UNIT 3 University Education . 21

UNIT 4 Mass Media. 42

UNIT 5 English-Speaking Countries 53

UNIT 6 Festivals and Celebrations in Great Britain and the United States of America 73

UNIT 7 Modern Travel 89

UNIT 8 The Republic of Belarus 102

UNIT 9 Belarusian National Culture. 115

UNIT 10 Books in Our Life. 126

UNIT 11 Theatre. 139

UNIT 12 Music. 149

UNIT 13 My Future Profession. 158

Bibliography. 173

Appendices 175

Предисловие

 

В XXI веке особое значение при подготовке специалиста любого профиля, в том числе и в сфере культуры, приобретает овладение иностранным языком. Курс иностранного языка для неязыковых специальностей вузов должен носить профессионально ориентированный характер. Данная направленность обучения иностранному языку в высшей школе продиктована причинами как объективного, так и субъективного характера.

Объективной причиной является потребность в специалистах высшей квалификации, владеющих иностранным языком. Разумеется, что чем раньше начнется овладение терминологией какой-либо отрасли знаний и в соответствии с этим обучению иностранному языку будет придан профильный характер, тем больше вероятность того, что иностранный язык будет эффективно использоваться в профессиональных целях.

Субъективные причины определяются следующими факторами. Для успешного овладения иностранным языком он должен быть включен в систему жизненных интересов личности. Одним из таких постоянно действующих интересов для большинства учащихся является все то, что связано с их профессиональным самоопределением, с углублением в избранную сферу деятельности. Если в процессе занятий иностранным языком учащийся почувствует, что этот предмет помогает ему овладеть выбранной профессией, узнать о ней нечто новое, углубиться в соответствующую область знания, более успешно решать встающие перед ним задачи, то иностранный язык приобретет для него личностный смысл, станет постоянно действующим фактором мотивации обучения.

До недавнего времени конечной целью преподавания иностранных языков в неязыковом вузе являлось обучение различным видам чтения с целью изучения литературы по специальности и извлечения необходимой информации. В настоящее время основной акцент преподавания сместился на обучение устной и письменной речи. При этом обучение чтению не снимается с повестки дня, а становится основой для обучения другим видам речевой деятельности.

Цели предлагаемого учебного пособия:

– комплексное обучение студентов специальностей вузов культуры и искусств различным видам речевой деятельности (чтению, аудированию, говорению и письму) на английском языке на базе материалов, разработанных преподавателями кафедры, и взятых из аутентичных источников;

– развитие у студентов навыков устной речи во всех ее разновидностях (монолог, сообщение, диалог, дискуссия и др.) по широкому кругу актуальных и коммуникативно значимых проблем социального, страноведческого характера на основе прочитанных и прослушанных текстов, а также выполненных в письменном виде творческих заданий.

Материалы пособия были подготовлены с использованием оригинальных источников, изданных в Великобритании и США, а также информации из ряда современных электронных энциклопедий и международной глобальной сети Интернет. Литературные источники приводится в библиографическом списке в конце пособия. Принципами отбора текстов были их насыщенность тематической лексикой и соответствие ее современным нормам словоупотребления.

Каждый раздел содержит основной текст для изучающего чтения и ряд дополнительных текстов для обучения другим видам чтения, переводу и реферированию. Работа с текстом предполагает несколько этапов: предтекстовый, текстовый и послетекстовый. На каждом из них предлагается серия упражнений и заданий, последовательное выполнение которых позволяет постепенно сформировать навыки и умения в различных видах речевой деятельности. Упражнения служат также средством развития их творческих способностей, так как продолжают тематику основного текста и варьируют его языковой материал. Задания предполагают взаимосвязь различных видов речевой деятельности, что характерно для естественного общения.

Авторы выражают искреннюю благодарность рецензентам за ценные замечания и пожелания, высказанные при подготовке пособия.

Разделы пособия были подготовлены преподавателями кафедры:

доц. Филиппов А.А. (Unit 1), доц. Кусков М.И. (Unit 2), ст.преп. Кармазина Н.В., ст.преп. Платонова Э.Е. (Units 3,5,11), ст.преп. Безмен С.Г., ст.преп. Бируля Т.П. (Units 6, 8, 9, 10), ст.преп. Гутковская М.С., ст.преп. Кудрявцева Е.Л. (Units 4,7,12), преп. Лубинская Е.П., преп. Попова Д.Б. (Unit 13).

 

 

UNIT 1 About Myself

Vocabulary

personality

responsible

support

self-driven

capability

around the clock

surf the Internet

unpredictable

diverse

explore

sensitive

bright

smart

hard-working

energetic

enthusiastic

cheerful

sociable

witty

generous

persistent

well-bred

absent-minded

indecisive

selfish

shy

Pre-reading activities:

1. Match the following adjectives 1-20 with the correct meanings a)-t) to form complete sentences:

People who are:

1. absent-minded	a) like to say how good they are at something
2. adventurous	b) have strong feelings and are easily moved by things
3. amusing	c) are rude and disrespectful, especially towards people like parents and teachers
4. bashful	d) are always trying to control others without worrying or caring about how they feel
5. boastful	e) deliberately try to hurt or harm others
6. bright	f) are very forgetful because they are too busy thinking about other things
7. calm	g) are sure of themselves and their abilities
8. cheeky	h) are easily tricked and tend to believe everything they are told
9. conceited	i) are very clever and learn things quickly
10. confident	j) hate having to wait for things and are not very tolerant of other people’s weaknesses
11. creative	k) are very interested and excited about something and this shows in the way they talk or behave
12. domineering	l) are daring and always ready to take risks
13. down-to-earth	m) are always friendly and welcoming towards guests
14. emotional	n) don’t get excited or nervous about things
15. enthusiastic	o) find it hard to accept or understand new or different ideas
16. gullible	p) are very funny and make you laugh
17. hospitable	q) are very practical and honest
18. impatient	r) have a very high opinion of themselves
19. malicious	s) find it easy to produce new and original ideas and things
20. narrow-minded	t) are shy and feel uncomfortable in social situations

Reading activities

Read the following texts and be ready to speak about yourself:

My name is Jane and I was born in London, England on the second of September, 1998. My family is an averaged-sized English family; I have a mother, a father and a brother. My mother is a housewife but does some part-time work every morning at the local college of higher education. My father is now retired but he used to work as a research chemist in a pharmaceutical company. My brother’s name is Michael, he is twenty one years old and he is at university in Liverpool. He is studying engineering.

I have just finished St. Ann’s Convent School in Southampton where I obtained four “А” levels. My immediate plans are to go to Manchester University and study Russian because I have always been interested in foreign languages. My mother is Italian so I can speak Italian fluently and I was lucky enough to study both French and German at school. While I was at school I also had an opportunity to learn a musical instrument. In my spare time I practice my flute.

I also enjoy meeting my friends at the weekend when we usually watch a film together and chat or go to clubs. When I have a lot of free time I like to read a good book, I particularly enjoy the traditional English classics like Charles Dickens and Thomas Hardy. If I have a lot of time I even like to do some cooking.

I am pretty responsible and I do what I am supposed to do. At the moment, I am a university student. I do my best to be bright in everything. I also help out friends and groupmates when they need help. I give out suggestions to them when they need support.

I am a self-driven, motivated person. I have capability to work under extremely stressful conditions. I am used to working long and hard hours, around the clock.

My interests include surfing the Internet in order to keep updating my knowledge. I guess my basic instinct is to keep learning and exploring. Reading has been my hobby since childhood, and it is an activity I dedicate most of my weekend time to.

One of my other interests is shopping. Even if it is just window shopping, I find myself always ready for it. I guess the process of shopping also involves exploring various articles, in search of the perfect one. This could be a reason of being interested in shopping.

Another aspect of my personality is that I am very creative. I think creativity is the key to any situation. One has to think creatively in order to break down a problem into the smaller and more manageable components.

 

HOW TO SPEAK ABOUT ONESELF

1. Hello/ Hi/ Good morning/ Good day/ Good afternoon/ Good evening

2. Let me introduce myself. My name is… / I am…

3. I am 20/ I am 20 years old/ I am 30 years of age

4. I am a first-year student/ I work as a …

5. This year I’ve finished school and entered the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts.

7. Apart from studies / besides studies / outside my studies I’m interested / I go in for…

8. I enjoy/ like/ am fond of / am keen on…

9. It is a good way to relax/ have fun/ have a rest

10. Apart from me, there are 2/ 3/ 4 people in my family. They are:…

11. My brother is… (enumerate your family members and name their occupation)

12. Usually we … together with my family

13. It is difficult to describe myself. The most difficult thing is to tell something objective about myself, but I’ll try. I think I am …

 

ADDITIONAL READING ACTIVITIES

ADDITIONAL READING 1

1. Read the following text and give its general idea. Is there anything doubtful in the text? Express your opinion.

Appearance. Character. Beauty.

How important is your appearance? Although everyone wants to be good-looking, are beautiful people always happier people? For example, it must be a problem to be a really beautiful woman, because some men may be more interested in looking at you than talking to you. They think of you as a picture rather than a person. There are also some people who think that women who are exceptionally pretty and men who are particularly handsome must be stupid. They believe that only unattractive people can be intelligent.

On the other hand, no one wants to be really ugly, and have a face that even your mother doesn’t want to look at; and no one wants to be plain either – that is, to be neither attractive nor unattractive, and have a face that is easily forgotten.

Being attractive is like being rich – it can help you find happiness, but it doesn’t always make you happy. So maybe the best thing is not to worry too much about how you look like, but simply try to be an interesting person. For interesting people have interesting faces, and interesting faces are almost always attractive.

 

2. Answer the following questions:

1. Do you judge about people by their looks or behaviour?

2. Does one’s appearance presuppose certain behaviour?

3. How do people behave in the community if they are aware of their beauty?

4. What is the most important thing to be in the center of attention?

5. Why do beautiful people tend to become film stars or top models?

 

ADDITIONAL READING 2

Introducing Yourself

How many times have you heard the phrase Tell me about yourself?

You might hear it when you meet someone new. You may also hear it in the classroom, as a way for people to get to know each other.

The following phrases will help you to talk about yourself, depending on the situation:

What’s your name? My name is...

How old are you? I'm.... years old.

What do you do? (Are you a student? Are you working? Are you not in a job right now?) I 'm a/an...

Where do you live? Do you like living there? I live in.... I like /don't like living there because...

Where do you come from? What is your hometown? I come from... My hometown is...

In an informal situation like meeting someone at a party / in a classroom, people would like to hear about what you do, how you know people at the party / in the classroom and what you enjoy doing in your spare time.

In a formal situation like an interview, people want to hear about your educational background and your working / professional background.

 

Here are some examples:

My name is... This year I entered the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts. I'm an easy going person that communicates well with everyone. When I study, I want to work hard. Outside of classes, in my spare time I like to relax and listen to music.

I would like to introduce Peter. He is from England and he is 24 years old. Peter is a manager at the head office of his company. He enjoys art, playing guitar and reading. He also loves learning languages and the cultures connected with them.

 

A more extended variant can be like this one:

My name or first name is... My surname or last name is....

Now, I am a first-year student of the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts. In four years I'll be an...

In May I finished school / college in Hrodna. I did well in all the subjects but my favourite subjects were.... I also enjoyed English lessons. In July I entered our University.

I come from Hrodna and I study in Minsk. So, I need some housing. There are two opportunities for me: I can live in a dormitory (a students’ hostel), or to rent a flat (an apartment).

I decided to rent a flat. In order to make the rent smaller, I also decided to share my flat with another person from our University.

 

ADDITIONAL READING 3

Read the following recommendations and get ready to use them speaking about yourself at the job interview:

 

One of the most dreaded interview questions is “So, tell me about yourself”. Your response will set the tone for the entire interview. You should be prepared. Here are five recommendations.

Focus

List five strengths you have that are pertinent to this job – experience, traits, skills, etc. What do you want the interviewer to remember about you most?

Script

Prepare a script that includes the information you want to convey. Talk about past experiences and proven success.

Mention your strengths and abilities

Example: “My real strength is my attention to detail. I pride myself on my reputation for following through and meeting deadlines. When I commit to doing something, I make sure it gets done, and on time”.

Conclude with a statement about your current situation

Practice

Practice your script until you feel confident about what you want to emphasize. Your script should help you stay on track, but you shouldn’t memorize it. You don’t want to sound stiff and rehearsed. It should sound natural and conversational.

 

UNIT 2 Language and Language Learning

Vocabulary

ancestor

language

communication

dialect

particular

origin

variety

to diversify

infinite

generation

consensus

brain

century

society

tongue

particular

 

Pre-reading activities:

1. Pronounce the following geographic names:

Africa, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Baltic, Belarus, Canada, China, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Moldova, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, the United States, Uzbekistan.

 

Reading Activities

Read the text below and render it:

What is a Language?

A language is a system of communication which consists of a set of sounds and written symbols which are used by the people of a particular country or region for talking or writing. Language distinguishes human culture from all forms of animal culture.

Through elaborate use of symbols, language enables people to express complex ideas and to communicate about objects and events that are distant in time and place. By using language, human beings have developed the ability to reason and to solve problems on a far higher level than any other animal. Language also enables human beings to pass on knowledge and skills from generation to generation. No one knows when or how spoken language developed. Language is the different sounds made by people to communicate. Language is the main means of communication between peoples.

According to linguists, there are about 6,000 languages spoken in the world today. This number does not include dialects. However, only 12 are widely used: Arabic, Cantonese, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish. Each of these languages is spoken by over 100 million people. Many languages are spoken only by small groups of a few hundred or a few thousand people.

Language is human speech, either spoken or written. Language is the most common system of communication. It allows people to talk to each other and to write their thoughts and ideas. The word ‘language’ may be loosely used to mean any system of communication, such as traffic lights or Indian smoke signals. But the origin of the word shows its basic use. It comes from the Latin word ‘lingua’, meaning ‘tongue’. And a language still is often called a tongue.

Wherever there is human society, there is language. Most forms of human activity depend on the cooperation of two or more people. A common language enables human beings to work together in an infinite variety of ways. Language has made possible the development of advanced, technological civilization. Without language for communication, there would be little or no science, religion, commerce, government, art, literature, and philosophy.

Languages evolve and diversify over time, and the history of their evolution can be reconstructed by comparing modern languages to determine which traits their ancestral languages must have had in order for the later developmental stages to occur. A group of languages that descend from a common ancestor is known as a language family. The Indo-European family is the most widely spoken and includes English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Hindi; the Sino-Tibetan family, which includes Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese, and many others; the Afro-Asiatic family, which includes Arabic, Amharic, Somali, and Hebrew; the Bantu languages, which include Swahili, Zulu, Shona, and hundreds of other languages spoken throughout Africa; and the Malayo-Polynesian languages, which include Indonesian, Malay, Tagalog, Malagasy, and hundreds of other languages spoken throughout the Pacific. Academic consensus holds that between 50% and 90% of languages spoken at the beginning of the 21^st century will probably have become extinct by the year 2100.

 

Post-reading Activities

1. Answer the following questions:

1. What is a language?

2. What does a language allow people to do?

3. What is the origin of the word 'language'?

4. How is a language often called?

5. Is there language wherever there is human society?

6. What do most forms of human activity depend on?

7. What does a common language enable human beings to do?

8. Has language made possible the development of advanced, technological civilization?

9. How do they call scholars who study language?

10. How many languages are spoken in the world today?

11. Does this number include dialects?

12. What is a dialect?

13. Are many languages spoken only by small groups of a few hundred or a few thousand people?

14. What are the most widely spoken languages?

 

2. Match the words listed below with the definitions that follow.

antiquity, dialect, grammar, language, linguist, linguistics, meaning, pronunciation, sound, speaking, speech, text, variety, vocabulary, writing

 

1. The system of communication in speech and writing that is used by people of a particular country or area.

2. The scientific study of language.

3. The act of creating written works.

4. The activity of giving speeches and talks.

5. The way a word or a language is customarily spoken.

6. The total number of words you know in a particular language.

7. The branch of linguistics that deals with syntax and morphology.

8. The ability to speak or the act of speaking.

9. A specialist in linguistics.

10. The thing or idea that a sound, word, sign, etc. represents.

11. The main printed part of a book or magazine, not the notes, pictures, etc.

12. Several different sorts of the same thing.

13. A form of a language that is spoken in a particular area.

14. Something that you hear.

15. The ancient past, especially the times of the Greeks and Romans.

 

3. How do you feel about the following sciences: culture studies, sociology, history, art history, philosophy, psychology. Use as many of these expressions as you want in your answer.

I really enjoy…

I’m extremely interested in…

I’m fascinated by…

I’m quite interested in…

I’d like to know more about…

I don’t know anything about…

I’ve always wanted to learn something about …

I’m not very interested in…

I’m not in the least interested in…

I don’t much like…

I don’t like … at all.

I’m bored by…

I hate…

I think … is a complete waste of time.

I used to like …, but I’ve lost interest in it.

I used to think … was boring, but now I’m getting interested in it.

 

4. Read the following quotations and choose one or more you like most of all. What do you think the authors mean by these statements? Use them in the situations of your own.

1. Language is the dress of thought (Samuel Johnson, British lexicographer, poet, writer, and critic, 1709-1784).

2. The English language is like a woman’s wardrobe – full of things she can’t use, and yet the one thing she needs she can’t find (Will Stanton).

3. Every quotation contributes something to the stability or enlargement of the language (Samuel Johnson).

4. Language is only the instrument of science, and words are but the signs of ideas. (Samuel Johnson)

5. The British and Americans are divided by a common language. (George Bernard Shaw)

6. The Americans are identical to the British in all respects except, of course, language. (Oscar Wilde)

 

5. Make up short conversations using the following questions:

1) How does language influence our perception of the world?

2) What images are in your mind when you hear the word ‘English’?

3) Do other people in your family speak English?

4) How would you compare your native language with English? Does your language have words adopted from English?

5) What is your favourite word in English, and why?

6) Do you think English is more or less difficult than your language?

7) How can the English language help you advance in your career?

8) Should everyone learn English?

9) Why is English so important?

10) Is English important for an individual in your country?

11) How many languages do you speak?

12) What other languages would you like to learn?

13) Has English improved your life?

14) What are the things you like most and least about English?

15) Do you think English will completely dominate over all the other languages in the future?

 

6. Study the following information:

A Using ‘the’

Most names of countries are used without ‘the’, but some countries and other names have ‘the’ before them, e.g. The United States / US(A), The United Kingdom / UK, The Netherlands, The Philippines.

 

B Suffixes of adjectives referring to countries and languages

- ish: British, Danish, Flemish, Irish, Polish, Spanish, Turkish

-(i)an: American, Australian, Belarusian, Canadian, Russian

- ese: Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese,, Vietnamese

-i: Iraqi, Israeli, Kuwaiti, Pakistani, Yemeni

-ic: Arabic, Icelandic, Slavonic

Some adjectives are worth learning separately, e.g. Cypriot, Dutch, Greek, Swiss,Thai.

 

C Nationalities

Some nationalities and cultural identities have nouns for referring to people, e.g. a Finn, a Swede, a Turk, a Spaniard, a Dane, a Briton, an Arab. In most cases we can use the adjective as a noun, e.g. a German, an Italian, a Belgian, a Catalan, a Greek, an African, a European. Some need woman/man/person added to them (you can’t say ‘a Dutch’), so if you have doubts, use them, e.g. a Dutch man, a French woman, an Irish person, an Icelandic man.

 

D People and races

People belong to ethnic groups and regional groups such as Afro-Caribbeans, Asians and Latin Americans. What are you? (e.g. North African, Southern African, European. Melanesian )

They speak dialects as well as languages. Everyone has a native language or first language; many have second and third languages. Some people are expert in more than one language and are bilingual or multilingual.

 

ADDITIONAL READING ACTIVITIES

ADDITIONAL READING 1

Read the text below and look carefully at each line. Some of the lines are correct, and some have a word which should not be there. If a line is correct, go on reading. If a line has a word which should not be there, cross out the word.

World English

1. If we read English language newspapers or listen to newsreaders

2. who use English in all different parts of the world, we will quickly

3. develop the impression on that one form of English is so widely used

4. that it will soon unite all the different varieties of English which

5. exist. Is there enough evidence to support for this impression?

6. It is in real fact misleading in several ways since a version of

7. English which is exactly the same in everywhere and has the

8. same high status throughout the complete world does not yet exist.

9. For one thing, people that whose first language is English value

10. their linguistic identity. Therefore, they try to preserve it from the

11. influence of other forms of English. New Zealanders, for an example,

12. do not want to speak like Australians. In addition with, there

13. are too very many regional differences in vocabulary for the

14. language to be the same everywhere. People need specialised

15. words in order to discuss each local politics, business, culture

16. and natural history. Lastly, there is the fact that learners of

17. English may be taught by either American or British forms.

 

ADDITIONAL READING 2

Give the following passage containing 150 words an appropriate title and summarise it in about 50 words.

The first census of the United States, taken in 1790, showed that 90% of the four million inhabitants were descendants of English colonists. They, therefore, spoke the language of England, which takes its name from the Anglo-Saxons, who arrived in the Celtic-speaking British Isles from northern Europe between the 4^th and 7^th centuries A.D. The Anglo-Saxons spoke a Germanic language, which forms the basis for modern English. It was modified by the arrival of two other groups. Norse-speaking Vikings from Scandinavia came between the 8^th and 11^th centuries, and their Norse language, related to Anglo-Saxon, enriched English vocabulary. Then, in 1066, French-speaking Normans conquered England. For the next three hundred years three languages co-existed. The aristocracy spoke French, the ordinary people spoke English, while Latin was used in the Church. The English that came to the American colonies in the 17^th century had evolved from the mingling of these three tongues.

 

Give the following passage containing 293 words an appropriate title and summarise it in about 100 words.

The United States has never had an official language, but English has always been the chief language spoken in the country. Immigrants from the British Isles – who included the nation’s founders – spoke English. Many immigrants from other lands who spoke little or no English also came to the United States. They learned at least enough English to be able to communicate with other Americans. Their children learned English in school. The immigrants’ children generally spoke both English and their ethnic language, and in many families the immigrants’ grandchildren spoke only English. 

Today, Spanish is the second most common language in the United States. The region that is now the Southwestern United States was colonized by Spain in the 1500s. As a result, many people from that region speak Spanish. Since the 1950s, many Spanish-speaking people have immigrated to the United States from Mexico, Cuba, and other places. Many of these people learned English. But others speak only Spanish. This is especially true in Spanish-speaking neighborhoods that developed in cities. Some people feel that special efforts should be made to provide education and other services in Spanish for people who speak only Spanish.

Many people believe every American should know English. They point out that it is difficult to get a job outside Spanish-speaking neighborhoods if you don’t know English. They also argue that a language shared by everyone is an important unifying force for a country. In the 1980s and 1990s, a number of states passed laws declaring English to be their only official language. These laws provide that the government must offer its services in English, and need not do so in any other language. But in some places, public documents and signs are written in both English and Spanish.

 

ADDITIONAL READING 3

Read and translate the following text with the help of a dictionary:

Speech

Speech has several definitions. It may mean the act of speaking, the forms of speech, the content of speech or what is spoken, the language of a nation or group of nations, or the dialect peculiar to a region or locality.

The act of speaking uses an audible code and a visible code to produce messages. The audible code consists of phonation, the creation of sound, and articulation, the shaping of sound into understandable language. The visible code consists of eye contact, facial expressions, hand gestures, and other types of body movement.

The forms of speech may be informal or formal. Informal speeches include conversation and storytelling. Formal speeches include lectures, debates, orations, dramas, and broadcasts. Speeches may inform, persuade, or entertain.

The content of speech includes what is spoken whether it is from memory, text, or impromptu (without preparation). A speech may contain a speaker’s ideas or arguments, supporting evidence, emotional pleas, or remarks that attract an audience’s attention, such as jokes.

Language is the different sounds made by people to communicate. Dialects are variations in pronunciation, word choice, or accent between groups of people who speak a common language.

The average child learns to speak by imitating other people. It is important that a child hears proper speech. Parents should note any speech difficulties, such as lisping or stuttering, in their children. If such difficulties occur, parents should take the child to a competent authority on speech problems. Speech clinics can offer helpful advice.

 

ADDITIONAL READING 4

Journey to a Language Land

The English language spread with the growth of the British empire, becoming the dominant language in Canada, the United States, New Zealand and Australia.

The growing global influence of the US has further increased the spread of English.

Today English is probably the most widely spoken language in the world, with many people learning it as a second or foreign language. It is estimated that there could be as many as 1.5 billion total English speakers worldwide.

With over 800 million native speakers, Chinese Mandarin is the most spoken native language, followed by Spanish and English.

The countries with the highest population of native English speakers are the US, UK, Canada and Australia.

English is one of six official languages of the United Nations, as well as French, Russian, Spanish, Arabic and Chinese Mandarin.

English has a huge vocabulary, with over 250,000 different words listed in the Oxford English dictionary.

No language has more synonyms than English does.

French was the official language of England for over 600 years.

English incorporates words from a large number of different languages. Many of these words have French, Old Norse or Dutch origin.

Many scientific words used in the English language come from Latin or Greek.

English is written in the Latin alphabet (also known as the Roman alphabet).

More than 375 million people use English as their first language.

More than 75% of world’s mail and documents are typed in English.

English is the medium for 80% of the information stored in the world’s computers.

All pilots on international flights identify themselves in English.

The most common letters in English are r s t l n e.

A dot over the letter “i” is called a tittle.

The sentence “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” uses every letter in the alphabet.

“I am” is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.

The word “set” has more definitions than any other word in the English language.

The longest one-syllable word in the English language is “screeched”.

No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, and purple.

There is a seven-letter word in the English language that contains 10 words without rearranging any of its letters, “therein” – the, there, he, in, rein, her, here, ere, herein, therein.

“Stewardesses” is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand.

The word “goodbye” came and from the words “god bye” used in Old English which used to mean that “god be with you”.

 

UNIT 3 University Education

 

The Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts

Vocabulary

educational establishment institution of higher education development multi-level system of education Master’s course Postgraduate course to graduate from teaching staff lecture lecturer tutor academic academic degree the foundation of the University faculty existence to be ready to do smth. to get ready for smth. science dormitory

curriculum (pl. curricula) article the stock of university library printed music periodical electronic edition to be free of charge automated workplace the access to the Internet resources folklore artistic group art gallery honorary title contribution significantly course abroad research researcher credit to get a credit for a course

 

Listening Activities

Listen to the text and be ready to answer the questions:

1. When was the University set up?

2. How many faculties does the University have now? And how many faculties did the University have originally?

3. What can you say about the University library?

 

Pre-reading Activities

1. Study the pronunciation of the following words:

sphere, extended, culture, devote, preservation, originally, structure, decade, faculty, document, social, specialty, specialization, specialist, direction, cover, foreign languages, honorary title, science, library, literature, edition, excursion, popularizing, abroad, concert, competition, mission, favorable

 

2. Make sure you know the Russian equivalents for the following words and expressions:

1. rebirth 2. significantly 3. existence 4. contribution 5. recognition 6. to consist of 7. to be interested in 8. to get ready for 9. necessary 10. to provide 11. to allow 12. to create

a. готовиться b. интересоваться c. создавать d. признание e. возрождение f. обеспечивать g. позволять h. состоять из i. необходимый j. существование k. вклад l. значительно

3. Find the pairs of words with the close meaning:

to study, institution, to maintain, to train, patron, to graduate from, establishment, a number of, user, sphere, to teach, contest, to publish, comfortable, a lot of, to cover, to finish, to be set up, field, to print, to include, to be founded, cosy, competition, to support, to learn

 

Reading Activities

1. Read the text and get ready to speak on the topic “The Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts”:

THE BELARUSIAN STATE UNIVERSITY OF CULTURE AND ARTS

The educational establishment “The Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts” is the leading institution of higher education in the sphere of culture in Belarus. The University keeps its doors open to all those who are interested in Belarusian national culture and art, to those who are ready to devote their lives to rebirth, preservation and development of Belarusian national culture.

The Minsk Institute of Culture was set up in September, 1975, and originally it had two faculties. The structure of the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts has changed significantly during four decades. Today it consists of 6 faculties:

· The Faculty of Culture Studies and Social and Cultural Activity;

· The Faculty of Information and Document Communications;

· The Faculty of Musical Art;

· The Faculty of Traditional Belarusian Culture and Modern Arts;

· The Faculty of Part-time Education;

· The Faculty of Extended Education.

Nowadays the University has a multi-level system of education: College – University – Master’s course – Postgraduate course – Doctorate. About 5,000 students and 200 Master students get education in 13 specialties, 26 directions and 13 specializations at the departments of the University. The curricula of all faculties cover such subjects as “National History”, “History of National Culture”, “Belarusian Language and Literature”, “Ethnography”, “History of Belarusian Art”, “Foreign Languages”, “Philosophy” and others. Students from Russia, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, China, Azerbaijan and other countries of the world are trained here. More than 25,000 young specialists have already graduated from the University.

The teaching staff includes more than 350 lecturers, half of which have academic degrees and honorary titles. During the years of its existence the university lecturers have made a great contribution to the development of Belarusian science. Since the foundation of the University a lot of articles, monographs, course books and textbooks have been published here. In 1989, a postgraduate course was established.

The international recognition of the University is expressed in maintaining contacts with institutions of higher education in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the Baltic states, Germany, Poland, China and the USA.

The University has a good library and a comfortable reading room where students can borrow necessary textbooks and other literature and get ready for lectures. The stock of university library numbers about 600,000 books, documents, printed music, periodicals, and electronic editions in Belarusian, Russian, English, German, French, Spanish and other languages. The library is free of charge for all the patrons. The automated workplaces have been organized, and free access to the Internet resources, including Wi-Fi, is provided for the library users. The university network allows the use of electronic resources from any automated workplace.

The Departments of the University carry out work aimed at popularizing Belarusian folklore and traditions. At the University there are a number of artistic groups well-known in our country and abroad. Our students take an active part in the social life of the University. They organize concerts, festivals, contests, meetings, excursions and sport competitions.

The University has its own art gallery. The main mission of the gallery is to create favorable conditions for the development of artistic potential of students as well as young talented artists.

 

Post-reading Activities

1. Complete the following sentences:

1. The Minsk Institute of Culture was set up in ….

2. The Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts … significantly during four decades.

3. … of all faculties cover a lot of different subjects.

4. More than 25,000 young specialists … from the University.

5. The teaching … includes more than 350 lecturers.

6. Since the foundation of the University a lot of … have been published here.

7. The students can … necessary textbooks from ….

8. Our students … in the social life of the University.

 

2. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following Russian words and word combinations:

искусство, почетные звания, интересоваться, посвятить, состоять из, культурология, традиционный, современный, хорошо известный, учебный план, учебный предмет, лектор, преподавать, основание университета, статья, учебник, лекция, фольклор, фонд библиотеки, заканчивать высшее учебное заведение, благоприятные условия для развития, научные степени

 

3. Answer the questions:

1) Is the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts one of the leading in the sphere of culture in our country?

2) Can you name the faculties of our University?

3) What multi-level system of education does our University have?

4) What subjects do the curricula of all specializations cover?

5) Does the University maintain contacts with institutions of higher education in other countries? What are these countries?

6) How many books does the stock of university library number?

7) What kind of editions can the students borrow from the library?

8) Can you prove that students’ life at our University is interesting?

4. Translate into English the names of the subjects from your timetable and be ready to speak about your favorite one.

5. Work in pairs. Imagine that a student of our University is giving an interview to a foreign journalist.

Students’ Life

Vocabulary

to attend an educational institution knowledge opportunity to pass entrance examinations to be admitted to first-year student dormitory to share (a room, a flat, etc.) to wake up to air morning exercises to restore an optimistic approach to life to make up one’s mind according to

to investigate household duties to go to the University by bus (trolley-bus, tram, underground, on foot) to take off (someone’s clothes) timetable to take notes out-of-class (extracurricular) activities to arrange meetings to be involved in volunteer work future career alarm clock non-stressful

 

Listening Activities

Listen to the text and be ready to answer the questions:

1. What does higher education give you?

2. What activities does a typical day of a student include?

3. Which holidays are mentioned in the text?

Pre-reading Activities:

1. Practice saying the following words:

successfully, early, shower, perfectly, seminar, disappointing, nowadays, atmosphere, desire, discover, horizon, excellent, canteen, type, typical, enjoyable, socializing, musician, celebrities, tutor, surfing, informative, skillfully

 

2. Answer the questions with a partner:

1) What does the English word “student” mean?

2) Did you pass your entrance examinations successfully?

3) Do you live in a student dormitory or at home?

4) When does your working day begin?

5) How do you go to the University?

6) How long does it take you?

7) What information can you get from your timetable?

8) Do you take part in any out-of-class activities?

9) What time do you come home after your studies?

10) Do you go to bed early?

3. Study the meaning of the following words:

· Глагол to learn означает:

1) учить факты, слова, числа (часто наизусть) с целью усвоить определенные знания:

My son learns English at school.

She has learnt the poem by heart.

2) получать практические навыки:

Mary has never learnt to ski to this day.

3) узнавать что-то новое на основе вновь поступившей информации или наблюдений.

I learned that they had eaten already.

· Глагол to study имеет следующие смысловые оттенки:

1) изучать что-либо путем чтения, занятий для получения теоретических навыков. Например, изучать какую-либо отрасль науки с целью стать специалистом в этой области:

Peter wants to study physics.

2) получать академические знания в образовательном учреждении.

He studied at the Kensington School of Art.

Обратите внимание, что русское предложение: «Он учится хорошо в школе/институте» — переводятся на английский язык:

He is doing well at school/at the university.

· Глагол to teach имеет значение — обучать кого-либо, сообщая знания; преподавать:

My cousin Lidia teaches History at school.

o Fill in study or learn in their forms:

1. What’s the best way to … a language?

2. Anna … French literature.

3. She is surprised to … that he is a lot older than she thought.

4. Today we … how to use the new software.

5. My brother … at the Royal College of Art.

6. We have to … one of Hamlet’s speeches for school tomorrow.

7. I want time to … this contract thoroughly before signing it.

8. I don’t know how actors manage to … all those lines.

9. Their children want to … English.

10. He is … to play the piano.

o Make example sentences using the words you have studied.

 

Reading Activities

1. Read the text and get ready to speak on the topic “Students’ Life”:

STUDENTS’ LIFE

In the English language the word “student” means anyone who is learning, or someone who attends an educational institution. I understand perfectly well that knowledge is socially demanded and needed nowadays. Higher education gives us more opportunities for our future career.

Last summer I made up my mind to become a student of the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts. I passed my entrance examinations successfully and was admitted to the University. Now I am a first-year student, or a fresher. My dream has come true.

I live in a student dormitory (at home). (I rent a flat). I share my room with two other students. My working day begins early. The alarm clock wakes me up at 6.30. I open the window to air the room, and make my bed. Morning exercises and a quick shower, tasty breakfast and a cup of fresh coffee help me to wake up and restore an optimistic approach to life.

My typical day doesn’t differ much from that of any other student in our country: lectures, exams, household duties, pastime, clubs, friends, etc. As a rule I go to the University by bus (trolley-bus, tram, underground, on foot). It takes me 30 minutes to get there. I come to the University a few minutes before 8. I take off my coat and leave it in the cloak-room. Then I go to the time-table to see in what classroom we will have our lectures and seminars.

According to our timetable we have three classes every day. As usual our studies are interesting and informative, never boring or disappointing. The classroom atmosphere is usually friendly and enjoyable, stimulating and non-stressful. Our lecturers and tutors are real professionals who skillfully stimulate our desire to know, to investigate, to learn new things, and discover new horizons.

Good education means a good start in life, that is why I try to do my best and learn a lot during the university years. I try to take notes of every lecture which contains useful and interesting information, work hard at the seminars, get good and excellent marks. Of course I have some problems from time to time. But I understand that the best way to avoid such problems is to plan the time and to organize the work.

Before or after classes, as well as during the breaks I have a chance to listen to music, go to the library, have a snack at the canteen, or have a chat with my group mates about sport news, cultural and political events.

When my classes are over I stay at the University to take part in some out-of-class activities or go home to have a meal and to rest. From 5 till 8 I usually get ready for my classes. In the evening when I am through with my lessons I like reading, watching TV, dancing, surfing the Internet, going out with my friends or just doing nothing. I go to bed at about 11 p.m.

This is a typical day of mine. Of course, my studies take a lot of time and effort, but I try to make my student life more impressive and enjoyable by taking part in extracurricular activities. At the University we have the opportunity to go in for different sports: skating, skiing, jogging, playing chess, training at the gym, and others. I adore socializing with my friends: going to the cinemas and theatres, dancing at night clubs and singing karaoke. We usually have merry parties at Halloween, Christmas, New Year, and especially on International Students’ Day on November, 17. It is a good tradition at our University to arrange meetings with famous artists, actors, musicians, stage directors and other celebrities. Our students are actively involved in volunteer work.

 

Post-reading Activities

1. Match the words to make up the phrases according to the text:

1. an approach 2. tasty 3. to discover 4. to avoid 5. to come 6. to make up 7. to arrange 8. alarm 9. volunteer 10. higher

a) work b) education c) clock d) one’s mind e) new horizons f) problems g) true h) breakfast i) meetings j) to life

 

2. Put the appropriate word or phrase in the spaces below:

differ, our classes, the best way, the cloak-room, successfully, a fresher, knowledge, discover, other, our desire

 

1) … is socially demanded and needed nowadays.

2) I passed my entrance examinations ….

3) I am a first-year student, or ….

4) My typical day doesn’t … much from that of any … student in our country.

5) As usual … are interesting and informative.

6) Our lecturers skillfully stimulate … to know, to investigate, to learn new things and … new horizons.

7) I leave my coat in ….

8) … to avoid problems while studying is to plan the time.

 

3. Make example sentences using the following words and phrases:

· It’s my firm belief

· to make up one’s mind to do smth.

· to do one’s best

· to pass entrance exams

· to fail exams

· to avoid

· household duties

· alarm-clock

· to work hard

· to have a chance

 

4. Speak on the advantages and disadvantages of being a student.

 

ADDITIONAL READING ACTIVITIES

ADDITIONAL READING 1

Read the text and be ready to compare the Belarusian higher education with the British one:

Studying at (a British) University

If you want to go to (=enter) university, you must first pass examinations that most students take at the age of eighteen (called ‘A’ levels). Most students take three ‘A’ levels (three examinations in three different subjects) and they must do well in order to get/obtain a place at university because the places are limited. At the moment, approximately 30 % of young adults go to university in Britain.

If you get a place at university, the tuition (=the teaching) is free, and some students also get (=receive) a grant (=money to pay for living expenses, e.g. food and accommodation) as well. Students at university are called undergraduates while they are studying for their first degree.

Most university courses last (=go on for/continue for) three years, some courses last four years, and one or two courses, e.g. medicine, may be even longer. During this period students can say that they are doing/studying history, or doing/studying for a degree in history, for example. When they finish the course and pass their examinations, they receive a degree (the qualification when you complete a university course successfully). This can be a BA (=Bachelor of Arts) or a BSc (=Bachelor of Science), e.g. I have a friend who has a BA in history, and another who has a BSc in chemistry.

When you complete your first degree, you are a graduate. (In the US, students also use this word as a verb and say, they ‘graduated in history ‘or ‘graduated in chemistry’, for example). Some students then go on to do a second course or degree (postgraduate course / postgraduate degree). These students are postgraduates and they often study for:

an MA (Master of Arts) or an MSc (Master of Science); usually one year

a PhD (Doctor of Philosophy); at least three years.

At some European universities there also exist Licentiate – an academic degree between a Bachelor and a Doctor.

Sometimes scholars want to continue their research after the completion of doctoral degree. In this case we say that they do postdoctoral research.

 

1. Answer the following questions:

1) How many young adults go to universities in Great Britain?

2) Are the students in Great Britain called undergraduates while they are studying for their first degree?

3) How long do most university courses last?

4) What do the students receive when they finish the course and pass their examinations?

 

2. Make up your own sentences using the words in bold.

 

ADDITIONAL READING 2

Go through the text and give a brief summary of the reading according to your plan. Memorize the indicated words and use them in your summary:

Higher Education in the United Kingdom

The British higher educational system includes universities, colleges of higher education and advanced courses of further education. There are about 90 universities and 47 colleges of higher education in the United Kingdom. All British Universities are private institutions. It means that they are independent and autonomous, but they all receive financial support from the state.

Most UK universities fall into one or more of seven categories:

· Ancient universities – the six universities founded before 1800;

· Universities chartered in the 19^th century – London University, Durham University, and the University of Wales;

· Red Brick Universities – large civic universities chartered at the end of the 19^th – the beginning of the 20^th century before World War II;