Информатики и Радиоэлектроники»

Информатики и Радиоэлектроники»

 

 

Кафедра иностранных языков №2

 

 

Методическая разработка

Для развития навыков устной речи на английском языке

для студентов 1-2-го курсов

ИЭФ, ФКСиС и ФИТУ

Дневной формы обучения

 

 

Topical Materials for Creative Presentations

 

 

МИНСК 2006

УДК 802.0 (075.8)

ББК 81.432.1 я 73

М 54

 

 

Составители:

Н.И.Дубовец, И.И.Ершова, Л.С.Карпик, Р.И.Коваленко, Н.С.Кучинская, Ю.К.Лобач, Т.С.Матюшевская, Р.К.Образцова, А.И.Рогачевская, И.Г.Субботкина, Г.Л.Теплякова, О.В.Туник, Е.Н.Щекотович

 

 

М 54

Методическая разработка для развития навыков устной речи на английском языке для студ. 1-2-го курсов ИЭФ, ФКСиС, ФИТУ, дневной формы обуч. / Сост. Дубовец Н.И., Ершова И.И., Карпик Л.С., Р.И.Коваленко и др. – Мн.: БГУИР, 2006.- 63 с.

 

ISBN

 

Методическая разработка cодержит оригинальные тексты по устным темам. Предназначена для развития навыков устной речи на английском языке у студентов 1-2 курса ИЭФ, ФКСиС и ФИТУ.

Цель разработки — способствовать развитию навыков говорения на английском языке и активизировать лексический минимум. Каждая тема представлена комплексом речевых упражнений и типовыми ситуациями.

 

УДК

ББК

 

ISBN © Коллектив авторов, составление, 2006

 

© БГУИР, 2006

СОДЕРЖАНИЕ

 

UNIT 1. Student’s Profile. 2

UNIT 2. Youth Problems. 2

UNIT 3. My University. 2

UNIT 4. English as a world language. 2

UNIT 5. Belarus. 2

UNIT 6. Ecological problems. 2

UNIT 7. Careers in you Technologies. 2

UNIT 8. Specialities in Engineering Economics. 2

 

 

UNIT 1. Student’s Profile

Pre-reading

 

1. Read the title of the unit and say what it is about.

2. Try to predict which sentences best describe student’s profile.

3. Write 5-7 questions you are sure will be answered in the text.

4. What do you think a typical day for students is? What about you? Look at the activities below and fill in the time you spend in each activity. Sleep…; exercise…; work…; watch TV…; study…; do housework….

5. How does student’s life differ from other people’s life. Match the occupation with the texts:

a) student b) waiter c) businessman d) postman

1) I start work at nine. I finish at about seven. I often work late, and I sometimes work at home too. I usually have lunch in a restaurant because my company pays. I always wear smart clothes like a suit, to work. I go to work by train. I never go by car there’s too much traffic.

2) My job is an evening job. I start at six o’clock in the evening and finish at about two o’clock in the morning. I have a break at about ten and I always eat in the kitchen. I wear a uniform, of course.

3) I go in when there are classes. They sometimes start at nine. Sometimes at ten. I usually have lunch in the cafeteria, but some days I don’t have lunch. In the evening I often work in the library. I go to everywhere by bicycle. I usually wear casual clothes like jeans.

4) I start early – at five o’clock in the morning and I usually finish at about one o’clock in the afternoon, so I always have lunch at home. I wear a uniform at work.

6. Interview your partner and write his answers in the grid.

 

get up have breakfast go to the university start the university finish the university come home have dinner go to bed

 

 

Reading

 

1. Read the text and underline the words you still don’t know.

2. Look through the text and find the sections which contain the answers to your questions.

STUDENT’S PROFILE

I am a first-year student of the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics. I study full- time. I passed my entrance examinations in July and was admitted to the University.

On weekdays the alarm- clock wakes me up at 6.30 and my working day begins. I am not an early riser, that is why it is very difficult for me to get out of bed, especially in winter. I switch on my tape-recorder and do my morning exercises. Twice a week I go jogging in the park near home before breakfast. Then I go to the bathroom, take a warm shower, clean my teeth and shave. After that I go to my bedroom to get dressed. Usually my mother makes breakfast for me. But when she is away on business or just doesn’t have to get up early, I make breakfast myself. My breakfast is light and quick. I usually have a cup of tea or coffee with some sandwiches and jam. While having breakfast, I listen to the latest news on the radio.

I leave for the university at 7.30 and go to the nearest underground station. The University is situated in the center of the city in 6 P. Brovka street. It only takes me about 20 minutes to get there so I am always in time for the first lecture. I don’t want to waste my time on the train. I‘ve got a small CD-player I listen to music.

I take Programming. My classes begin at 8 o’clock. I have a quite varied timetable, but on a normal day I have two or three lectures, then I attend practical classes, labs and seminars. The classes are over at 3 o’clock. I work hard at my classes and after that I have lunch at the student’s canteen and spend 2 or 3 hours at the library.

Every day I look through the notes of the lectures. I always take notes of all lectures, which is helpful when I get ready for my seminars and labs works.

At the moment it’s a bit hard because studying here is very different from school. At school they used to tell you what to do and when to do it, but here you have more freedom. I am not used to that so I often leave my essays to the last minute. Then I have to work right through the night, which is something I have never done before.

I come home at about 6 p.m. and wait for my parents. We have dinner together. Then we sit in the living room, drink tea, listen to music, watch TV or just talk.

During the term I am usually busy studying, but I have time for some things other than work. I mean, in the afternoon I go swimming. I have my training in the swimming -pool twice a week. In the evenings I go out with friends or play computer games.

As a rule I go to bed at about 11. Sometimes I am so tired that I fall asleep at once.

And still I always look forward to my next working day because I enjoy my life.

 

 

Post-reading

1. Answer the following questions:

1) Do you get up early? Is it easy for you to get up early?

2) Do you wake up yourself or does an alarm -clock wake you up?

3) Do you do morning exercises? Do you do morning exercises to music?

4) Which do you prefer: a cold or hot shower in the morning?

5) How long does it take you to get dressed?

6) What do you usually have for breakfast?

7) Some people look through newspapers or listen to the latest news on the radio while having breakfast. What about you?

8) When do you usually leave the house?

9) What do you usually do on your way to the university?

10) When do you usually have lunch?

11) Do you ever have a nap in the afternoon?

12) What time do you come home?

13) How do you spend evenings?

14) What time do you usually go to bed?

 

2. George had problems with studying, so he wrote to a magazine problem page for advice. Find out what his study problems are and tell your partner about four of them.

 

Dear Marjorie

I'm having problems with my studies at school. I find it difficult to get down to work in the evenings and I can't concentrate on anything at the moment. I spend most of my time listening to records or watching TV instead of doing my homework. The other students in my class are much better than I am and I have difficulty in keeping up with them. I sometimes have problems with following the lessons as well. I can't always take down the important things my teacher says because I write so slowly. She has told me that I'm falling behind with my studies. I'm not good at writing essays and I usually hand in my homework late because I put off doing it until the last minute. So I often have to invent silly excuses to explain why I haven't done the work. I'm sure I'm not going to get through my final exams in June. I scraped through the mock exams last February with 54% - all the other students passed with flying colours. I'm now so far behind that I don't know how I'm going to catch up with them. My teacher spent some time going through my homework with me but she found so many mistakes that I felt even more depressed.

What do you suggest I do?

Yours desperately

George

 

3. Work in pairs. Do you have any of the following study problems? If you do, discuss them with your partner.

In class	Outside class
It's difficult to concentrate. You can't follow the lesson. You don't like the subject. Other students are much better than you. Other problems (What?)	You have nowhere quiet to study. You lack self-discipline. It's difficult to begin studying. You don't have enough time.   Other problems (What?)

 

4. Work in group. Underline the multi-word verbs in the letter and try to work out what they mean.

 

4.1. Match the multi-word verbs in A with the definitions in B.

 

1. to get down to doing something 2. to keep up with someone/something 3. to take something down 4. to fall behind (with something) 5. to hand something in 6. to put something off 7. to get through (something) 8. to scrape through (something) 9. to catch up (with someone/something) 10. to go through something

a. to be behind with something, not at the level expected b. to start work on something c. to postpone, to decide to do something at a later date d. to pass an exam or test e. to check that something is correct, to examine something f. to reach the same standard or position as someone else g. to give something to someone in a position of authority h. to remain at the same standard or position as someone else i. to record in writing what someone is saying j. to pass an exam but with a very low grade

 

4.2. Ask your partner the questions below. Try to use the multi-word verbs from this unit in your questions and answers.

 

A How are you getting on with your studies?

В At the moment I'm falling behind a little, so I'll have to work harder to catch up with the rest of the class.

a. How are you getting on with your studies?

b. What things do you write down in lessons?

c. Do you always do your homework immediately?

d. How do you check there are no mistakes in your work before you give it to your teacher?

e. How do you think you will do in your future exams?

 

4.3. Fill in the gaps below.

 

to have difficulty in ________ (doing) something

to have problems with_______(doing) something

to concentrate on_______(doing) something

 

to be good/quite good at________ (doing) something

 

4.4. Use the phrases in the boxes above to write some sentences about yourself. Then discuss them with your partner. Find out how many things you have in common.

 

A I'm good at using computers and learning languages. What are you good at?

В I'm quite good at using computers, but I have problems with learning languages. I have difficulty in remembering the grammar rules!

 

Speaking

Work with your partner. Take turns to use rolecards A and B. Give yourself time to prepare your role and think about the multi-word verbs and expressions you might use.

 

Rolecard A   You have the following problems with your studies: - difficulty in starting to study - problems with doing homework - the level of the other students in your class - lack of progress - worries about the exams in June - any other problems Talk to your partner and ask for advice. You can decide to accept the advice that he or she gives: Yes, that's a good idea. Or you can reject it: That's easier said than done.

Rolecard В   Your partner is going to tell you about his or her problems with studying. Give as much helpful advice as you can. When giving advice, you can say: Have you tried... + ing? Why don't you try... + ing?

 

Pre-reading

 

Express your feelings about the following pastimes. The expression given in the boxes are just suggestions.

 

going to discuss meeting new people learning a new language shopping having parties driving cooking travelling writing letters gardening reading cartoon magazines meeting relatives

I am particularly fond of… I can’t stand … I quite fancy…(doing) I object to… I hate… I’m fed up with… I can’t afford to… I adore…(doing) I’d love to… I am dying to… I’m keen on (doing)… I’m mad about…

Reading

Read the text and answer the questions.

HOBBIES

 

Post-reading questions

 

1. Do you have a lot of free time?

2. What else do you do besides going to school?

3. Do you play any musical instruments?

4. Are you fond of listening to music?

5. What kind of music do you prefer?

6. Have you ever collected anything?

7. What is your hobby?

8. What is your best friend’s hobby?

9. Which of your friends collects stamps (records, compact discs, etc)?

10. How do you usually spend your leisure time?

11. What do you do for fun?

12. How do you spend your weekends?

 

Sometimes people's hobbies turn into a life passion, become an all-absorbing interest of the whole life. Do they always bring satisfaction and pleasure? Read the story that follows and note down in your notebook the main ideas of it.

 

RECREATION: AMERICAN STYLE

 

A "hobby" is usually something that a person does alone. But American (and British) families sometimes like to do things together, too. Some American families have quite a lot of money to spend on their recreation. They can all enjoy their holiday home or their boat somewhere in the country away from home.

Americans love to get out of town into the wild, and many go for holidays or long weekends into the thirty-five fabulous national parks. These magnificent areas of countryside include tropical forests, high mountains, dry deserts, long sandy coasts, grassy prairies and wooded mountains full of wild animals.

The idea of these parks, which cover 1% of the whole area of the USA, is to make "a great breathing place for the national lungs" and to keep different parts of the land as they were before man arrived. There are camping places in the national parks as well as museums, boat trips and evening campfire meetings.

Americans really enjoy new "gadgets", especially new ways of travelling. In the winter, the woods are full of "snowmobiles" (cars with skis in the front). In the summer they ride their "dune buggies" across the sands or take to the sky in hang-gliders.

But Americans do not only spend their free time having fun. They are interested in culture, too. Millions take part-time courses in writing, painting and music and at the weekends the museums, art galleries and concert halls are full.

 

Speaking

 

1. Discuss with your partner what Americans have in common with the people of your country and how they differ.

 

1) Have a conversation between a bored teenager and his elder brother (sister) who is trying to interest him (her) in some worthwhile hobby.

2) Exchange instructions with your friend on how to do your favourite hobby.

3) Discuss in a group what hobbies now you regret not taking up when you were younger. Speak about the hobbies that you gave up too soon.

4) It appears that boys and girls from early childhood take up different hobbies.

5) Is there any reason why both girls and boys shouldn't be actively interested in the same pastimes?

6) "It is the busiest man who has time to spare". Say how the proverb deals with the problem of private time. Discuss the proverb with your partner. Give examples of something you have read or experienced that shows the truth of this proverb.

7) Discuss in a group what activities you will encourage your children to enjoy. Are there any you will discourage them from? If yes, why?

 

2. Everyone has something to enjoy in his life. Many people are experts at some spare time interests. Read a conversation about life’s simple pleasures. Which ones do you find strange? Why?

LIFE’S SIMPLE PLEASURES

 

A: B:   A: C: A: C:     A:

Do you have any simple pleasures that you enjoy? Oh, for me, one of the simplest and most pleasurable activities is making bread. Because I love the slowness of it, and I love the feeling of the dough. And I love the fact that you have to wait. The bread takes its own time. And I love the smell. What about you? Well, there is nothing quite like building a brick wall. Oh, you’re a builder! No, I’m not. But it is very simple. It’s very straight- forward. When you build a wall and it’s straight, it’s one of the greatest pleasures on earth, I think. Well, my simple pleasure is waking up at 8 o’clock and knowing that I don’t actually have to get up until 9.30 and going back to sleep. That’s a joy!

 

3. Work in groups. Try to interview as many people as possible about what they see as their pleasures in life.

 

Project Work

 

Prepare a profile of yourself. First make notes about the subject you are taking at University, your language skills, other skills, work experience, interests, hobbies and what you plan to do in the future.

UNIT 2. Youth Problems

 

Pre-reading task

Read the title of the text and say what the text is about.

 

 

Reading

 

Read the texts and say how many of the predictions in the text were the same as yours.

 

Speaking

 

Discuss in pairs the advantages and disadvantages of being young nowadays. Give your arguments and counter-arguments.

 

Pre-reading task

 

You are going to read about the maladies of the 21st century.

- What do you think are the main maladies?

- Why are they dangerous?

 

Reading

 

1. Read the text to see how close your predictions were.

 

SMOKING

 

Smoking is very dangerous. Most young people smoke because their friends pressure them to do so. They may be copying their parents who smoke, or other adults they respect. At one time this would have been accepted as normal. But in the past 30 years attitudes about smoking have changed. Smoking is now banned in many places so that other people don’t have to breathe in smokers’ shocking tobacco smoke.

Passive smoking, when you are breathing someone else’s smoke, can damage your health just like smoking can. Smoking becomes addictive very quickly, and it’s one of the hardest habits to break.

What is it in cigarette smoke that is harmful? A chemical called nicotine is a substance that causes addiction. It is a stimulant that increases the pulse rate and a rise in the blood pressure. Cigarette smoke also contains tar – a major factor for causing cancer.

Gases in cigarette smoke increase your blood pressure and pulse rate. This can contribute to heart disease. Smokers as twice as non-smokers are likely to have heart trouble.

If you’ve ever watched an adult try to give up smoking, you know how hard it can be. It’s easier, healthier and cheaper never to start.

 

3. Read the text and note down the facts about the danger caused by alcohol. Find some sentences proving it.

 

ALCOHOL

Another poison of many young people is alcohol. Remember, alcohol is a drug. It can make you sick, and you can become addicted to it. It’s a very common form of drug abuse among teenagers. Don’t let anyone at a party pressure you into drinking if you don’t want to, especially if you’re legally under age.

Alcohol is a drug. In fact it is a mild poison. It is absorbed quickly into the bloodstream, within 4 or 10 minutes of being drunk. Absorption is slower if there’s food in the stomach. Once inside the body it passes through the bloodstream to the liver, where poisons are digested. But the liver can only process 28 grams of pure alcohol each hour.

This is a small amount – just over half a glass of beer. Anything else you drink is pumped round the body while it waits its turn to enter the liver.

When alcohol reaches your brain, you may immediately feel more relaxed and light-hearted. You may feel you can do crazy things. But after two or three drinks, your actions are clumsy and your speech is slurred. If you over-drink, you might suffer from double vision and loss of balance, even fall unconscious, hangover.

 

4. Read the text and note down the examples, showing the effect of drugs on a human being.

 

DRUGS

 

In facts, all medicines are drugs. You take drugs for your headache or your asthma. But you need to remember that not all drugs are medicines. Alcohol is a drug, and nicotine is a drug. There are many drugs that do you no good at all.

There’s nothing wrong with medicinal drugs if they’re used properly. The trouble is, some people use them wrongly and make themselves ill. Most of the drugs are illegal, but some are ordinary medical substances that people use in the wrong way.

People take drugs because they think they make them feel better. Young people are often introduced to drug taking by their friends.

Many users take drugs to escape from a life that may seem too hard to bear. Drugs may seem the only answer, but they are no answer at all. They simply make the problem worse.

Depending on the type and strength of the drug, all drug-abusers are in danger of developing side effects. Drugs can bring on confusion and frightening hallucinations and cause unbalanced emotions or more serious mental disorders.

 

5. Read the text and discuss the questions:

 

1) What does the AIDS virus attack?

2) Does AIDS kill people?

3) Have people found a cure for AIDS?

4) How can the virus be passed on?

5) How can one avoid being infected?

 

AIDS

AIDS is sickness that attacks the body’s natural system against disease. AIDS itself doesn’t kill, but because the body’s defense system is damaged, the patient has a reduced ability to fight off many other diseases, including flu or the common cold.

So far there is no cure for AIDS. We know that AIDS is caused by a virus which invades healthy cells, including the white blood cells that are part of our defense system. The virus takes control of the healthy cells genetic material and forces the cell to make a copy of the virus. The cell then dies and the multiplied virus moves on to invade and kill other healthy cells.

The AIDS virus can be passed on sexually or by sharing needles used to inject drugs. It also can be passed in blood products or from a pregnant woman with AIDS to her baby.

Many stories about the spread of AIDS are false. One cannot get AIDS by working with someone who’s got it, or by going to the same school, or by touching objects belonging to or touched by an infected person. Nobody caring for an AIDS patient has developed AIDS and, since there is no cure for it at present, be as helpful and understanding as possible to those suffering from this terrible disease.

 

Comprehension check

1. Are the statements true or false? If they are false give the correct information:

a) Alcohol is a mild poison.

b) Passive smoking is not dangerous.

c) Not all drugs are illegal.

d) Smoking is banned in all public places.

e) Many users take drugs to escape from life.

f) AIDS virus can be passed on by touching objects belonging to an infected person?

 

2. Here are some answers about hard habits. Ask the questions:

a) Why _______? Because their friends pressure them to do so.

b) What _______? A chemical called nicotine causes addiction.

c) When _______? Absorption is slower if there’s good in the stomach.

d) How _______? You may feel you can do crazy things.

e) Why _______? People take drugs because they think they make them been better.

f) What ________? AIDS is a sickness that attacks the body’s natural system against disease.

 

Speaking

 

1. Discuss in group. Express your attitude towards the habits you have learnt from the text and prove your arguments.

2. Speak on the topic: “Young generation and its problems”.

 

UNIT 3. My University

Pre–reading

Speak about some rules you have to follow to survive your first university year.

Reading

 

1. Read the text and say whether you agree with the author of the article.

 

LECTURING AND ASSESSMENT IN HERIOT-WATT UNIVERSITY (EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND)

 

All of the courses given in the University at undergraduate level rely on lectures given in fifty-minutes periods throughout the three terms in the early years of the courses. Each subject will normally have at least two lecture hours per week with an additional tutorial hour. The latter can consist of small groups with one tutor, or larger groups with several tutors, for example, in mathematics tutorials.

Additionally for many of the science and engineering subjects one or more afternoons per week may be devoted to laboratory work, at which experiments are conducted to back up lectures.

Most subjects are assessed at the end of each term in the first year of a course although the end of session examination contributes most to final achievement. Final examinations are normally held in May of the final year.

It should be noted that each student has a mentor or a tutor who keeps an eye on his progress throughout his university career. He is available to advise the student who experiences difficulties with his academic studies.

 

Questions:

1) How many terms does the academic year at Heriot-Watt consist of?

2) How long does a lecture last?

3) What other classes do University students have in each subject besides lectures?

4) How and when are many of the subjects assessed?

5) When are final examinations normally held?

6) What are the duties of a tutor?

7) What is the difference between the systems of lecturing and assessment at Heriot-Watt University and at yours?

 

4. Read the text “Oxford”. Find out the answers to the questions:

 

1) On what basis are Oxford students selected and why is it said that teaching at Oxford is “pleasantly informal and personal”?

2) What is so dreadful about “Finals”?

3) How is the research done by Oxford post-graduates?

 

OXFORD

 

What is it like, being a student at Oxford? Like all British universities, Oxford is a state university, not private one. Students are selected on the basis of their results in the national examinations or the special Oxford entrance examination. There are many applicants, and nobody can get a place by paying a fee. Successful candidates are admitted to a specified college of the university: that will be their home for the next three years (the normal period for an undergraduate degree), and for longer if they are admitted to study for a post-graduate degree. They will be mostly taught by tutors from their own college.

Teaching is pleasantly informal and personal; a typical under-graduate (apart from those in the natural sciences who spend all day in the laboratories) will spend an hour a week with his or her “tutor”, perhaps in the company of one other student. Each of them will have written an essay for the tutor, which serves as the basis-for discussion, argument, the exposition of ideas and academic methods. At the end of the hour the students go away with new essay title and a list of books that might be helpful in preparing for the essay.

Other kinds of teaching such as lectures and seminars are normally optional: popular lecturers can attract audiences from several faculties, while others may find themselves speaking to two or three loyal students, or maybe to none at all. So in theory, if you are good at reading, thinking and writing quickly, you can spend five days out of seven being idle: sleeping, taking part in sports, in student clubs, in acting and singing, in arguing, drinking, having parties. In practice, most students at Oxford are enthusiastic about the academic life, and many of the more conscientious ones work for days at each essay, sometimes sitting up through the night with a wet towel round their heads.

At the end of three years, all students face a dreadful ordeal, “Finals”, the final examinations. The victims are obliged to dress up for the occasion in black and white, an old-fashioned ritual that may help to calm the nerves. They crowd into the huge, bleak examination building and sit for three hours writing what they hope is beautiful prose on half-remembered or strangely forgotten subjects. In the afternoon they assembly for another three hours of writing. After four or five days of this torture they emerge, blinking, into the sunlight, and stagger off for the biggest party of them all.

Postgraduates (often just called graduates) are mostly busy with research for their dissertations, and they spend days in their college libraries or in the richly endowed, fourth hundred-year-old Bodleian library.

 

5. Match the definitions below with one of the words given

 

1) Someone in charge of a school.

2) Someone who is still at university studying

for their first degree.

3) Someone who has successfully completed their first degree.

4) Someone responsible for courses in a pri­vate school.

5) Someone in the same class as you at school.

6) Someone who teaches at a college or uni­versity.

7) Someone responsible for teaching a small group of students.

8) Someone with the highest academic posi­tion in a university.

 

6. Read the following text and find English equivalents of the following words and word combinations in it: радиотехника; преподавательский состав; лабораторное оборудование; жизненная необходимость; возможности; стипендия; курс обучения; изучение иностранных языков; большое внимание; степень; выполнять исследования, в заключение, семестр, общежитие.

 

Post-reading

 

Pair-work

1) Convince your friend who doesn’t believe in University education that University is the best place to study law, history, computing…

2) Interview your friend about his University experience.

3) Your friend believes that teaching will soon be done by computers. Challenge the statement that a teacher can’t be replaced by machines.

Pre-reading

 

1. Discussion Point

Answer the questions using the list on p. 30:

 

1) Which language in the world is spoken by most people?

2) Which language has the largest vocabulary?

3) Which is the oldest written language?

4) Which sub-continent has the largest number of languages?

5) Which language has no irregular verbs?

6) Which language has the most letters in its alphabet?

7) In which language is the largest encyclopedia printed?

 

Is it … Spanish - Cambodian – English – Egyptian – Esperanto - Mandarin Chinese – Indian?

2. Work in pairs. Do you think the following statements are true or false?

8) English was already an important world language four hundred years ago.

9) It is mainly because of the United States that English has become a world language.

10) One person out of seven in the world speaks perfect English.

11) There are few inflections in modern English.

12) In English, many words can be used as nouns.

13) English has borrowed words from many other languages.

14) One-third of the world’s population speaks English.

15) German is a promising language in the world.

16) In the future, all other languages will probably die out.

 

Reading

 

1. Scanning. Read the article on “English as a World Language”. Find out the answers to the true/false statements.

 

ENGLISH AS A WORLD LANGUAGE

 

English is one of the major languages in the world. In Shakespeare’s time, though, only a few million people spoke English, and the language was not thought to be very important by the other nations of Europe, and was unknown to the rest of the world.

English has become a world language because of its establishment as a mother tongue outside England, in all the continents of the world. The exporting of English began in the seventeenth century, with the first settlements in North America. Above all, it is the great growth of population in the United States, assisted by massive immigration in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, that has given the English language its present standing in the world.

People who speak English fall into one of three groups:

- those who have learned it as their native language in the US, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa;

- those who have learned it as a second language in a society that is mainly bilingual: in more than 70 countries, such as Ghana, Nigeria, India, Singapore and Vanuatu;

- and those who are forced to use it for a practical purpose – administrative, professional or educational. One person in seven of the world’s entire population belongs to one of these three groups. Incredibly enough, 75% of the world’s mail and 60% of the world’s telephone calls are in English.

Although estimates vary greatly, some 1.5 bln are thought to be competent communicators in English. That’s a quarter of the world’s population.

So, can English be a global language when three out of four people don’t use it? Given the areas of world influence where it has become to have a pivotal role, the answer has to be yes. Evidence suggests that English is now the dominant tongue in international politics, banking, the press, news agencies, advertising, broadcasting, the recording industry, movies, travel, science and technology, knowledge management and communications. No other language has achieved such a widespread profile – or is likely to in the foreseeable future.

Other languages have an important international presence, of course. Both Mandarin Chinese and Spanish have more mother-tongue speakers than English, according to a 1999 survey. Although there is uncertainty about statistics, Spanish is growing faster than any other language, especially in the Americas.

The reason for the global status of English has nothing to do with its number of first-language speakers. Three times as many people speak it as a second or foreign language, and this ratio is increasing.

Old English, like modern German, French, Russian and Greek, had many inflections to show singular and plural, tense, etc., but over the centuries words have been simplified. Verbs now have very few inflections. Without inflections, the same word can operate as many different parts of speech. Many nouns and verbs have the same form, for example swim, drink, walk, kiss, look, process, smile, record. We can talk about water to drink and to water the flowers; time to go and to time a race; a paper to read and to paper a bedroom. Adjectives can be used as verbs. We warm our hands in front of afire; if our clothes are dirtied, they need to be cleaned and dried. Prepositionstoo are flexible. A sixty-year old man is nearing retirement; we can talk abouta round of golf, cards, or drinks. This involves the free admission of words from other languages and the easy creation of compounds and derivatives. Most world languages have contributed some words to English at some time, and the process is now being reversed. Purists of the French, Russian, and Japanese languages are resisting the arrival of English in their vocabulary.

Standard English is the chief force, existing as an international reality in print, and available as a tool for national and international communication. Its position is being reinforced by new technologies. Satellite television is beaming standard English down into previously unreachable parts of the world, thereby fostering greater levels of mutual intelligibility. And the Internet currently has a predominantly (80%) English voice – though this figure is falling as other languages come online.

But nothing is entirely predictable in the world of language. At the start of the millennium, it would have been hard to believe that few would know Latin 1,000 years later. It takes only a shift in the balance of economic or political power for another language, to move centre stage.

 

2. Read the text in more depth and write down the key sentences for retelling.

 

Post-reading

 

1. Read some amazing facts about English today, fill in the gaps with suitable numbers.

1) One billion people speak English today. That’s … of the world’s population.

2) … million people speak English as their first language. For the other 600 million it’s either a second language or a foreign language.

3) The number of Chinese people learning English today is bigger than the population of the USA.

4) There are more than … words in the Oxford English Dictionary.

5) … % of all information in the world’s computers is in English.

6) Nearly … % of all the companies in Europe communicate with each other in English.

7) English is just one of over … languages in the world today.

8) … % of all international letters and telexes are in English.

9) … % of all English vocabulary comes from other languages.

10) When the American spaceship “Voyager” began its journey in … it carried a gold disc. On the disc there were messages in … languages. Before all of them there was a message from the Secretary General of the United Nations — in English.

11) It is said that William Shakespeare used about … words in his works.

12) An average English-speaking person uses several thousands of words; a poorly educated person can do with as little as… words in his everyday life.

 

a) 1,000 b) 29,000 c) 400 d) 55 e) 15% f) 500,000 g) 80% h) 1977 i) 50% j) 80% k) 3,000 i) 75%

 

2. Read and say why English has become an international language of scientific publishing.

SCIENTIFIC PUBLISHING

English is now the international currency of science and technology. Yet it has not always been so. The renaissance of British science in the 17^th century put English-language science publications such as the “Philosophical Transactions” instituted by the Royal Society 1665, at the forefront of the world scientific community. But the position was soon lost to German, which became the dominant international language of science until World War I. The growing role of the US then ensured that English became, once again, the global language of experiment and discovery.

Journals in many countries have shifted, since World War II, from publishing in their national language to publishing in English. Gibbs (1995) describes how the Mexican medical journal “Archivos de Investigacion Medica” shifted to English: first publishing abstracts in English, then providing English translations of all articles, finally hiring an American editor, accepting articles only in English and changing its name to “Archives of Medical Research”.

This language shift is common elsewhere. A study in the early 1980s showed nearly two-thirds of publications of French scientists were in English. All contributions in 1950 to the “Zeitschrift fur Tierpsychologie” were in German, but by 1984 95% were in English. The journal was renamed “Ethology” two years later.

 

3. Read the article and match suitable topic sentences with the paragraphs of the text.

a) lawyers must be trained to understand legal agreements written in English

b) lingua franca provides joint ventures with internationally recognised terms, obligations and rights

c) a newly established company headquartered in any country of the world needs specialist with the skills in the local language

d) joint ventures tend to use English as an international language

e) importing and exporting processes of a joint venture requires English-speaking personnel

f) a transnational corporation uses English for external trade

 

 

ENGLISH IN BUSINESS

 

1. International trade is often a complex cross-boarder business: goods are taken from one country, refined or given added value by a second, sold to a third, repackaged, resold and so on. Such multilateral trade brings with it greater reliance on lingua francas.

2. In Europe there is growing evidence that English has become the major business lingua franca. A study conducted in 1988 for the Danish Council of Trade and Industry reported that English is used by Danish companies in over 80% of international business contacts and communications. A more recent investigation in small and medium-sized businesses in peripheral areas of Europe found that although English is probably the most used language of business across Europe, German is used extensively in particular areas, especially for informal communication:

“German is, understandably, in more widespread use than English in European regions bordering on Germany, thereby undermining a common misperception of English as the sole lingua franca of international business. This is apparent in the Dutch and Danish samples, where German is ahead of English in the use of oral-aural skills, though this order is reversed for reading and writing.”

3. However, the use of German and French is almost exclusively confined to trade within Europe: German companies generally use English for trade outside the European Union. This is apparent from recommendations made by German Chambers of Commerce to members on which languages should be used for trade with each country in the world. English is recommended as the sole language for 64 countries. German is recommended as the exclusive language of trade only with one country – Austria – though German is suggested as a co-language for up to 25 countries, including Holland, Denmark and those in eastern Europe. French is recommended for 25 countries and Spanish-- for 17. English is thus the preferred, but not the sole, language of external trade for European countries. Japan and the US also use English widely for their international trade.

 

5. Read the article again and say what these numbers refer to in the text.

 

a) 80 b) 64 c) 1 d) 25 e) 25 f) 17

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

Say why English is a world language. Use the following questions:

1. When did the English language begin to serve as the international language?

2. What contributed to the development of English as a world language?

3. Why did people begin to speak English more widely after World War II?

4. Do you personally feel that you need English? What are your reasons?

5. What language do you think might be used as a lingua franca if not English?

 

 

KEYS

1. Discussion point

 

1) Mandarin Chinese is spoken by 700,000 people (70% of the population of China). English is the most widespread, with 400 mln speakers.

Cambodian has 72 letters.

UNIT 5. Belarus

1. What do you know ab.

 

2. Read the text given below and try to complement it with the facts known to you.

FROM THE HISTORY OF BELARUS

 

Belaya Rus. The term «Belaya Rus» was for the first time used in the 12^th century. Up to the 15^th century it was also common in north-east Rus. Lands which are the Republic's territory today were originally called «Belaya Rus» in the 14^th century and the name stuck to these lands.

The origin of the name, however, has so far never been precise. Some researchers put it down to the white colour of local peasants' everyday linen clothes and to their fair hair. Others associate it with the direct meaning of the word «belyi» which stands for «clean, non-occupied, free, and independent». They presume that old Rus's lands which had not been captured neither by the Mongols and Tatars nor by Lithuania were called «Belaya Rus» in those early days. Still others maintain that «Belaya Rus» was the land inhabited by Christians unlike «Chernya (black) Rus» where pagans lived. There are also other versions of the name's origin.

The history of Belarus goes back to antiquity. In the Middle Ages the territory of present day Belarus was populated by Eastern Slavic tribes. The ancestors of the Belarusians were the Krivichi, Radimichi and Dregovichi. They lived in the basins of the Dnieper and the Zapadnaya Dvina rivers where they hunted, fished and farmed.

In the 6^th - 8^th centuries they lived through the disintegration of the tribal society and the emergence of feudalism. The development of arable farming led to the collapse of the kinship communities based on territorial and economic relations. The tribes began to develop external relations. There was a need in a united state, and it appeared at the beginning of the 9^th century. It was Kievskaya Rus -the home of three fraternal peoples - the Russians, the Ukrainians and the Belarusians. Feudal wars and foreign invasions plundered these lands.

In the second half of the 13^th century the Grand Duchy of Lithuania annexed Belarus. In 1569 Rzecz Pospolita was formed with the aim to struggle against the Principality of Moscow. Later, at the end of the 17^th century the Belarusian people were placed in bondage to the Polish feudal lords who exploited them cruelly. It was also invaded by the troops of the Swedish King Charles XII. In 1708 the Russian troops under the command of Peter the Great routed the Swedish troops which were crossing Belarus to join Charles's army. It was a prologue to the famous battle of Poltava which stopped the Swedish intervention. At the end of the 18^th century Belarus was annexed by Russia.

In 1812 Belarus was invaded by Napoleon. A few months later the French were defeated and driven westwards. To commemorate that event and to celebrate the centenary of the war with Napoleon the citizens of Vitebsk erected a monument which stands on the Uspenski hill.

On January 1, 1919 the Revolutionary Workers and Peasants' Government of Byelorussia proclaimed the formation of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1922 it became a member of the former USSR. This act had a decisive impact on the development of its economy and culture.

In 1939 Western Belarus, occupied since 1921 by Poland, joined Byelorussia. By the end of the thirties a great number of large and small plants and factories were built throughout the republic. Minsk, Gomel, Mogilev, Grodno, Vitebsk, Brest, Bobruisk, Orsha and other cities grew into important industrial centres. A lot of collective and state farms were organized, the national arts and literature, science and education developed rapidly. But the peaceful labour of the people was interrupted by a new war.

In 1941 the Germans ran into heavy resistance of the Belarusian people. Belarus is known as the partisan republic as already in summer 1941 more than 100 partisan groups were formed (the first of them were organized by our national heroes V.Korzh, F. Pavlovsky and M.Shmyryov).

World War II brought to the country innumerable losses. More than 2 million people or nearly every forth of the entire population of the country died in the war. Numerous Belarusian villages and towns were burned to ashes. But Belarus has restored its cities and rebuilt its economy.

Belarus proclaimed its sovereignty on July 27, 1991. And since then the Republic of Belarus has taken its place in Eastern Europe as a new independent state.

 

2. Work in pairs. Find out from your partners:

- what they know about the origin of name ‘Belaija Rus’;

- who inhabited Belarus in the Middle Ages;

- what they know about the ancestors of the Belarusians;

- what events took place on the territory of Belarus in the first half of the 20 th centry;

- when Belarus became an independent state.

 

3. What do you know about Belarus?

 

1) write down some associations coming to your mind when you hear the word ’Belarus’;

2) compare your ideas with a partner.

 

4. Read the text and check your ideas.

 

MINSK

 

Minsk is the capital of Belarus. Its history goes bask to the XI century. More than 900 hundred years ago on the banks of the Nemiga and Svisloch rivers there appeared the city of Minsk or Mensk as it was called at that time. Minsk was first mentioned as a town in the Principality of Polotsk in a chronicle in 1067. Minsk has a great and eventful history. It has lived through many hardships, it was burnt and ruined many times but every time it was rebuilt. Lovely in all seasons of the year and nowadays Minsk is a big growing city.

The most striking impression of old Minsk can be given by a tour to the historical centre of the city. The historical centre consists of Verkhniy gorod, Rakovskoye and Troyetskoye predmestie.

Verkhniy gorod is the present Svobody Square and the blocks of old buildings limited by the river Svisloch from east, by the streets Romanovskaya Sloboda and Gorodskoy Val from west, by the street Niemiga from north and by the street Internatsionalnaya from south.

Rakovskoye predmestie is the area of streets Rakovskaya, Vitebskaya, Osvobozhdenia, Dimitrova and Zamkovaya. By the way the oldest part of the city – so–called Minskoye zamchishche is situated in the territory of Rakovskoye predmestie.

Independence avenue is the highway of Belarusian capital. Its length is more than 11 kilometres.

During the Great Patriotic War Minsk was almost completely ruined and many architects and builders even thought it was impossible to restore the city. But with the help of the people from other Soviet republics it was built anew. Nowadays Minsk is the largest industrial center of Belarus. Over one fourth of the country’s industrial personnel is employed by its over 150 factories. ¾ of industrial output of the Minsk region and ¼ of industrial output of Belarus is produced in the city. The leading role in Minsk industries belongs to mechanical engineering

There are 20 universities and 24 colleges operating in the city. The Belarusian Academy of Sciences is situated here. Cultural institutions are represented by 9 museums, 11 theaters, a circus, 6 concert halls a TV-station and a botanic garden.

Victory Square (up to 1954 called ‘Kruglaya’) is a sacred place in Minsk. The 40 metres high monument was erected here in honour of the Victory over fascist Germany and in the memory of partisans and soldiers who perished in the Great Patriotic War. The Eternal Flame was set at the foot of the monument on July 3, 1961.

Minsk has a developed public network system including buses, trolley-buses, trams and Metro. The daily service runs from 5-30 a.m. till 1-00 a.m.

Minsk Metro is clean and comfortable – now it has 23 stations.

 

1. Read the text again and speak on the following aspects: official name; area population; language; currency; largest city; capital; political structure; head of Government; head of State; main sources of income

Which piece of information is not in the text? Can you provide it?

 

2. Find these things in the text:

a) facts that show the structure of the population

b) type of climate Belarus has

c) things that show the favourable geographical situation of the republic

d) the most developed industries

e) things that tourists might see in Belarus (in Minsk; in your native town)

 

3. Percentages and numbers

a) find these numbers in the text: 500; 40%; 10 000 000; 1067; 120; 2 000 000; 207,600; 78%.

b) Complete the sentences from the text:

 

The Republic of Belarus was founded …

The head of the state is …

Belarus covers an area …

It is situated …

The climate is …

The main ethnic groups are …

The state languages in our republic…

Belarus is one of the founders of …

Our republic has a developed …

Today Belarus produces …

Our state possesses a network of …

Agriculture of Belarus is known for …

Now it has economic and political relations with …

 

4. Discussion points

a) What do you think is the most interesting piece of information about Belarus on these pages? What important things are left out?

b) Many people have their favourite places in their native towns – what about you? Why do you like this place (street, square, etc.)?

c) What places in Belarus would you like to visit? Give your reasons.

d) If you decided to make a tour to the historical centre of Minsk, which route would you take? (You have = 2 hours at your disposal for the walk) – Verkhniy Gorod, Troyetskoe or Rakovskoe predmestiye (or others).

e) Which – in your opinion – is the most impressive building in Minsk?

f) What has been done and is being done to restore the historical places of our capital?

g) Let us consider the values of representatives of different nations (traditions, cultural life, traits of character, attitude to others, etc.). For example

 

British values	Scandinavian values
(as seen by people of other nations) individualism traditionalism moderation respect for others	Modesty individualism attachment to nature concept of ‘just enough’ respect for children

 

What are – in your opinion – Belarusian values?

 

5. Writing

Use the information from the table in ex.2. Write a paragraph about Belarus. Start like this: the official name of Belarus …. Its area is …

 

6. Reading

a) complete the text with these words:

to found sovereignty to border temperate area

huge source inhabited population recent

significant government administrative cultural developed

centre trade manufacture historical famous

UNIT 6. Ecological problems

Pre-reading task

 

1. Give your own environmental definitions to the following terms:

“green” and “brown”.

 

2. Read the correct ones and check if you are right.

Green – someone ecologically intelligent.

Brown – someone not environmentally aware, the opposite of being green.

 

3. Read the following questionnaire and try to answer the questions.

 

 

HOW GREEN ARE YOU?

 

There is more to being green than recycling your newspapers and using unleaded fuel. Here is a chance to test your ecological intelligence 1. Which uses the most energy? a a fridge b a cooker or stove c a washing machine 2. What is the best way to make cars ecologically safer? a buying a car with a catalytic converter b using unleaded petrol c buying a more fuel-efficient car 3. Which of the following does not damage human health? a aspirin b roast beef c excessive intake of vitamin C 4. Which uses the most water in the home? a the toilet b the bath c the washing machine d the dishwasher

5. Which of these statements about ‘ozone friendly ’ aerosol cans is true? a they contain no ozone-damaging propellants b they are biodegradable c they are recyclable 6. Which is the best way of improving the quality of drinking water? a buying bottled water b collecting rainwater c lobbying for a dual water supply d boiling tap water 7.Which is the best way to dispose of waste? a burning it in incinerators that generate energy b recycling c composting 8 Which is the most environment-friendly form of energy? a nuclear power b coal c gas d oil

 

4. Explain the adjectives in italics from ex. 3 and put them in the two boxes below.

good	bad

 

Ecovocabulary

 

1. Match the words with their appropriate definition:

a) recycling 1. making dirty, impure or diseased

b) the ozone layer 2. become liquid as a result of being taken into a liquid

c) fertilizers 3. no longer in existence

d) flood 4. unwanted, unnecessary

e) waste 5. cause loss of value

f) extinct 6. the processing of used objects so that they can be

used again

g) to dissolve 7. chemicals which farmers use to stop diseases and

make plants grow quicker.

h) contamination 8. a thin layer of gas high above the surface of the earth

i) to damage 9. great quantity of water in a place that is usually dry

 

2. Divide the words given in the box between the following entries:

air pollution global warming deforestation

congestion contamination water pollution

 

damage to the wildlife; depletion of the ozone layer; oil spills; exhaust fumes; temperature rise; traffic jams; pesticides; lack of oxygen; dumping, smoke from factories; cutting down rainforests; aerosol cans; the greenhouse effect; rubbish dumps; sewage; chemical fertilizers; power stations; smog; acid rains

Reading

Ecoproblems <