английский / 3_Careers_in_IT

Careers in IT

Before you start

1. Work in pairs and discuss the questions.

1. What are your plans when you graduate from the University?

2. Do you want to use, or think you will need to use, IT in your job?

3. Make a list of jobs which use IT.

Reading

2. Read the quotes and write the name of the students by the jobs they want.

1. Web designer_______

2. Computer programmer_______

3. Database administrator_______

4. E-commerce manager_______

	I'm interested in writing software. My friends say I'm a techno-nerd because I prefer working with computers to people. Money is important but I'd rather do a job I enjoy. I want to take a distance-learning course so I can study at home.
	I like shopping and I think the future of business is on the Internet. I'm good with computers but I also like working with people. I'd like to manage my own online company. This will give me a lot of responsibility. E-commerce comes with risks, but the rewards are high when you succeed.
	Many people like Web design, but I think data management gives more job security. There is so much information on the Internet, and companies need people who know how to store, manage and retrieve data. I want to get my degree and work for a good company.
	I'm using JavaScript to make my website more interactive. After college, I'd like to try telecommuting. This is working at home, using e-mail to communicate with clients. I want freedom, flexibility and long holidays, which you don't get by working in an office.

3.Write E, K,M or P. Which student:

1. wants to work at home?	
2. wants a secure job?	
3. does not want to study in college?	
4. wants to choose when to work?	
5. wants to manage people?	
6. likes working with data?	
7. wants to be rich and successful?	
8. uses a coding system for web pages?	

Vocabulary

4. Underline the ways of expressing like or want in the quotes, then choose the correct answer.

1)___telecommuting to working in an office.

a I'd rather

b I prefer

c I like

2)___to do a distance-learning course.

a I'd prefer

b I'd rather

c I don't like

3)___working long hours all the time.

a I'd prefer

b I don't like

c It's good

4) ___to work with computers all day as I think it would be boring.

a I'd rather not

b I wouldn't like

c I don't like

5)___be a rich techno-nerd than poor and popular.

a I'd rather

b I prefer

c I like

6)___in being a secretary. I want a better job.

a I'm not interested

b I'm thinking of

c I don't like

Speaking

5. Work in groups. Rank the things you want from a job: 1 = most important, 10 = least important.

a high salary ■ flexible working hours ■ responsibility ■ interest or enjoyment ■ a nice office ■ telecommuting ■ long holidays ■ working with people ■ security ■ excitement/risk ■ good benefits, e.g. a company car, gym membership

Writing

6. Write a paragraph to say what kind of job you would like, and why.

Get real

Choose an area of IT that you are interested in. Find information about courses offered by colleges and universities. Find other areas where there are jobs in IT. Report back to the group on what you need to start the course or to get a good job.

Interview: Computing Support Assistant

Task 1. Anne works in a large insurance company. She's a computing support assistant. She looks after people and their computers, and she helps with any problems people have. What sort of problems do you think they might have?

Task 2. Listen to Part 1 of the interview where Anne talks about the problems she helps with. Tick (✓) the problems she mentions.

1	□	paper jamming
2	□	finding options in programs
3	□	viruses
4	□	computer freezes
5	□	hard disk crashes
6	□	printer switched off
7	□	no paper in the printer
8	□	people forget their passwords
9	□	no toner in the printer

Task 3. Listen to Part 2 of the interview. Tick (✓) the ways Anne keeps up with new developments in computing.

1	□	reading books
2	□	reading computer magazines
3	□	speaking to other technicians
4	□	using the Internet
5	□	taking courses
6	□	trying programs herself
7	□	reading newspapers

Language work: Adverbs of frequency

Study these extracts from the interview.

I: Are you ever bored?

A: No, not really, because it's never the same things over and over again; it's different each lime.

A: People have problems with the hardware, often with printers ... paper jamming. They also have problems finding options in the programs. Mostly with word processing.

I: Are there any other hardware problems?

A: Occasionally a computer freezes, it hangs or freezes. It's usually a memory problem.

I: Is it always the machine or is it sometimes the user?

A: Sometimes it's the user. The printer isn't switched on, or there's no paper in it.

The words in italics tell us how often something happens. For example:

I: How often does a computer crash?

A: Sometimes, not very often.

We can grade these words from always to never like this:

always

almost always

usually

often

sometimes

occasionally

almost never

never

Task 4. This table shows the number of hardware and software problems Anne had last year. Describe how often these problems happened, using the adverbs above.

Example: There were sometimes problems with the network.

Printers 116

Monitors 0

Cabling 13

Scanners 6

Network 34

Spreadsheet 15

Database 17

Word processing 93

Computing words and abbreviations

Task 5. Put the devices from the list below into these sets.

Input

Output

Storage

CD-ROM disk laser printer

digital camera lightpen

dot-matrix printer magneto-optical disk

fixed hard disk magnetic tape

floppy disk microphone

inkjet printer monitor

joystick removable hard disk

keyboard scanner

Task 6. Match each definition (1-8) with the correct feature (a-h).

1. This is a window which appears when information about a choice is needed or when options have to be selected.

2. This indicates the amount of space between the dots which make up the image on a monitor.

3. This is part of a screen which is used to select an action, usually by clicking the mouse button over it.

4. This is a measure of the number of dots which make up the image on a monitor.

5. This shows a list of choices which the user can select from using the pointer.

6. This is part of a dialog box where the user can type file names and other information.

7. This is the speed at which the monitor refreshes the image on the screen.

8. This is a small picture on the screen which represents a program, folder, or file.

a	aperture grill pitch	e	drop-down list box
b	command button	f	maximum resolution
с	dialog box	g	refresh rate
d	icon	h	text box

Task 7. Answer these questions about the interview with full sentences. Then link your answers to make a short paragraph about Anne.

1. What kind of work does Anne do?

2. What does she like most about the job?

3. What kinds of problems do people have with hardware?

4. Why do computers freeze?

5. How does she keep up with new developments in computing?

What kinds of courses does she go on?