Читай и говори пособие 1 курс

to graduate from university with the best grades a person who studies at the first course

to be eager of doing smth. to be honest

III. Match English and Russian equivalents.
1.beside the point	1.очень хотеть сделать
2.finals	2. с отличием
3. a freshman	3. не по существу
4. to turn in a work	4.специализироваться
5. to get behind	5.если говорить откровенно
6. with honours	6.выпускные экзамены
7. to major in	7.догнать группу
8.to be frank	8.сдать работу
9. to catch up with the group	9.отстать
10. to be anxious to do	10.первокурсник

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TEXT 2A. A STUDENT IN ECONOMICS

Read the text and do the exercises.

Charlie Wintage ran up the steps of the Administration Building, hurried through the revolving doors and walked down the long hall to the Dean of Men’s office. He was ten minutes late. Before he opened the frosted-glass door he took out a pair of ambercoloured spectacles and put them on. Then he went in and handed this summons to the secretary.

«The Dean will see you in a moment», she said. «Please take a chair.»

Charlie sat down and gave a glance about the office. Three freshmen holding their caps were waiting with him. He recognized none of them, so he picked up a week-old copy of a newspaper and started reading it. But the room was warm and he immediately went to sleep. The newspaper slipped down on the floor. His ambercoloured spectacles hid his eyes and no one could see that they were closed. He was awakened by the secretary shaking him.

«Wake up and pay for your bed, old man!» one of the freshmen called and everyone laughed heartily.

«I sort of drowsed off. It’s so nice and warm here», Charlie said, apologizing to the secretary.

The Dean of Men got up as he entered and said: «Ah, this is Charlie Wintage, isn’t it? How do you like the university by now, Wintage? Eyes troubling you?»

«Pretty well, sir. Yes, sir, a little. I wear these spectacles.»

The secretary brought his folder and the Dean looked through it briefly.

«Well, Wintage, I suppose you’re anxious to know why I sent for you. The unpleasant truth is, Wintage, you don’t seem to be doing well in your studies. Now, to be quite frank, Wintage, you’re on the verge of flunking out. Less then a third of the semester remains, and you have an F grade in English and D grades in Psychology and Military Training. On the other hand, you have an A average in Spanish and a B in Economics. Wintage, how do you account for your failing English when you are an A student in Spanish?»

«To tell you the truth, sir, I got behind in my written work in English, and I’ve never been able to catch up. And I don’t really have to study Spanish. My father is a railway section foreman in my home town and he’s always had a gang of Mexicans working for him. I’ve been speaking Spanish ever since I was a kid.»

«How about this B in Economics? That’s a fairly high grade.»

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«Yes, sir. Our economics professor doesn’t give exams. Instead he gives everyone a B until he calls for our term papers. And the grade you get on your term paper is your semester grade. We have to do a lot of outside reading for the term paper. But I’m counting on keeping that B in Economics.»

«That’s fine, Wintage. But it appears to me that it’s high time you were getting busy on some of the other grades too. You have an unusually high grade at your entrance exams. Graduated from high school with honours. What’s the trouble, Wintage?»

«I don’t know, sir, except I work at night at a café.» «How many hours do you work?»

«Ten hours, sir. From nine till seven. The café stays open all night.»

«Very interesting, Wintage. But don’t you suppose that it would be advisable to cut down a bit on this outside work and attend a little more closely to your studies?»

«I couldn’t work fewer hours and stay in school, sir. I pay my room rent and I’ve been paying out on a suit of clothes.»

«Can you arrange for a little financial support from home?»

«No, sir. I’m afraid not. I have two brothers and two sisters at home younger then I am. It wouldn’t be right for me to ask my father to send money out of what he makes.»

«I see, but all this is beside the point. We’ve here to discuss the state of your grades, Wintage. As you must know, any student who turns in less than half his work is automatically suspended from the university and must return to his home. Now one more bad mark and you’ll go, Wintage.»

«I’d hate to have to go back home like that. You know there are not many jobs nowadays, sir.»

«Well, unless you can alter your circumstances, I suggest that you withdraw from the university at once.»

«I believe I’ll try to stick it through, sir. I’ll try to remove the F and D grades and may be I can luck through on my finals.»

(After George Milburn)

N o t e s:

Dean of Men’s office - преподаватель-воспитатель, ведущий работу среди мужчин-студентов.

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I sort of drowsed off. - Я вроде бы задремал.

to flunk out (American) - быть исключенным за неуспеваемость

F grade - самая низкая оценка, которую студент получает за свои знания в колледже, университете.

A grade - самая высокая оценка.

to be suspended - быть исключенным

I can luck through on my finals. - Я как-нибудь сам сдам свои выпускные экзамены.

EXERCISES:

I. Fill in the blanks in the sentences using the appropriate words and word combinations from the following list:

to hand, to summon, to hide, to be anxious, to be on the verge,	to fail, to get
behind, to catch up, to call for, to count on, to be beside the point.

1.All these statements are ..... . Stick to the topic of the discussion.

2.He ..... the group in his written assignments. I’m afraid he won’t be able ...

with the group. He’s likely ... his exams. He ... of flunking out.

3.The application form was filled in and I .... to the secretary.

4.I’ll do my best to help you, you may always ... me.

5.He ... to the court as a witness.

6.The situation was very dangerous and .... serious measures.

7.The woman was greatly upset but tried .... her feelings.

8.I ... to see London with my own eyes. I’ve heard much interesting about this

city

II.Correct the statements if they are not true.

1.Charlie Wintage was summoned to the Dean of Men’s office.

2.He came there just in time.

3.The room was so warm and Charlie was so tired that he went to sleep.

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4.The Dean of Men’s Office invited Charlie in order to praise him for excellent grades.

5.Charlie wasn’t anxious to have good grades, as he was a lazybones.

6.Charlie couldn’t get any financial support from his family.

III.Say what you have learnt about:

1.Charlie Wintage; 2. the family he came from; 3.his life in college; 4. the Dean of Men’s Office; 5. the system of grades and rules of American universities.

IV. Think and answer:

1.Why didn’t Charlie want to withdraw from the university?

2.What could he do «to stick it through»?

V.Make a short summary of the text.

TEXT 2B. A WALK ROUND OXFORD.

Read the following dialogue and do the exercises given bellow.

John Priestly invited his friend Olaf, a Norwegian student, to Oxford for a weekend. He intended to take Olaf round Oxford. John is an undergraduate there. He loves Oxford and seems to know all about it.

While they were walking through one of the gardens, a scholarly-looking man in a cap and gown walked past and smiled at John. As he walked away Olaf said, «Surely he’s not an undergraduate?»

John: No, that’s my tutor.

Olaf: What is a tutor?

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John: He, more or less, plans your work, suggests the books you should read and sets work for you to do. Every student has a tutor and as soon as you come to Oxford one of the first things you do is to go and see your tutor.

Olaf: Does the tutor also deliver lectures? John: Yes, he may.

Olaf: But aren’t lectures delivered by professors?

John: Yes, though they don’t deliver many lectures. They are often appointed not so much to do teaching work as to carry on research in their practical subjects.

Olaf: Can you go to any lecture you like, no matter whether it is by a tutor or a professor of your college or not?

John: Yes. Lectures are organized not by a college but by the university, for all the students are members of a college and the university.

Olaf: You said the lectures were «organized by the university». Where is the university?

John: It may seem rather strange to you but there isn’t really any university at Oxford as there is, for example, at Manchester or Bristol or Edinburgh. Oxford (like Cambridge) is a collection of colleges, each self-governing and independent. «The University» is merely an administrative body that organizes lectures, arranges examinations, gives degrees, etc. Each college has its own character and individuality. But there are students of all kinds in each college; I mean you don’t get all science students at one college, and law students at another. Every college has its arts men and science men, its medical students and its engineers. Every student, of course, follows his own course of study, but he gains a lot from living among those who represent all other branches.

Olaf: By the way, what are you studying? It’s medicine, isn’t it? Are you going to be a doctor?

John: As a matter of fact, I’m not. That was the idea when I came here, but my interest has always been in language learning and language teaching so I changed from medicine to modern languages. I’m in my last year now.

Olaf: Well, I wish you luck.

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EXERCISES:

I.Chose the right word or word combination.

1.In Oxford lectures are organized by …

a)tutors; b) professors; c) a college; d) the university.

2.Professors are appointed mostly …

a)to deliver lectures; b) to carry on research; c) to do practical work.

3.In Oxford the university is a/an … body.

a)administrative; b) legislative; c) executive

II.Complete the sentences.

1.As soon as a student comes to Oxford he should …

2.Unlike other universities Oxford is a collection …

3.In a college there are students …

4.Every student follows his own …

III.Give your impressions of:

1.the tutorial system at Oxford; 2. the difference between Oxford and other British universities; 3. some aspects of college life at Oxford.

IV. Think and answer.

1.What are the advantages and disadvantages of the tutorial system?

2.How can you explain the existence of two different types of universities in England?

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TEXT 2C. HIGHER EDUCATION IN RUSSIA

Study the text and do the tasks given bellow:

A national higher school system plays an important role in the development of our country. Only highly qualified specialists can solve the most complex problems facing our society. Knowledge, science and culture open the prospects for the future. The efforts of the Russian scientists have always been focused on the fundamental problems of humanities, natural and social sciences.

The basic principle of the organization of national education in our country is an equal opportunity for all its citizens. It should conform to the spirit and requirements of the time we live.

Specialized secondary and higher education is available for everyone according to one’s abilities. Every citizen can get free education in state institutions if he passes the entrance examinations successfully. One of the necessary qualifications for higher school is complete secondary education. Entrance examinations differ depending on the choice of a higher school. People can get a higher education through the full-time, evening and correspondent courses. Those who study well receive scholarships. All higher schools are controlled by the state and are uniformly administrated. The system of public education is being constantly improved and that is a logical process.

Among with the state higher schools existing in the country many non-state institutes of higher learning have been opened in different towns. Thousands of young people who for some reason couldn’t enter any of the state educational establishments have got an opportunity to continue their studies and to get higher education. Tuition in non-state institutes is not free of charge, it is rather expensive. But everybody knows that money spent on the brain is never spent in vain.

The higher school today doesn’t only give knowledge to the students but develops their abilities to think creatively and to work productively. Today’s scientific and technological progress demands of the higher school graduates to be prepared to deepen their knowledge individually and adapt themselves quickly to the changes in the branches of science or industry they have chosen as their specialty. This means that future specialists must be given a good grounding in basic subjects. In order to obtain practical experience all the students of higher schools have practical training at different enterprises, schools and offices.

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Every year thousands of graduates receive diplomas of higher education and start working in different branches of science, economy and production. Some of them enter postgraduate courses to get more specialized study and to defend a thesis on a chosen scientific problem. We have every right to say that the future of our country in many respects depends upon the quality of education received by its citizens.

I.Give your impressions of:

1.the role of higher school system in the development of our country;

2.the demands of higher school graduate.

II.Think and answer.

1.What is the basic principle of the organization of national education in our country?

2.How do students obtain practical experience when studying at higher school?

3.What’s your opinion of the system of higher education in our country?

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TEXT 2D. SOME FACTS ABOUT BRITISH UNIVERSITIES

Learn some more material about British universities and answer the questions given below.

The largest and the most famous British universities are educational federations uniting institutes, schools and colleges run by one administration. Provincial universities have no elements of federation. All the students and the teaching staff are concentrated in one place. These universities are more democratic.

The head of the university is the so-called Chancellor, he is elected by the scientific workers of the university. The Chancellor as a rule is a person holding an outstanding position in the country. He visits the university only twice a year on some great occasion. The actual head of the university is the vice-chancellor. He is elected from a number of authorities or teachers of the university for 2 - 3 years.

Universities are financed through a special government committee. The money comes from different sources:

state subsidies (about 70%),

from the students who pay for education (about 12%),

subsidies from local authorities (3 - 4%),

private investments and the university’s own means.

The tuition fee is very high in Britain, higher than in other countries. It differs from university to university. The tuition, lodging and food in London University, Oxford and Cambridge costs about 1000 pounds per term , in provincial universities - 700/800 pounds.

The course of study at university lasts three or four years. But lazy students may stay there for five years. They get no degree or diploma but a certificate, so they don’t graduate from university but finish it.

1.What’s the peculiar feature of provincial universities?

2.Who stands at the head of university?

3.How are universities financed?

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