I. Read the text and define the main idea of it.

Англійська мова

методичні вказівки для позакласного читання

з англійської мови для студентів ІІ етапу навчання

для напряму підготовки 6.010104 «Професійна освіта»

 

КИЇВ КНУТД 2011

Англійська мова: Методичні вказівки для позакласного читання з англійської мови для студентів ІІ етапу навчання спеціальності «Педагогічна освіта»/ Упор. К.Б. Кугай – К.: КНУТД, 2012. – 51с. Англійською мовою.

 

 

Упорядник: К.Б. Кугай

 

Відповідальний за випуск завідувач кафедри іноземних мов ф-ту ТЛП

к.ф.н., професор Т.В. Барамикова

 

 

Затверджено на засіданні кафедри іноземних мов ф-ту ТЛП

Протокол № __ від __.__.2012 р.

 

 

TEXT 1

I. Read the text and define the main idea of it.

Foreign Educational Environment:

Education in Great Britain

School is compulsory in Great Britain until the age of 16. Children start formal education at 5 and many of them complete 13 full years of schooling at 18. But not all. Some can leave school at 14 or 16 after the fifth form. To leave school and go to other educational institution (vocational or technical schools, as a rule) they have to take the exam for General Certificate of Secondary Education. Pupils must take English language, Math and Science for GCSE, as well as a half GCSE in a foreign language and technology.

Private schools include public and tutorial schools. Most of these are single-sex boarding schools, where students study and live. The public schools provide well-rounded education, pay­ing attention to academic disciplines, art, music and sports. Once they were established to educate the monarchy and aristocracy, and some have almost 1000-year old history. Such public schools as Eton, Harrow and Roedean are very expensive and during their long history educated many monarchs and leaders of many countries of the world. Tutorial schools have smaller classes, per­sonal tutoring here focuses on academic subjects only; that's why tutorial schools have smaller campuses with no sports facilities.

Most secondary schools in Britain are comprehensive schools. These are state schools, which take children of all abilities. About six per cent of students go to grammar school, state schools which only take students who pass an examination at the age of 11.

In 1988, for the first time in British history, the National Curriculum was introduced. It tells pupils which subjects they have to study, what they must learn and when they have to take as­sessment tests.

So, at the age of 16 pupils can leave school. If they stay on, in two years they usually take a higher level of secondary school exam, the so-called A- (advanced) level required by the UK universi­ties.

Most big towns in Britain have both a university and a college of higher education. There are 169 universities and colleges in the UK with more than 1.8 million students studying there. Univer­sities offer two-, three- and four-year degree courses, leading to a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Arts degree. A degree is a qualification students get from the university when they pass their final exams. They are then awarded a B.A. (Bachelor of Arts), B.Sc. (Bachelor of Science) or B.Ed. (Bachelor of Education). Sandwich courses, which include a period of work outside the university, add one year. Medical and veterinary courses require five years of study.

Competition to get into British universities is tough and not everyone who gets levels can go. Students usually apply to universities months before they take their A- levels. They are given a personal interview and the university decides which students it wants. The place, which a student is offered, depends on his or her A-level results. The most popular is the university, the higher the grades it will ask for.

Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest universities in Britain and they have the highest aca­demic reputation.

II. Make up a vocabulary of new words.

III. Ask questions to the content of the text and give short answers.

IV. Be ready to speak on the topic.

V. Make up word-combinations:

1. to leave a) degree

2. to take b) facilities

3. Bachelor’s c) test

4. assessment d) school

5. sports e) an exam

TEXT 2

I. Read the text and determine the subtitles of it.

Pre-primary and Primary Education

In some areas of England there are nursery schools for children under 5 years of age. Some children between two and five receive edu­cation in nursery classes or in infants’ classes in primary schools. Many children attend informal pre-school play-groups organised by parents in private homes. Nursery schools are staffed with teachers and stu­dents in training. There are all kinds of toys to keep the children busy from 9 o'clock in the morning till 4 o'clock in the afternoon while their parents are at work. Here the babies play, lunch and sleep. They can run about and play in safety with someone keeping an eye on them.

For day nurseries which remain open all the year round the parents pay according to their income. The local education authority's nurse­ries are free. But only about three children in 100 can go to them: there aren't enough places and the waiting lists are rather long.

Most children start school at 5 in a primary school. A primary school may be divided into two parts – infants and juniors. At infant school reading, writing and arithmetic are taught for about 20 minutes a day during the first year, gradually increasing to about 2 hours in their last year. There is usually no written timetable. Much time is spent in modelling from clay or drawing, reading or singing.

By the time children are ready for the junior school they will be able to read and write, do simple addition and subtraction of numbers.

At 7 children go on from the infants school to the junior school. This marks the transition from play to ‘real work’. The children have set periods of arithmetic, reading and composition which are all eleven-plus subjects. History, Geography, Nature Study, Art and Music, Physical Education, Swimming are also on the timetable.

Pupils are streamed according to their abilities to learn into A, B, С and D streams. The least gifted are in the D stream. Formally to­wards the end of their fourth year the pupils wrote their eleven-plus examination. The hated eleven-plus examination was a selective procedure on which not only the pupils' future schooling but their future careers depended. The abolition of selection at eleven-plus examination brought to life comprehensive schools where pupils can get secondary education.

II. Write down new words into your vocabulary.

III. Make up a plan of the text in the form of questions.

IV. Translate the following words and word-combinations into Ukrainian and memorize them:

nursery school, infant, primary school, to attend, training, to keep an eye on, local education authority, free, timetable, junior school, eleven-plus subjects, to be streamed, eleven-plus examination, comprehensive school, secondary education.

 

TEXT 3

I. Read the text. What is it about? What information of the text is the most interesting (in your opinion)?

School Life in Britain

There is no countrywide system of nursery (i.e. pre-primary) schools. In some areas primary schools have nursery schools attached to them, but in others there is no provision of this kind. The average child does not begin full-time attendance at school until he or she is about five and starts primary school. Almost all schools are either primary or secondary only, the latter being generally larger.

Nearly all schools work a five-day week, with no half-day, and are closed on Saturdays. The day starts at or just before nine o'clock and finishes between three and four or a bit later for older children. The lunch break usually lasts about an hour-and-a-quarter. Nearly two-thirds of pupils have lunch provided by the school. Parents pay for this, except for the 15% who are rated poor enough for it to be free. Other children either go home for lunch or take sandwiches.

Methods of teaching vary, but there is most commonly a balance between formal lessons with the teacher at the front of the classroom and activities in which children work in small groups round a table with the teacher supervising. In primary schools, the children are mostly taught by a class teacher who teaches all subjects. At the ages of seven and eleven, children have to (or soon will have to) take national tests in English, mathematics and science. In secondary schools, pupils have different teachers for different subjects and are given regular homework.

The older children get, more likely they are to be separated into groups according to their perceived abilities, sometimes for particular subjects only, sometimes across all subjects. But some schools teach all subjects to 'mixed ability' classes. The rights and wrongs of this practice have generated heated debate for several decades and there is great variety from school to school and area to area.

TEXT 4

Public Exams

The organization of the exams which schoolchildren take from the age of about fifteen onwards exemplifies both the lack of uniformity in British education and also the traditional 'hands-off' approach of British governments. First, these exams are not set by the government, but rather by independent examining boards. There are several of these. Everywhere except Scotland (which has its own single board), each school or LEA decides which board's exams its pupils take. Some schools even enter their pupils for the exams of more than one board.

Second, the boards publish a separate syllabus for each subject. There is no unified school-leaving exam or school-leaving certificate. Some boards offer a vast range of subjects. In practice, nearly all pupils do exams in English language, maths and a science subject, and most also do an exam in technology and one in a foreign lan­guage, usually French. Many students take exams in three or more additional subjects.

Third, the exams have nothing to do with school years as such. They are divorced from the school system. There is nothing to stop a sixty-five year-old doing a few of them for fun. In practice, of course, the vast majority of people who do these exams are school pupils, but formally it is individual people who enter for these exams, not pupils in a particular year of school.

An example of the independence of the examining boards is the decision of one of them (the Northern Examinations Board) in 1992 to include certain popular television programmes on their English literature syllabus. This was against the spirit of the government's education policy at that time. The idea of 100,000 schoolchildren settling down to watch the Australian soap opera ‘Neighbours’ as part of their homework made government ministers very angry, but there was nothing they could do to stop it.

TEXT 5

Higher Education in Britain

In England and Wales, for those who stay in education and study conventional academic subjects, there is more specialization than there is in most other countries. Typically, a pupil spends a whole two years studying just three subjects, usually related ones, in pre­paration for taking A-level exams, though this is something which might change in the near future.

The independence of Britain's educational institutions is most noticeable in universities. They make their own choices of who to accept on their courses. There is no right of entry to university for anybody. Universities normally select students on the basis of A-level results and an interview. Those with better exam grades are more likely to be accepted. But in principle there is nothing to stop a university accepting a student who has no A-levels at all and con­versely, a student with top grades in several A-levels is not guaranteed a place.

The availability of higher education has increased greatly in the second half of the twentieth century. Nevertheless, finding a university place is not easy. Universities take only the best students. Because of this, and also because of the relatively high degree of personal supervision of students nearly all university students complete their studies – and in a very short time! In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, it is only for modern languages and certain vocational studies that students take more than three years. In Scotland four years is the norm for most subjects.

Another reason for the low drop-out rate is that 'full-time' really means full-time. Students are not supposed to take a job during term time (normally about thirty to thirty-four weeks of the year). Unless their parents are rich, they receive a state grant of money which is intended to cover most of their living expenses during these times. This includes the cost of accommodation. A large proportion of students live 'on campus' (or, in Oxford and Cambridge, 'in college') or in rooms nearby, which tends to mean that the student is surrounded by a university atmosphere.

However, the expansion of higher education is putting a strain on these characteristics. ‘More students’ means more expense for the state. The government's response has been to reduce the amount of the student grant and to encourage a system of 'top-up' loans instead. As a result, many more students cannot afford to live away from home. In the past it was estimated that 80% of all university students were non-local. This percentage is becoming lower and lower. In addition, a large number of students are being forced to ' moonlight ' (that is, do a part-time job secretly). A further result of increased numbers of students without a corresponding increase in budgets is that the student/staff ratio has been getting higher. All of these devel­opments threaten to reduce the traditionally high quality of British university education. They also threaten to reduce its availability to students from low-income families.

TEXT 6

TEXT 7

TEXT 8

Student Life

The popular image of student’s life is of young people with a few responsibilities enjoying themselves and doing very little work. This is often not true. Many older people now study at college or university, sometimes on a part-time basis while hav­ing a job and looking after a family. These students are often highly motivated and work very hard.

Younger students are often thought to be lazy and careless about money but this situation is changing. In Britain reduced government support for higher education means that students can no longer rely on having their expenses paid for them. For­merly, students received a grant towards their living expenses. Now most can only get a loan which has to be paid back. From 1999 they also have to pay £1 000 towards tuition fees. In the US students have to pay for tuition, room and board. Many get financial aid package which may include grants, scholarships and loans. The fear of having large debts places considerable pressure on students and many take part-time jobs during the term and work full-time in the vacations.

Many students in Britain go to a uni­versity away from their home town. They usually live in a hall of residence for their first year and then move into digs (=a rented room in a private house) or share a house with other students. They may go back home during vacations, but after they graduate most leave home for good. In the US too, many students attend col­leges some distance from where their par­ents live. They may live on campus in one of the dorms or off campus in apartments and houses which they share with housemates. Some students, especial­ly at larger universities, join a fraternity or sorority, a social group usually with its own house near the campus. Fraternities and sororities often have names which are combinations of two or three letters of the Greek alphabet. Some people do not have a good opinion of them because they think that students who are members spend too much time having parties. Many US col­leges and universities encourage an atmo­sphere of political correctness trying to help students get on together.

In Britain the interests of students are represented by a range of societies, clubs and social activities including sports, drama and politics. One of the highlights of the year is rag week, a week of parties and fund-raising activities in support of various charities.

Especially in their first year, US stu­dents spend a lot of time on social activi­ties. One of the most important celebra­tions, especially at universities which place a lot of emphasis on sports, is homecom­ing. Many alumni return to their alma mater for a weekend in the autumn to watch a football game. During homecoming weekend there are also parties and dances, and usu­ally a parade.

When social activities take up too much time, students skip lectures and take incompletes, which means they have to finish their work after the vacation. In the US this has the effect of lowering their course grades, but most US universities expect this behaviour from students and do little to stop it. Students are thought to be old enough to make their own deci­sions about how hard they work and to accept the consequences. A few students drop out but the major­ity tries hard to get good grades and a good degree.

TEXT 9

Technology in the Classroom

The primary components of education are changing. The Internet and video-con­ferencing are emerging as primary tools of education. As the potential of inexpensive, user-friendly technology increases and the platform of available information expands, classroom design is increasingly hinging on technical standards.

Students' access and learning processes also are affected. The newest benefactors of these implications are non-traditional students and students in rural communi­ties, as access can be gained from nearly anywhere at any time. In addition to class­room design, technology is affecting user needs as well, including social interaction and workplace productivity.

However, students in the classroom are also finding gains. The primary impact in the classroom is on how students receive infor­mation and, therefore, learn. Increasingly, lecture information is transferred elec­tronically to students. And, in some class­rooms, students are equipped with elec­tronic workstations.

What does all this mean for classroom design? The whole idea is to view a class­room as a hollow shell ‘wet’ with the Internet and video-conferencing emerging as primary components of education tech­nology. This has caused planners to rethink classroom design at two broad levels: tech­nological infrastructure and space plan­ning created with strategically placed cabling and wiring race-ways. In addition, it is important to incorporate empty con­duit throughout facilities, thereby provid­ing the channels to run future cabling and wiring race-ways. By incorporating this conduit, a classroom becomes a strategic resource, positioning an institution for changes and advancements in technology. Maximizing flexibility is not only impor­tant for planning technological infrastruc­ture, but also it is a primary key for space planning. Creating flexible classrooms means designing spaces with proportions to accommodate a variety of functions, instead of just one specific learning activi­ty that could potentially hinder future pos­sibilities. Designing classroom spaces as column-free space and minimizing per­manently attached hardware – desks, seat­ing and even today's latest technology – also helps to achieve the hollow-shell effect.

TEXT 10

TEXT 11

PART I

In most areas, free public education begins with kindergarten classes for five-year-olds. These are usually half-day classes two or three hours long, although some communities run all-day kindergarten programmes. The primary purpose of kindergarten is socialization but the young students also gain information and skills. For example, they learn to identify colours, count to ten, print their names, work with art supplies, listen to stories and enjoy books. After kindergarten American children begin their academic studies. Their schooling is divided into 12 academic levels called grades. One school year (from late August or early September to mid-June) is required to complete each grade. Academic work – learning to read, write and do arithmetic – begins when children enter the 1st grade, at about age of six.

The first academic institution that a student attends is called ‘el­ementary school’ or ‘grammar school’. In some school systems, ele­mentary school includes kindergarten through 8th grade and the next years (taught in different school buildings) are called ‘high school’ in other school systems, there is a third division called ‘junior high school’ (or ‘middle school’) which usually includes grades 6 through 8, but in some communities it includes grades 4 or 5 through 8 and in others – grades 7 through 9.

The typical school day is about seven hours long and ends at 3 p.m. Classes are in session Monday through Friday. Traditional va­cation periods include a two-week winter vacation (including Christmas and New Year's holidays), a one-week spring vacation (often coinciding with Easter) and a two-month summer vacation. In addition, there are several one-day holidays giving students a day off to celebrate.

Children going to public elementary schools usually attend school in their neighbourhood. In big cities, many children live close enough to walk to school and come home for lunch. However, most elementary schools provide a place where students can eat if it's inconvenient for them to go home at lunchtime. American high schools are larger than elementary schools and serve a larger community. As a result, most high school students take public transportation or a school bus to and from school and eat lunch in the school cafeteria.

TEXT 12

PART II

Grammar schools teach language arts (reading, writing, spelling and penmanship), social studies (stressing history and geography), mathematics (up to and sometimes including algebra), science, physi­cal education and health. In addition, elementary school programs often include music, art and home economics.

High school subjects are more specialized. English classes empha­size writing, grammar and literature. Social studies are split into separate courses such as American history, European history and psychology. Year-long courses in algebra and geometry are followed by more advanced math work in trigonometry and pre-calculus. There are also specialized science courses in biology, chemistry and phys­ics. Many high school students study foreign language, usually Span­ish, French or German. Courses in music, art, home economics and consumer education are also available, along with various vocational courses. As in elementary school, health and physical education classes are generally required.

During the elementary school years, students are grouped into classes and each group stays together for the entire school day and the entire school year. Generally, the class has the same teacher for most subjects, although art, music and physical education are usu­ally taught by teachers who specialize in these areas. Also, in the upper elementary grades, students in some school systems have different teachers (but the same classmates) for their major academic subjects.

In high school, students move from one classroom to another and study each subject with a different teacher and a different group of classmates. Many high schools have what is commonly called a track­ing system, which groups students according to academic ability and motivation. Thus, more capable and hard-working students take more difficult courses. Depending on the subject, classes may be offered at two, three or even four different ability levels.

High school students have very busy day. Many take five or six academic subjects as well as physical education. During other peri­ods, students may be doing homework in a study hall, researching in the school library or participating in activities such as the school orchestra, student government and school newspaper or math club. Many extracurricular activities also meet after the school day ends. Students involved in time-consuming activities such as athletics, dramatics or music may be at school from very early in the morning until dinner-time. They help students find friends with similar interests, develop their talents, gain greater self-confidence and sometimes even dis­cover their career goals.

TEXT 13

Problems and Solutions

When an immigrant family moves to the USA, one of the first questions that parents ask is: ‘Will my children get a good educa­tion here?’ The answer depends on two major factors: where the children attend school and how hard they are willing to work.

In some schools where the community is stable, the funding is good and the school environment is orderly, a hardworking student can get an excellent education. But in other schools – especially those in poor neighbourhoods in the nation's large cities – it is very diffi­cult to become educated. The flight of middle-class families to the suburbs left big city public schools with mostly lower-income students. Many are deprived children from impoverished homes with only one parent. Many come to school ill-prepared and poorly motivated to learn. A large number need help in learning English. Many change residences and schools often, and a changing classroom population is difficult to teach. In some poor neighbourhoods, students do not attend school regularly because they are frightened by violent gangs. In some classrooms, teachers have difficulty keeping the students' attention because disrespectful, uncooperative students disturb the class. Because the quality of education varies so much from one school district to another, parents who are planning to move to a new neigh­bourhood often inquire about the schools – and even visit them – before deciding which community to move to.

Researchers are always studying the schools and evaluating the kind of education being provided. Experts ask: ‘Are today's students learning as much as their older siblings or their parents did? Are they learning as much as students in other countries?’ For example, of the 158 members of the United Nations, the USA ranked 49th in its level of literacy. It has been claimed that as many as 25 million American adults cannot read the front page of a newspa­per.

What's wrong with American education? To find the answer and to fix the problem, one must look at all elements: the students themselves, their parents, their teachers, the school curriculum, the textbooks and the community. Many students simply do not study enough. (Two-thirds of high school seniors do an hour or less of homework per night.) American teenagers are often distracted by part-time jobs, sports and other school activities, TV and socializing. Some do not keep up with their schoolwork because of emotional problems, use of illegal drugs or simply lack of motivation. Clearly, if Ameri­cans are to become better educated, students must spend more time studying and parents must insist that they do so.

TEXT 14

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TEXT 16

Education in Scotland

Scotland has a tradition of educational excellence. Its schools and universities are broad-based and egalitarian, and are highly valued by the Scottish people. The quality of education in the country attracts an ever-growing number of students and researchers from many other parts of the world.

A major factor in the success of the country's industrial and cultural sectors has been Scotland's educational system. The national school system goes back to the sixteenth century, when elementary schools were established in every parish and grammar schools in every major town in Scotland.

Today the state school system is funded through the Scottish Executive and the lo­cal authorities in Scotland. Education is compulsory between the ages of 5 and 16, and although the pre-school (nursery) stage for children aged between 2 and 5 is not compulsory, the Scottish Executive has set a target of creating a nursery place for every 3-year-old child in the country whose parents want it. By August 2011, some 85 per cent of 3-year-olds and 96 per cent of 4-year-olds were in nursery education.

Primary education is provided for all children between the ages of 5 and 11 or 12, and pupils then move on to secondary schools, which teach children up to the age of 18. The standard of teaching is particularly high and only graduates can become teachers.

Following their school careers, students with appropriate qualifications can move to further or higher education at one of Scotland's 13 universities, 6 specialist higher education institutions or 47 further education colleges. Numbers in further education have doubled in less than 10 years and almost half of young people in Scotland now choose to embark on a further education course.

TEXT 17

Higher Education in the USA

Higher education in the US began when in 1636, a short time after the first colonists came to the territory now called Massachusetts, they founded a college, later to become the famous Harvard University. It is the oldest university in the country, named in honour of John Har­vard who left his library and half property. The College of William and Mary founded in 1693 was the second insti­tution of higher learning established in the colonies. These colonial colleges which later became universities were found­ed to train men for services in the church and civil state. Special emphasis was laid on classical education and only those who knew Latin and Greek were considered educat­ed. By 1776 four more institutions had been opened: Yale University founded in Connecticut in 1701, Princeton University (1746), Washington and Lee University (1749), University of Pennsylvania (1740).

In practically every respect American colleges in those days tried to duplicate the colleges of ancient universities of England. They were residential colleges in the English fashion, but unlike Oxford and Cambridge they were not self-governing.

The American Revolution brought a lot of changes. The independence of the states followed by the creation of the federal government raised new questions about what American higher education should be. The first state uni­versities were founded, though their flowering did not come until after the Civil War, a century later. The technolog­ical needs of agriculture and business stimulated the im­provement of the early nineteen-century universities. Apart from these, agricultural and engineering colleges came into existence to meet the practical needs of industry and agri­culture.

Gradually universities, private or public, became the dominant and most influential structure of higher educa­tion, the position they still hold. Many of the oldest and best known liberal arts colleges, such as Yale, Columbia and Harvard, became universities during this period.

Eventually a peculiarly American structure unlike any other existing university system was produced. In the 1870s graduate school was introduced in the American universi­ty. It was placed structurally on the top of what came to be known as undergraduate school devoted to general edu­cation. Along with this, the practice of majoring in a specific subject became common. By the end of the centu­ry, however, it was beginning to become clear that ‘open curriculum’, allowing the undergraduate to choose most of the courses, had its problems. Efforts were made to recon­stitute in some parts a systematic curriculum in which the courses were strictly prescribed. By 1938 roughly one third of the college courses at Columbia was prescribed. This balance is now typical for many undergraduate programs.

TEXT 18

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Educational Authorities

Despite recent changes, it is a characteristic of the British system that – there is comparatively little central control or uniformity. For example, education is managed not by one, but by three, separate government departments: the Department for Education and Employment is responsible for England and Wales alone – Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own departments. In fact, within England and Wales education has traditionally been seen as separate from 'training', and the two areas of responsibility have only recently been combined in a single department.

None of these central authorities exercises much control over the details of what actually happens in the country's educational institu­tions. All they do is to ensure the availability of education, dictate and implement its overall organization and set overall learning objectives (which they enforce through a system of inspectors) up to the end of compulsory education.

Central government does not prescribe a detailed programme of learning or determine what books and materials should be used. It says, in broad terms, what schoolchildren should learn, but it only offers occasional advice about how they should learn it. Nor does it dictate the exact hours of the school day, the exact dates of holidays or the exact age at which a child must start a full-time education. It does not manage an institution's finances either; it just decides how much money to give it. It does not itself set or supervise the marking of the exams which older teenagers do. In general, as many details as possible are left up to the individual institution or the Local Education Authority (LEA, a branch of local government).

One of the reasons for this level of 'grass-roots' independence is that the system has been influenced by the public-school tradition that a school is its own community. Most schools develop, to some degree at least, a sense of distinctiveness. Many, for example, have their own uniforms for pupils. Many, especially those outside the state system, have associations of former pupils. It is considered desir­able (even necessary) for every school to have its own school hall, big enough to accommodate every pupil, for daily assemblies and other occasional ceremonies. Universities, although financed by the government, have even more autonomy. Each one has complete control over what to teach, how to teach it, who it accepts as students and how to test these students.

TEXT 20

Style of Education

Learning for its own sake, rather than for any particular practical purpose, has traditionally been given a comparatively high value in Britain. In comparison with most other countries, a relatively strong emphasis has been put on the quality of person that education produces (as opposed to the qualities of abilities that it produces). The balance was changed in the last quarter of the twentieth century (for example, there is now a high degree of concern about levels of literacy), but much of the public debate about educational policy still focuses not so much on how to help people develop useful knowledge and skills as on how education might help to bring about a better society on social justice rather than on efficiency.

This approach has had a far-reaching effect on many aspects of the educational system. First of all, it has influenced the general style of teaching, which has tended to give priority to developing under­standing rather than acquiring factual knowledge and learning to apply this knowledge to specific tasks. This is why British young people do not appear to have to work as hard as their counterparts in other European countries. Primary schoolchildren do not normally have formal homework to do and university students have fewer hours of programmed attendance than students on the continent do. (On the other hand, they receive greater personal guidance with their work). A second effect has been an emphasis on academic ability rather than practical ability. This has resulted in high-quality education for the intelli­gent and academically inclined (at the upper secondary and university levels) with comparatively little attention given to the educational needs of the rest.

The traditional approach, together with the dislike of centralized authority, also helps to explain why the British school system got a national curriculum (a national specification of learning objectives) so much later than other European countries. If your aim is so vague and universal, it is difficult to specify what its elements are. It is for the same reason that British schools and universities have tended to give such a high priority to sport. The idea is that it helps to develop the 'complete' person. The importance of school as a 'community' can increase this emphasis. Sporting success enhances the reputation of an institution. Until the last quarter of the twentieth century, certain sports at some universities (especially Oxford and Cambridge) and medical schools were played to an international standard. People with poor academic records were sometimes accepted as students because of their sporting prowess (although, unlike in the USA, this practice was always unofficial).

TEXT 21

Work or Studies

Accord­ing to research the most cash-strapped university students are jeopardising their chances of exam success by combining their studies with long hours in low paid jobs.

Half of those surveyed said they com­bined paid work with their studies dur­ing term-time and half focused solely on their academic work. Students who worked admitted they spent less time on academic work because of the demands of regular term-time jobs – typically in bars, pubs, cafes and shops – and often skipped lectures and handed work in late. For those working 15 hours a week the odds of obtaining a first class degree were cut by more than a third.

The results of the three-year study confirm the phenomenon of students who are forced into regular employment to pay for basics such as food and rent. It also shows that students from the poorest homes and ethnic minority backgrounds most likely to be working long hours to help pay bills.

The study, by researchers at London South Bank University and the Open University, is the first to confirm that students forced to work as a result of financial hardship suffer in terms of aca­demic performance.

The research project was commis­sioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Umbrella group Universities (UK). Around 1,500 undergraduates attending seven universities across the UK completed the survey in spring 2011.

Students tended to work in low-paid jobs and reported that their studies suf­fered as a direct result of their work. Many admitted missing lectures, producing poor quality assignments and having difficulty accessing libraries and computer facili­ties.

More than 80% said they spent less time studying because of their term-time jobs and nearly three-quarters spent less time preparing coursework. Many stu­dents believed that term-time working damaged academic performance – wor­ries that were well-founded. The more students worked during term-time, the lower their average end-of-year marks or final degree results.

Three-quarters of students had con­cerns about debts. Of those forced to work, more than a third (37%) spent most of their earnings on basics such as food and rent. Less than two students in every 10 spent most of their earnings on social life and entertainment.

TEXT 22

Shaping Campus Facilities

An institution's ability to respond to new trends directly affects its ability to compete in the academic arena and fulfill its mission. As a result, institutions are developing long-term strategic plans for resources including capital, people, tech­nology, information and, of particular importance, facilities.

Colleges and universities, like the pri­vate business sector, commonly have viewed their facilities as a necessary evil that is non-returning. However, funds deployed in institutional facilities, in fact, must be expected to produce a return by advancing the institution's mis­sion and competitive advantage.

But how can an institution make this happen? Institutions can produce a return from their facilities by strategically control­ling those costs that do not directly support their mission and productivity. At the same time, they must gain additional advantages from those costs that do. In other words, if an institution's real estate is directly adding value to its mission – advancing learning through technology and cabling infra­structure, meeting the new needs of users, creating innovative real-world learning environments – then that same real estate is systematically providing a return.

Given the trends facing higher educa­tion today, how can institutions design their facilities as strategic resources? Each member of a project team – including the client, architect and other designers, and engineers – must strive to fully understand the trends and their long-term implica­tions. This understanding helps team mem­bers consider design guidelines and meas­ure the effectiveness of potential solutions as they plan for change.

TEXT 23

Plan for Education

The changes announced in the Govern­ment's five-year plan for education, de­signed to offer parents in England a wider choice of secondary schools for their children, marked the beginning of the end for both comprehensive schools and local education authorities.

TEXT 24

Types of Universities

Part i

There are no important official or legal distinctions between various types of universities in the country. But it is possible to discern a few broad categories.

• Oxbridge

This name denotes the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, both founded in the medieval period. They are federations of semi-independent colleges, each college having its own staff, known as 'Fellows'. Most colleges have their own dining hall, library and chapel and contain enough accommodation for at least half of their students. ‘Fellows’ teach the college students, either one-to-one or in very small groups (known as 'tutorials' in Oxford and 'supervisions' in Cambridge). Oxbridge has the lowest student/staff ratio in Britain. Lectures and laboratory work are organized at university level. As for the college libraries, there are two university libraries, both of which are legally entitled to a free copy of every book published in Britain. Before 1970 all Oxbridge colleges were single-sex (mostly for men). Now, the majority admit both sexes.

• The old Scottish universities

By 1600 Scotland boasted four uni­versities. They were Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and St. Andrews. The last of these resembles Oxbridge in many ways, while the other three are more like civic universities in that most of the students live at home or find their own rooms in town. At all of them the pattern of study is closer to the continental tradition than to the English one – there is less special­izations than at Oxbridge.

• The early nineteenth-century English universities

Durham University was founded in 1832. Its collegiate living arrange­ments are similar to Oxbridge, but academic matters are organized at university level. The University of London started in 1836 with just two colleges. Many more have joined since scattered widely around the city, so that each college (most are non-residential) is almost a separate university. The central organization is responsible for little more than exams and the awarding of degrees.

TEXT 25

Types of Universities

Part ii

• The older civic ('redbrick') universities

During the nineteenth century various institutes of higher educa­tion, usually with a technical bias, sprang up in the new industrial towns and cities such as Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds. Their buildings were of local mat­erial, often brick, in contrast to the stone of older universities (hence the name, 'redbrick'). They catered only for local people. At first, they pre­pared students for LondonUniversity degrees, but later they were given the right to award their own degrees and so became univer­sities themselves. In the mid twentieth century they started to accept students from all over the country.

• The campus universities

These are purpose-built institutions located in the countryside but close to towns. Examples are East Anglia, Lancaster, Sussex and Warwick. They have accommodation for most of their students on site and from their beginning, mostly in the early 1960s, attracted students from all over the country. They tend to emphasize relatively new academic disciplines such as social sciences and to make greater use than other universities of teaching in small groups, often known as 'seminars'.

• The newer civic universities

These were originally technical col­leges set up by local authorities in the first sixty years of the twentieth century. Their upgrading to university status took place in two waves. The first wave occurred in the mid-1960s, when ten of them (e. g. Aston in Birmingham, Salford near Man­chester and Strathclyde in Glasgow) were promoted in this way. Then, in the early 1970s, another thirty became 'polytechnics', which meant that as well as continuing with their former courses, they were allowed to teach degree courses (the degrees being awarded by a national body). In the early 1990s most of these (and also some other colleges) became universities. Their most notable feature is flexibility with regard to studying arrangements, including 'sandwich' courses (i.e. studies interrupted by periods of time outside education). They are now all financed by central govern­ment.

TEXT 26

TEXT 27

Oxbridge

Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest and most prestigious uni­versities in Great Britain. They are often called collectively Oxbridge to denote an egalitarian education. Both universities are independent. Only very rich and aristocratic families can afford to send their sons and daughters to these universities. Mostly they are former public schools leavers.

The tutorial is the basic mode of instruction at Oxford and Cam­bridge, with lectures as optional extras.

The normal length of the degree course is three years, after which the students take the Degree of Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). Some courses, such as languages or medicine, may be one or two years longer. The students may work for other degrees as well. The degrees are awarded at public degree ceremonies. Oxford and Cambridge cling to their tra­ditions, such as the use of Latin at degree ceremonies. Full academic dress is worn at examinations.

Oxford and Cambridge universities consist of a num­ber of colleges. Each college is different, but in many ways they are alike. Each college has its name, its coat of arms. Each college is governed by a master. The larger ones have more than 400 members; the smallest colleges have less than 30. Each college offers teaching in a wide range of sub­jects. Within the college one will normally find a chapel, a dining hall, a library, rooms for undergraduates, fellows and the master, and also ro­oms for teaching purposes.

Oxford is one of the oldest universities in Europe. It is the second largest in Britain, after London. The town of Oxford is first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 911 A.D. and it was popular with the early English kings. The university's earliest charter is dated back to 1213.

There are now twenty-four colleges for men, five for women and another five which have both men and women members, many from overseas studying for higher degrees. Among the oldest colleges are University College, All Souls and Christ Church.

The Cambridge University started during the 13th century and grew until today. Now there are more than thirty colleges.

On the river bank of the Cam, willow trees weep their branches into the water. The colleges line the right bank. There are beautiful college gardens with green lawns and lines of tall trees. The oldest college is Peterhouse, which was founded in 1284, and the most recent is Robinson College, which was opened in 1977. The most famous is prob­ably King's College because of its magnificent chapel, the largest and the most beautiful building in Cambridge, and the most perfect example left of English fifteenth-century architecture. Its choir of boys and un­dergraduates is also very well known.

The University was only for men until 1871, when the first women's college was opened. In the 1970s, most colleges opened their doors to both men and women. Almost all colleges are now mixed.

Many great men studied at Cambridge, among them Desiderius Erasmus, the great Dutch scholar; Roger Bacon, the philosopher; Milton, the poet; Oliver Cromwell, the soldier; Newton, the scientist and Kapitsa, the famous Russian physicist.

TEXT 28

Higher Education in the USA

Part i

Finishing school is the beginning of an independent life for millions of school graduates. Many roads are open before them. But it is not an easy thing to choose a profession out of more than 2000 existing in the world.

Three million students graduate from high school each year and about one million go on for ‘higher education’. Simply by being admitted into one of the most respected universities in the United States, a high school graduate achieves a degree of success. A college at a leading university might receive applications from two percent of these high school graduates and then accept only one out of every ten who apply. Successful applicants at such colleges are usually chosen on the basis of:

a) high school records;

b) recommendations from high school teachers;

c) the impression they make during interviews at the university;

d) their scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT).

The system of higher education in the United States is complex. It comprises four categories of institutions:

1) the university which may contain:

- several colleges for undergraduate students seeking a bachelor’s four-year degree;

- one or more graduate schools for those continuing in specialized studies beyond the bachelor’s degree to obtain a master’s or a doctoral degree;

2) the four-year undergraduate institution – a college – most of which are not part of a university;

3) the technical training institution, at which high school graduates may take courses ranging from six months to four years in duration and learn a wide variety of technical skills, from hair styling through business accounting to computer programming;

4) the two-year or community college, from which students may enter many professions or may go to four-year colleges or universities.

Any of these institutions, in any category, might be either public or private, depending on the source of its funding. There is no clear or inevitable distinction in terms of quality of education offered between the institutions, which are publicly or privately funded. However, this is not to say that all institutions enjoy equal prestige or that there are no material differences among them.

Many universities and colleges, both public and private, have gained reputations for offering particularly challenging courses and for providing their students with a higher quality of education. The great majority are generally regarded as quite satisfactory. A few other institutions, conversely, provide only adequate education and students attend classes, pass examinations and graduate as merely competent, but not outstanding scholars and professionals. The factors determining whether an institution is one of the best or one of lower prestige are: quality of teaching faculty, quality of research facilities, amount of funding available for libraries, special programs, etc., and the competence and number of applicants for admission, i.e. how selective the institution can be in choosing its students. All of these factors reinforce one another.

TEXT 29

Higher Education in the USA

Part ii

In the United States it is generally recognized that there are more or less desirable institutions at which to study and from which to graduate. More desirable institutions are generally, but not always, more costly to attend and graduation from one of them may bring distinct advantages as an individual seeks employment opportunities and social mobility within the society. Competition to get into such a college prompts a million of secondary school students to take the SATs every year. But recently emphasis on admission to examinations has been widely criticized in the United States because the examinations tend to measure competence in mathematics and English. In defense of using the examinations as criteria for admissions, administrators at many universities say that SATs provide a fair way for deciding whom to admit when they have 10 or 12 applicants for every first-year student seat.

Can American colleges and universities rest on their accomplishments? About 12 million students currently attend schools of higher education in America. They are students in a society that believe in the bond between education and democracy.

Still, many Americans are not satisfied with the condition of higher education in their country. Perhaps the most widespread complaint has to do with the college curriculum as a whole and with the wide range of electives in particular. The Association of American Colleges (AAC) issued a report that called for teaching a body of common knowledge to all college students. The National Institute of Education (NIE) issued a somewhat similar report, ‘Involvement in learning’. In its report, the NIE concluded that the college curriculum has become ‘excessively vocational and work-related’. The report also warned that college education may no longer be developing for students ‘who shared values and knowledge’ that traditionally bind Americans together.

Certainly, some students complete their degree work without a course in western civilization, not to mention other world cultures. Others leave college without having studied science or government. As one response, many colleges have begun reemphasizing a core curriculum that all students must master.

TEXT 30

TEXT 31

Part i

For largely historical reasons, the school system is complicated, inconsistent and highly varied. Most of the oldest schools, of which the most famous are Eton, Harrow, Winchester and Westminster, are today independent, fee-paying, public schools for boys. Most of these were established to create a body of literate men to fulfil the administrative, political, legal and religious requirements of the late Middle Ages. From the sixteenth century onwards, many grammar schools were established, often with large grants of money from wealthy men, in order to provide a local educational facility.

From the 1870s local authorities were required to establish elementary schools, paid for by the local community, and to compel attendance by all boys and girls up to the age of 13. By 1900 almost total attendance had been achieved. Each authority, with its locally elected councillors, was responsible for the curriculum. Although a general consensus developed concerning the major part of the school curriculum, a strong feeling of local control continued and interference by central government was resented. A number of secondary schools were also established by local authorities, modelled on the public schools.

The 1944 Education Act introduced free compulsory secondary education. Almost all children attended one of two kinds of secondary school. The decision was made on the results obtained in the 11 plus examination, taken in the last year of primary school. Eighty per cent of pupils went to secondary modern schools where they were expected to obtain sufficient education for manual, skilled and clerical employment, but where academic expectations were modest. The remaining 20 per cent went to grammar schools. Some of these were old foundations which now received a direct grant from central government, but the majority was funded through the local authority. Grammar school pupils were expected to go on to university or some other form of higher education. A large number of the grammar or high schools were single sex. In addition there were, and continue to be, a number of voluntary state-supported primary and secondary schools, most of them under the management of the Church of England or the Roman Catholic Church, which usually own the school buildings.

TEXT 32

Part ii

By the 1960s there was an increasing criticism of the streaming of ability, particularly by the political Left. It was recognised that many children performed inconsistently and that those who failed the 11 plus examination were denied the chance to do better later. Early selection also reinforced the divisions of social class and was wasteful of human potential. A government report in 1968 produced evidence that an expectation of failure became increasingly fulfilled, with secondary modern pupils aged 14 doing significantly worse than they had at the age of eight. Labour's solution was to introduce a new type of school, the comprehensive, a combination of grammar and secondary modern under one roof, so that all the children could be continually assessed and given appropriate teaching. Between 1965 and 1980 almost all the old grammar and secondary modern schools were replaced, mainly by coeducational comprehensives. The measure caused much argument for two principal reasons. Many local authorities, particularly conservative controlled ones, did not wish to lose the excellence of their grammar schools and many resented Labour's interference in education, which was still considered a local responsibility. However, despite the pressure to change school structures, each school, in consultation with the local authority, remained in control of its curriculum. In practice the result of the reform was very mixed: the best comprehensives aimed at grammar school academic standards, while the worst sank to secondary modern ones.

One unforeseen but damaging result was the refusal of many grammar schools to join the comprehensive experiment. Of the 174 direct grant grammar schools, 119 decided to leave the state system rather than become comprehensive and duly became independent fee-paying establishments. This had two effects. Grammar schools had provided an opportunity for children from all social backgrounds to excel academically at the same level as those attending fee-paying independent public schools. The loss of these schools had a demoralising effect on the comprehensive experiment and damaged its chances of success, but led to a revival of independent schools at a time when they seemed to be slowly shrinking. The introduction of comprehensive schools thus unintentionally reinforced an educational elite which only the children of wealthier parents could hope to join.

Comprehensive schools became the standard form of secondary education (other than in one or two isolated areas, where grammar schools and secondary moderns survived). However, except the best comprehensives they lost for a while the excellence of the old grammar schools.

TEXT 33

Англійська мова

методичні вказівки для позакласного читання

з англійської мови для студентів ІІ етапу навчання

для напряму підготовки 6.010104 «Професійна освіта»

 

КИЇВ КНУТД 2011

Англійська мова: Методичні вказівки для позакласного читання з англійської мови для студентів ІІ етапу навчання спеціальності «Педагогічна освіта»/ Упор. К.Б. Кугай – К.: КНУТД, 2012. – 51с. Англійською мовою.

 

 

Упорядник: К.Б. Кугай

 

Відповідальний за випуск завідувач кафедри іноземних мов ф-ту ТЛП

к.ф.н., професор Т.В. Барамикова

 

 

Затверджено на засіданні кафедри іноземних мов ф-ту ТЛП

Протокол № __ від __.__.2012 р.