Adjusting to a New Culture, a Foreign Language

And Life Abroad as a Student

Task 5. Read and translate the text. Comment on new words and expressions.

Study abroad offers a unique opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the adventure and excitement of living in a new culture and exploring a new country. Studying abroad can increase student potential, support personal growth and provide students with life-changing experiences; students can study in a country of their choice.

Student life abroad can be both nerve-wracking and exciting. They speak a foreign language, explore a new culture, see new sites, eat new foods, learn about different traditions and cultures and adapt to them. Students make English-speaking friends and discover student life abroad. If they live in the country long enough, eventually they could feel so comfortable that don’t want to return home from abroad. Speaking a foreign language with strangers and locals students perfect their vocabulary and accent learn more about the language and enlarge their social circle at the same time.

But students could feel homesick. They shouldn’t be shy. They should talk to other students and get involved with student life abroad, either at the university or in the community; try new things, ask plenty of questions, and travel to nearby cities and sites on the weekends. They may stay in their host city during some of free days, be a part of the city and student life abroad, not to be just a visitor or outsider.

No matter how long students have studied a foreign language or prepared for student life abroad, they have at least some difficulties adjusting to the culture of a new country. Social life helps overcome these challenges and surround them with new ideas and new ways of life. These new ideas about American or English cultures and traditions grow and strengthen at the same time. It’s great to be a student and to study abroad. Student life is never boring. It is always full of excitement and interest.

 

Word Check

Task 6. Memorize the key terms, concepts, expressions and their meaning.

1.	adjust	приспособиться
2.	immerse	окунуться, погружаться
3.	adventure and excitement	приключение и волнение
4.	explore	исследовать
5.	life-changing experience	жизненный опыт
6.	nerve-wracking	нервный
7.	discover	открывать, делать открытие
8.	feel homesick	скучать по дому
9.	be shy	быть застенчивым
10.	overcome	преодолеть
11.	challenge	вызов, проблема
12.	be boring	быть скучным

Task 7. Answer the following questions, solve the problems, do the tasks.

 

1. What opportunities does study abroad offer?

2. Are students impressed with studying at colleges abroad? Why?

3. Could students feel homesick? What should be done to help them adapt to life abroad?

4. Do students have any difficulties adjusting to the culture of a new country?

5. What helps students overcome the challenges of living abroad?

6. Student life is never boring, isn’t it? Why?

7. Is English improving rapidly speaking with strangers and locals?

8. Is learning English abroad pleasant, fruitful, rewarding and enjoyable?

9. Why do students strive to learn English abroad? (proficiency in English, a better job, a change of career).

 

Task 8. Developing Speech (Dialogue). Ask and answer questions on “Social Life”.

– We are talking about academic and daily life for students in different countries. Do students have part time jobs and where do they eat? Do they eat at home or in dorms or do they go out?

– Right. Life is quite different. Students in different countries may live with their parents; obviously go to university for the lectures or seminars. I think most of the students have part time jobs or even full time jobs and they study in their free time. If students go to university in their city so they stay at home with their parents but if they choose to go to a different city then they stay at dormitory. If they live in dormitory, they have more social life because that’s where all their social events happen.

– Right.

– Some students have actually never lived in a dormitory so they don’t know what it’s like.

– How about student life in Sydney?

– In Sydney...

– Actually can we have Spain?

– So how about student life in Spain?

– Yeah, I suppose again it depends on the students. Maybe local students and international students have different lifestyles. If they live with a host family, the family may cook for them at least once a week. That is really nice. Every Sunday they may have a really nice meal but apart from that they could eat at the cafeteria or cook at home.

– Really? So what is the typical lunch in Spain for students?

– Well, there aren’t many options at the university so basically what students can buy at the cafeteria is like a sandwich, kind of snack food, they often bring their own lunch and heat it up in the microwave so that’s what a lot of students do to save money too.

– OK. So they could actually cook at home and bring the lunch?

– Yes. They have a cafeteria and there they can bring their own food.

– Oh, OK.

– So I think this is quite convenient.

– Oh, yes. And now let’s move to Sydney?

– Well, Sydney is a lot of fun. There are so many international students, so many different cultures and it’s a big part of education actually. International education in Australia is a huge business as well.

– Really?

– So there are so many international students. In fact, in the class there may be two Australians.

– Wow.

– And the rest are from all over the world.

– Hm. Education is quite expensive for international students to live there. Is that true?

– That’s right. Students have to pay the tuition fees, they need to apply for a student visa and often one of the requirements is students need to show that they have enough funding for the whole course.

– Right.

– And the actual living costs may not be high. It depends where students live. A lot of students share houses.

– Right.

– Or work part time as well.

– So part time work is allowed then?

– Yes. They can work up to twenty hours per week.

– OK.

– While on a student visa.

– Right. So they can have some income at least to support themselves?

– That’s right, but a lot of the students study really hard so there isn’t really much time for part time work.

– Where do students live in Sydney and do they have a share mate or somewhere like that?

– Yes, they may live in a share house with other students. It’s a really common thing to do in Sydney because the rent is so expensive.

– Oh, really?

– So not only students but even working adults often share apartments. They actually move maybe five times while they are there.

– It sounds pretty hard actually.

– It is fun to try living in different areas and with different people.

– Great.

 

Task 8.1 Talk about academic and daily life for students in other countries. Do students have part time jobs and where do they eat? Do they eat at home or in dorms or do they go out?

Work in pairs

Task 9.Work in pairs and make up short dialogues:

1)Speak about academic and daily life for students in different countries. 2) Student life in Britain. 3) Student life in New Zealand. 4) You are confident; you can communicate and have experienced so many traditions and cultures of different countries. 5) The teacher tries to help students with the different tasks, homework and games to try to resolve their problems. Is it so? 6) Describe any customs of your group mate. 7) Speak about special food, clothes and typical activities of foreign students.

 

Task 10. Work in groups: spotlight on formal and informal language

 

In the set of ten, match a formal word on the left with an informal word on the right

 

	inform	a)	come to
	assistance	b)	help
	require	c)	tell
	attend	d)	need
	further	e)	want
	grateful	f)	more
	near future	g)	knowledge, skill
	would like	h)	divide
	share	i)	soon
	experience	j)	happy