Topic 1 Why go to university?

A university degree often helps a person achieve his goal with more ease (с большей легкостью). However, do we attend university just in pursuit of a degree? Does a university only provide us nothing beneficial besides a paper-made diploma? As far as I am concerned (Насколько мне известно), we enjoy university education in the following aspects:

Firstly, with the knowledge learned at a university, we will have a deep understanding of our society. It is true that genuine ([dʒenjuɪn] – подлинный, истинный) knowledge comes from practice, but it cannot be denied that genuine knowledge tells us how to practice. A systematic study in a college or a university, of course, enables (позволяет) us to realize how the society works and how to cope with (как справиться) certain (определёнными) problems arising (возникающие, произходящие) from it in a more efficiently, and more skillful way (квалифицированный путь).

Second, a university education usually makes it possible that we get hold of a decent job (чтобы мы получили достойную работу). As a result of the accomplishment of (В результате выполнения) a four-year study, it is not difficult for us to find a good job in most cases. How can we imagine that a graduate majoring (выпускник по специальности) in astronomy has to be a vendor (продавец) in the street! No doubt, he/she should sit in his/her laboratory, doing research on aircraft science before a computer. Obviously, a university education assures (обеспечивает) him/her a decent job.

Last, but not the least, we can help others much better if we put what we have learned at a university into practice. A university education fortifies [fɔ:tɪfaɪ] our values (укрепляет наши ценности), enhance our skills (улучшает наши навыки), and broaden (расширяет) our horizons. With those, we are more capable (способны) of giving a hand to those who are in need of help than ever before.

Knowledge is power. When achieving a degree at a university, we can get a better understanding of the society, find a decent job in an easy way, and help others better. All of those are due to the knowledge learned at a university.

Topic 2 Are parents best teachers?

Obviously, the first teachers we have in our lives in most cases are our parents. They teach us to walk, to speak, and to have good manners before we reach "the real world. " More than even the professional teachers that we have at school, parents are generally the most involved in the development and education of children.

Almost for sure our parents are the best teachers at the beginning of our lives, which actually corresponds to the parents' role in nature. Parents are most committed and involved in teaching their children; they have a kind of (своего рода) instinct to sacrifice (жертвовать) a part of themselves for the betterment of (для улучшения) their children. They love us and have great patience (терпение) while passing down (при передаче) their knowledge to us. They wish us a success and thus (поэтому, таким образом) will not teach us bad things. And of course, implicit (неявное) learning occurs (обучение происходит) when children unconsciously (бессознательно) copy some of their parents' habits and styles of behavior.

During the second stage of child development, adolescence (подростковый возраст), parents can still be in the best position to offer advice even though the children might not accept it. In this case, perhaps the child's friends would be the best teachers. Adolescents are notoriously (общеизвестно) rebellious (мятежны) in many cultures and may automatically reject (отклонить) any advice from their parents. My first marriage for instance (например), was solely (исключительно) a matter of doing the opposite when my parents tried to intrude (вмешаться) in offering their advice. So in such matters (Таким образом, в таких вопросах), parents should be much more flexible and be rather the partners with their children. So we can see that being a teacher of growing child become more and more complicated case (Более сложный случай) as the time passes (по прошествии времени) and many parents are simply not able to meet (не в состоянии удовлетворить) the increased demands (возросшие потребности).

On the other hand, I would say that parents are not professional teachers and they tend to be (они имеют тенденцию быть) very biased (предвзятыми) by their love of their children. So wishing good things and an easy life may prevent children from maturation (созревание). In any case (В любом случае), parents usually can present only one viewpoint (могут представить) of the world, while good teaching should be based on different attitudes. Thus, when children go to school and have a great diversity of teachers, they learn much more than their parents could probably give them. Furthermore (кроме того), once our parents get older, they become more conservative (становятся более консервативными) and cannot always be objective in regard to modern trends and fashions (не всегда могут быть объективными по отношению к современным тенденциям и моде). Thus we need to take their advice with caution during that period. However, some kind of intuition that I believe shared between relatives about what everybody needs and great love that exists in families still makes our parents very good teachers and advisers at any time.

In conclusion, while parents are not the ideal teachers, and well-rounded children will generally need (обычно требуется) a great diversity of teachers in their lives in order to have a more accurate view of the world, parents are generally the most committed of all teachers and have the greatest emotional investment in their children and their future.