When you are teenagers, it's hard to say that you have much free time during the school year. There is always something to learn. All teenagers as well as other children attend school.
Education in Russia is compulsory up to the 9th form inclusive. After finishing the 9th form one can go on to a vocational school which offers programmes of academic subjects and a programme of training in a technical field or a profession. They can also enter technical schools or colleges.
If a pupil of a secondary school wishes to go on in higher education, he or she must stay at school for two more years. After finishing 11 th form of a secondary school, a lyceum or a gymnasium one can go on in higher education. All applicants must take competitive examinations. And it's one of the problems for them. They have very hard and nervous time. Sometimes there are 3, 4, 5 times applicants Tore than the university can admit.
Higher education institutions (institutes and universities) offer a fiye-year programme of academic subjects. All secondary schools, institutes and universities until recently have been funded by the state. Now there is quite a number of private secondary schools, some universities have fee-paying departments. Not all the teenagers can afford it. American teenagers also attend school. But the USA doesn't have a national system of education. All educational matters are left to individual states. 50 states are free to determine their own system for their' own public school. There are two major types o! school in the USA - public and private or fee- paying. Secondary education is provided from the age of 11-12 years. Junior high school is from ages 11-12 up to 14-15 years. A senior high school is for teenagers from 14-15 up to 17 -18 years. High school graduates continue their education at universities. University education is not free and you must pay tuition fees. Usually there are no entrance examinations for candidates to a university, but the well-known universities such as Harvard, for example, have very strict requirements for admission.
Many of the Russian and American teenagers are very busy with their studies, as they know that,good exam results may get them better jobs. But most young people worry more and more about money as well. Many teenagers want to pay for their education themselves or help their parents in it. They also need pocket money to go to the coffee bars, discos, cinemas to wear teenage fashion clothes, etc. For many young people life is harder now. Things are so expensive and it's difficult to find a job for a teenager. Though last years part-time jobs became very popular not only among American teenagers but Russian young people as well. The most popular jobs for teenagers are washing cars, babysitting, delivering newspapers, work in McDonalds, etc. In many places, for example in McDonalds, you must have an interview. And it's very important to get to the interview on time, speak slowly and clearly, show interest for a job you want to get, be polite and, of course, wear clothes suitable for the job. Such behaviour can help to sell yourself in a job.
Some teenagers also do Saturday jobs, for example, they can work in a shop. Most young people try to save a part of money. They want to be independent from their parents. Some of them dream about their own homes, though it's rather expensive and difficult to find a place to live. Another problem of the teenagers is free time, as they want not only to study and work, but enjoy themselves. It is nice to have free time, but only if it comes after some hard work. Only then we can appreciate what free time is. If you had only free time it would be very boring.
I think it's not so easy being a teenager as there are so many problems around you. But at the same time it's great fun. Life is amazing and you are here to prove it.
Topical Vocabulary
compulsory - обязательный
inclusive - включительно
vocational school – профессиональное училище
academic subject – академический предмет
programme of training in – программы подготовки по какому-нибудь предмету
secondary school – средняя школа
higher education – высшее образование
lyceum - лицей
applicant - (зд.) абитуриент, соискатель
competitive examinations –конкурсные экзамены
higher education institution - вуз
to be funded by the state – финансироваться государством
fee-paying – платный
national system of education – национальная система образования…
educational matters – вопросы образования
junior high school – средние классы (первая ступень средней школы)
senior high school- старшие классы (вторая ступень средней школы)
graduate - выпускник
tuition fee – установленная такса за обучение
requirements for admission – требовать при поступлении
studies - учеба
pocket money – деньги на карманные расходы
independent - независимый
amazing- удивительный, восхитительный