跟讀練習: Australian Political System & Voting Explained | Learn Australian English - 通過影片學習英語口語
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147 句
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Liz, I got a letter in the mail last week saying I had to go and vote.
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I did not know this was mandatory.
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I panicked.
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I didn't even know who to vote for.
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I walked in, got the paper, and genuinely had no idea what I was doing.
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Jack, you just described the experience of thousands of new Australians at their very first election.
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And the thing is, in Australia, not voting can get you fined.
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A fine for not voting.
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That's right.
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A fine for not voting.
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Australia is one of very few countries in the world where voting is compulsory, legally required.
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And if you are applying for Australian citizenship, or if you simply want to understand the country you are living in, this episode is essential.
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We are going to break down the entire Australian political system in plain English.
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No jargon.
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No confusion.
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And we will explain the voting system that confuses almost every new voter, including Australian-born ones.
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We will get to that in segment three.
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So stay tuned.
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Hi everyone, I'm Liz and welcome to Learn Australian English, the podcast where we teach you real Australian English through real Australian topics.
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I'm Jack.
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Today, Australian Politics and Voting.
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Now, we know what you might be thinking.
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Politics?
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Really?
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But here is the thing.
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Understanding Australia's political system is not just about being a good citizen.
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If you are applying for Australian citizenship, you will be tested on this.
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And even if you are not, this knowledge will help you follow the news, understand your rights, and participate confidently in Australian life.
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We will also teach you the vocabulary that comes with all of this.
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So by the end of this episode, you will be able to talk about Australian politics comfortably,
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confidently and in completely natural Australian English.
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Let's start with the foundation.
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What type of country is Australia politically?
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Australia is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy.
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Let's break those two terms down.
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A constitutional monarchy means Australia has a monarch, currently King Charles III, as the head of state.
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The head of state is the symbolic leader of the country.
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However, the king does not govern Australia day to day.
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That role belongs to elected Australian leaders.
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The king is represented in Australia by the Governor-General at the national level and by governors in each state.
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The Governor General has important constitutional powers, but by convention does not interfere in day-to-day politics.
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And a parliamentary democracy means Australians elect members of Parliament, or MPs, to represent them and make laws.
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The leader of the country is the Prime Minister, the head of the elected Now, Australia has three levels of government.
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Federal, state and territory and local.
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The federal government handles national issues.
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Defence, immigration, foreign affairs and national economic policy.
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State and territory governments handle things like hospitals, schools and roads within their borders.
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and local councils manage your immediate area, rubbish collection, parks, local planning.
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So when Australians say the government, it is important to know which level they mean.
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The federal government sits in Canberra, Australia's capital city, in the Parliament House.
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Now we get to the part that most people find genuinely fascinating.
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How Australia actually makes its laws.
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And there is one fact coming up that surprises almost everyone.
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Stay with us.
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It is worth knowing.
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The Federal Parliament has two chambers, two houses.
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This is called a bicameral parliament.
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Bi means two, so two chambers.
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The two houses are the House of Representatives and the Senate.
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The House of Representatives is sometimes called the lower house.
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It has 150 members, each representing a specific area, called an electorate or seat.
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The political party that wins the most seats in the House of Representatives forms the government, and their leader becomes the Prime Minister.
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The Senate is called the Upper House.
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It has 76 Senators, 12 from each State and 2 from each Mainland Territory.
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The Senate acts as a House of Review.
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It checks and reviews laws passed by the House of Representatives.
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This system of checks means no single group can push a law through without proper scrutiny.
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And here is the fact I promised.
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The leader of the country, the Prime Minister, is not directly elected by the Australian public.
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Australians vote for their local Member of Parliament.
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And the party that wins majority forms the government.
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The leader of that party becomes Prime Minister.
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So technically you vote for a party, not a Prime Minister.
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This is a crucial distinction, and it explains why Australia can have multiple Prime Ministers in a short period.
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If a party votes internally to change its leader, a new Prime Minister can take office without a general election.
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Australia had six Prime Ministers in ten years at one point.
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That is quite a ride.
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It really was.
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The opposition is the major party that did not win government.
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They form the Shadow Cabinet and hold the government accountable.
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Their leader is called the Leader of the Opposition.
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OK?
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We promised you the voting system that confuses almost everyone.
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Here it is.
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First, the big one.
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Voting in Australia is compulsory.
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That means it is legally required.
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Every Australian citizen aged 18 and over must be enrolled to vote, registered on the electoral role and must attend a polling place on election day.
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If you do not vote without a valid reason, you can be fined.
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Compulsory voting makes Australia quite unusual.
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Only about 20 countries in the world have it.
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The fine for not voting is relatively small, but the principle is significant.
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Australia believes civic participation is a shared responsibility.
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Voting is not just a right here.
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It is a a civic duty.
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Elections are held on Saturdays, always a Saturday, at polling places such as local schools, community halls and town halls.
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You take your name off the electoral roll, receive your ballot papers, go into a private polling booth, mark your vote and place it in the ballot box.
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The process is very well organised and usually quite quick.
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And here is a uniquely Australian election day tradition, the democracy sausage.
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Community groups set up sausage sizzles outside polling places on election day.
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You vote, then you buy a snag in bread.
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It has become a beloved national tradition.
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And there is even a website that tracks which polling places have the best sausage sizzle.
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Only in Australia.
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Only in Australia.
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Now, the voting system itself.
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Australia uses preferential voting, also called ranked choice voting.
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Instead of just choosing one candidate, you number all the candidates in order of your preference.
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Number one is your first choice.
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Number two is your second choice, and so on.
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Your vote goes to your first choice first.
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But if your first choice candidate does not win enough votes, Your vote then transfers to your second choice.
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This continues until one candidate has a majority.
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This means your vote is never truly wasted.
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Even if your favourite candidate does not win, your preference still counts.
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The Australian Electoral Commission – or the AEC – runs all federal elections
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and publishes guides in multiple languages to help voters understand the system.
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Australia's major parties are the Australian Labor Party , known as Labor, and the Liberal Party,
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which often governs in coalition with the National Party.
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There are also minor parties, including the Australian Greens and various independent candidates.
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One important note, the Liberal Party of Australia is actually the Conservative Party, not Liberal in the American sense.
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In Australia, Liberal refers to economic liberalism, free market principles, not social progressivism.
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The Labour Party is the centre-left party, historically linked to the union movement.
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Australia's democratic values include the rule of law, meaning everyone is equal under the law,
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freedom of speech, the right to express your opinions openly,
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freedom of religion, the right to practise any religion or none at all, and the separation of powers.
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The Legislature makes laws, the Executive implements them, and the Judiciary interprets them independently.
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Before we wrap up, for anyone preparing for the Australian Citizenship Test,
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the key facts, Australia is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy.
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head of state is King Charles III, represented by the Governor-General.
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The Prime Minister leads the elected government.
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There are three levels of government.
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The Federal Parliament has two chambers.
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Voting is compulsory from age 18.
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Australia uses preferential voting.
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And Australia's core values are the rule of law, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and equality under the law.
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The test is 20 multiple choice questions.
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You need 15 correct, 75% to pass.
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Five questions of these 20 questions are about Australian values, which you must get all correct to pass.
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And for everyone else, knowing this material makes you a more informed, more confident participant in Australian life.
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That is worth something regardless of your citizenship status.
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Are you preparing for the Australian citizenship test?
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Or did something in this episode surprise you?
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Tell us in the comments.
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And if this episode helped you, please like and subscribe.
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Good luck with the citizenship test.
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See you next time.
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本課的詞彙與口語要點
這節 B2 級別的口語課以影片“Australian Political System & Voting Explained”為素材。 影片中反覆出現的詞有：Australian, Australia, voting, vote, Prime。 這段影片共有 147 個句子、1519 個單詞可供跟讀。 講話部分時長為 11:35。 說話人語速平穩，每分鐘約 131 個詞，很適合跟讀。 86% 的單詞屬於英語最常用的 3,000 詞，其餘的詞建議在練習前先學一下。
影片中的重點詞彙
影片中最難的 15 個單詞，附發音和釋義：
| 單詞 | 發音 | 釋義 |
|---|---|---|
| citizenship 名詞 | /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/ | 公民權 /公民權, 國籍 /國籍 |
| elect 動詞 | /ɪˈlɛkt/ | 選擇 /選擇, 選舉 /選舉 |
| monarchy 名詞 | /ˈmɑnɚki/ | 君主制, 王政 |
| sausage 名詞 | /ˈsɔsɪd͡ʒ/ | 香腸 /香腸 |
| sizzle 動詞 | /ˈsɪzəl/ | 嘯 /嘯, 噝 /噝 |
| govern 動詞 | /ˈɡʌv.ən/ | 治理, 治 |
| confuse 動詞 | /kənˈfjuːz/ | 讓……困惑 /讓……困惑 |
| ballot 名詞 | /ˈbælət/ | 投票 |
| voter 名詞 | /ˈvoʊtɚ/ | 投票者, 選民 /選民 |
| preference 名詞 | /ˈpɹɛf(ə)ɹ(ə)ns/ | 優選 /優選, 選擇 /選擇 |
| bicameral 形容詞 | /bʌɪˈkaməɹəl/ | 兩院制的 /兩院制的, 有兩個議院的 /有兩個議院的 |
| enroll 動詞 | /ɪnˈɹəʊl/ | 註冊 /註冊 |
| fascinate 動詞 | /ˈfæsɪneɪt/ | 誘惑 /誘惑, 迷住 |
| jargon 名詞 | /ˈdʒɑː.ɡən/ | 行話 /行話 |
| progressivism 名詞 | /prəˈɡrɛsᵻvɪz(ə)m/ | 進步主義 /進步主義 |
影片中出現的短語動詞
| 單詞 | 釋義 |
|---|---|
| break down 動詞 | 壞了 /壞了, 出故障 |
| come up 動詞 | 上來 /上來 |
值得反覆跟讀的句子
影片中簡短而完整的句子，可以直接用在日常對話裡：
- I didn't even know who to vote for.
- Let's start with the foundation.
- Let's break those two terms down.
影片中的語法
說話人最常用的結構，並附上影片中的原話：
| 結構 | 影片中的用法 |
|---|---|
| 條件句 if + 從句，will/would + 動詞 — 條件及其結果 | if you are not, this knowledge will help |
| 被動語態 be + 過去分詞 — 強調發生了什麼，而不是誰做的 | will be tested · is represented · is called |
需要注意的發音
說話人用了 3 次縮略和弱讀形式，例如 I'm, didn't。請按聽到的簡短形式來說。
- “sh” 和 “zh” 音: citizenship /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/, preferential /ˈpɹɛf.ɜː(ɹ)ˌɛn.ʃəl/, rubbish /ˈɹʌbɪʃ/, publish /ˈpʌblɪʃ/, distinction /dɪˈstɪŋkʃən/
- 長單詞——注意重音位置: citizenship /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/, compulsory /kəmˈpʌlsəɹi/, electoral /ɪˈlɛk.tɚ.əl/, parliamentary /ˌpɑɹləˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/, confidently /ˈkɑnfɪdəntli/
中文母語者容易讀錯的音：
- /v/ — 不要讀成 /w/，上齒輕觸下唇: govern /ˈɡʌv.ən/, civic /ˈsɪvɪk/, voter /ˈvoʊtɚ/, progressivism /prəˈɡrɛsᵻvɪz(ə)m/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/
- 詞尾子音 — 要讀清楚，後面不要加母音: citizenship /ˈsɪtɪzənʃɪp/, elect /ɪˈlɛkt/, sausage /ˈsɔsɪd͡ʒ/, confuse /kənˈfjuːz/, civic /ˈsɪvɪk/
- /r/ 和 /l/ 的區別: compulsory /kəmˈpʌlsəɹi/, parliamentary /ˌpɑɹləˈmɛnt(ə)ɹi/, preferential /ˈpɹɛf.ɜː(ɹ)ˌɛn.ʃəl/, bicameral /bʌɪˈkaməɹəl/, enroll /ɪnˈɹəʊl/
如何用這段影片練習
- 先完整聽一遍影片，不要開口，記下不認識的單詞。
- 用正常速度逐句跟讀，每句重複到你的節奏與說話人一致為止。
- 錄下自己的聲音並與原聲對比，特別注意 citizenship, elect, monarchy 這類單詞。
什麼是跟讀法？
跟讀法 (Shadowing) 是一種有科學依據的語言學習技巧，最初開發用於專業口譯員的培訓，並由多語言者Alexander Arguelles博士普及。這個方法簡單而強大：您在聽英語母語原聲的同時立即大聲重複——就像是一個延遲1-2秒緊跟說話者的影子。與被動聽力或語法練習不同，跟讀法強迫您的大腦和口腔肌肉同時處理並模模擬實的講話模式。研究表明它能顯著提高發音準確性，語調，節奏，連讀，聽力理解和口語流利度——使其成為雅思口語備考和真實英語交流最有效的方法之一。