Faculties

1. Railway Transportation Management Faculty (Rolling Stock and Freight Operation Department; Railway Stations and Junctions Department; Railway Operation Management Department; Vital Safety Department, etc.).

2. Railway Construction Faculty (Track and Track Facilities Department; Railway and Highway Surveying and Design Engineering Department; Engineering Geodesy Department; etc.).

3. Building and road Machines Faculty (Mechanization of Track, Loading and Unloading and Construction Works Department; Transport Mechanical Engineering Technology and Machine Maintenance Department; Electrical Engineering and Electric Technologies in Railway Industry Department, etc.).

4. Civil Engineering Faculty (Railway Structures and Buildings in Railway Industry Department; Technology, Engineering Management and Construction Economics Department; Hydraulics and Water Supply Department; Building Materials Department, etc.).

5. Bridges and Transport Tunnels Faculty (Bridges Department; Tunnels and Underground Railways Department; Geology, Footings and Foundations Department; Structural Mechanics Department; Theoretical Mechanics Department, ect.).

6. Engineering Economics Faculty (Transport Economics Department; Accounting and Auduting Railway Industry Department; Management in Transport Industry Department; etc.).

7. International Business and Law Faculty (Economic Theory Department; International Business Department, Civil Law Department; Public Law Department; Criminal Law Department; Finance and Credit Department; etc.).

8. Human Resources Management Faculty (Social Psychology Department; Psycology and Education Science Department).

9. Correspondence Faculty.

Subjects: History of Russia, Philosophy, Foreign Languages, Engineering Graphics, Descriptive Geometry, Theoretical Mechanics, Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Basics of Transport Services, etc.

Now you are a first-year student or a fresher at STU, which was founded in 1931. Our University is conveniently located close to the public transport interchanges and about 5 minutes’ walk from Zaeltstovskaya Metro Station. The University with more than 11,000 students is proud of its mission to provide pathways to university degrees and career qualifications and prepare graduates for employment both in Russian and international environment as well as in the reformed railway system. It is one of the leaders among Russian railway educational establishments.

The University’s facilities are of the highest quality and the academic staff is specially selected for the teaching skills and knowledge of the subjects. Many school leavers choose STU because its diplomas are of high academic standard and the university provides the graduates with opportunities that will enhance their future employment or promotion prospects. Our graduates can be found working everywhere from the Ministry of Railways and Local Administration Authorities to various railway companies. Students enrolled at our University take inspiration from the large number of students who successfully preceded them and now occupy high rank positions not only in railway network but in politics as well. They are able to make personal contacts that are of benefit to them in their professional and political career.

The University achieves highest graduate employability rates because of its reputation and strong links with railways. The professors develop courses that are highly regarded in the railway system because of the balance between theory and practical application. It prepares graduates to make a positive contribution to the professional railway community. The Railway Engineering Degree is structured so that students develop critical, analytical and evaluative skills and gain a sound background in all areas of their work.

The University provides engineering, railway construction, economics, information technology, construction management, International Business and Trade programmes. They include extensive English, German, French, Chinese and Japan language training. The foreign language courses prepare students for a variety of real life situations. Students hear, speak, read and write by means of videos, interactive computers, audiotapes, role-plays and classroom activities. All teachers are experienced, highly qualified and helpful. The course includes topics of general interest, topics associated with GB, Russia and those, which relate to railways. If a student finds the programme too intensive he/she can take, he can move more slowly by so called “slow track”. It is recommended for the students having language level below the required skills and who can’t undergo an intensive course and self-directed learning. Information about assessment of a student achievement is given to students in the course outlineand explained in the first meeting for the subject.

The University provides some extra help and full assistance to students who are having difficulties with their studies. Teachers offer extra remedial tutorials in core subjects, help with academic work such as writing assignments and examination technique, as well as personal counseling and assist students in developing good study skills so that that student’s time in the university will be productive and rewarding. Tuition incorporates several modes of teaching, including lectures, tutorials as well as practical sessions in computer and language laboratories. Students are required to undertake self-study outside formal classes at least equal in time to the number of hours of formal classes per week.

Currently the university is one of the largest educational and scientific centers in Siberia with long-standing cultural and military traditions. It is also unique for its expressive architecture and historical background. The University Museums preserve and share historical spirit with new coming generations. The library and a Book museum attached to it occupy the area of some 3000 square metres and provide Web-access and services for students, lecturers and many railway specialists. The classrooms and computer workshops are modern and spacious. It is a very comfortable and sophisticated learning environment, conveniently located at the STU campus. Students have access to computers both in class and after class and to Internet. All students receive a STU student card and can use the university library, and other STU student facilities, including the sports centres.

STU is fully brought to life by the lively students’ extracurricular activities, for instance in music and spot, which add that colourful and vital variety and is the spice of campus life. Student life within the University is characterized by a plethora of different theatre groups (the drama studio “Sphera”, the dance theatre “Imperia”, short play theatre “Factorial”, etc.), the Club for Cheerful and Inquisitive, the University choir and the Drawing and painting studio where students apply their artistic talents. Many cities, towns and small settlements along the West-Siberian Railway greeted STU Show-train. Student Leisure Centre regularly organises a wide range of leisure activities, concerts, shows, celebrations and discos. Sports Centre develops various kinds of sports: track-and-field, ski racing, skating, swimming, basketball, volleyball, lawn tennis, chess, aerobics, even judo and sambo wrestling, weight lifting, biathlon and mountain climbing. STU has all the facilities for sports: open-air stadium, 2 skiing centres, special premises for sport games, Physical Education classes. A new gym with a swimming pool is being built.

Established in 1939, the military sports relay is one of the oldest STU traditions and still remains a significant event. Among its participants were Victor Mamatov, the Olympic biathlon champion, Anatoliy Lepeshkin, world skating ex-champion and many others. Another STU tradition is taking part in the track-and-field relay in memory of A. Pokryshkin, three times USSR hero.

Sporting, cultural and social events and entertainments both on and off campus take place all year round and students can also enjoy after class activities as a way of making new friends or to pursue new interests. If I were ever asked for a recommendation on a place to study, STU would always be my first suggestion.

QUESTIONS

1. When did you finish school?

2. What university do you study at? (the name of the university).

3. When did you enter the university?

4. How many entrance exams did you take? When did you take them? Did you get good and excellent marks in all exams?

5. Why did you choose SSTU instead of any other university?

6. What year are you in? How long have you been studying here?

7. When does the academic year start at the university? When is it over?

8. How many terms are there in the academic year?

9. How many faculties are there at the university? What are they? Name them.

10. What faculty are you in?

11. What subjects are studied at our university in the first year?

12. How many lectures a day do you usually have?

13. When does your first lecture begin? When is it over?

14. What must students do at the lectures? What shouldn’t they do at the lectures?

15. Do you skip (miss deliberately) lectures?

16. Do you take exams at the end of the term? How many exams will you take in winter?

17. Are students’ meetings often held?

18. What questions are discussed at these meetings?

19. Before exam it’s a good idea to revise for it in order to pass it (do well in exam). Do you get marks/credits/points for your exams?

20. Are you doing well at the university?

21. Do you get a grant? How much do you get?

22. Are you doing well in Fundamentals of Information Science and Computer Engineering?

23. When will your first term be over? How many exams will you take?

24. What subjects are you to take exams in? What subjects needn’t you take exams in?

25. What exams are you afraid most of all?

26. Have you written any term-paper yet? When will you write it?

27. Do you want to graduate from the university with honours?

28. When will you graduate from the university?

ORAL COMPOSITION WORK

Suggested Situations for Dialogues

1. The University you study at; year of foundation and its architecture, hostels.

2. The student body and the number of faculties the University has at present. The subjects taught at the faculties; terms of practical work.

3. The equipment of the University and all the facilities it offers for studies, research and recreation; cost of tuition; opportunities for getting work after graduating from the University.

4. Mention some interesting tradition of the University you study at.

5. You can’t help feeling excited as you are going to take an examination in … .

6. You are going to cut a lecture and slip away to the cinema. Unfortunately you run into the Dean himself.

Reports

1. Find out some material about Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Make a short report (5 minutes).

2. Describe the hostel you live in, the room you share with other room-mates; if you are a day student describe the room you live in.

Speak on the following topics:

“A student’s working day’, “How I took my entrance examinations”, “Requirements for the entrance examinations”.

Words and expressions to be used

Final examinations выпускные экзамены

Selective exam конкурсный экзамен

To sit for the exam (to read up a subject) готовиться к экзамену

Educational institution учебное заведение

Entrance requirements department приемная комиссия

Entrancerequirementsтребования на вступительных экзаменах

Standards of admission правила приема

To submit an application for admission подать заявление о приеме

To launch an examination scheme вывесить расписание экзаменов

To conduct examinations проводить экзамены

Examination paper экзаменационный билет

Essay subject тема сочинения

Composition, essay (composition a fixed topic, free composition) сочинение

To solve a problem in maths, physics решить задачу по математике, физике

To show a good (poor) knowledge of something обнаружить хорошие (плохие) знания

To gain entrance поступить

Teaching staff педагогический состав

To attend classes посещать занятия

Extra-curricular activities внеаудиторная работа

TEST

I. Correct the mis-collocations in these sentences.

1. I can’t come out. I’m studying. I’m passing an examination tomorrow.

2. Congratulations! I hear you succeeded your examination!

3. You can study a lot of different careers at this university.

4. I got some good notes in my continuous assessment this term.

5. She’s a professor in a primary school.

6. He gave an interesting 45-minute conference on Goethe.

7. She got a degree in personnel management from a private college.

KEY

1. I’m taking/doing/sitting an exam tomorrow.

2. I hear you passed/did well in your examination.

3. You can study a lot of different subjects/take a lot of different courses at this university.

4. I got some good marks/grades in my continuous assessment this term.

5. She’s a teacher in a primary school.

6. He gave an interesting 45-minute lecture on Goethe.

7. She got a diploma in personnel management.

II. Choose the right word.

(A)

1. A nursery school is a school for [a) babies, b) infants]. 2. My favourite [a) professor, b) teacher] at school is Mr Watkins. 3. Our teacher always sets us a lot of [a) housework, b) homework]. 4. What will you be doing in the summer [a) vacation, b) vacancy]? 5. Class 2 are waiting for me in the [a) classroom, b) lesson]. 6. We have a very good school [a) canteen, b) restaurant]. 7. When did you [a) take, b) give] your exam? 8. There are 15 students in our English [a) class, b) grade]. 9. I’m [ a) attending, b) following] English classes. 10. Sit [a) on, b) at] your desk and get on with your work. 11. I made too many [a) faults, b) mistakes] in my essay. 12. You [a) missed, b) lost] too many lessons last term. 13. Explain [a) to me, b) me] why you are late. 14. [a) Try, b) test] tour knowledge! 15. What did you get out of ten in the test? – [a) Nought, b) Nil]! 16. How many [a) languages, b) tongues] do you speak? 17. [a) Story, b)history] is my favourite subject. 18. Maths [a) aren’t, b) isn’t easy for everybody. 19. I’m not good [a) in, b) at] sports. 20. I’m doing a course in [a) English, b) english].

KEY

1b 2b 3b 4a 5a 6a 7a 8a 9a 10b 11b 12a 13a 14b 15a 16a 17b 18b 19b 20a

(B)*

A [a) timetable, b) schedule] lists the times of classes, etc. 2. When schools close, the children are on [a) leave, b) holiday]. 3. Children who live in a school are called [a) pensioners, b) boarders]. 4. A school for the very young is a [a) kindergarten, b) nursery]. 5. Have you seen the new [a) programme, b) syllabus] for the exams? 6. A student might win one of these [a) a premium, b) a prize]. 7. You would do an [a) experience, b) experiment] in a laboratory. 8. After [a) gymnasium, b) grammar school] you can attend university. 9. Universities can only [a) admit, b) receive] a few students. 10. I need to pass my Cambridge First [a) Certificate, b) Diploma]. 11. She’s got a [a) position, b) place] to do French at Oxford. 12. Our course provides you with [a) practicable, b) practical] experience. 13. You do this before you take an exam. [a) revision, b) repetition]. 14. What [a) mark, b) degree] did you get for your spelling test? 15. Sh! I want to listen to the [a) conference, b) lecture]. 16. [Particular, b) private] lessons are very expensive. 17. My essay was illustrated with a [a) diagram, b) scheme]. 18. No one likes to [a) fail, b) lose] an exam. 19. History is my favourite [a) topic, b) subject] at school. 20. It’s hard to [a) get, b) enter] into university.

KEY

1a 2b 3b 4a 5b 6b 7b 8b 9a 10a 11b 12b 13a 14a 15b 16b 17a 18a 19b 20a

III. Translate the Russian sentences into English, making them the logical continuation of the English ones.

1) How did she manage to win a scholarship? – No wonder. Она очень старалась и много работала. 2)Areyoufirstyear? – Да, я студент. Я студент с 1 сентября.3)Whatwilltheteacherbedoingthistimeto-morrow? – Она будет проверять наши контрольные работы по грамматике.4) How long have you been attending lectures at the University? – Пожалуй, уже более двух лет. 5) Who was it that you were talking to in the Dean’s Office this morning? – Да с самим деканом. Он собирается провести беседу о предстоящих экзаменах. 6)Ithinkhehasfailed. – Провалился? Нет, он сдал экзамен и сдал его хорошо. -Whendidhepassit? – Он сдал его (а) вчера, (б) сегодня утром.7) She will take a post-graduate course, won’t she? – I believe so. Она будет заниматься в аспирантуре, если она сдаст все экзамены на “отлично”. У нее склонность к научной работе. 8) How long have you been listening to the tape-recordings when I came to the English laboratory? – Not very long. Около двадцати минут. До этого я записывал текст урока. 9) Did you look through your examination paper after you had written it? – Not only that. Я переписал работу после того, как просмотрел ее. 10)Whendoesthefirsttermend? – Как обычно, в январе. К 10 января мы уже закончим занятия.

KEY

1) She was very diligent and worked hard. 2) Yes, I am. I’ve been a student since September 1. 3) She will be checking our grammar test papers. 4) I’ve been attending lectures for more than two years. 5) It was the Dean. He is going to have a talk about the forthcoming examinations. 6) But he hasn’t. He has passed it - and with credit too! He passed it yesterday/ has passed it in the morning. 7) She will take a post-graduate course if she passes all her exams with merit. She has a gift for research work. 8) I have been listening to it for about 20 minutes. And before it I had been recording the text of the lesson. 9) I rewrote my paper after I had looked through it. 10) It ends as usual in January. We’ll have completed our course by January 10.

IV. Ask questions on the italicized parts of the sentences. Translate this text into Russian. Be ready to render its contents in English.

At Oxford the instruction is mainly given by the college tutors and lectures, and by university professors and readers. All students are members of a college and of the university. They may attend any lecture they like.

The tutorial system in Oxford and Cambridge differs from that of all the other English Universities. Every student has a tutor. (disjunctive) As soon as a student comes to Oxford he goes to see his tutor. The tutor plans his work, suggests the books he should read and sets work for him to do, for example an essay to write. Each week he goes to his tutor’s rooms, with two or three other students. The tutor discusses with them the work they have done; he criticizes in detail their essays and sets them the next week’s work. Such lessons are called “tutorials”.

EDUCATION IN GREAT BRITAIN

Tasks

1. Reading the text for the first time skim it through fairly quickly to understand the topic and the main points.

2. Reading the text for the second time look through it very carefully to be sure you understand exactly the peculiarities of the British educational system. Do read through the questions first to see what kind of information you need to look for. When you have finished reading, see how much you can recall.

3. Try to work out the meanings of any words you don’t know from the context. Try to find Russian equivalents to the underlined word combinations.

There are some features in the British educational system, which distinguish it from education in other countries. Primary schoolchildren do not have homework and university students have fewer hours of programmed attendance than students in other European countries. On the other hand they receive greater personal guidance with their work. This resulted in high-quality education for the intelligent and academically inclined. Little attention is given to the educational needs of the people with poor academic records.

All state schools are obliged to teach English, Mathematics, Science and a Modern Language for all pupils up to the age of 16. Educational policy focuses on developing the “complete” person. It is for the same reason that British schools and universities have tendered to give such a high priority to sport and the arts or humanities.

The basis features of public education in Great Britain are the following:

1. full-time education is compulsory up to the middle teenage years;

2. the academic year begins at the end of summer;

3. compulsory education is free of charge, but parents can spend money on educating their children privately outside the state system if they want to (the fees are high);

There are three recognized stages:

1. The first stage is primary education from 5 to 11 years old. There is no system of nursery in GB, i.e. pre-primary schools. In some areas primary schools have nursery or play-schools attached to them. Children at the age of 2-5 years old mostly play with some early learning, they lunch and sleep in safety with someone keeping an eye on them. Primary education takes place in infant schools where pupils are taught basic reading, writing, arithmetic, art, etc., and in junior schools (from 8 to 11 years old) which mark the transition from play to “real work”.

2. The second stage is secondary education from 11 to 16/18 years old. Children must go to school until the age of 16, and pupils may stay on for one or two years if they wish.

Free secondary education is available to all children in comprehensive schools, which are not selective – children don’t have to pass an exam to go there. Books are lent to the pupils free. Comprehensive schools in the UK are for all abilities and sexes. They develop the talents of each individual child, and the older children, according to their perceived abilities, are put into “sets” for mathematics or languages, sometimes across all subjects. But some schools teach all subjects to “mixed ability’ classes. Comprehensive schools teach wide range of subjects in arts, crafts, woodwork, domestic science, modern languages, sciences, technical areas and computer studies. All pupils move to the next class automatically at the end of the year.

“Private education” must take care of itself. The Education authorities do not prescribe a detailed programme of learning or determine what books and materials should be used. They only offer a national specification of learning objectives.

Private preparatory schools are for pupils aged up to 13. They are very expensive and prepare children for very famous in the UK public schools which are free from state control. The fundamental requirements are very high and they accept pupils on the basis of an examination. Most of them are boarding schools. The education is of a high quality, the most able go ahead. The discipline is very strict, corporal punishment has been recently banned in state schools, but in most public schools it is still allowed. At 18 most public school-leavers gain entry to universities. Public schools are famous for their ability to lay foundation of a successful future by giving their pupils a good academic background, self-confidence, distinctive customs and attitudes, the use of specialized items of vocabulary, the wearing of distinctive clothes, and perhaps, most important of all, the right friends and contacts. Public schools educate the ruling class and have a deep and lasting influence on their pupils.

Grammar school teaches academic subjects to prepare children for university, professions, managerial or other highly-skilled jobs. It is usually by competitive entry. At university many Grammar school children rub shoulders with those from the public schools and often acquire their accent and attitude. Secondary modern school has a more practical and technical bias.

Nearly all schools work a five-day week, with no half-day. Schools usually divide their year into three “terms”. Each school day is divided into periods of 40-50 minutes with 10-20 minutes breaks between them.

Some schools give pupils tests every week or month to see if they are making progress. The school-leaving exams are set by independent examining boards and held in May/June. There is no unified school-leaving exam or school leaving certificate. In practice, nearly all pupils do exams in English language, maths and a science subject. The number of passes they obtain is shown on the certificate.

The school’s function is to train a pupil’s mind and his character should be formed at home. But the “troublemakers” don’t leave their characters at home when their minds go to school and many of them have personality problems. When they are late or violate various school regulations they may be punished or detained in school after ordinary hours for truancy. There are some rewards, medals and prizes for the best pupils.

At the age of sixteen people are free to leave school if they want to. Educational Reform has introduced City Technology Colleges. A number of Colleges of Further Education do vocational training courses for particular jobs and careers, for example in engineering, typing, cooking or hairdressing. Most school leavers do not find employment immediately and do not want to go to FE College. They may take part in training schemes (the Young Opportunities Scheme) which involve on-the-job training combined with part-time college courses. Some young working people are given “day release’ so they can follow a course to help them in their job.

3. The third stage is “further” education at university, college or Polytechnics (tertiary).

The availability of higher education and finding a university place is not easy. Universities, although financed by the government, have autonomy and each one has complete control over what to teach, how to teach it, and how to test the students. They make their own choices and accept only the better students on their courses. Universities normally select students on the basis of top grades in several A-level results and an interview, and competition for places is fierce. Because of this, and also because of the relatively high degree of personal supervision of students nearly all university students complete their studies in a very short time. The costly and labour-intensive system of instruction known as tutorials has been polishing minds for 800 years. The strength of the tutorial system is that it’s almost impossible to be lazy under it. Within the first week the freshman meets the tutor to whom he is assigned and begins his work. At his first interview the tutor discovers how far advanced the student is already, and tells him about the requirements for the examination, about the course of reading to be begun at once, and about the lectures which he must take.

The academic year in Britain’s universities is divided into three terms, which usually run from the beginning of October to the end of June or beginning of July. After three years of study a university graduate will leave with the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, Science, Engineering, Medicine, etc. The degrees are awarded at public degree ceremonies. It is only for modern languages, medicine and certain vocational studies that students take more than three years. Later a university graduate may continue to take the Master’s Degree and then the Doctor’s Degree. Research is an important feature of university work.

Another reason for the low drop-out rate is that “full-time” really means full-time. For all British citizens a place at university brings with it a grant from LEA which covers tuition fees and some of the living expenses. The amount depends on the parent’s income. Students from low-income families receive a state full grant of money which covers all their living expenses and includes the cost of accommodation if they are non-local. The cost of education depends on the college and speciality which one chooses.

This is how a student spends his day. His working hours are from 9 to 1. At 9 o’clock he will see the tutor or go to the library, or to the lecture. From 2 to 5 he is engaged in sport and all kinds of exercise to prove himself on river or field. From 5 to 7 he usually either works in the library or in the laboratory. 7 o’clock is the dinner-hour when the undergraduates and dons are gathered in the hall. After dinner the students have club activities, debating societies, etc. At 10 o’clock the student must be in the college and sit down to work for about 2 hours.

In many cases people cannot gain qualifications for certain professions by doing an ordinary university course and go to specialized institutions which are separate from any university. They can study architecture at university but this alone does not qualify them to be architects and most of them have learnt their professions at a separate School of Architecture.

There is an interesting form of studies which is called the Open University, when people study in their own free time and “attend” lectures by watching television, listening radio, using Internet. They keep in touch with their tutors by phone, letter or on-line.

Glossary

The arts (humanities)	Subjects of study concerned with human culture, esp. literature, language, history and philosophy. Arts subjects place greater emphasis on imaginative and creative ability than on the technical and practical skills needed in science.
A Levels = Advanced Levels.	They are taken mostly by people around the age of eighteen who wish to go on to higher education.
Boarding schools	The pupils live in them.
“Certificate”	A qualification obtained after secondary education.
City Technology Colleges (CTCs)	New super-schools for scientifically gifted children, future scientists and technological experts. These schools are partly funded by industry. Britain needs more scientists and technicians.
Curriculum	Course of study in a school, college, university, etc.
Degree	A qualification from a university. Students studying for the first degree (a BA or BS) are called undergraduates. When they have been awarded a degree, they are known as graduates.
“Diploma”:	A qualification obtained after secondary education.
Doctorate	The highest academic qualification. This usually carries the title PhD = Doctor of Philosophy. The time taken to complete a doctorate is generally expected to involve three years of more-or-less full-time study.
Don	A teacher at a university
Drop-out	A person who withdraws from a course of education
Fee	Charge or payment for professional advice or services; entrance money for an examination, library, etc.
Full-time education	Students must be present at the classes during the whole of the working day and week.
Further Education College	Here most of the courses are linked to some kind of practical vocational training, for example in engineering, typing, cooking or hairdressing.
GCSE = General Certificate of Secondary Education.	The exams taken by sixteen-year olds. Marks are given for each subject separately. There is a uniform system of marks, all being graded from A to G. Grades A, B, C are regarded as “good” grades”.
GNVQ = General National Vocational Qualification.	Courses and exams in job-related subjects. They are divided into five levels, the lowest level being equivalent to GCSE and the third level to A – levels. GNVQ courses are studied at Colleges of Further Education.
Grant	Money, given by an organization, eg the Local Education Authority.
Half-day	A day of which half, usually the afternoon, is taken as a holiday.
Honours degrees	Most people get honours degrees, awarded in different classes. These are: Class I (known as “a first”), Class II, I (“a 2,1” or” an upper second”), Class II,II (“a 2,2” or “a lower second”), Class III (“a third”).
Local Education Authority (LEA)	The educational department of local government
Master’s Degree	The general name for a second (postgraduate) degree, an MA or MSc.
Part-time education	Students must be present at the classes for only a part of the working day or week.
A pass	A successful result in an examination.
Pass degree	A student who is below one of the honours degrees gets a pass degree.
A period	A lesson in school.
Polytechnics	Are similar to universities, but the courses tend to be more practically-oriented.
A professor	A senior university academic, not an ordinary teacher.
Reader	A lecturer, usually ranking below a professor, but above an ordinary lecturer
Set (n)	A group of pupils who form a class in a particular subject
Syllabus	Outline or summary of a course of studies
Term	Schools usually divide their year into three “terms”, starting on the first Tuesday morning in September. (Autumn term – Christmas holiday about 2 weeks, Spring term – Easter holiday about 2 weeks, Summer term – in July schools break up for 8 weeks). In addition, all schools have a “half-term” holiday, lasting a few days in the middle of each term.
Truancy	The practice of staying away from school without permission.
Tutor	A teacher in a college or university who leads a discussion group, directs the studies of undergraduates at Oxford and Cambridge
Undergraduate	University student working for a bachelor’s degree
YOPS = The Young Opportunities Scheme	YOPS involves on-the-job training combined with part-time college courses. This scheme places young unemployed people with a business or an industry for six months so that they can get experience of work, and pays them a small wage. They generally have a better chance of getting a job afterwards and sometimes the company they are placed with offers them a permanent job.

Tasks

1. Look through the questions to see which parts of the text you need to read carefully.

2. Scan the text and its particular sections in order to find out some specific information that you need to answer questions. Try to work out the meanings of the words you don’t know from the glossary and the context.

3. Check the questions again to be sure you’ve really understood.

QUESTIONS

1. What goes on at nursery and play-schools?

2. What age do children start school at in the UK?

3. What’s the school-leaving age in the UK?

4. Do students get grants for further education?

5. From your reading of this text, what can you say about the trends in the British educational system? Is it moving towards greater or lesser uniformity? Is it concentrating more on purely academic subjects or on more practical ones?*

6. Here are the ten subjects which according to the national curriculum for England, must be taught in the first three years of secondary education: English, Mathematics, Science, Technology, History, Geography, a modern foreign language, Art, Music and Physical Education. Do you think any other subjects should be included?

7. Do you think secondary education should be selective or comprehensive? What are the advantages of both systems?*

8. What’s the difference between a university and a polytechnic in Britain?

9. What would you say are the successes and failures of the British educational system? What do you like and dislike about the British system?*

What questions could you ask to get these answers?

1. No, they have to finance their own studies.

2. There isn’t much difference; it’s just that the courses are more practical in a polytechnic instead of being very academic.

3. Well, they learn one or two things, like recognizing a few numbers, but most of the time they play around.

4. It’s sixteen, but a lot of kids stay on until eighteen.

5. No, I was ill. I didn’t miss it deliberately.

Key

1. Do students in GB get a grant?

2. What’s the difference between a university and a polytechnic in Britain?

3. What goes on at play-schools and nursery schools?

4. What’s the school-leaving age in Britain now?

5. Did you skip yesterday’s lecture?

BACKGROUND

(Your family, social class, education, experience and research )

Ex.1 Give up a detailed account of your background (research and activity). The questions below may guide you in your talk. Work in pairs.

1. Who are you? (What’s your name?)

2. What are you?

3. Where do you come from?

4. When and where were you born?

5. Who are (were) your parents?

6. What are (were) they?

7. Are you married?

8. Where were you educated?

9. At what age did you enter the University?

10. How long did you attend the University?

11. You attended the University in Novosibirsk, didn’t you?

12. Have you ever attended English classes?

13. What did you do after graduating the University?

14. Were you interested in the study of …? Did you take interest in …?

15. What subjects were you interested in while at the University?

16. Did you join any scientific circle while at the University?

17. Under whom did you study at the University?

18. Did you work hard?

19. What are your plans for the nearest future?

Ex.2 Work in pairs. Learn more about your partner’s educational background, professional experience and community activities.

Ex.3 Compile a vitae for employment purposes.

Ex.4 Give a written record of your education and employment that you send for a job applying to the Department of Track Construction at the University of Seoul. Your objective is to obtain a position as a reader (associate professor) and to join a chair of track and railway equipment.

Documents, papers:

Identity Card – удостоверение личности

Foreign Passport (Passport for traveling abroad)

Entrance (exit, transit) Visa (Period of Visa Validity, Home-coming Date)

Customs Declaration (Bill of Entry)

Customs Examination / Inspection Station (Point)

Customs Clearance Do you have anything dutiable? Please, show your customs declaration.

Insurance certificate (policy of insurance)

Medical Insurance