⼀夫⼈⽶歇尔•奥巴马, 也有着类似的经历。她的⽗母都未曾上过⼤学, 家⾥很穷。但他们⾮常勤奋，她也是如此，因此她得以进⼊⼀些美国最好的学校。

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.

你们中有⼀些⼈可能没有那些有利条件。或许你们⽣活中没有成年⼈为你们提供你们所需要的⽀持。或许你们家中有⼈失业，经济⾮常拮据。或许你们⽣活在使你们感觉不安全的社区，或有朋友逼迫你们去做你们知道不对的事情。

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life -- what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home -- none of that is an excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude in school. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. There is no excuse for not trying.

然⽽说到底，你们⽣活的环境、你们的肤⾊、你们的原籍、你们的经济收⼊、你们家中的境况等等，这⼀切都不能成为你们不⽤功或不努⼒的理由。你们没有理由不服从你们的⽼师、逃学、或辍学。没有理由不付出努⼒。

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you, because here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

你们⽬前的状况并不决定着你们的未来。没有⼈决定你们的命运，在美国，你们决定⾃⼰的命运。你们掌握⾃⼰的未来。

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.

这就是像你们这样的年轻⼈每天都在做的事情，全美各地都是如此。

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Neither of her parents had gone to college. But she worked hard, earned good grades, and got a scholarship to Brown University -- is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to becoming Dr. Jazmin Perez.

来⾃得州罗马城的贾兹敏•佩雷斯(Jazmin Perez)就是⼀个例证, 她刚开始上学时并不会说英⽂。她的⽗母都没有上过⼤学。然⽽, 她⾮常勤奋, 成绩优秀, 获得了布朗⼤学的奖学⾦, 她如今正在读研究⽣, 攻读公共卫⽣专业，不久将成为贾兹敏•佩雷斯博⼠。

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s had to endure all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer -- hundreds of extra hours -- to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind. He’s headed to college this fall.

我想起了加州洛斯阿尔托斯城的安多尼•舒尔茨(Andoni Schultz)，他从三岁开始就⼀直与脑癌进⾏抗争，他不得不忍受各类治疗和⼿术带来的痛苦，其中⼀项⼿术曾影响了他的记忆，因此他花在功课上的时间⽐⼀般⼈长得多，要多出数百个⼩时。然⽽, 他从未落后。他今年秋季将迈进⼤学。

And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods in the city, she managed to get a job at a local health care center, start a program to keep young people out of gangs, and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.

我还想起家乡伊利诺伊州芝加哥市的尚特尔•史蒂夫(Shantell Steve)。她曾在芝加哥最困难的社区⽣活，寄养于多个不同的家庭，但她最终在⼀家地⽅医疗中⼼找到⼯作，并开始了⼀项帮助年轻⼈远离流氓团伙的计划，她即将以优异成绩从中学毕业，紧接着将上⼤学。

And Jazmin, Andoni, and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They face challenges in their lives just like you do. In some cases they’ve got it a lot worse off than many of you. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their lives, for their education, and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.

贾兹敏、安多尼和尚特尔与你们中间的每个⼈没什么两样。跟你们⼀样, 他们在⽣活中⾯临种种挑战。在某些情况下, 他们的处境⽐起你们许多⼈更差。但他们拒绝放弃。他们决定要为⾃⼰的⼀⽣、⾃⼰的教育负起责任，为⾃⼰设定各项奋⽃⽬标。我期待你们⼤家都会这样做。