Education
Education
Pictures
- Describe the picture and the atmosphere. What characteristics
should the person in the picture have? Would you like to do the same job? Why? Why not?
- Describe the picture. Was this
type of education important in your lifetime? What activities do you remember doing?
- Describe the picture. What do you think of
the discipline in this picture? Is it different to discipline in your school? In what way?
- Look at the pictures and
explain the pros and cons of each way of teaching and learning.
- Describe the picture. Is it a great problem at our schools?
What do you think of this problem? How can we solve this problem?
Discussion
1.What kind of education would you like to have?
2.Describe the Slovak and the British school systems. What do they have in common and what are
the differences?
3.What would you like to study?
4.Should the government spend more money on education?
5.If you were a minister of
education, how would you improve the system of education?
6.If you could, how would you change your choice of a secondary school?
7.If you
were a parent, would you prefer 8-year gymnasium to basic school? Why? Why not?
8.Would you change the organization of the school year?
9.What is your opinion on the school-leaving examination in your country? Is there anything you would like to change?
- What is your
opinion on wearing school uniforms & private education?
11. Name the subjects taught at primary and secondary schools.
12. Describe your timetable. Is it ideal? Would you like to change it somehow?
13. Speak about your timetable, chat you do in each class and
any after-school activities that you have.
14. Which are your most favourite/ least favourite subjects and why?
15. Would you like to
change anything at this school?
16. If a student hates a subject, is it a problem of a teacher?
17. What other subjects would you
introduce at our school?
18. Explain which learning strategies you prefer.
19. What are the breaks for? How do you spend breaks?
Would you prolong the breaks, although you would stay at school longer?
20. Students learn best by doing practical tasks. Do you agree?
21. The main purpose of education is to prepare people for jobs. Do you agree?
22. Education is about learning and remembering information.
Do you agree?
23. Formal written tests and exams are the best means of finding out how good students are. Do you agree?
24. Could you
imagine a school without giving grades?
25. Describe your ideal school. /location, number of students, subjects, equipment, after-school
activities/
26. What is your opinion about private tutoring? Does it really help kids to do well in exams? Would it work for you and if so,
why?
27. Which subjects do you think should be compulsory and which should be optional?
28. What do you think about the grading system
in our schools?
29. Why do students sometimes dislike school and play truant?
30. What do you think of cheating on tests to get good
grades? Is it ethical?
31. Which learning methods do you find most helpful? Do you do your homework and learn regularly for each class, or
only when there is a test coming up?
32. Are you nervous before exams and tests? Have you ever cheated? What do you think of it? Is it
ethical?
33. Is life of a student difficult? Why? Why not?
34. Why do students do summer jobs?
35. What are typical summer
jobs for students?
36. What do students do in their free time?
37. What is students` life like? What about your free time & after
school activities?
38. Comment on playing truant and bullying at schools. Give some hints how they could be avoided.
39. Do you have
any extra-curricular activities?
40. Why do language courses boom?
41. Have you ever attended a language course?
42. Have you
learnt something more than you could learn at school?
43. What are the advantages of attending language courses?
44. What is your
opinion about the present teacher-student and student-teacher relationships in your school?
45. What are some characteristics of good
teachers? How can teachers make classes interesting?
46. What an ideal relationship between students and teacher should be?
47. How
do you think the teacher should motivate you more?
Role-plays and simulations
- You have just become
a teacher who has to motivate young people to study. What methods do you find interesting for teaching? What interesting lessons can you
remember? /Simulation/
- You are a parent of a pupil. He or she has been having problems with one subject lately.
Analyze possible reasons of this problem and try to help him/her. /Role-play/
- Your friend would like to improve his/her
English because he/she would like to take the FCC. Give advice on how to make headway in speaking, reading, listening and writing.
/Role-play/
- It was a friend’s 18th birthday yesterday and you were out late celebrating. You even forgot to do your
homework. Explain your teacher why you don’t have it and promise to hand it in tomorrow. /Role-play/
- Role-play this
problem situation. Student B should ask for advice and student A should give advice. - You are worried that you are going to fail your
Maturita exam. You have a part-time job so you are often too tired to study in the evening. You also find it difficult to concentrate
because your home is very noisy. /The TV is always on and you have two younger brothers./ /Role-play/
- Role-play this
problem situation. Student B should ask for advice and student A should give advice. – You think that your English teacher doesn’t like
you. He/she often criticizes your homework in front of the class and never asks you to answer questions. /Role-play/
-
Take turns in playing the student and the teacher in the following situations:
• The student is late for class.
• The
student needs to leave the class early.
• The student would like the teacher to explain something. /Role-play/
- The
Ministry of Education is going to celebrate Teachers´ Day by honouring the teacher students like most. You have decided to nominate
a teacher you like very much. Describe the teacher’s qualities and how they relate to students. Include how he/she is different from
other teachers you have had. /Simulation/
- Imagine that you are responsible for organization of a school year at your school.
What would it be like? Think about school subjects, breaks, holidays, evaluation, grades, etc. /Simulation/
- You and your
friend have decided to study at university in Scotland. You are convinced that the Scottish university provides better education than the
Slovak ones. Your parents do not agree with you and do not want to lend you any money for studying. Try to persuade your parents and
decide how and when you intend to pay the money back. /Role-play/
Vzdelanie
-
školský systém /typy školských zariadení, skúšky, organizácia školského roka, klasifikácia, prázdniny/
- vyučovanie /rozvrh hodín, predmety, prestávky, školské stravovanie, aktivity na hodine/
- život
študenta /voľný čas, záľuby, mimoškolské aktivity, brigády, priatelia, vreckové/
- štúdium
cudzích jazykov /výmenné pobyty, stáže, jazykové kurzy, au-pair/
- vzťah učiteľa
k žiakovi a opačne
A.
The Slovak school system
Education is very
important these days. If you want to succeed in our highly-developed society you need a good education. That is why all countries devote so much
attention to their educational systems and try to improve them.
There have been some serious changes made in the educational system in
Slovakia in the last few years. The National Curriculum has been changed, a new school-leaving exam has been introduced at secondary schools and
many students are taking advantage of studying abroad.
In Slovakia school attendance is compulsory from the age of 6 to 16. It is free of
charge and provides everybody in this age range with the same kind of teaching and education and with the same possibilities
for their future education. Besides state schools, there are also church schools and private schools.
The school system as a
whole includes:
1./ PRE - SCHOOL EDUCATION /3-6 years/
Many children start their schooling in
nursery school where they spend a few hours each day playing and doing some activities. They start socializing with other children. Pre-school
education is voluntary and prepares children for compulsory school attendance. Pre-school education includes crèches, kindergartens and special
kindergartens for disabled children.
2./ PRIMARY EDUCATION - the basic school
In Slovakia a nine-year
attendance of primary education has been introduced to provide enough time for pupils to choose their future career through the system of different
kinds of secondary schools.
Primary education is divided into two stages: the first stage with grades 1-4 and the second stage with grades 5-9.
Primary school provides children with a general education with pupils having from 25 to 30 lessons per week, studying languages, history, geography,
maths, physics, chemistry, biology, art, religion or ethics and PE.
Some years ago a new type of school was introduced – the eight-year
„gymnasium“. After a certain period many pros and cons of this schooling can be recognized. One positive effect is that talented children are
given an opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills by means of the demanding curriculum. But the same curriculum can sometimes lead to their
overloading that can result in the loss of a childhood full of fun and taking things easy.
3./ SECONDARY EDUCATION
When children finish primary school, they can choose what type of secondary school they want to attend for the next four years. There are
different types of secondary schools in Slovakia:
a./ schools equivalent to grammar schools in Britain or high schools in the USA -
gymnasium
b./ vocational schools
c./ secondary special schools /e.g. secondary technical schools, commercial schools, secondary school
for health workers such as nurses, laboratory workers./
Every primary school student has to apply and pass entrance exam before moving on to
secondary school.
Vocational and technical schools /agricultural, nursing, electro-technical, performing and fine arts and business and hotel
academies/ prepare students for their future professions but they also offer a general education. Other 3-year secondary vocational schools prepare
students for practical jobs. Students graduate after passing final examinations in both theoretical and practical subjects.
Gymnasium offers
theoretical education and prepares for higher education. Some of them specialize in a specific subject, like math or languages. Studies at
gymnasiums and specialized secondary schools take four years and are finished with a school-leaving examination /matricular examinations/.
Matricular exams are in four subjects, two compulsory and two optional /elective/. The exam has two parts: the written and the oral.
In
Central and Eastern Europe a new process of the school-leaving examination is on. New trends in these countries, the high mobility of students, the
possibility to seek for work or study in other countries has brought about necessity for exams which will be objective, valid and acceptable in a
variety of concepts.
Successful graduates from secondary schools can enter any university if they pass their school
leaving and entrance exams well enough.
4./ TERTIARY EDUCATION - universities, technical universities
Many students want to continue their studies at universities where they study law /law school/, medicine /medical school/, business or
international relations /business school/ and so on. First-year students usually have to get accustomed to an independent system of attending
lectures and tutorials. While during their primary and secondary education they were given marks, at universities they have to get credits and
grades A,B,C,D,E /if they pass/ and FX /if they fail/. Students can enroll /prihlásiť sa/ in three-year courses for bachelor’s degree or
five-year courses for master’s degree. In Slovakia winter and summer terms are regular periods of the academic year.
In order to get a
university diploma, a student must first successfully complete and defend a thesis he/she has researched and written and then pass the state
examination in his field of study. When students successfully accomplish their university studies they are given a degree in their field of study.
The most advanced type of degree is a PhD when postgraduate students study on their own for several years, doing research work and writing a
dissertation explaining what they have discovered. They also have to defend their work in front of a panel of professors.
OUR OLDEST UNIVERSITY
originated in 1465 in Bratislava, having been founded by Mathias Corvin /Academia Istropolitana/. Today there is a national system of
various faculties covering the needs of our society.
Organization of the school year - The school year starts on
1st of September and ends on 30th June of the following year. The school year is divided into two terms /September-January, February – June/.
During the school year there are many holidays, such as autumn holidays, Christmas holidays, half-term holidays, spring holidays, Easter holidays
and summer holidays. Students get school reports at the end of January and June and are assessed by marks from 1 to 5.
The
British school system
British children begin their education at the age of five and must attend school till the age of 16. Some go
to nursery schools from the age of three to five. So they have at least 11 years of compulsory full-time education. There are state schools and
private schools in Britain. State education is free, while private education is extremely expensive. Both systems offer the same kind of education,
but some parents believe that their children will learn better at a private school, where the classes are smaller and there is more individual
approach. Others are against the principle of private education, saying that it is a privilege. The majority of British children /94%/ are educated
in state schools, which are free of charge.
The educational system in England has been gradually re-organized in recent
decades and therefore there are several different systems nowadays. Until 1965 the most common schools were primary schools for children up
to the age of eleven and then pupils had to pass an exam called Eleven Plus, which was actually an IQ test. The results of the Eleven Plus System
decided whether pupils went to grammar schools for the best pupils /25%/ or to secondary modern schools which took
the rest /75%/. This exam was abolished. There have been considerable changes especially in the secondary education. Over 90 % of secondary schools
are now comprehensive. They take all children over eleven and do not select the best ones on the basis of the test. But many children start at
primary school at the age of five, then they go to middle school at the age of eight and when they are nearly thirteen they start to attend
comprehensive secondary school. Comprehensive schools offer general education which ends at the age of sixteen. At the time most
of the pupils take some form of public examination in around seven subject. This state examination is called “O”
/ordinary/ levels /at the age of 16 - in 5-8 subjects/. These exams are national and give pupils a qualification that is recognized in
the whole country. More ambitious pupils /one - third/ continue their education after sixteen, for another two years, in the sixth form. During
these two years students take a more academic form of study leading to an examination in two or three subjects. This examination is very
important for those who want to continue their studies at some of the British universities /“A“ – advanced levels
, 18 years in 2-4 subjects/. According to the results universities choose their students. The oldest and the most prestigious British
universities include Oxford University and Cambridge University.
Besides state schools there are private schools in Britain for children aged
11-18. Most of their pupils come from state primary schools on the basis of examinations. Some of these private secondary schools also have
their own primary schools from which they take the best pupils. Public schools are private boarding schools which are peculiar to
Britain. They are for children aged 13-18 accepted on the basis of the entrance examinations and also from small private preparatory schools for
children aged 7-13. Only 5% of all children attend public schools. There fees are very high. Most exclusive ones, with a long and distinguished
tradition, are Eton, Harrow and Winchester Public Schools.
The academic year begins at British primary and secondary
schools in September. It is divided into three terms. Christmas and Easter make intervals between them. Children have a five-week holiday
in summer, two weeks during Christmas, two weeks at Easter. There are two-week holidays in the middle of each term. Day schools
work from Mondays to Fridays. Classes are held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and the day is usually divided into periods of about 35 minutes. The average
number of pupils in a class is thirty. Extra-curricular activities are very important. There are many different clubs and sport teams at schools
which meet after lessons. Many schools have an orchestra that gives concerts or a dramatic group that stages play at Christmas.
THE OLDEST
BRITISH UNIVERSITIES are Oxford and Cambridge, often called Oxbridge. They date from the 12th & 13th centuries.
Useful
vocabulary:
• Types of schools – boarding school, day school, mixed school, nursery school, primary school,
secondary school, technical school, comprehensive school, public school, private school, university, training school,
• School
system – compulsory, free of charge, to pay fees/tuition, state-run school, to attend the school, education, school uniform /jacket,
blouse-shirt, skirt-trousers, scarf-tie/, the Parent-Teacher Association Meeting, school report, General Certificate of Education, the National
Curriculum, after school club
• Exams – revise for an exam, revision, ‘A‘, ‘O‘, entrance exams, school-leaving
exams, crib, to prompt, to maintain discipline, oral exam, written exam, to prepare for exams, to pass an exam, to fail an exam, marks/grades, to
copy from the crib, cheat, to examine, to grade, to take an exam, to re-take an exam, examination results, cheat sheet, to cram for an exam
/bifľovať sa na skúšku/
• School buildings – playground, gym, sports facilities /a basketball court, a football
pitch, a track, a swimming pool/, cloakroom /locker/, school canteen, small snack bar, the staff room, the administrative office, classroom, large
assembly hall /auditorium/, notice board,
B.
Timetable – A school day is different at
different types of schools. The average number of lessons at a secondary school is around thirty a week, primary schools have fewer lessons, while
specialized schools often have more. Classes start at 8 am and usually finish at 1:25pm pr 2:20pm. There are 4-7 classes in a row every day, but
there also may be afternoon classes ending at about 4 o’clock. A lesson usually lasts 45 minutes.
Subjects – Many
subjects taught at primary and secondary school are the same. At secondary school they are just extended in their contents and more demanding for
learners. Subjects are divided into obligatory and optional. The most common subjects taught at secondary schools are Slovak language, a foreign
language /English, German, French/, math, PE, religion, biology, chemistry, physics, history, geography and others. There may also be some
specialized subjects too, e.g. archaeology, art, business studies, dance, drama, economics, music, psychology, sociology, technology, conversation
in English.
Most of these subjects are taught both at primary and secondary schools too. At secondary schools they are extended in their
contents and more demanding for learners. As for special secondary schools, special subjects are introduced here as obligatory ones
/economics, shorthand, typing/ while at grammar schools, these can be taken as optional subjects.
Breaks
– Breaks between the lessons usually last from 5 to 20 minutes. The breaks after the 1st lesson and before the last lesson last for 5 minutes. The
20-minute break is usually in the middle of the school day, that means usually after the third lesson. Other breaks last 10 minutes. Every student
spends the break differently. Some students repeat the subject matter for the next lesson; prepare the needed school supplies, others meet their
friends. They can also chat with their classmates, write their homework, eat their elevenses, or go out into the school garden and relax.
School subjects and typical activities – There are various activities students can do during the lessons. They just depend on the
kind of lesson. During the language lesson you can learn new vocabulary, do exercises, practice grammar, translate, read, listen, and write.
literature /reading novels, poetry, plays, writing essays/, math /making calculations, using tables/, science /doing experiments/, geography /using
map/, history /learning dates, learning about governments, wars, leaders/, art /painting, drawing/, music /playing musical instruments, singing
songs, listening to songs/, sport /playing football, doing athletics/
• Are you happy at this school or would you like to study
elsewhere? Why? – I enjoy attending/coming to….school. My main reasons for this are…. I would prefer to study at /be a part of…/
another school. I feel this way because….
• What is you favourite subject and what subject do you dislike? Do
you think you will need all the information you are learning at this school? – I find........the hardest language and spend about........hour/s/
on it each evening/weekend/. Our ........teacher demands a lot from us/gives us much homework/.... so I spend approximately ......./hour/s/ on
this subject each week. The easiest subject for me is .......because...... I only spend.....hour/s/ on it outside of school time.
•
Which subjects do you consider the most important? Are there any other subjects you would like to have at school? – The
most important for me is/are .....because....., I think that language/science/business/.... are also important for one’s education. In addition to
what I’m studying, I’d also like to have theatre/photography/religion... because....
• Is there anything you’d like to
change at your school? – If I were given the authority at our school, I’d like to change...... My reasons for suggesting this
change/these changes are.... I would like to change things such as........, I feel good about our school because.......
Useful
vocabulary:
• People - class teacher, headmaster, deputy headmaster, caretaker, teaching staff, pupil,
graduate
• Characteristics of people – gifted students, to be responsible for, well-brought up, bright, clever, above
average, to be poor at, to be good at, diligent /usilovný/, obstinate /tvrdohlavý/, disobedient, lazy, cheeky, nerd /otrasák/, goodie-goodie
/bifľoš, vtierka/, lazy, undisciplined, disobedient, cheeky, talk back,
• Other vocabulary – to cut lessons, to
study with honours, to accept to school, entrance requirements, to broaden one’s knowledge, to bully, bullying, staff room, staff meeting, changing
room, get detention /zostať poškole/, summon a parent to school /zavolať si rodiča do školy/, school report, to bully classmates,
•
Classroom – class register, three-part blackboard, sponge tray, blackboard sponge, chalks, wall map, projection screen, OHP,
teacher’s desk, desks, chairs, whiteboard, textbooks
• Learning strategies – thinking about the structure of words,
writing, drawing a word, connecting pictures to words, self-testing, saying words aloud, guessing the meaning from the context
C.
Free time and hobbies - Young people spend most of their time at school or studying for the following day, in
their leisure time they like doing their hobbies like getting together with friends, listening to music, playing computer games and going to parties
and discos. Many young people also attend after-school lessons which are provided by the school. They can do some sports there, or attend various
classes, such as drama, religion, or there are also language courses where they can improve their English knowledge and fluency.
Part-time jobs - Many young people are short of money and they have to look for a part-time job. They usually work after school or
at weekends. Some teenagers also work during summer either in our country or they find the job abroad. Teenagers can work in the shops, as
life-guards, they can sell ice-cream, as au-pairs.
D.
If you want to speak English better, you can travel abroad
during summer, spend a year in a school in a foreign country, work as an au-pair during summer holidays, chat with an English friend per Internet,
or you can attend language courses provided by various organizations.
E.
Teachers and students should accept
each other. Teachers should be fair but strict, prepare students well for exams, listen to the pupil\'s ideas, be able to accept criticism, take an
interest in the problems of the pupils, know the subject well, be prepared to admit that he/she doesn\'t know all the answers, stimulate pupils,
have a sense of humour, be a model for pupils, praise a lot and keep discipline. On the other hand, students should accept the teacher, too. They
shouldn’t talk in class, be cheeky, untidy, forget to do their homework, show no interest in the subject, show too much or too little knowledge,
cheat, talk back, play truant, and arrive late for classes.
Zones.sk – Zóny pre každého študenta