Education
Ex.1 Study the following proverbs. Find Russian equivalents. Which of them do you like most? Why?
Live and learn.
Where there is a will, there is a way.
An idle brain is the devil’s workshop.
With time and patience, the leaf of the mulberry becomes satin.
Repetition is the mother of learning.
You can take the horse to the water but you can’t make it drink.
Ex.2 Agree or disagree with the following statements:
- In the modern world, education is crucial for virtually everyone who hopes to obtain a good job or maintain the standard of living.
- In modern societies, education has become an increasingly important factor in determining which jobs people enter and in determining their social class position.
Ex.3 In pairs. Ask your partner to tell you about all the schools and educational institutes they have attended.
Ex.4 Match the subject on the left with the topic on the right.
| 1. mathematics/maths (inf) 2. physics 3. history 4. geography 5. economics 6. PE (physical education) 7. modern foreign language 8. classics 9. chemistry 10. literature 11. politics/political science 12. biology 13. IT (information technology/computer science) 14. art | a. the study of animals, plants and different living things b. gymnastics, sports and physical exercise c. the study or use of numbers and figures to calculate (25y + 13x = 38z) d. the study of heat, light, sound, electricity and energy e. the study of political power (systems of government) f. the study of the history, literature, language and culture of ancient [΄einʃənt] Greece and Rome, the study of Latin g. the study of financial [fai΄nænʃl] systems and the way people produce and sell goods h. the study of great stories, poems and plays i. the study of painting, drawing and sculpture [΄skΛlptʃə] j. the study of different substances [΄sΛbstəns] (chemicals) and the way they react (H2O) k. the study of the countries of the world, oceans, people, animals and plants in different regions l. the study of the past (it happened in the 15th century) m. the use of computers and electronic systems to collect and organize information n. the study of the foreign language, its grammar, phonetics and spelling |
What does this subject deal with?
Ex.5 Ask your partner each other and answer according to the model.
- What does history deal with?
- History deals with the study of the past.
Ex.6 Make a list of the school subjects which were your favourites and the ones you disliked; which subjects you were good at and hopeless at; what marks/grades (Am.) (top / excellent / high / satisfactory / good / low / poor / bad) you got in different subjects. Explain to your partners why you enjoyed or didn’t enjoy them.
Ex.7 Match the words on the left with their definitions on the right. Translate the expressions into Russian.
| 1. pass an exam 2. take an exam 3. take a course in 4. get a degree 5. fail an exam 6. take notes 7. study a subject 8. attend lectures/classes 9. skip classes/lectures 10. give a lecture on 11. get GCSE 12. school-leaving exams/finals 13. enter a university 14. entrance examinations 15. graduate from university/college | a. be unsuccessful in an exam b. be successful in an exam c. learn about a subject by going to school, university etc. or using scientific methods d. do an examination in a certain subject (an examiner tests your knowledge) e. exams that pupils take when they leave school f. examinations that you take to become a student at a university g. complete your studies at a university or a college by getting a first degree h. become a student at a university i. miss classes/lectures deliberately j. write down the important information k. get General Certificate of Secondary Education (public examinations in different subjects students take at the age of about 16) l. the qualification that you get after completing the course at a university (Bachelor's, Master's, and doctoral degrees) m. study a particular subject n. to be present at a lecture o. talk to a group of students about a particular subject |
Ex.8 Ask your partner:
- if children in Russia have to pass school-leaving exams to get GCSE
- what entrance exams he/she had to pass to enter a university
- if he/she how many exams he/she has every year at university
- if he/she attends lectures/classes regularly
- when he/she last skipped lectures/classes
- why it is necessary for students to take notes
- if he/she has ever failed any exams
- if he/she is taking a course in English now
- when he/she will graduate from university
- where is he/she going to work after getting a degree
Stages in a person’s education in Great Britain
Ex.9 Study the following scheme
Here are some names that are used to describe the different types of state/free education in Britain.
| Play-school Nursery school Infant school Junior school Comprehensive school (= are for all abilities) or Grammar school (= children are selected for their academic ability) College or Polytechnic or University (polytechnics are similar to universities, but the courses tend to be more practically-oriented; colleges include teacher-training colleges, technical colleges or general colleges of furthereducation.) | Pre-school (2-5years old) primary (5/6 – 12/13) secondary (12/13 -16/18) further/higher (18+) | mostly play with some early learning basic reading, writing, arithmetic, art, etc. wide range of subjects in arts and sciences and technical areas Degree/diplomas in specia-lised academic areas |
Note: Private/independent schools charge money and are called boarding schools if students live in them.
There are also public schools. In fact, they are private, and parents pay to send their children there. About 5% of the population goes to public schools. Prep/ ( fml) preparatory schools are private schools for younger children. In the US, Australia and Scotland, public schools are free schools provided by the government.
Ex.10 Fill in the gaps in following sentences.
- Before they start school, very young children in Britain may go to a _______________where they play with other children and learn to socialise.
- British children start ____________school at the age of 5 where they are taught ____________________________________________________ and they move to a ______________school at 11 or 13.
- At the age of 13 British pupils go to ____________school, where there curriculum consists of_____________________________________________________________________.
- At the age of 18 or 19, they may go on to ___________________at a university, polytechnic or college.
- Children of all abilities go to _____________school, children with exceptional academic abilities go to ______________ school.
- Children are taught wide range of subjects in arts and sciences and technical areas in ____
__________________school.
- At the age of 16, British pupils take______________exams.
Ex.11 Answer the following questions:
1. What are the stages of education in Great Britain?
2. Who is the infant school for?
3. At what age do children get primary education?
4. Which two parts is primary education subdivided into? What are these two parts called?
5. At what age do children pass on to secondary schools?
6. What opportunities does the English educational system give to the most able children?
7. What children are comprehensive schools open to?
8. The comprehensive schools give a wide range of subjects, don’t they?
9. What is the difference between public schools in Great Britain and the US, Australia and Scotland?
10. What educational opportunities does the system give to people who want to be trained to receive a particular job after leaving school?
11. Are the stages of personal education in Russia the same?
Ex.12 Put each of the following words in the correct space in the passage below.
| staff | primary school | pupils | learn | start | terms | play-school | compulsory | mixed |
Bobby’s parents decided to send him to a 1)when he was three. They wanted him to 2)to play with other children. In Britain children must, by law, 3)school at the age of five. Education is 4)from then. Bobby’s first real school was the 5). There are three 6)a year and holidays at Christmas, Easter and in summer. The 7)are boys and girls together, so it’s a 8)school. The teachers on the 9)are young and friendly. Bobby likes the school.
Ex.13 Instructions as above.
| secondary school | take | specialise | state school | pass | private school | fail | subjects | marks |
Sally has just started her new school at the age of 11. There are different kinds of school from this age, but the general term for them is 1). Sally’s school is a government school, usually called a 2). Some parents pay to send their children to a 3). At first Sally will take a lot of different 4)(history, English, chemistry etc.) but, after a few years, she’ll begin to 5)in things she is good at and interested in. Then she’ll 6)some extra exams. If she can 7)a number of exams with good 8)(A,B,C), it will help her to get a good job. Of course she hopes she doesn’t 9).
Note: Most people go to state schools but some parents pay to send their children to private schools. In England the best known private schools are called public schools. Sometimes students live for the whole term at their boarding school. The most traditional are still single-sex schools but most are now co-educational (co-ed).