Text 1. English is the International Language

Task 2. Read and translate the text. Comment on new words and expressions.

Language is a systematic means of communication. It is one of the most important aspects of culture because ideas and concepts are transmitted within or between groups. Language is one of the most important means of preserving a way of life from one generation to another.

English is part of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European family of languages. It is spoken as a native language by around 377 million and as a second language by around 375 million speakers in the world. Speakers of English as a second language will soon outnumber those who speak it as a first language.

Around 750 million people speak English as a foreign language. English has an official or a special status in 75 countries with a total population of over 2 billion; English is one of the six official languages of the United Nations Organization (others are: Arabic, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, and French).

The domination of the English language globally is undeniable. English is the language of diplomacy and international communications, business, tourism, education, science, computer technology, media and Internet.

British colonialism in the 19^th century, American capitalism and technological progress in the 20^th century were the main causes for the spread of English throughout the world. The English language came to British Isles from northern Europe in the fifth century. From the fifteenth century, the British began to sail all over the world and became explorers, colonists and imperialists. They took the English language to North America, Canada and the Caribbean, to South Africa, to Australia and New Zealand, to South Asia (especially India), to the British colonies in Africa, to South East Asia and the South Pacific.

The USA played a leading role in spreading English all over the world. The country welcomed millions of European immigrants who strengthened American economy. The Hollywood film industry also attracted many foreign artists. English started being used in diplomacy and gradually in economic relations and the media.

The future of English as a global language depends on the political, economical, demographic and cultural trends in the world. The beginning of the 21^st century is a turbulent time of global transition. Faster economic globalization is going hand in hand with the growing use of English. More and more people use English rather than their own language. The 21^st century is an important time for the English language and for those who depend upon it. English has long-term effects for its future in the world.

Word Check

Task 3. Memorize the key terms, concepts, expressions and their meaning.

1.	means of communication	средство общения
2.	transmit	передавать
3.	preserve a way of life	сохранить образ жизни
4.	generation	поколение
5.	outnumber	превышать по количеству
6.	undeniable	неоспоримый
7.	main cause	основная причина
8.	spread	распространять
9.	sail all over the world	плавать по всему миру
10.	strengthen	усиливать, укреплять
11.	attract	привлекать
12.	depend on	зависеть от
13.	transition	переход, переходный период

Task 4. Answer the following questions, solve the problems, do the tasks

1. What is language?

2. What language do you speak?

3. What family of languages does English belong?

4. What six official languages of the United Nations Organization do you know?

5. What were the main causes for the spread of English throughout the world?

6. How did the English language come to British Isles?

7. What role did the USA play in spreading English all over the world?

8. What trends does the future of English as a global language depend on?

9. Is it important to learn English? Why?

10. Is it important to learn English to have a successful career?

 

Text 2. Real English

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

How many different types of English do you know? Of course there’s British English, American English, South African English, Australian English, New Zealand English and many other types. They give us special expressions based on features of their geography, the plant and animal life (koala, coyote, kiwi, etc) and also based on features of their heritage and lifestyle (a braai is a barbecue in South Africa and a dorp is a small town, a tinny is a can of beer in Australia and Dijeridy is an Aborigine instrument, the Haka is a war dance in New Zealand and a kumara is a sweet potato and so on). Languages have different accents, different intonation patterns, and some different grammar structures.

Million of people speak these varieties of English, and you can hear them in films, in songs and music, on TV in popular programs. If you are planning to travel to those parts of the world, or to do business with people who live there, it’s very useful for you to know these languages.

 

Some books, maybe even some teachers, give the impression that language is fixed, that there is one right way to say something. But language isn’t like that. Even relatively simple thing like saying ‘hello’ to your friends is different. Language always changes – less than ten years ago no-one talked about texting, sending an SMS, spam emails, blogs, search engines, and many other terms that we all use nowadays. These words are necessary now due to technology that has changes because people enjoy being inventive with language. We would get bored saying the same things in the same way forever.

 

Word Check

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

1.	heritage	наследие
2.	lifestyle	образ жизни
3.	varieties of English	варианты английского языка
4.	do business	заниматься бизнесом
5.	change	изменение
6.	be inventive	быть изобретательным
7.	get bored	быть скучным

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

1. How many different types of English do you know?

2. Have you been to those countries?

3. If you are planning to travel to those countries is it necessary to learn English?

4. Does language change?

5. Are you inventive with language?

6. Speaking English is never boring, isn’t it? Why?

7. Is learning English abroad important for a successful career?

8. What languages except English do people learn? Why?

9. What language is used in business?

 

Task 8. Developing Speech (Dialogue). Ask and answer questions on “Learning English”.

– We are talking about learning English (any foreign language). Students may learn English for their future job, pleasure and business. Do you think it’s a hard work to learn foreign languages?

– Yes, to master a foreign language, you have to practice, practice and practice. You have to have free time and to love the language you’re studying. Most of, you have to speak it regularly.

– That’s true. I’m afraid I never have enough free time.

– Oh, it’s the same old story, isn’t it? Everybody wants to learn foreign languages, but few people really master them.

– That’s right. One day I shall study and learn English when I have more time.

– Oh, never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. Let’s take me. I took private lessons, met with my teacher twice a week and worked very hard. My teacher was satisfied, but I wasn’t. My pronunciation is still vey poor and my grammar leaves to be desired. I speak very slowly and find it difficult to understand English when people speak it very fast. But I do my best.

– Yes, a foreign language is a skill. And to learn the language properly you have to communicate, to immerse yourself in the language. You have to use it wherever you can. That’s the main thing.

 

Task 8.1. Make a similar conversation. In what circumstances will you use English in the future? Think about work, travel, social situations, the Internet, etc.

Work in pairs

Task 9. Work in pairs and make up short dialogues “Learner questionnaire: What kind of learner are you?”:

1)I never / sometimes / often practice my English outside class. 2) I am usually very active / quiet / rather lazy in class, and I never / sometimes / often ask questions. 3) I’m very / reasonably / not all confident about speaking English in front of a group of people. 4) I worry a lot / worry a bit / don’t worry at all about making mistakes. 5) I sometimes / never / often use a dictionary in class / for my homework. 6) Expanding my vocabulary is / isn’t one of my priorities. 7) I am very / fairly / not very interested in work on English phrases and idioms. 8) Studying and remembering grammar rules is / isn’t very important to me. I feel / don’t feel I need to do a lot of work on grammar. 9) I feel / don’t feel I need to revise a lot of the grammar and vocabulary I have learnt in the past. 10) I think it’s extremely important / quiet important / not very important to have good pronunciation in English. Improving my pronunciation is / isn’t a priority for me. 11) For me, writing essays, letters, etc. in English is reasonably easy / a real problem / not that important. 12) I’m learning English for pleasure / job / travelling because I have to….13) I attend classes because I need / will need English in my job / for my studies / at some point in the future.

(From “Cutting Edge Advanced” by Sarah Cunningham,

Peter Moor with Jane Comyns Carr)

 

Task 10. Work in groups: spotlight on collocations.

 

Match a word on the left with a word on the right to make a collocation

 

	business	a)	ladder
	film	b)	business
	grammar	c)	time
	native	d)	transition
	economic	e)	English
	turbulent	f)	relations
	global	g)	rule
	British	h)	language
	career	i)	speaker
	do	j)	industry