II. Translate into English

1.    Букингемский дворец - официальная лондонская резиденция английской королевы

2.    Сити - это старейшая часть города. Именное этого места начал расти Лондон.

3.    Картинные галереи Лондона - богатейшие в мире.

4.    Лондон гордится своими великолепными мостами через Темзу. Наиболее известен Вестминстерский, Лондонский и Тауэрский мосты.

5.    Самые знаменитые древние здания - собор Святого Павла, Вестминстерское аббатство, Лондонский Тауэр.

6.    Вест-Энд - район богатых магазинов, театров, ресторанов.

7.    Лондонский порт и доки находятся в Ист-Энде.

8.    Лондонский Тауэр, построенный для защиты Лондона, был крепостью, дворцом и тюрьмой.

 

III. Speak on the given topics:

1. The City. 2. The West End. 3. The East End. 4. The district of Westminster. 5. The Tower. 6. St. Paul’s Cathedral. 7. Trafalgar Square.

 

Text 2

Translate the test using a dictionary

The Growth of London

London was first built on two low hills on the north bank of the Thames. Although the river was just shallow enough to ford, its south side was marshy and enemies found it difficult to launch a surprise attack. So a settlement grew up on these two hills, and in the course of tome a wall was built around them and the settlement became the town which the Romans called Londinium. On one of these hills St. Paul’s Cathedral now stands and on the other the Bank of England.

Although Londinium was quite an important Roman town, it was Winchester that was the capital of Anglo-Saxon England. In the 11th century William the Conqueror made London his capital and was crowned King there.

During the Middle Ages London was divided into two parts - the court part and the merchants’ part. The court part had moved west to Westminster, the «Church in the West», while the merchants remained in the City.

In 1664, during the reign of Charles II, London was attacked by an outbreak of plague («Great Plague of London»). When the plague was past its worst, another disaster fell upon London. Fire broke out in a house near London Bridge, the crowded wooden houses round burned easily, and the fire spread until most of London was a sea of flames.

The Great Fire had some good results, for it destroyed the crowded and dirty streets and it gave the people the opportunity to build a new and healthier London.

Unfortunately, even though the great architect, Sir Christopher Wren was given the job, he was not able to carry it out completely, as people who had lost their houses and shops wanted to have them rebuilt as they had been before. Wren was, however allowed to rebuild St. Paul’s and a large number of parish churches.

In the 18th century London began to spread into the open countryside round about.

London in the 19th century was better drained than before. Railways began to be built and factories grew up. At night streets were lit, first by gas and then by electricity. In many ways London was becoming a better place to live in.

 

I V. Дайте краткое изложение текста по следующей схеме:

I.    The text deals with...

II.   The first part of the text is devoted to...

III. The second part says about (that)...

IV. Thus we learn from the text about (that)...

 

Unit 9

Conversational topic Education

Education in Britain

Text 1

British education has many different faces, but one goal. Its aim is to realize the potential of all, for the good of the individual and society as a whole.

Compulsory primary education begins at the age of 5 in England, Wales and Scotland, and 4 in Northern Ireland. Around half of 3-and 4- year olds in Britain receive nursery education, and many other children attend preschool playgroups, mostly organized by parents.

Children usually start their school career in an infant school and move to a junior school or department at age 7. In some parts of the country, though, children begin at a first school at age 5, and move on to a middle school at age 8, 9, or 10. Primary schools vary in size and location, some having as few as two teachers and others as many as 30.

At the age of 11 most children go to a comprehensive school where they stay until they are 16. In the past children went to different types of secondary schools, but in most parts of the country everybody now goes to a comprehensive. In Britain most children of compulsory secondary school age (11 to 16) receive free education financed from public funds.

Some parents, who do not want their children to go to a comprehensive pay to send them to a private school. The most expensive and prestigious private schools are actually called public school.

At 7 and 11 years old (and at secondary school, at 14 and 16), teachers measure children’s progress in each subject against attainment targets. In English, for instance, there are five basic targets: speaking and listening; reading; writing; spelling; and handwriting. For each target, there are ten levels of attainment. For example, in order to achieve attainment level 2 in writing, a child should, amongst other things, be able to structure sequences of real or imagined events coherently in chronological accounts - this could be in an account of a family occasion, or in a practical mathematics task, or in an adventure story.

At the age of 16 children take their examinations. Most take General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) qualifications. Ordinary Levels - normally called just «O» Levels. Children take «O» Levels in as many subjects as they want to; some take one of two, others take as many as nine or ten.

If you get good «O» Levels results, you can stay on at school until you are 18, in the Sixth Form. Those who stay on at school after GCSE usually study for two further years for «A» (Advanced) level exams in two or three subjects.

They can broaden their range by taking «AS» levels, which demand the same standard of work as «A» levels but cover only half the content, or by taking courses leading to vocational qualifications.

Education doesn’t stop with leaving school. Further education in particular is learning which, with its strong ties with commerce and industry, is vital in the effort to keep Britain economically competitive. In 1991 the Government published plans aiming to ensure that everyone over 16 is encouraged to continue in education or training, and to remove barriers between academic and vocational education.

Over 500 colleges of further education run courses on everything from catering to business studies. Most further education courses are vocational, but many colleges offer more academic courses, such as GCSE, and «A» levels. There are 400.000 full-time further educational students and 4 million who attend college part-time, by day or block release from their jobs or in the evening.

The new National Vocational Qualifications are designed to ensure the relevance of vocational qualifications to employers. More than 2,5 million adults aged 19 or over enroll each year on further education course- es-which lead to qualifications or access to higher education; or that teach a craft, a sport, or an aspect of culture.

All Britain’s universities enjoy complete academic freedom. They appoint their own staff and decide what and how to teach. The tradition of excellence dates back to the 12th and 13th centuries, when Oxford and Cambridge Universities were founded. Four Scottish universities were established in the 14th and 15th centuries, while the rest of Britain’s 47 universities were set up in the last 200 years. First degree courses usually last three or four years.

The Open University is a little different, because it relies on distance-learning. Prospective students don’t require any conventional academic qualifications to enroll, but the standards of Open University degrees are as high as at other universities.

England and Wales’s 34 polytechnics tend to be more Vocationally - orientated than universities, providing degree and sub-degree vocational courses as well as traditional academic degree courses. Many polytechnics (and the 13 central institutions in Scotland) have close links with business, and many students have jobs and attend part-time. For those without standard entry qualifications, access and foundation courses can provide a way in to higher education. The number of access courses in Britain is increasing rapidly.

 

Vocabulary

compulsory - обязательный

primary education - начальная школа

infant school - начальные классы

junior school - средние классы

nursery education - дошкольное обучение

comprehensive school - общеобразовательная школа

free education - бесплатное образование

private school - частная школа

public school - частная школа

target - цель; план; задания; состязания; классовая или контрольная цифра

attainment - успеваемость; (pl) навыки, знания

structure - структура; строение; строй

sequence - последовательность, порядок, следование

coherent - связный, согласованный, последовательный

account - расчет, подсчет; важность, значение

GCSE - General Certificate of Secondary Education - общий аттестат о среднем образовании, экзамен на аттестат о среднем образовании

Ordinary level («O») - обычный уровень

Advanced level («A») - продвинутый уровень

vocational - профессиональный

academic - общеобразовательный

to encourage - поддерживать, поощрять; подстрекать

to cater - обслуживать

full-time study - дневное обучение

part-time study - заочное или вечернее обучение

adult - взрослый

to enroll - вносить в список (учащихся); регистрировать

access - доступ

the Open University - открытый университет

conventional - обычный, общепринятый, традиционный

degree - степень