UNIVERSIDAD DEL VALLE

LECTURA DE TEXTOS ACADMICOS EN INGLS 3

CLASE MARZO 03 DE 2016
NOMBRE _________________________________________________________________
STAFFING LEVELS
1. An insurance company has restructured its operations and moved a division from Royston to
Harrow. Study the figures and complete the report below. Use the words in the box. There is one
mistake; what is it?

ROYSTON

HARROW

Reductions in staffing levels

Increases in staffing levels

Natural Wastage
Resigned
Retired
Early Retirement

12
4
8

Employees transferring
New employees
YTS recruits

30
25
10

OTHER REDUCTIONS
Redundancies
Transferred
Dismissed

28
30
__

Total Reduction

80

Total Increase

65

Target Reduction

80

Target Increase

80

The Claims Division has now moved to Harrow and we have achieved the target reductions in
(1)__________STAFFING_______ ______LEVELS____________ at Royston. As far as possible,
we have reduced the workforce by (2)_________NATURAL WASTAGE _______________; we
have not replaced workers who (3) _______________RESIGNED________ for personal reasons
or (4) ________RETIRED____________ at the age of 60. Some workers chose to (5)
_________TAKE______
______EARLY__________ _____RETIREMENT____________ at 50
or 55 when we offered generous financial incentives. Many workers have (6) ___BEEN
TRANSFERED____________ to the Harrow office.
One
newspaper
reported
that
we
(7)
_______SACKED__________
or
(8)
_________FIRED_______________ four workers in Royston for misconduct. This was untrue. We
have not (9) ________DISMISSED____________ any workers this year. We have (10)
__________MADE________
28
(11)______STAFF______________
_______REDUNDANT________ in Royston but we have
(12)_____TAKEN ON_________
________________
25
new
staff
in
Harrow.
We
have
also
(13)
_______RECRUITED____________ 10 school leavers on the governments Young Training

Scheme.

Dismissed /
recruited
/
made staff redundant
/ taken on / resigned / retired /
staffing levels / Take early retirement /
sacked / transferred / natural wastage / fired

COMPARING TOWNS
1- Study these sentences:
Irvine has a high rate of unemployment.
It has a higher rate of employment than the national average.
The Var is an attractive region to live in.
It is a more attractive region to live in than West Scotland.

Fill in with the correct comparative forms of the adjectives:

Irvine is a much __________HIGHER________(high) town than Brignoles and it has a much
____LARGER________(large) working population. Both towns have a _______HIGHER______ (high)
rate of unemployment than the national average, but the problem is much _______WORSE_______
(bad) in Irvine. Unemployment exceeds 20% and wages are generally ________LOWER______ (low).
The Var has a ____GREATER________ (great) number of skilled workers in the population.
Both towns offer financial incentives to attract business to the region. Irvine offers a
______WIDER_______ (wide) variety of loans at ____MORE COMPETITIVE________ (competitive)
interest rates but Brignoles offers ____BETTER_________(good) tax incentives. Factory space is
slightly ______CHEAPER____________(cheap) in Brignoles but consumer goods are ______MORE
EXPENSIVE____________ (expensive)

The Var is an ___ATTRACTIVER___________ (attractive) region to live in than West Scotland. The
climate is ______WARMER______ (warm) and it will be ____EASIER________(easy) to attract and
keep well qualified staff. Communications will be a problem though. Brignoles is much
____FARTHER_________ (far) from an international airport than Irvine.
At present our main customers are in Northern Europe, so Irvine is ____NEARER_______ (near) and
MORE CONVENIENT___________(convenient). But looking ahead, we shouldnt forget that Brignoles
is _____CLOSER____ (close) to Spain, Switzerland, and Italy, our next export targets.

The girls in this sixth grade class in East Palo Alto, California, all have the
same access to computers as boys. But researchers say, by the time they
get to high school, they are victims of what the researchers call a major
new gender gap in technology.
Janice Weinman of the American Association of University Woman says,
"Girls tend to be less comfortable than boys with the processing rather
than for problem solving, rather than to discover new ways in which to
understand information."
After re-examining a thousand studies, the American Association of
University women researchers found that girls make up only a small percentage of students in computer
science classes. Girls consistently rate themselves significantly lower than boys in their ability and
confidence in using computers. And they use computers less often than boys outside the classroom.
The instructor of this computer lab says he's already noticed some differences. Charles Cheadle of
Cesar Chavez School says, "Boys are not so afraid they might do something that will harm the
computer, whereas girls are afraid they might break it somehow."
Six years ago, the software company Purple Moon noticed that girls computer usage was falling
behind boys. Karen Gould says, "The number one reason girls told us they don't like computer games is
not because they're too violent, or too competitive. Girls just said they're incredibly boring."
Purple Moon says it found what girls want, characters they can relate to and story lines relative to
what's going on in their own lives. Karen Gould of Purple Moon Software says, "What we definitely
found from girls is there is no intrinsic reason why they wouldn't want to play on a computer; it was just a
content thing."
The sponsor of the study says it all boils down to this, the technology gender gap that separates the
girls from the boys must be closed if women are to compete effectively with men in the 21st century.
From a news story by CNN San Francisco Reporter Don Knapp (October 13, 1998)

A) Say who or what the underlined words in the text refer to.
1. they ______________________________
2. he ________________________________
3. they ______________________________
4. it _________________________________
5. they ______________________________
B) Match the words on the left with their antonyms on the right.
1. major
2. small

a. increasing
b. inside

3. lower
4. outside
5. falling
6. boring

c. exciting
d. big
e. minor
f. higher

C) Find evidence in the text for the following statements.

1. In East Palo Alto, California, boys and girls share the opportunity to have access to computers.
2. Girls use computers mainly for word processing.
3. There are more boys than girls in computer science classes.
4. Girls are less confident in using computers than boys.
5. Girls dont usually use computers outside the classroom.
6. Girls dont engage in computer games.
7. Women need to use the computer more often if they want to compete with men in the future.

D) Answer the questions about the text.

1. Explain the meaning of the expression gender gap in technology.
__________________________________________________________________________
2. Point out some of the differences between boys and girls in terms of their relationship with
computers.
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
3. Why dont girls like computer games?
__________________________________________________________________________
4. Why do women need to handle more with computers?
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Going to India to get help with your homework sounds rather extreme. Yet this is what over 2,000
students in the United States and elsewhere do online every day.
New advances in technology make it possible for tutors in one country to help students who live
thousands or kilometres away. The only necessity is that both have got access to a computer with
Internet capability. Students and tutors can discuss material using an instant messaging service, but
using a voice-over connection and a hands-free headset makes communication easier. So do digital

pencils and writing pads, which look like enhanced mouse pads. Participants can write on these
simulated whiteboards so that the data appears on both computer screens at the same time. Students
can also use a scanner to transmit copies of tests or assignments received from their schools.
The main advantage of this system is financial. Students can pay up to $100 an hour for personal
tutoring in the US. In contrast, one Indian company offers the option of either registering for a month and
receiving an unlimited number of lessons for $100, or paying $2.50 for each hour. This brings the cost of
a lesson down to approximately the price of a cup of coffee. Such affordable tutoring is welcome to
many in the US today, where about one-third of secondary-school students fail to graduate.
Tutors, who must have a university degree, find this arrangement to their advantage. Their training
includes analysing teaching methods, as well as learning about US educational curricula. They also
learn about American English: they are taught to modify their accent so that theyre more easily
understood by teenagers in the West, and they learn current US slang. In return, they are well paid by
Indian standards, earning approximately $300 a month.
So if you need help in maths, science or English, you may want to consider turning to a teacher in
Bangalore or New Delhi. And when you pass your test, you will be happy to say DHAN-YA-VAD (thank
you in Hindi).
I.- Choose the correct answer
1. For online tutoring, teachers and students must .
A. Be linked to the Internet.
B. Have a voice-over connection with a headset.
C. Have digital pencils and writing pads.
2. An hour of online tutoring from India .
A. Causes a failure rate of about one-third.
B. Is about as expensive as a cup of coffee.
C. Costs about $100.
3.

Indian online tutors ... .

A. Dont all have university degrees.
B. Mustnt have an accent.
C. Learn about US educational requirements.

II.- Answer the questions.

1. How many students pay for online tutoring from India?
2. Why are tutors taught about American English?
3. What are benefits for online tutors in India?
III.- Rewrite the following sentences without changing the original meaning.
1. Students can also use a scanner to transmit copies of tests.
2. Tutors receive special training in teaching methods, as well as learning about US educational
curricula.
IV. Find words or expressions in the text that mean:

1.
2.
3.
4.

simultaneously (paragraph )
possibility (paragraph )
not expensive (paragraph )
present (paragraph )