Lesson 3

The lesson plan

1. Introduction (5-7 min)

2. Active vocabulary (10 min)

3. Listening (30 min)

4. Reading text (15 min)

5. Reading comprehension (15 min)

6. On-line/off-line activity (10 min)

7. Homework

ACTIVE VOCABULARY

Lexical exercises

Ask students to refresh words and word combinations they have learnt at the previous lesson, matching the words and their definitions given below:

primary school– a school for children between the ages of four of five and eleven.

preparatory– done as preparation for something else.

comprehensive school – a school for students of different levels of ability between the ages of 11 and 18.

craft – a traditional skill of making things by hand.

domestic science – the householding .

woodwork– the activity or skill of making things of wood.

campus – an area of land containing all the main buildings of a university.

nursery – a school or a place where very young children are looked after.

tutor – a teacher in a college or university.

bachelor degree – a first university degree.

compulsory – obligatory.

total number– general quantity.

non-government– something, which doesn’t belong to the government.

applicant – someone who applies for something; a person who wants to be a student.

LISTENING

Reading

New words

Ask students to give, if possible, the synonyms or close meanings of the following words and word combinations and try to pronounce them correctly:

State, elementary school, high school, public schools, junior high school, senior high school, grade, kindergarten, comprise, taxes, funding, assignment, mandatory, college.

State – here a state institution is one that is run by the government.

Elementary school – in the US, a school for children between the ages of 5 and about 9.

High school – in the US, a school for children between the ages of 14 and 18; in the UK, between 11 and 18 = secondary school.

Public school -an expensive private school in Britain; a school that is controlled and paid for by the government in the USA.

Junior high school – a school in the US for children between the ages of 12 and 5.

Senior high school – a school in the US for children between the ages of 14 and 18.

Grade – one of the levels of school in the USA that lasts for 1 year.

Kindergarten – the first year of formal education in the US, for children aged of 5 or 6.

To comprise – to include.

Taxes – an amount of money that you have to pay to the government.

Funding – money that a government or organisation provides for a specific purposes.

Assignment – a piece of work that you must do.

Mandatory– something that is mandatory has to be done because of a law or rule, obligatory.

College – place that gives students qualifications below the level of a university degree, often in the skills that they need to do a particular job.

Private school – a school that the children’s parents pay for directly to the school.

University – an education institution where students study for degrees and where academic research is done.

Reading comprehension

I. Match the pairs of synonyms among the following words:

to select – to choose;

to comprise – to include;

elective – optional;

to be a must – to be mandatory;

to receive – to obtain;

task – assignment;

specified – certain;

education – training;

vocational – professional.

II. Match synonyms from the two columns:

1. establishment n) institution

2. receive f) obtain

3. finish i) graduate

4. admit d) accept

5. support a) subsidize

6. scores l) results

7. differ m) vary

8. standards k) requirements

9. term c) semester

10. fund g) finance

11. select e) choose

12. fall h) autumn

13. end-of-the year b) final

14. vacations j) holidays

III. Answer the following questions:

1. Education in the United States comprises three levels: elementary, secondary and higher education

2. Kids start school by going to kindergartens at the age of 6. First six years are elementary school, then come junior (grades 7-8) and high school (grades 9-12).

3. The basic subjects at school are: English, science and mathematics, social sciences and physical education.

4. High school students plan their careers and select subjects that will be useful in their chosen work – foreign languages, fine arts, advanced mathematics and science, and vocational training.

5. The results (scores) from these tests are known only by teachers, and not by the students or their parents.

6. The organisation and curriculum of private schools are similar to those of public schools, but the tuition costs are so high that only the wealthiest families can afford.

7. Many private schools are boarding schools.

8. Most young Americans graduate from school with a high school diploma upon satisfactory completion of a specified number of courses. Each student is given a high school transcript with grades obtained. That is the end of mandatory free public education.

9. One half of the students enter institutions of higher education, others may get further education at special colleges.

Before listening ask the students to guess the meanings of the following words and word combinations:

fall (A.E.)– autumn (B.E.)

undergraduate– a student.

to estimate– to assess, to evaluate.

investigation– research, exploration.

living expenses– the money for living needs.

Listen to The Voice of America and try to understand

Foreign Student Series: A Look at Washington University

We answer a question from a student in China in Part 42 of our series. Transcript of radio broadcast:

20 June 2007

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

A student at Xinjiang Normal University in China has a question for our Foreign Student Series. Akbar Mamat wants to go overseas after graduation and would like some information about Washington University.

Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri, is a medium-sized school in the Midwest. It has almost eleven thousand students. Twelve percent this last school year were international students, mostly graduate students.

The university has schools for law, medicine and social work. It also has a business school, a school of design and visual arts and a school of engineering and applied science. But more than seventy percent of courses are taught through the Arts and Sciences program.

The new school year that begins this fall will cost fifty-two thousand dollars for undergraduates. That includes twelve months of living expenses estimated at seventeen thousand dollars.

Graduate tuition differs by program. Tuition for the Master of Social Work program, for example, will cost twenty-seven thousand dollars in the coming year. The Master of Business Administration program will cost about thirty-eight thousand dollars.

The university offers financial assistance to international students, including first-year students, but says its resources are limited.

Scholarships are available. The university also offers a monthly payment plan to spread out the cost of tuition. And it offers loan programs.

International students in the United States generally cannot receive federal student loans. But they may be able to take out private loans, as many American students do. The student loan industry is in the news right now. Investigations are looking at questionable dealings between colleges and lenders.

Washington University in Saint Louis was named Eliot Seminary when it opened in eighteen fifty-three. Later the name was changed to honour the first American president, George Washington.

But other schools share the name Washington, including the University of Washington and George Washington University. So in nineteen seventy-six Washington University added the words "in Saint Louis" to its name.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Our Foreign Student Series on higher education in the United States is online at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

LISTENING COMPREHENSION

I. True or False?

1. Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri, is one of the largest schools in the Midwest (False).

2. The new school year begins this autumn and will cost 52 thousand dollars for undergraduates (True).

3. Graduate tuition doesn’t differ by the program (False).

4. The University doesn’t offer any financial assistance to international students because its resources are limited. (False).

5. International students may take out only private loans, as many American students do (True).

II. Answer the questions.

1. The university has schools for law, medicine, social work, a business school, a school of design and visual arts and a school of engineering and applied science.

2. Graduate tuition differs by program.

3. International students in the United States generally can’t receive federal student loans, but the university offers some financial assistance to international students, including first-year students (scholarships, private loans).