DISCUSSING EDUCATION

Tell me about your high school. What subjects were you good at? What subjects were you bad at? Does your country provide a good public school system? What are the strengths and weaknesses? Do you think secondary education should be offered for free? Why or why not? Clique (kleek): a small group of people that spend time together and often exclude others. I admit that, in high school, I was part of a group that didnt talk to other kids. I admit _____________________________________________________________ Form: _____________ ______ _________ ______ ______ clique Or _______________ ________ _______ ______ clique I think small, isolated groups of friends at work make the work place less enjoyable I ____________________________________________________________________ If a group of people is like a clique, we can say, that group is ___________(adj) Were there cliques in your high school? Were there gangs? What type of student were you in school? A student B student C student D student

What are some other ways to describe an a student? She is an ____________________/_________________/ student What are some other ways to describe a b student? He is _____________________/__________________/ student

How did other kids look at exceptional/excellent/A students? What do you think are the main reasons for kids being exceptional students? How important was getting good marks in your household? When you finish at different academic institutions, you can receive different things. For example, if you finish high school, you will receive a high school _______________. When you finish 2 years of college, you will receive a college _________________. When you finish 4 years of university, you will receive a university ______________. If you finish your Masters degree and do 2 more years, you will receive a ___________ or a ________________. If you could go back to university and do it all over again, what would you get your degree in? Why? Vocabulary: (verb) Major: to study a certain topic in University In University, I got a degree in Environmental Biology In University, I ______________________________________________________________ If I could go back to University, I would study mathematics. If _________________________________________________________________________ Form: ___________ majors __________ ________________________________________ Whats another way to say, I majored in American History? I ________my degree _____ _________ ______________ (verb) Master: to study a certain topic in University for an extra 2 years I did six years of American History I _____________________________________________________________ Whats another way to say that? I __________my _____________ degree __________ __________________________________

What was your university like? Give me details about the location, the size, the quality, etc. Were you a diligent, hardworking student in University? Tell me about your average day. Many Universities are offering on-line courses now. In your opinion, are they as effective as in person classes? Vocabulary: (noun) Semester/Term: the period it takes to finish one course at university How many courses are you taking this _____________________? How many essays ______ we have to write this _____________? How long is a semester in your country? (idiom) cover a lot of ground: look a/talk about many different things in a short period of time We will discuss many different parts of American history this semester We _______________________________________________________________ During the interview, we talked about many different things During ____________________________________________________________ He has basically talked about nothing all semester He has almost ___________no ______________ this semester (verb) Lecture: to talk to a class about an academic topic The teacher went on about the subject for two hours The __________________________________________________________________ The teacher talked about Abraham Lincoln The __________________________________________________________________ What is the noun for lecture? _____________________________________________ The teacher went on about the subject for two hours

The ________ ___________ a __________ _______ lecture Grammar Note: Notice the statement: The teacher gave a two-hour lesson. There is no s after hour. Why? In this sentence, were using hour before the noun. It is a compound noun. (noun + noun). When you have a compound noun, the first noun is singular. Example: I have twenty dollars. = I have a twenty dollar bill. (no s) Restate the following sentences, by creating a compound noun. I went on a vacation for two weeks. = I went on a two week vacation. The bill is worth 20 dollars = It is _________________________________________ The man is 40 years old. = He is _________________________________________ The man is 200 pounds = He is __________________________________________ The dog is 20 centimeters long = It is ______________________________________ I got a fine for 500 dollars = I got _________________________________________ The man was sentenced to jail for 20 years = The man received __________________ What would happen in high school if your teacher was lecturing, and he caught you sleeping? Have you ever given a lecture on anything? Tell me about it? Quick quiz: (see if you can insert the right verb into the blanks) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. I ___________ my Masters degree from Harvard The teacher _____________ a lot of ground in our last class. Im planning to ___________ 3 courses this semester. All student have to _____________ the final exam. You cannot miss it. The teacher ________ a lecture on the history of snails. I ____________ part of clique in high school

For the next term, please read the following situation aloud. When my dad was in grade 12, he almost never opened his text books. He often played hooky and goofed off in class. When he got the first semesters report card, he got 4 Ds and 1 F. He realized that if he didnt hit the books and start studying, he was not going to pass grade 12. As a result, he studied non-stop and transformed himself from a D student to an A student. What does played hooky mean? What does goofed off mean? What does hit the books mean? Can you remember a time when you played hooky in high school or elementary school? Tell me when, where and why? Was there a time in your life when you really hit the books? Vocabulary Review: Goofing Ground Part 1. 2. 3. 4. Hooky Lectured Phd Masters Take Cliquey Diploma Retake Below Average Exceptional Semester Books

As a youngster, I got all As. The teachers called me an ____________________ student. Hes kind of a ________________ person. He only talks to people in his group. I failed the first test, but the teacher was nice and let me ____________ it. During the training, the instructor covered a lot of ________________ and I learned many new things. 5. Admittedly, in high school, I was ___________ of a clique and didnt talk to other people. 6. Stop _______________off! Im trying to hear what the teacher is saying. 7. After 6 years of University, I finally got my ___________________ degree. 8. This ________________ is going to be very busy for me. Im taking 5 courses and working 20 hours a week at a restaurant. 9. I havent studied at all. I really need to ____________ the books this weekend. 10. After 8 years of University, he finally got his _________________. 11. The teacher ________________ on the importance of government in the economy. 12. In high school, I usually got Cs and Ds, so I was kind of a ________________ student. 13. I didnt want to take the test, so I played _____________ and didnt go to class. 14. I took a college course and after two years received my ____________________. 15. Im planning to _____________ that course next semester; this semester Im too busy. When you were in school, did you procrastinate when it came to studying?

In your country, do you think teachers are compensated fairly, too much, or too little? Why? What is your attitude towards cheating? How should parents react? How should teachers react? How much homework do you think students in high school should receive a week on average? 2 hours, 5 hours, 10 hours, etc? Can you remember a test that you aced? Why did you do so well? Have you ever completely bombed a test? What happened? Listening Exercise:
http://www.esl-lab.com/grades/gradesrd1.htm