- •Государственное образовательное учреждение
- •I. Say what’s meant by the words and word combinations:
- •II. Say what you know about:
- •III. Points for discussion:
- •I. Find in the article the Russian for:
- •VII. Comment on:
- •VIII. Points for discussion.
- •I’m Counting Every Penny
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used in the article:
- •I. Think of the best English Equivalent of:
- •I. Define the words and word-combinations:
- •II. Say what you know about:
- •III. Answer the questions:
- •IV. Interpret the following lines:
- •VI. Points for discussion:
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below.
- •II. Say whether you are agree or disagree.
- •III. Do you need a college degree in order to be successful?
- •IV. Which of the opinions is well-grounded? Whose opinion do you share?
- •Interpret the idea:
- •V. Give a 5-sentence summery of the article. Formulate its key idea.
- •VI. Write out questions posed in the article. How would you answer them?
- •V. Should every bright student be offered a college place regardless of his/her ability to pay?
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used in the article.
- •VI. Come out with a short report on Japan.
- •I. Say what you know about:
- •IV. Say what you know about:
- •Interpret the idea:
- •1.Тип ботанический (компьютерщик)
- •2. Тип политический
- •I. Render the above article into English.
- •II. Comment on the choice of words in the headline.
- •III. Say if you agree with the described student types. That other types would you single out? Do you belong to any of them?
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used in the article.
- •VI. Enlarge on the statements below:
- •I. Think of the best English variant of:
- •Is the headline of the article suggestive? How would you translate it into English?
- •I. State the difference between:
- •II. Say how you understand the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used.
- •III. Find English equivalents for:
- •IV. Answer the following questions:
- •V. Enlarge on the lines below:
- •VI. Interpret the headline of the article.
- •I. Find in the article the Russian for:
- •I. Practice the pronunciation of the words below, learn and translate them.
- •VI. State the idea behind the following lines.
- •VIII. Enlarge on the idea. Say whether you agree with it.
- •IX. There are a number of questions in the article. White them out and come out with answers to them.
- •X. Did the author raise an acute problem? Has the homework eaten your family/leisure time?
- •I. Think of the best English equivalent of:
- •I. Render the above article into English, try to use the active vocabulary under study.
- •II. Find an up-to-date Russian article on the topic discussed, render it into English and say if much has changed in the American educational system by now.
- •VII. Comment on the choice of the headline.
- •I. Find in the article the English for:
- •II. Think of the best English variant of:
- •III. Specify the difference between the words below. Give examples to illustrate their usage.
- •V. Points for discussion.
- •Psychology Seeks Out Brain’s Seat of Learning
- •Set Work
- •Interpret the idea:
- •In the u.S., Soaring Tuition Necessitates New Strategies
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used in the article:
- •V. Sum up the key points of the article and formulate its message.
- •Interpret the idea:
- •I. Explain what’s meant by the following words and word combinations:
- •I. Find out and say how you understand:
- •II. What is meant by:
- •III. Find English equivalents for:
- •IV. Say what is implied in the lines below.
- •V. Points for discussion.
- •In what connection were these lexical units used in the article?
- •IV. Rephrase using the active vocabulary from the article.
- •I. Practice the pronunciation of the following words. Translate and learn
- •IX. Points for discussion.
- •VIII. Comment on the headline of the article.
- •I. Practice the pronunciation of the following words. Translate and learn
- •VII. Points for discussion.
- •VIII. Comment on the university’s name.
- •I. Define the words and word-combinations below. Say how they were used in the article.
- •VI. Points for discussions.
- •VII. Translate the last paragraph into Russian in writing.
- •Interpret the idea:
- •I. Render the above article into English and formulate its message.
- •II. Does the described practice appeal to you? Does it have any disadvantages?
- •Set Work
- •III. Define the words and word combinations below, say how they were used in the article.
- •VIII. Points for discussion.
- •Interpret the idea:
- •I. What is the English for:
- •I. Define the words and word combinations below. Say how they were used in the article.
- •II. Find in the article the English for:
- •III. Say what you know about:
- •V. State the difference between the following words. Give examples to illustrate their usage.
- •VI. Agree or disagree with the statements below.
- •VII. Points for discussion.
- •I. Find in the article the Russian for:
- •I. Practise the pronunciation of the words below. Translate and learn them.
- •VII. Say whether you agree with the statements below.
- •VIII. Sum up the key points of the article.
- •IX. Comment on the headline.
- •X. Points for discussion.
- •Is Educational Expansion Productive
I. Find in the article the Russian for:
white-collars
to dispel a myth
to work outside one’s profession
a budding specialist
to overhaul
to go into teaching
to decrease threefold
down-to-earth brain drain
to be work-shy
to flee the country
a medium wage
to conduct a mass opinion poll
one in 179
it’s very regrettable
to keep up with
to keep one’s competitive edge
meager budget coffers
underfunding
allegedly
II. Think of the best variant to say in English:
Научные кадры; потерять актуальность; аспирантура/докторантура; заказ на что-либо; отсрочка от армии; научный сотрудник; жилье; материально-техническая база; «держать зубы на полке»; острая нехватка; ракетно-ядерная держава; вступить в силу (о плане, о законе).
III. Explain what is meant by:
Бауманка, «оборонка», Россия-матушка, кузница научных кадров, Минтруд.
IV. Specify the difference between:
White-collar workers – blue-collar workers
V. Render the above article into English and make a list of hurdles to cope with.
VI. Points for discussion:
1. How can the problem of Russian brain drain be solved?
2. How can Russian science and scientists be encouraged?
Dumb On Down From Day One
Universities may be accused of 'dumbing down', says Frank Furedi, but anti-intellectualism among students is embedded at a much earlier age.
Three yeas ago I wrote an article entitled "What is university for now?" It focused on the absence of intellectual challenges in Britain’s universities. I quoted undergraduates profoundly bored by their university experience and pointed out that, in many cases, students could now spend an entire year at university without reading a whole book.
The next day, I received an angry e-mail from a senior university manager who accused me of "deliberately" confusing the issues. He did not dispute my claim about students who don't read books. Rather, he was upset at my assumption that books should have a privileged status in higher education.
As far as he was concerned, the book has become an optional extra for the present-day undergraduate. For months afterwards, his letter preyed on my thoughts.
I was sure that members of the higher education establishment would share some of my misgivings about the fall of standards and would be likely to feel embarrassed by the way that university life was becoming so evidently banal. But my correspondent’s unexpected disparagement of studying books made me think again.
I did not have to look hard to realise that the fatal of dumbing down in higher education begins much earlier on in life. I am continually taken aback by the sense of low expectations that we transmit to youngsters. In a recent discussion I had with the parents of six and seven-year-olds, one primary school struggling to maintain a decent standard of teaching was denounced for "putting children under pressure" and being "too competitive". It is not uncommon to find children as young as five or six described as "not academic" by adults who seem keen to lower these youngsters’ ambitions. Sadly, all too many schools accommodate this sentiment.
The cumulative effect or lowering pupils’ expectations becomes evident when they leave school. It was reported that a third of Confederation of British Industry members have had to pay for extra English and maths lessons for recruits aged 16 to 19. Nearly half of all British universities are forced to put on remedial classes in English and maths for first-year students, because so many do not possess the literary and numerical skills expected of undergraduates. A study published by York University indicates that A-level maths standards have dropped so far that B-grade students score little better in a basic university test than if they were guessing the answers. A survey of vice-chancellors indicated that a significant proportion of first-year students are struggling with grammar and cannot write essays.
Many academics are struck by the general lack of knowledge and feeble grasp of history of the current generation of undergraduates. Youngsters have become estranged from history. In a recent survey of 10 to 14-year-olds, one in four did not know that D-Day was something to do with the second world war. Another survey of secondary school children from both the state and independent sectors found that a quarter of those asked did not know that the first world war occurred in the 20th century. A survey of six to 14 year-olds found that 65% could not name one classical composer. And so it goes on.
By the time students arrive at university, it is hard to catch up on all the things that they have not learnt at school. It was reported that, as more schools make language classes non-compulsory, more children are dropping languages altogether. Is it any surprise that 75% of universities have been forced to axe language courses over the past three years? Places on exciting exchange programmes with European universities remain unfilled, because we cannot find enough undergraduates able to follow lectures in a foreign language.
Yet, despite all the evidence, those who claim that British institutions are dumbing down are likely to be told that they are sadly out of touch with the real world. Government ministers and the leading voices of the British cultural elite seem unable to face the truth. They assert that young people are far better educated than in the past.
Strangely, there is no such reluctance to recognise dumbing down in America. Commentators often represent President George W Bush as the personification of dumb America. And, of course, we have all been told many times that a lot of Americans are stupid white men.
This sentiment appeared to be confirmed a couple of years ago, when the National Geographic Society published a survey showing that only 17% of Americans could find Afghanistan on a world map. For many British commentators, this was another example of the dumb America. What they failed to point out was that Britain did poorly in the same quiz. It finished bottom of the European countries surveyed.
The real problem we face is not so much the decline of standards. It is the tendency of British institutions to accommodate a regime of low expectations. This trend is, particularly striking in higher education, where declining standards are masked through the increase in the number of graduates receiving 2.1 and first-class degrees.
Some academics have even called for replacing essays and exams with modes of assessment that are more likely to flatter student performance. Soon multiple-choice-question-based tests will displace the essay-focused exam.
"A bit dodgy" is how Charles Clarke, the education secretary, has described the idea of education for its own sake, while asserting that his government has no interest in supporting "the medieval concept of a community of scholars seeking truth."
Throughout the education system desperate attempts are being made to ensure that the situation appears under control. This is why standards and the system of assessment are continuously reconfigured to ensure students succeed.
But this cynical orientation towards education does no favours to young people in Britain. Like previous generations, they are ready to be intellectually challenged and stretched. But instead of providing them with an education worthy of their aspirations, all that we offer them is yet another face-lift to the examination system.
In as much as it means anything, dumbing down does not refer to the intelligence of people. Rather it is a statement about the way that leading British institutions promote a mood of low expectations.
Frank Furedi
/The Sunday Times, Dec 25, 2005/
Set Work