Education adviser attacks UK schools

A top adviser to the British government has attacked (1) ___________________ British schools and teachers. The adviser, Dominic Cummings, has (2) ___________________ the UK Education Secretary Michael Gove for many years. Mr Gove has (3) ___________________ his adviser's ideas and has become (4) ___________________ with British teachers. Cummings has made teachers very angry about a new report he made on education in Britain. He said education in Britain is "between (5) ___________________ ". He said most teachers do not do a good job in the classroom and that "(6) ___________________ ". He wrote: "In England, few teachers are well trained in the basics of extended writing or mathematical and scientific modeling and problem-solving."

Mr Cummings also attacked other areas of Britain's schools. He said billions of dollars are (7) ___________________ to help poorer students and on "pointless" university courses. He argues that many university courses in England (8) ___________________ and do not help them get a job. He said university students needed to work much harder. Cummings also angered teachers by saying 70 per cent (9) ___________________ in the classroom is because of (10) ___________________, and not because of teachers. Senior officials at the Department for Education have said Mr Cummings (11) ___________________. One said he is the (12) ___________________ of the Education Secretary's "madder ideas". Many teachers also want Michael Gove to be fired.

 

Task 2. Match the synonyms from the listening.

1. adviser 2. quality 3. unpopular 4. mediocre 5. rare 6. attacked 7. wasted 8. pointless 9. reason 10. fired

a. useless b. average c. cause d. consultant e. misspent f. disliked g. criticised h. standard i. dismissed j. unusual

 

Task 3. Mark the statements as true or false according to the information from the audio.

1) British government worker damaged some schools in England.

2) The name of the adviser's boss is Michael Gove.

3) Britain's Education Secretary is very popular with British teachers.

4) The adviser said few teachers know how to teach extended writing.

5) The adviser wants the government to use money more carefully.

6) The adviser suggested a lot of university courses are a waste of time.

7) Teachers are angry because of their students' genes.

8) No one wants the adviser or his boss to lose their job.

 

Task 4. Complete the text with the correct form of the verbs from the box. Try to use each verb once only.

concentrate     do     learn     overcome     organize     study     teach     take     review     revise

 

Even the most studious among you will probably have difficulty studying at some stage in your academic career. If or when this happens, the only way to (1)______________ this problem is to go back to basics. First, make sure you have a comfortable environment to (2)______________ in. Some students need to have a quiet space to themselves and can't (3)______________ if there are too many distractions. Others need some sort of background noise, such as music or the company of friends. Whatever your personal preference is, you need to (4)______________ this first of all. Next, make sure you have all of the equipment or tools that you need. For example, if you are (5)______________ a geography course and you have to (6)______________ about countries and their capital cities then you will need to have your atlas to hand. If you're (7)______________ your maths homework then be sure to find you calculator, ruler, protractor and compass before you start. Perhaps you're not preparing a homework assignment or project, but are trying to (8)______________ for an exam. If so, you need to know exactly what is on your curriculum. You should also (9)______________ your notes and make sure that you have a clear understanding of what you lectures have (10)______________ you. Of course, people with a learning disorder such as dyslexia may need to work harder than others at their studies as they often struggle to read even relatively simple texts.

 

Task 5. Now read the text again and find a word or phrase to match the following definitions.

1) describes someone who studies a lot 2) things that stop you from working 3) a sound you can hear, but do not actively listen to 4) two different types of homework or school task   5) to study for an exam 6) another word for ‘syllabus’ 7) to check your work 8) to do something with great difficulty

_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ or _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________

 

Task 6. Choose the correct word in each sentence.

1) I would really like to learn about / study about the ancient Egyptians.

2) We need to find out / know where to buy the tickets for the concert.

3) I got into trouble at school because I didn’t know / find out my multiplication tables.

4) I did well in the test because I had known / learned how to spell all of the words on the list.

5) Excuse me, do you find out / know where the nearest post office is?

6) It was difficult for me to learn / study at home, because we didn’t have a lot of space.

7) I want to learn how / study how to drive a car.

8) I think you can only really learn from / learn with experience.

 

Task 7. Put the correct words written below into the article.

Making schoolchildren (1) _______________ tests is harming students’ interest in science, as well as having a negative impact (2) _______________  kids’ natural curiosity. This is the conclusion of a British university report (3) _______________ science teaching and testing in primary schools. Researchers from Durham University warned that too many schools were teaching science just so students could pass tests. There is a lot of (4) _______________ for students to get to better schools. The experts said there was very little real science teaching going on that encouraged students to find out things (5) _______________ themselves. Learning by doing, experimenting and seeing should be at the heart of all physics, chemistry and biology lessons. The Durham University team found the opposite; that there was little (6) _______________ -on, practical work taking place in Britain’s schools.

Lead researcher Professor Peter Tymms said it was important to develop new approaches to primary school science. He (7) _______________ today’s teaching with that of the past sixty years and found that testing was harming children’s natural (8) _______________ to ask questions about science: “We suspect that the current national approach to science in primary schools is not impacting on children’s scientific thought and curiosity as much as (9) _______________ possible,” he said. Professor Tymms made it (10) _______________ what schools and science teachers need to focus on, saying: “The purpose of science in primary schools should be to foster a (11) _______________ of curiosity and positive attitudes in the young child. It should also guide the child in (12) _______________ problems to do with the physical, natural and human worlds.”

 

1.	(a)	take	(b)	taking	(c)	took	(d)	taken
2.	(a)	by	(b)	on	(c)	at	(d)	to
3.	(a)	about to	(b)	onto	(c)	into	(d)	to
4.	(a)	pressurize	(b)	pressed	(c)	pressing	(d)	pressure
5.	(a)	on	(b)	so	(c)	at	(d)	for
6.	(a)	heels	(b)	head	(c)	hands	(d)	heart
7.	(a)	compared	(b)	comparison	(c)	compare	(d)	comparing
8.	(a)	destiny	(b)	desire	(c)	describe	(d)	design
9.	(a)	be	(b)	are	(c)	is	(d)	being
10.	(a)	clear	(b)	clearly	(c)	clears	(d)	clarity
11.	(a)	senses	(b)	senseless	(c)	nonsense	(d)	sense
12.	(a)	solution	(b)	solving	(c)	soluble	(d)	solve

 

Task 8. Read the statements below. Tick the ones that are true in your country, cross the ones that are not true. Write a question mark if you are not sure.

1) Full-time education is compulsory until the age of 18.

2) Class sizes in schools and universities are very large.

3) Students do a huge number of exams, retakes, etc.

4) You can do vocational courses as well as study academic subjects in all secondary schools.

5) Very few people choose to send their children to private schools.

6) A lot of qualifications are assessed partly by coursework.

7) Academics tend to be badly paid.

8) All children receive free nursery education.

9) Children start school too early/late.

10) Truancy and discipline are big problems in many schools.

11) University fees are very high.

12) Many people go abroad to do postgraduate courses.

Task 9. Read the people's comments about their different experiences of education. Which comments are positive, which are negative and which might be either? Which are true of your own education and which are not? Why?

1) Discipline was strict - there were loads of rules.

2) My education helped to make me self-motivated and able to learn things for myself. The whole experience made me and a lot of other people feel rather aimless.

3) It made you very mature and adult.

4) The approach was very traditional; lots of rote learning and tests.

5) My education was very well rounded and gave me a broad outlook on life.

6) It was really fun, creative and motivating.

7) I think my education really helped to make me focused and hard-working.

8) Bullying was a real problem at my school.

9) We didn't learn that much that was useful in real life.

Task 10. Solve the puzzle.

ACROSS

2.... education is for children aged from 5 to 11 years.

7. A set of subjects and standards used by primary and secondary schools so children learn the same things.

11. A natural ability or skill.

12. A person who is learning at a college or university.

13.... education is the one in addition to that received at secondary school available to students over 16.

DOWN

1. Another word for a tutor.

3. A document given by a college or university in the end of your graduation.

4. A list of the times when the lessons start.

5. The ability to do basic mathematics.

6. A nursery school.

7. If something is..., you must do it because of a rule.

8. The ability to read and write.

9....'s degree is an advanced college or university degree.

10. The qualification given to a student after he has completed his studies.

14. The money paid for being taught.

Unit 5

Basic Business Economics

Questions for discussion:

1) What are the basic problems of daily living people must solve?

2) What does economics study?

3) What do economists do in general?

4) Do you think economics is a good subject to study nowadays?

Task 1.Match the notions with their definitions. Be careful as there are two extra definitions.

1. Output 2. Economics 3. Economical 4. Supply 5. Income 6. Expenses 7. Scarcity 8. Inflation 9. Unemployment 10. Consumer

a) Rising prices b) The total value of all goods produced and services performed by a producer, an industry or a country c) An action or activity done for others for a fee d) A company's profit in a particular period of time e) A person who buys goods or services for their own use f) The number of people without work g) The social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services h) Resources used in the production process i) Money that you spend while producing something j) Not using a lot of money k) An amount of something that is available for use l) Lack of something

Task 2. Choose the right word.

1. This is a simple and economic / economical method, i.e. it is easy to use and there is no waste involved.

2. In this paper we develop a framework for analyzing the capital allocation decisions facing economical / financial institutions.

3. Fuel efficient cars are economic / economical, though the extra efficiency comes at a economical / financial cost.

4. We discuss the role of banks in reducing the costs of economical / financial distress of families in Italy.

5. It is an issue for further behavioral and economic / economical research.

6. This procedure will only be effective and economical / financial if times are cut considerably.

7. The paint should be spread on the surface as economic / economically as possible.

8. It requires a very economic / economical use of interior space.

9. Children are economically / financially dependent on their parents.

10. Traders often take unjustified risks in the economical / financial markets.

Task 3. Fill in the gaps using the words from the box. One word is used twice.

economic economical economically economics economists economize economizer economy uneconomic

 

1. Mad cow disease has had a serious __________ effect on beef producers.

2. If we want a holiday we'll have to __________, we are spending too much.
3. The most __________ way of heating your house is by using solar energy.
4. __________ the country has been improving steadily these past ten years.
5. Tourism contributes millions of euros to the country's __________.

6. It is usually more __________ to shop in a supermarket than in a small shop.
7. My daughter is in her third year of ­­­­__________ at university.

8. The minister maintained that the coal mines were __________ and would have to be closed.
9. Naturally the big boss has many professional __________ to advise him.

10. An __________ is a mechanical device intended to reduce energy consumption.

 

Task 4. Match the words to make collocations.

On-going Scarcity of Infinite Durable Household Opportunity Purchasing Out-of-pocket

Resources Power Wants Costs Expenses Appliances Goods Inflation

 

Task 5. Translate the words in brackets.

1) The problem of what goods are to be produced and in what quantities arises directly from the (дефицит ресурсов).

2) Consumer spending on (товары и услуги) rose 0.6% in September, after adjusting for inflation.

3) The government is spending more on projects (чтобы сократить число безработных) and (понизить уровень бедности).

4) Automobiles, video recorders, washing machines, personal computers, and most furniture are good examples of (хозяйственные товары длительного использования).

5) We're looking for ways to help farmers (экономить на) chemicals and fertilizer.

6) Consumers always (реагируют на стимулы), therefore to increase our sales the company should change the price for its products.

7) (Заменитель сахара) is one of the most popular consumer goods among females.

8) In economics, the free rider problem occurs when those who (извлекают выгоду из) resources, goods, or services do not pay for them, which results in an under-provision of those goods or services

9) The minimum wage has been raised, but (потребительская покупательная способность) has fallen by 40 % since the late 60s.

 

Task 6. Listen to the audio and fill in the gaps.

Source: https://breakingnewsenglish.com/0512/051202-us-economy-e.mp3