A、Less Americans want to earn a higher degree. B、More than 25% of Americans have a college degree now. C、Americans are more educ

The United States Census Bureau is reporting two major developments involving education. For the first time in history, 90% of Americans over 25 years of age have finished high school. In addition, more than one third of Americans over the age of 25 have a college degree or higher. That is a big change from 1940. At that time, a Census Bureau study found that less than 25% of the US population had completed at least four years of high school. It also found that just 4.6% had earned a four-year bachelor’s degree or taken additional classes after completing a study program at a college or university.
The new study found that, in 2017, 54% of Americans who did not complete high school were born outside the United States. The numbers are even higher among Hispanic men and women. 76% of Hispanics born overseas did not have a high school degree. Higher percentages of foreign-born people from all race and ethnic groups have not finished high school. Yet nearly the same amount of foreign-born Americans as people born in the United States have a college education. 34% of US-born Americans have a four-year college degree. That rate is similar to the 33% of those born in other countries.
The value of a high school degree has changed a lot since the 1940s. Today, a high school education is often required for workers in the US job market. The Census Bureau information showed that the 2007 to 2009 recession led more Americans to go to college. During the recession, there was a 33% increase in students registering at two-year colleges. Those new students may have decided to return to school to improve their skills or learn new ones during a time when labor market conditions were worsening. 29% of all students were registered at two-year colleges in 2010, but that number had dropped to 25% in 2015. As the labor market improved, fewer Americans left their jobs to go to college. However, the number of students registered at two-year colleges was still 10% higher in 2015 than in 2006. The Census Bureau found that people can earn more money if they go to college. In 2016, people with high school degrees earned an average of $35,615 per year. Those with a four-year college degree earned $65,482, and people with advanced degrees took home an average of $92,525. There is still a big difference between men and women. Men with a college degree earned an average of $79,927 in 2016. Women with the same level of education were paid an average of $50,856.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the recording you have just heard.
23. What can we learn from the talk?
24. What is the influence of the 2007 to 2009 recession on education?
25. What can we learn from the end of the talk?