Shadowing Practice: Mike Rowe: Why The Skills Gap And Job Shortage Persists - Learn English Speaking with Video
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88 sentences
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Looking for a job?
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Well, the U .S has plenty, but not enough people to fill them, apparently.
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According to the recent JOLTS survey, there were 6 .66 million open jobs in June.
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Industries like construction and manufacturing have a tough time finding skilled labor in this tight labor market.
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It's affecting the housing market, for example.
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Our next guest's charity recently donated $600 ,000 to individuals pursuing a skilled trade
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and he knows a thing or two about tough jobs.
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Of course, with us, our friend Mike Rowe, the host of Somebody's Gotta Do It.
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He's the head of Mike Rowe Works and former host of Dirty Jobs.
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Michael, always good to see you.
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Welcome back.
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Nice to be here.
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Thanks for having me.
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Why are we in a situation now where we have this disconnect?
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There are a lot of jobs out there.
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They're scrambling to find workers, but there are still people looking for jobs at this point.
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What's your take on that?
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Because the definition of a good job is completely within our purview to define.
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But we almost never do it in a way that's an accurate representation of the times that we're currently living in.
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So in my view, when I started Microworks, it was 2008 on Labor Day.
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There were 2 .3 million jobs, according to the feds, that existed at that point in time.
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Of those jobs, 75 % did not require a four -year degree.
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They required training.
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So even at the height of the recession, when the headline news was all about unemployment, everywhere I was going, I saw help wanted signs.
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So for me, the disconnect really began around the issue of PR.
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What does an aspirational good job look like in 2008?
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So today it's 2018.
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Ten years have gone by we have, as you say, 6 .6 million available jobs, proving perhaps that I've done more harm than good.
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I don't really have a pithy answer for you, but I can tell you this.
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Everything is politicized today, including the skills gap.
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The existence of 6 .6 million jobs is a very inconvenient truth for a lot of people who believe
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that opportunity is dead.
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And so what happens is when we try
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and talk about the existence of this much opportunity half the country will say well it's
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because the jobs are lousy or employers are greedy
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and don't pay enough and the other half will say it's
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because people are fundamentally lazy
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and don't want to work both missed the point the opportunities are real
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and they're there
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and I've done my best to reward them every year there's
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been a real societal push for everybody to get a college degree hasn't there I'm old
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when i was in high school i went to school in new hampshire big libertarian state
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and the guidance counselors would tell some kids don't go to
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college go to community college go learn how to fix a
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car go do this trade school go to a trade school i doubt
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that happens i don't know if it probably still happens in new hampshire
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but i doubt
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that happens in a lot of part of the country it
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doesn't you're right it's been those kind of jobs have been minimized
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and and they shouldn't be they're so crucial
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and satisfying you're talking about the part of our labor force that keeps the lights on, keeps the plumbing working.
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You know, we're talking about jobs, not classic manufacturing jobs, although they fall under that rubric.
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You're really talking about jobs that can't be outsourced.
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The opportunities that my foundation looks for goes beyond guidance counselors and beyond parents and beyond peer pressure.
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We're just trying to reward work ethic because I've always believed and still believe that it's still very much for sale.
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And if you find a kid who's willing to show up early stay late
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and actually learn a skill that's in demand then
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that opportunity simply there's never been a better time to be an ambitious well -trained plumber
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so you'll see for yourself
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if you need one call one see how long it takes to get and they're expensive they pay well
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so so mike where should
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that public relations campaign for the good job of 2018 where should
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that originate from should it be the private sector should it
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be the government i mean I don't want to politicize this either
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but somebody's got to start saying hey you know what take a look at these jobs
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and guys we might give you the training for it as well.
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Anybody who's got skin in the game.
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So obviously elected officials have a role to play in this
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and so does the private sector and so do parents and so do guidance counselors.
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There was a campaign I bet you remember this.
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Remember the Indian on the side of the road?
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Yep.
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Weeping right?
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That was a very, very effective, maybe the most effective PR campaign of all time.
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And it came out of Keep America Beautiful.
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Long before green was a thing, our country had a horrible littering problem.
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We just left our stuff behind everywhere.
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We needed a concerted effort to redefine our collective relationship with littering.
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The country now needs a concerted effort to redefine its collective relationship with the definition of a good job.
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and so there's not a there's not a glib answer it has to happen on a lot of different fronts
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but that campaign keep america beautiful 1953
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that was the result of a consortium there was federal money
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but coca -cola was involved big businesses were involved and concerned individuals
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and together they actually moved the needle the problem is it
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really took about 12 to 15 years before anything demonstrably happened
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right turning a tanker around exactly you're talking about perception
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so the short answer is everybody all the time for the next decade there I'm glad we solved
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that no problem happy to help
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 88 sentences and 988 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:36. The speaker talks at a natural 176 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| skill noun | /skɪl/ | A capacity to do something well; a technique, an ability, usually acquired or learned, as opposed to abilities that are regarded as innate. |
| guidance noun | /ˈɡaɪdəns/ | The act or process of guiding. |
| counselor noun | /ˈkaʊnsələ(ɹ)/ | A professional who counsels people, especially on personal problems. |
| reward noun | /ɹɪˈwɔɹd/ | Something of value given in return for an act. |
| collective adjective | /kəˈlɛktɪv/ | Formed by gathering or collecting; gathered into a mass, sum, or body. |
| litter noun | /ˈlɪt.ɚ/ | Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals. |
| harm noun | /hɑːm/ | Physical injury; hurt; damage. |
| charity noun | /ˈtʃæɹɪti/ | An organization, the objective of which is to carry out a charitable purpose. |
| horrible adjective | /ˈhɔɹ.ɪ.bəl/ | Causing horror; terrible; shocking. |
| worker noun | /ˈwɝ.kɚ/ | One who works: a person who performs labor for a living; traditionally, especially, manual labor. |
| solve verb | /sɒlv/ | To find an answer or solution to a problem or question; to work out. |
| representation noun | /ˌɹɛp.ɹə.zɛnˈteɪ.ʃən/ | That which represents something else. |
| define verb | /dɪˈfaɪn/ | To determine with precision; to mark out with distinctness; to ascertain or exhibit clearly. |
| relation noun | /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/ | The manner in which two things may be associated. |
| crucial adjective | /ˈkɹuː.ʃəl/ | Essential or decisive for determining the outcome or future of something; extremely important; vital. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| fall under verb | To belong to for purposes of categorization. |
| show up verb | To appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 28 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, they're, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: ethic /ˈɛθ.ɪk/, pithy /ˈpɪθi/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: representation /ˌɹɛp.ɹə.zɛnˈteɪ.ʃən/, relation /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/, crucial /ˈkɹuː.ʃəl/, perception /pɚˈsɛpʃ(ə)n/, ambitious /æmˈbɪʃ.əs/
- Long words — get the stress right: representation /ˌɹɛp.ɹə.zɛnˈteɪ.ʃən/, unemployment /ʌn.ɪmˈplɔɪ.mənt/, consortium /kənˈsɔː.ti.əm/, libertarian /ˌlɪbɚˈtɛə̯ɹi.ən/, politicize /pəˈlɪtɪˌsaɪz/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like skill, guidance, counselor.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have gone · I've done · it's been |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is politicized · have been minimized · can't be outsourced |
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.