Education

Listen to the following school phone message

This is the message that the Maroochydore High School, Queensland, Australia, staff voted unanimously to record on their school telephone answering machine. This is the actual answering machine message for their school.

This came about because they implemented a policy requiring students and parents to be responsible for their children's absences and homework.

The school and teachers were being sued by parents who wanted their children's failing grades changed to passing grades - even though those children were absent 15-30 times during the semester and did not complete enough school work to pass their classes.

Look at the different types of educational establishments below. Match them to the sort of person who might attend them:

Educational establishments A co-educational secondary school A primary school for infants and juniors A sixth-form college A nursery school A further education college offering evening classes A university A public school

Type of person A five-year-old and a nine-year

old A thirty-six-year old office worker who wants to get better at computer skills A seventeen-year-old who hopes to go on to higher education A twenty-year-old who wants to be a doctor A thirteen-year-old girl and a fourteen-year-old boy A fifteen-year-old whose parents want to pay for his/her education A three-year-old

Answers
A co-educational secondary school = A thirteen year old girl and a fourteen year old boy A primary school for infants and juniors = A five-year-old and a nine-year-old A sixth-form college = A seventeen-year-old who hopes to go on to higher education A nursery school = A three-year-old A further education college offering evening classes = A thirty six year old office worker who wants to get better at computer skills A university = A twenty-year-old who wants to be a doctor A public school = A fifteen-year-old whose parents want to pay for his/her education

Which phrases would you expect to find mentioned in a state secondary school, which in a university, and which in both?

Pay course fees Play truant Take an exam Get a grant Cram for end-of-term exams Graduate with honours in Chemistry Have a weekly tutorial Do homework Attend a lecture Pay attention Give a seminar on William Shakespeare Take a degree Take the register

Answers
a state secondary school: play truant (hooky),

do homework, pay attention, take the register a university: pay course fees, get a grant, graduate with honours in Chemistry, have a weekly tutorial, attend a lecture, give a seminar on William Shakespeare, take a degree both: take an exam, cram for end-of-term exams

Match the words to the definitions.

Cram graduate tutorial grant play truant a. study really hard b. get a degree c. a one-to-one talk d. government money to help you pay for the course e. not go to school, even though youre not ill

Answers
a. study really hard = cram b. get a degree = graduate c. a one-to-one talk = tutorial d. government money to help you pay for the course = grant e. not go to school even though youre not ill = play truant

Listening
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/8341 589.stm

Listen to the piece of news and select 5 true statements:

1. 13 colleges in Denmark are testing a new system. 7. If students are caught cheating, they do the same exam without a computer. 8. Videocameras control students arent cheating.

2. The students on the video are revising for a Danish language exam.
3. The students can answer every question using the Internet. 4. The students can visit any website except Facebook. 5. The students arent allowed to get in touch with each other. 6. The students know the rules before the exam.

9. Some students manage to cheat.

10. Science questions are the hardest. 11. The Danish government is happy with the experiment. 12. The examination system in the UK has been changed recently.

Answers
3, 5, 6, 9, 11

Which verb does not collocate in each sentence?

a. I must work hard, because next Tuesday I have to ____________ an exam. i. make ii. sit iii. take iv. pass v. do b. Im planning to ______________ a course in Computing. i. take ii. do iii. enrol on iv. make v. begin c. The teacher ______________ us a really difficult test on phrasal verbs. i. gave ii. set iii. made d. At the end of term students have to spend hours ____________ what they have learnt. i. revising ii. going over iii. taking up iv. studying e. Schools ________________ for the summer holidays in July. i. break up ii. end up iii. close iv. shut

Answers

a) make b) make c) made d) taking up e) end up

Look at these idiomatic expressions using learn. Rewrite the sentences below using the expressions:

a. Starting a new job is difficult because you have to learn all the basic things that you dont yet know. b. He was able to pick up everything about the sport in no time at all. c. We had to remember all the words of the song before the concert. d. The child, who ran in the school corridor, fell over and banged his head. He now knows never to do that again. learn off by heart learn by rote learn the ropes learn (ones) lesson a quick learner

e. When my grandfather was at school he had to memorize all the facts that the teacher told him.

Answers

a. Starting a new job is difficult because you have to learn the ropes. b. He was a quick learner. c. We had to learn all the words of the song off by heart before the concert. d. The child, who ran in the school corridor, fell over and banged his head. He has learnt his/her lesson. e. When my grandfather was at school he had to learn by rote.

Read the passage below, filling in the gaps with the names of the educational establishments mentioned in exercise 1:

The school system in England Pre-school education is provided by state or private ______________. Children as young as two are often left by their parents while they go to work. Children usually start ________________ when they are five. Then they go on to a state ________________, often called a comprehensive school. In the private sector, children often go to a prep school, before going on to _________________ when they are five or six. Many children often leave school at sixteen, after they take their GCSE exams, but some stay on to take their A level exams at school or __________________, before going on to _________________.

Answers
The school system in England. Pre-school education is provided by state or private nursery schools. Children as young as two are often left by their parents while they go to work. Children usually start primary school when they are five. Then they go on to a state secondary school, often called a comprehensive school. In the private sector, children often go to a prep school, before going on to public school when they are five or six. Many children often leave school at sixteen, after they take their GCSE exams, but some stay on to take their A level exams at school or sixth form college, before going on to university.

Listening
BBC. 6 minute learning. Top International Universities. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/gener al/sixminute/2010/09/100923_6min_top_university_p age.shtml

Which University do you think is going to be the number one on the list?

Answer these questions. Then listen again and check

What is the listening about? How many universities do they have on the list? Universities are ranked in relation to a number of factors, can you name any of them? Who invests more on Universities, the USA or the UK? Are all of them English speaking universities? Can you mention any of the other countries that have done well (top 40)? What did use to be the reason (apparently) for choosing a University? Can you name any of the reasons why the speakers chose their universities? What was the top university in the London Times Higher Education? Where are Oxford and Cambridge on the list?

Answers
1: Top universities in the world. 2: 200 universities. 3: Quality of teaching, the influence of its research, the income it gets for its research. 4: The US. 5: No, but you have to get to number 15 to find a nonEnglish speaking university (Swiss). 6: Asia with Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and China (6). Also Africa(2): South Africa and Egypt. 7: Reputation. 8: a) It offered the subject he wanted. b) Close to home and lively social scene. c) Loved the city, good reputation, go home at weekends. d) Excellent reputation in biology. 9: Harvard in the USA. 10:Oxford and Cambridge are in the top ten.

Education in the UK
-DIFFERENT TYPES OF SCHOOL (PRIVATE, STATE, BOARDING, RELIGIOUS..)
-DIFFERENT STAGES IN EDUCATION (NURSERY, PRIMARY, SECONDARY..)

State schools
Funded by the

government Provide free education to pupils Majority under control of local councils Minority funded by central government, academies and City Technology Colleges. All local authority maintained schools follow the National Curriculum

Private schools
Also known as independent

or public school in UK Students must sit an entrance exam Funded by charging students; tuition-average is 3,000 per term Scholarships to reduce cost They pay for the best teachers and provide enriched learning environments (small class sizes, libraries, science labs, computers)

Faith schools
Many schools linked to the

Church of England Can influence pupil selection where there is competition for places Also Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faith schools Follow the same national curriculum as state schools In Church of England schools, Religious Education is monitored, but doesnt take up much more of the timetable than in secular schools

Boarding schools
Pupils live in or near the school

grounds Most boarding schools also have day students Boarders normally return home during school holidays Students separated into residential houses Senior staff appointed as housemasters, taking responsibility for pupils in their house They have a system that gives older pupils certain privileges and responsibility

Single-sex schools
Male and female students

attend separate classes Most are private schools Some studies show children from single-sex schools are outperforming those from mixed schools Some people feel singlesex learning creates inequalities and gender stereotypes

Nursery school
For children between the

ages of 3 and 5 years Each child entitled to 5 two and a half hour sessions per week Fully funded by the government Teachers supervise educational play, rather than just providing childcare

Primary school
For children aged from 4

to 11 years Key stage 1 and 2 of National Curriculum (Reception-Year 6) Fee-paying schools known as preparatory schools Designed to prepare students for exams into private schools

Secondary school
For children from ages

11 to 16 or 18 Key stage 3 and 4 of National Curriculum (Year 7 to Year 11) Can also include Sixth form (16-18) After 16, compulsory education ends

College
Between secondary school

and university Sixth form or further education Prepare students for university degrees Apprenticeships provide vocational training (National Vocational Qualifications or NVQs)

University
Degrees for people aged 18+ Tuition fees vary, average

3,000 per year Most degrees are 3 or 4 years Must apply online through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) Apply for up to 5 courses

Prepare to talk about the school system in your country, and your own experience of education. Discuss it with your partner. Consider the following questions:

What age do children begin school in your country? What age does compulsory education end in your country? What time do schools begin and end in your country? What are the different school stages called in your country? (e.g. nursery, secondary) What subjects are taught at what ages in your country? Do students have to pay to attend university in your country? What are your memories of education in your country?

Speaking (Exposition)
You are a parent and you have a child. It is the moment to decide what kind of education you would like him to receive. You have 3 minutes to make your presentation. In case you need some ideas you may use the ones suggested below: private / state school mixed class / single class opinion on studying foreign languages free choices subjects you would like your child to study

Speaking (Interaction)
Because of cuts in the school budget, 3 of the following 12 optional subjects have to be dropped from the syllabus. Discuss which subjects could disappear without affecting the overall quality of the syllabus. Try to come to an agreement with your partner by supporting your views with arguments to support your position. Nutrition & Cooking MusicLatin Drama Art Dancing Public Speaking & Debating Current Affairs & Politics Italian First Aid & Health Care Wood & Metal Work Electronics Workshop

Further questions on Education

1)What comes to mind when you hear the word education? 2)How important do you think education is? 3)Do you think you had a good education? 4)Was there a high standard of education at your schools? 5)Do you think the quality of education is slipping? 6)What do you think of the idea of all education being online? 7)What kind of education did you have in your home? 8)What would the world be like if everyone had access to a good education? 9)Does your government really care about education? 10)In which country do you think you can receive the best education?

1)What is a good education? 2)Is the level of education in your country good? 3)What would you like to change about the education system of your country 4)Would you like to work in education? 5)Do you think theres a lot of money to be made in education? 6)What kind of experience and qualifications do you think a governments education minister/secretary needs? 7)When does education begin? 8)What do you think Mark Twain meant when he said, never let school interfere with your education? 9)What do you think of single-sex education? 10)What do you think of the idea of lifelong education?