Education is not an end, but a means to an end.

教育不是目的，而是达到目的的一种手段。

In other words, we do not educate children only for the purpose of educating them; our purpose is to prepare them for life.

也就是说，我们并不仅仅是为了教育孩子而教育孩子；我们的目的是要让他们适应生活。

As soon as we realize this fact, we will understand that it is very important to choose a good way of teaching children.

一旦认清这一点，我们便会理解，选择一种好的教育方法是十分重要的。

In many modern countries it has for some time been fashionable to think that, by free education for all-whether rich or poor, clever or stupid, one can solve all the problems of society and build a perfect nation.

在许多现代化国家，一些年来流行的看法是，对所有孩子－不管富裕还是贫穷，聪明还是愚笨--实行免费的义务教育，我们就能解决一切社会问题，建设一个完美的国家。

But we can already see that free education for all is not enough: we find in such countries a far larger number of people with university degrees than there are jobs for them to fill.

但是，我们已经看到，对所有人实行义务教育是不够的：我们发现，在这些国家，大学程度的人很多很多，多到没有那么多工作岗位让他们去填满。

Because of their degree, they refused to do what they think is "low" work; and in fact, physical labor is thought to be dirty and shameful in such countries.

由于学历高，他们拒绝去做那些他们认为是"低贱"的工作；事实上，在这些国家，动手的体力活儿被看作是肮脏、丢脸的工作。

But we have to understand that the work of a completely uneducated farmer is more important than that of a professor in a way: we can live without education, but we die if we have no food.

但我们必须懂得，从某种程度上说，一个完全没有受过教育的农民的工作比一位教授的工作更为重要；没有教育我们仍能活下去，但没有食物我们便会饿死。

If no one cleaned our streets and took the rubbish away from our houses, we should get terrible diseases in our towns.

在城镇里，假如没有人清扫街道，没有人把屋子里的垃圾弄走，我们就会得可怕的疾病。

In countries where there are no servants because nobody is willing to do such work, the professors have to waste their time doing housework.

在一些国家，由于没有人愿意干这种活儿，便会没有佣人，那么教授们就不得不浪费许多时间自个儿干家务。

In fact, when we say that all of us must be educated to prepare us for life, it means that we must be educated in such a way that, firstly, each of us can do whatever job is suited to his brain and ability, and secondly, that we can realize that all jobs are necessary to society, and that it is very bad to be unwilling to do one's work, or to laugh at someone else's.

事实上，我们说所有人都必须受教育以适应生活，意思是说我们必须以这样的方式接受教育：首先，我们每一个人都能做与他自己脑力和体力相适应的工作；其次，我们能够认识到，对社会来说所有工作都是必要的，不愿干自己的工作或嘲笑别人的工作都是不对的。

Only such a type of education can be called valuable to society.

只有这样一种教育才能叫作对社会有价值的教育。