Graduation / loan / degree / scholarship

I’ve just finished university, although I’ll have to go back for my 1) _____ ceremony in October. So now I’m proud possessor of a 2) _____ in Modern Languages. At last I can get down to earning some money and paying back my 3) _____ from the government. My friend is luckier than me in this respect – she’s off to the States. She has a 4) _____ to study at Yale University.

detention / marks / sent / tutor

I was known as a rather naughty, mischievous pupil, and often used to get 1) _____ out of the lesson or put in 2) ____ after school. Little did the school know, however, that Dad was actually paying me to have extra Maths lessons at home with a private 3) _____. And it paid off, for in my Maths exam, I surprised everyone by getting the top 4) _____ in the class.

qualifications / further / evening / prospects

I left school without any 1) _____, and with no real job 2) _____. But then I started doing 3) _____ classes at the local 4) _____ education college. And now I’m a mechanic, and delighted with my job.

grades / revised / prize / retake

My problem was exams. I was never good at them. Classwork fine, exams no go. For my A levels I 1) _____ solidly for three months, but despite all this preparation, I got disappointing 2) _____. The school suggested that I 3) _____ he exams, but to be honest, I didn’t fancy all that studying all over again. But I did win a 4) _____ at Sports Day, for the Senior Boys Long Jump.

correspondence / specialize / mature / assignments

When I was 28, I decided I wanted to go back to my education, as I was getting more and more interested in English literature. One option was to become a 1) ____ student at a university, but I couldn’t afford this full-time commitment. So in the end I signed up for a 2) _____ course, or “distance learning”, as it’s called. I sent my essays and a 3) _____ to a tutor by post and also communicated with her by e-mail. I had to study English literature from 1300 to the present day, but I chose to 4) _____ in the twentieth-century novel.

► Now speak about your own learning experience at school and at the university.

Ex.8. Agreeing and disagreeing.

Two students are discussing this question: Do schools prepare children for the ‘real world’? Complete their discussion with phrases from the list.

Up to a point / you’re right / What about / couldn’t agree / Don’t you think / suppose so / you think so / quite right

Alan: I’m sure what you study at school is very useful when you start work.

Jane: Do 1) _____? Some subjects you study don’t prepare you for work at all, I’d say. 2) _____ Latin?

Alan: Well, perhaps 3) _____ about Latin. But other subjects help you when you leave school. 4) _____ that mathematics is useful?

Jane: I 5) _____. But they could have made it more relevant to everyday life.

Alan: I 6) _____ more. Perhaps the problem is not the subjects we learn, but the way they are taught? Take geography – they could make it really interesting.

Jane: I agree 7) _____. But not entirely. You probably learn more about geography when you start to travel. I don’t see why it’s useful to study it at school.

Alan: That’s 8) _____. But some people may not have the opportunity to travel when they leave school.

^{Ex.9. a) Read the following comments made by students and decide whether each is for or against taking exams.}

A “Exams make everyone try to get the best marks they can.”

B “I wasn’t feeling well on the day of the exam, so I didn’t do well.”

C “The boy sitting next to me hadn’t studied at all, but he copied my answers and passed the exam.”

D “I don’t think I’d bother studying if we didn’t have exams.”

E “I write very slowly, so I hardly ever have enough time to finish the exam.”

F “I use my exam grades to find out whether or not I am improving in a subject.”

G “I think exams are the quickest way of testing students.”

H “I studied for weeks before my last exam, but on the day itself I was so nervous that I couldn’t remember a thing!”

^{b) Give your reasons for and against taking exams, as in the example in the two boxes below.}

FOR	AGAINST
exams encourage students to try harder …	exam results may depend on how you feel on a particular day …

^{c) Now, working in pairs, prepare a discussion between a person who is in favour of exams and a person who is against them.}

^{E.g. A: I think make students to try harder to get good marks.}

^{B: I agree up to a point, but don’t you think the way you feel on the day of the exam can affect your results? Etc.}

^{Ex.10. a) Look at the school report below. Which do you think the person’s favourite / least favourite lessons?}

Subject	Marks / 100	Teacher’s comments
Maths	55	Tries hard, but needs to concentrate more.
English	95	An able student – shows great promise.
History	58	Must do more revision. Can’t remember facts and figures.
Art	95	Makes full use of her imagination and creativity.
French	90	Has a flair for languages.
Science	50	Can’t quite grasp the need to experiment in order to get results.
Computer Studies	90	An interested and eager student.
P.E.	65	Participates, but doesn’t really enjoy the lessons.
Music	95	A gifted student – plays both piano and guitar extremely well.

b) What kind of career do you think this person might choose later on in life? (doctor, journalist, accountant, singer, composer, translator, artist, fashion designer, P.E. teacher, etc). Discuss this person’s future career in pairs, giving reasons for your decisions.

^{E.g. A: I think this person might become a journalist because he is very good at languages.}

^{B: Yes, I quite agree with you. He could also become an accountant.}

^{A: I don’t really think he would choose this career because…}

^{c) Work in pairs. Talk about your favourite and least favourite school subjects as in example:}

^{E.g. A: I really enjoyed physical education because it’s fun and it keeps us fit. However, I didn’t really like physics because I found it difficult. What about you?}

^{B: Well, my favourite subject was…}

*Ex.11. Look at the list of qualities below. Which, in your opinion, are the most important ones needed to be a good teacher? Listen to the tape and tick the ones which are mentioned.

A good teacher should:

1. speak clearly

2. establish a friendly relationship with students

3. have a lot of confidence in front of large groups

4. understand students’ individual needs

5. encourage students to be creative

6. keep tight control of a group of students

7. give students a lot of praise and support

8. attend refresher courses regularly

9. spend time preparing lessons thoroughly

10. punish students who don’t work hard enough