Education in Great Britain.
Education in Britain is compulsory and free for all children between the ages of 5-16. About 93 percent of all children are educated in state schools and the rest attend private schools.
Schoolchildren attend a primary school for 6 years (5 to 11 years). When students transfer to Secondary School at the age of 11, they do not take any examination, but their reports are sent on from the Primary School.
Most children – over 80 percent – go to a comprehensive school. "Comprehensive" means all-inclusive. They admit pupils of all abilities. Pupils in all state in schools in England and Wales study 10 main subjects, among them: English, Mathematics, Science, History, Geography, Art, Music, Physical Education, Information Technology. Religious education is also taught. Attainment tests are given at the ages of 7, 11 and 14.
At the age of 16 students sit the exams in as many subjects as possible. Weak students may only sit for three or four subjects. Better students take ten subjects. At the age of 16 about two thirds of these pupils leave school and get jobs. About one-third stay on at school until the age of 18, preparing themselves for higher education.
More ambitious pupils continue to study in the 6th form. They stay on at school for one or two years to prepare themselves for university. They have only three or four main subjects, which are necessary to pass the advanced level exams at the age of 18. The school year is divided into three terms with the intervals between them during Christmas and Easter holidays lasting about two weeks each and summer holiday which is usually six weeks long. All kinds of out-of-class activities are part of school life in Britain. Most schools have very good libraries which students use for reference work.
Ecology and Environment.
The word environment means simply what is around us. Some people live in a town environment; for others, their environment is the countryside.
Nowadays people understand how important it is to solve the environment problems that endanger people’s lives. The most serious environmental problems are: pollution in its many forms (water pollution, air pollution, nuclear pollution), noise from cars, buses, planes, etc., destruction of wildlife and countryside beauty, shortage of natural resources (metals, different kinds of fuel), the growth of population.
There is no ocean or sea, which is not used as a dump. Many seas are used for dumping industrial and nuclear waste. This poisons and kills fish and sea animals. "Nuclear-poisoned" fish can be eaten by people.
Many rivers and lakes are poisoned too. Fish and reptiles can’t live in them. There is not enough oxygen in the water. In such places all the birds leave their habitats and many plants die. If people drink this water they can die too. It happens so because factories produce a lot of waste and pour it into rivers. So they poison water.
Most of the pollution in big cities comes from cars and buses. More and more often people are told not to be in direct sunlight, because ultraviolet radiation from the sun can cause skin cancer. Normally the ozone layer in the atmosphere protects us from such radiation, but if there are holes in the ozone layer ultraviolet radiation can get to the earth. Many scientists think that these holes are the result of air pollution.
Both clean air and clean water are necessary for our health. If people want to survive they must solve these problems quickly. Man is beginning to understand that his environment is not just his own town or country, but the whole earth. That’s why people all over the world think and speak so much about ecology.
Tim woke up later than usual. It was Sunday and he _________HAVE_________ lots of plans for the day. He was in the bathroom cleaning his _________TOOTH_________ when he heard some unfamiliar voices from the veranda. “Who could they be?” Tim _________THINK_________. When he came into the room, his mum and two other women ________CHAT__________ happily and didn’t notice him. Tim coughed to attract _________THEY_________ attention. “Oh, Tim, you’re up already!” his mother sounded excited. “Meet my school friends, Linda and Emma.” Linda shook his hand, Emma smiled and said: “We _________BE_________ happy to meet you, Tim.” Your mum showed us your photo, but you are much _________YOUNG_________ there. Join us for tea. I wish we _________CAN_________ talk about our school days for ages, but we have some other business to discuss with your mother. It’s going to be interesting for you, too.” Tim sat at the table. Emma had some papers in her hands but Tim couldn’t read what _________PRINT_________ there – the letters were too small.
Thousands of tourists visit Edinburgh every year. The capital of Scotland is ________FAME__________ for its history and architecture. It’s one of the ________CULTURE__________ centres of the country. The main _________ATTRACT_________ of the city is Edinburgh Castle. It was built in the 12thcentury but it still looks magnificent and very _________IMPRESS_________. There are many historic monuments in Edinburgh. One of them is an unusual monument to Walter Scott, a well-known _________WRITE_________. The city streets are usually full of noisy tourists with cameras but if you want a quiet holiday, you can have it too - the beautiful and ________PEACE__________ countryside is just round the corner.
People turn fifteen only once in life and Anna wanted to have a great birthday party, with cake, candles and guests. “Guests? And what if nobody comes,” Anna ______THINK______. She ______NOT/CAN______ wait till the end of the lesson and turned to Linda and Kate, who were sitting next to her.
“Look, it’s my birthday this Saturday and I ______NOT/INVITE______ you yet. Will you come?” she said quietly.
“We ______SOLVE______ Maths problems, can’t you see?” Linda didn’t even look up.
Linda and Kate were the ______POPULAR______ girls in the class.
Their fathers were successful ______BUSINESSMAN______ who Anna sometimes saw on TV.
“I ______COME______ on Saturday,” Kate said suddenly. “What time is your party?”
It was a cold January day in York, Pennsylvania. Dr. James turned on the television to check on the weather. The weatherman said that it was going to stay cold for several days. According to him, the roads _________BE_________ very dangerous because of the snow and ice and he strongly recommended staying at home if at all possible. Dr. James _________NOT/CAN_________ stay at home. He worked in a hospital and there were patients waiting for him there. He put on a sweater, jacket, gloves, boots and a hat, and opened his front door. Everything ________COVER__________ with snow. A cold wind blew inside. “Wow,” Dr. James said. “The weatherman was right! I wish I ________HAVE__________ a reindeer instead of my old car.” When Dr. James ________DRIVE__________ slowly to work, he saw an accident. He stopped and ________RUN__________ to the damaged car. There was a man and two ________CHILD__________ inside. “Is everyone okay?” Dr. James asked. “Yes, yes, we are fine,” answered the man. “I ________CALL__________ 911 already. They are coming to help ________WE__________. It looks like we won’t get to school today.”
Siem Reap is a small town in Cambodia, a country in southeast Asia. It is built around a ________FAME__________ cathedral. The town is charming with some fine examples of French colonial architecture. A legend says that a French _________WRITE_________ once called the town “a pearl of Cambodia”. Nowadays, this town is quite popular with tourists. They often use it as a starting point for their _________EXCITE_________ travellings. The town is really remarkable. There you will find some _________IMPRESS_________ stone monuments and statues, ancient buildings and picturesque ruins. Note that it’s _________USUAL_________ hot there in the summer. Please ensure that you take _________COMFORT_________ walking shoes, light clothing and plenty of water to drink.
It was Friday evening. Liz was looking forward to Saturday because it was her husband’s birthday. She had been preparing for this event for a long time. She had invited ________THEY__________ college friends and they were all coming from different cities. The best part was that Carlos, her husband, _________NOT/KNOW_________ anything about the arrangements. It was going to be a surprise. Liz _________MAKE_________ sandwiches when Carlos came into the kitchen.
“Look, darling,” he said, “I know it’s my birthday tomorrow but I don’t want to do anything special for it.”
Liz thought, “I wish I _________CAN_________ cancel the party but I can’t – it’s too late. The party will take place anyway and it will be the _________GOOD_________ party ever”.
When Carlos came home on Saturday, there ________BE__________ lots of people there. Carlos _________TELL________ them that he felt very happy to see them all and it was true! The guests enjoyed the dinner and then Liz brought in a cake. The cake __________DECORATE________ with chocolates and jellies, and it had as many candles as the number of years Carlos had reached that day. Carlos couldn’t blow them out on the _________ONE_________ try and his friends were delighted to help him.
The city of St Davids is situated on the south-west coast of Wales. If you're looking for an _________USUAL_________ place to go, this is your destination. It was granted city status by Queen Elizabeth II but in reality St Davids looks like an ________ATTRACT__________ small village. It is actually the smallest city in Britain with a _________POPULATE_________ of just over 1,600. St Davids has a _________BEAUTY_________ medieval cathedral which dates back to the 12th century. Today it is a _________CHARM_________ place with narrow streets filled with cafes, hotels and art galleries – but only one pub! St Davids is famous for its sandy beaches and clear water. Whitesands Bay is a regular _________WIN_________ of the prestigious European Blue Flag award.
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