Unit 3 Education Part 1 School Lead-in

1. Speaking of education we might first look back into our childhood and reckon whether it was then that we started learning the wisdom of life.

• Which were the prevailing conditions in your home: (1) total confusion with over-indulgent parents and everyone doing whatever they liked, (2) confusion stopped by bursts of parental discipline at regular times, (3) orderly and disciplined house or (4) harmonious relationships favouring learning and self-fulfilment?

• In your family did you (1) have shared leisure activities; (2) did everybody pursue individual leisure activities or (3) have no leisure at all?

• With your parents, did you (1) talk about any subject under the sun; (2) talk about most things, except one or two taboo subjects; (3) not communicate freely on most subjects?

2. Below is a chart from Mad, a satirical American publication. Draw a similar chart and fill it in with your “life-people”, i. e. those who most affected your life at certain periods. As you complete the activity, swap the life-charts with somebody else and interview each other about the priorities and what they learnt from each of those people.

The spaces in this sample chart are filled in to give an example.

Your Age	People who affect your life (in order of importance)
0 to 4 years old	Mother, Paediatrician, Father, etc.
5 to 6 years old	Mother, Sitter, Puppy, Father, etc.
7 to 9 years old	Friend Next Door, Teacher, Grandparents, Parents, Neighbourhood Bully, etc.
10 to 14 years old	Favourite Film Star, Worst Rival, Best Friend, 2ndBest Friend, Boys/Girls, Relatives, etc.
15 to 18 years old	Coach, Best Friend, Father, Favourite Pop Singer, Male/Female Teacher etc.
19 to 21 years old	Steady Boy/Girl Friend, Freud, University Boys/Girls, Professors, Next-Door Neighbour, etc.
22 to 25 years old	Baby, Boss, Husband/Wife, Office Rival, Political Leader, etc.

3. Listen to a recording about giving and doing homework and children's overload. Then answer the questions below.

1. What was the purpose for the homework guidelines passed by the education authorities?

2. What is Chris Perry's opinion on the homework issue?

3. What is John Glass' suggested compromise?

4. Why were the findings of the Californian project disputed?

5. How do homework clubs mitigate the problem?

6. What complicates the issue, as Mick Butler sees it?

7. What are the health concerns voiced by Helen Thomas?

4. Listen to the tape again to match the collocations that follow. When completed, give the context where they are used.

   	draw out	the issue				go	on students' time
   	dreary	method				supplement	domestic labours
   	scaffolding	thing				unpaid	obese
   	cloud	work				demands	family incomes
   	onerous	learning				becoming	by choice

5. Share your own school-homework experiences and contribute your opinions to the solution of the problem.