Teaching Practice

Teaching is an activity which you can read about, think about, and be tutored in, but in the end it is something which you do. It is an action which is a consequence of thought. And you must do it for yourself in the only place where it can be done — in class-rooms.

Another way of saying this is to say that teaching is an art, not a science. How is this difficult art to be mastered? The mastering can occur only with children in class-rooms. It is this fact which makes the provision of teaching practice an in­dispensable part of the work of any institution whose duty it is to educate students to work as teachers in schools. Without training the concept of a profession is impossible. Without practice in schools, any system of training is impossible.

Teaching practice means an opportunity to prepare the material of one's subject more thoroughly then was necessary to pass one's examinations. The second opportunity which teaching practice presents to the students in training is the opportunity to discover how well he or she likes a subject, or indeed whether he likes it or not.

There are people who do not have power of clear communication, and clear communication means understanding one's pupils, sympathizing with them, being aware of their individual differences and special aptitudes. The good teacher is a psychologist, capable of understanding children in the complex, changing situation of the class-room.

Among other opportunities of teaching practice is the opportunity to understand the social significance of the school. What is done in class-rooms influences tne quality of our society.

Briefly, teaching practice gives the student in training an opportunity to recognize his profession as the highly complex activity and the vital influence which it has.

The End

1. Read and translate the text.

A Teacher of Arts

«The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards».

Anatole France.

My favourite subject at school was Drawing. I think it's because we had a very good teacher. He knew his subject very well and was a real artist. He also organized trips to St. Petersburg and Moscow where we visited different museums and admired the collections of art. We had a wonderful opportunity to visit the Hermitage. It's one of the most outstanding museums of world culture and art. The collection of the museum represents the art of Italy, Spain, Holland, Belgium, France, Great Britain and other countries. When we were in Moscow we visited the Tretyakov art Gallery. The collection of the Gallery reflects the history of Russian art, you can see icons of Rublev, portraits by Repin and Brullov, Russian landscapes by Shiskin, Savrasov and Levitan, genre pictures by Fedotov, historical canvases by Surikov. At our school we had the museum of art too. Many fine gifts of paintings are varied objects of art are to be found there. There are paintings of our teachers, drawing of schoolchildren as well as a valuable collection of paintings of local professional and amateur painters. Our school collection also contains a large number of lithographs and other forms of graphic art, watercolours and prints. If I had a wonderful experience not only during my Drawing classes, but after school, working in our museum and helping my favourite teacher.

Most people spend a third of their lives at work. So it is important that people enjoy their work as much as possible: and enjoying work means choosing the sight career. Most young people have several choices opened to them when they leave school. I had decided that I wanted to be a teacher of arts when I was teenager. Thanks to my Arts teacher I really enjoyed Drawing classes. In Russia besides general regular schools there are other types of secondary schools for talented children. There are specialized Art schools. And I would like to teach art (Drawing, Sculpture) at such kind of schools. I am going to become a University student and I'd like to spend my student's years studying art of the ancient Rus, making a lot of drawings in the streets of my native city. It's my dream to paint portraits, create series of genre scenes of everyday life.

Drawing, painting and sculpture belong to the fine arts. Really when something is extremely beautiful or has great cultural value, we say: “It's art”. Arts reflects feelings and emotions, brings delight and admiration, makes life pure. I'll try to do my best in order to be a successful teacher of arts. I should work hard to gain this purpose.

There is a proverb “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart”.

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops”.

Henry Adams.

2. Suggest English equivalents for: любознательность; рисование; восхищаться; выдающийся; искусство; иконы; пейзажи; полотна; дары; предметы искусства; художники-любители; литография; акварель; эстамп; опыт; получать удовольствие от работы.

III. Suggest Russian equivalents for:

choosing the right career; several choices; specialized art schools; talented children; portraits;

series of genre scenes; fine arts; extremely beautiful; cultural value; feelings; delight; pure;

eternity, influence.

IV. Read the beginning of the sentence and find its ending in the text.

1. The whole art of teaching...

2. It's one of the most outstanding...

3. The collection of the gallery reflects...

4. Many fine gifts of paintings...

5. So it is important that people...

6. Most young people have several choices...

7. I'd like to spend my student's years...

8. Drawing, painting and sculpture belong to...

9. Art reflects feelings and emotions...

10.Whatever you do, work at it...

V. Ask questions about the text and let your fellow-students answer them.

VI. Make up a brief summary of the text.