Education in Britain

Class reception class year 1 year 2 year 3 year 4 year 5 year 6 year 7 year 8 year 9 year 10 year 11 year 12 year 13 first year (fresher) second year third/final year postgraduate

School nursery school playgroup or kindergarten infant school primary school junior school secondary school sixth form college University or Polytechnic University

Age 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 23

References

1. National Education Acts — державні акти про освіту

2. local education authorities — місцеві органи народної освіти (відповідають за діяльність шкіл і коледжів на певній території і виплачують заробітню платню вчителям цих навчальних закладів)

3. maintained school — школи, що знаходяться в повному підпорядкуванні місцевим органам народної освіти

4. public schools — паблик скулз (високо привілейовані приватні школи, платні, закриті, найчастіше школи інтернати)

5. Drama — драматизація; уроки з основ драматичної майстерності

6. system of options — система вибору предметів для вивчення (учні за допомогою консультанта вибирають предмети в залежності від схильностей і планів на майбутнє)

7. the National Education Act of 1944 — Акт 1944 року про освіту (визначив структуру системи народної освіти в Англії)

8. further education — подальше, післяшкільна освіта (дання або вечірня; іноді із звільненням від роботи; не включає навчання в університеті. Як правило, розраховано на підготовку до практичної діяльності)

9. headmasters and headmistresses — директори та директриси (шкіл)

10. Polytechnics — політехнічний інститут (багато-профільний вищий навчальний заклад; готує спеціалістів з технічних, гуманітарних та інших науках)

11. Careers guidance — професійна орієнтація; тж. careers advice

PRE-PRIMARY AND PRIMARY EDUCATION

Nurseries • Primary School Streaming • The Eleven-Plus Exa­mination— No More of it?

In some areas of England there are nursery schools for children under 5 years of age. Some children between two and five receive education in nursery classes or in infants classes in primary schools. Many children attend informal pre-school play-groups organized by parents in private homes. Nursery schools are staffed with teachers and students in training. There are all kinds of toys to keep the children busy from 9 o'clock in the morning till 4 o'clock in the afternoon—while their parents are at work. Here the babies play, lunch and sleep. They can run about and play in safety with someone keeping an eye on them.

For day nurseries which remain open all the year round the parents pay according to their income. The local educa­tion authority's nurseries are free. But only about three chil­dren in 100 can go to them: there aren't enough places, and the waiting lists are rather long.

Most children start school at 5 in a primary school. A pri­mary school may be divided into two parts—infants and jun­iors. At infants school reading, writing and arithmetic are taught for about 20 minutes a day during the first year, gradu­ally increasing to about 2 hours in their last year. There is usually no written timetable. Much time is spent in model­ling from clay or drawing, reading or singing.

By the time children are ready for the junior school6 they will be able to read and write, do simple addition and subtraction of numbers.

At 7 children go on from the infants school to the jun­ior school. This marks the transition from play to 'real work'. The children have set periods of arithmetic, reading and composition which are all Eleven Plus subjects. History, Geo­graphy, Nature Study, Art and Music, Physical Education, Swimming are also on the timetable.

Pupils are streamed, according to their ability to learn, into А, В, С and D streams. The least gifted are in the D stream. Formerly towards the end of their fourth year the pupils wrote their Eleven Plus Examination. The hated 11+ examination was a selective procedure on which not only the pupils' future schooling but their future careers depended. The abolition of selection at Eleven Plus Examination brought to life comprehensive schools where pupils can get secondary education.

References

1. primary school — загальна початкова школа (для дітей від 5 до 11 років в Англії та від 5 до 12 років в Шотландії; державна; включає першу ступінь малюків і початкову школу)

2. Eleven Plus Examination — відбіркові екзамени в 11 с половиною років (включають інтелектуальні тести на перевірку розумових здібностей учня, його кмітливості, знання англійської мови та арифметики; по результатам екзаменів визначають, в якому типі школи учневі продовжувати навчання: в класичній, технічній чи середній сучасній школі; в більшості шкіл ці іспити були відмінені із введенням єдиної середньої школи)

3. nursery schools — дошкільний заклад; старша група дитячого садка

4. infants classes — класи першого ступеня початкової школи (від 5 до 7 років)

5. local education authority's nursery — дошкільний закладя, що знаходиться під владою місцевих органів освіти

6. Junior school — початкова школа (для дітей від 7 до 11 років; даржевна; існує самостійно або у складі загальної початкової школи)

7. set periods — фіксовані у розкладі уроки

8. to stream — розподіляти по потоках (в залежності від результатів інтелектуальних тестів:

streaming – розподіл по «потоках»;

grouping – розподіл по профілям, рівням,

set­ting — розподіл по групам для вивчення предметів на різних рівням в залежності від успіхів)

9. comprehensive school — єдина средня школа, що поєднує три типи шкіл: клас­ичну, средню сучасну та технічну)

SECONDARY EDUCATION

Comprehensive Schools ' Grammar Schools' Secondary Mod­ern Schools2 • The Sixth Form • No More Inequality? Cuts on School Spending

After the age of 11, most children go to comprehensive schools of which the majority are for both boys and girls.

About 90 per cent of all state-financed secondary schools are of this type. Most other children receive secondary edu­cation3 in grammar and secondary modern schools.

Comprehensive schools were introduced in 1965. The idea of comprehensive education, supported by the Labour Party, was to give all children of whatever background the same opportunity in education.

At 16 students in England and Wales take GCSE ex­aminations. In 1988 these examinations replaced the GCE and 0-levels which were usually passed by about 20 per cent of school students. GCSE examinations are taken by students of all levels of ability in any of a range of subjects, and may involve a final examination, and assessment of work done by the student during the two-year course, or both of these things.

Some comprehensive schools, however, do not have enough academic courses for sixth-formers. Students can transfer either to a grammar school or to a sixth-form col­lege to get the courses they want.

At 18 some students take A-level GCE examinations, usually in two or three subjects. It is necessary to have A-levels in order to go to a university or Polytechnic.

But some pupils want to stay on at school after taking their GCSE, to prepare for a vocational course or for work rather than for A-level examinations. Then they have to take the CPVE examination which means the Certificate of Prevocational Education.

In Scotland students take the SCE examinations. A year later, they can take examinations called Highers after which they can go straight to a university. Secondary education in Northern Ireland is organized along selective lines according to children's abilities.

One can hardly say that high quality secondary educa­tion is provided for all in Britain. There is a high loss of pupils from working-class families at entry into the sixth form. If you are a working-class child at school today, the chance of your reaching the second year of a sixth-form course is prob­ably less than that for the child of a professional parent. Besides, government cuts on school spending caused many difficulties.

References

1. grammar school — класична школа (державна або приватна; передбачається вивчення класичних мов)

2. secondary modem school — средня сучасна школа (державна; має практичну направ­ленність)

3. secondary education — середня освіта (для учнів від 11 до 16 або 18 років)

4. GCSE — скор. від the General Certifi­cate of Secondary Education — загальний атестат про средню освіту (введен в практику в 1988 р.; передбачає не тільки сдачу учнями відповідних екзаменів, але й оцінку їхнього поточного навчання за два роки; замінив GCE O-Levels)

5. GCE – скор. від the General Certificate of Education — загальний атестат про шкільну освіту (екзамени на отримання такого атестата існували до 1988 р.)

6. 0-level – скор. від Ordinary level — 1) на звичайному нижчому рівні; 2) екзамени на Загальний атестат про шкільну освіту, що існували до 1988р.)

7. sixth-form college — підготовчий коледж (средній навчальний заклад для молоді старше 16 років; державний або приватний заклад)

8. A-level – скор. від Advanced level — 1) підвищений рівень; 2) екзамен на підвищеному рівні по програмі середньої школи

9. SCE – скор. від the Scottish Certificate of Education — атестат про середню освіту на території Шотландії

10. Highers — екзамени на підвищеному рівні на отримання атестата про середню освіту в Шотландії

11. professional — людина розумової праці (адвокат, лікар, архітектор, викладач та ін.)

LIFE AT SCHOOL

Three Terms1 • Breaks and Holidays ' Bell Times • The School Building ' School Uniform ' Punishments and Rewards

The school year is divided into terms, three months each, named after seasons: autumn term, winter term and spring term.

The autumn term starts on the first Tuesday morning in September. In July schools break up for eight weeks.

Life at school is more or less similar everywhere. Each group of 30 pupils is the responsibility of a form tutor. Each schoolday is divided into periods3 of 40—50 minutes, time for various lessons with 10—20 minutes' breaks between them. It might be interesting for you to see the Bell Times at Lawnswood school in Leeds.

Bell Times

8.40 a.m.—School begins

8.45 a.m.—Registration

8.50 a.m.—Assembly bell

9.00 a.m.—Pupils move to lessons

9.05 a.m.—Lesson 1

9.45 a.m.—Lesson 2

10.25 a.m.—Lesson 3

11.05a.m.—Break

11.25 a.m.—Pupils move to lessons

11.30 a.m.—Lesson 4

12.10 p.m.—Lesson 5

12.50 p.m.—Lunch time

1.40 p.m.—Afternoon school begins

1.45 p.m.—Registration

1.50 p.m.—Lesson 6

2.30 p.m.—Lesson 7

3.10 p.m.—End of normal lessons

3.10 p.m.—Start of additional lessons, clubs, societies, team practice, detentions, etc.

On important occasions such as end of term or national holiday, called in English schools speech-days pupils are gathered in the assembly area or hall8.

Most of the pupils time is spent in a classroom equipped with desks and a blackboard, nowadays often called chalk­board because normally it is brown or green. The desks are arranged in rows, the space between the rows is called an aisle.

In addition to classrooms there are laboratories for Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Technical rooms are for Wood­work, Metalwork and Technical Drawing. There are rooms for computer studies. Many young people use them for school exercise. They are now able to write their own games as well. The Physical Education lessons are conducted at the gymnasium, games-hall or at the playground in front of the school building. There are also language laboratories and housecraft rooms. Every school has a library and a school canteen. In student common room boys and girls can relax during the breaks and lunchtime. The Staff common room is for teachers. In case of illness a schoolchild may go to the sickroom.

Pupils at many secondary schools in Britain have to wear a school uniform. This usually means a white blouse for girls (perhaps with a tie), with a dark-coloured skirt and pullover. Boys wear a shirt and tie, dark trousers and dark-coloured pullovers. Pupils also wear blazers—a kind of jacket—with the school badge on the pocket. They often have to wear some kind of hat on the way to and from school—caps for boys, and berets or some other kind of hat for girls. Shoes are usually black or brown. And no high heels!

Young people in Britain often don't like their school uniform, especially the hats and shoes. Sometimes they do not wear the right clothes. Schools will often give them a warning the first time that this happens but then will pun­ish them if they continue not to wear the correct uniform. Senior student don't have to wear their school uniform.

It sounds logical to say that the school's function is to train a pupil's mind and his character should be formed at home. Teachers would be pleased if the problem could be solved so easily. But children don't leave their characters at home when their minds go to school. Many of them have personality problems of one kind or another,

The pupils who violate various school regulations may be punished in the following ways: for lateness, truancy they may be reported to the Headmaster or named in school assembly. They may be detained in school after ordinary hours.

Corporal punishment has recently been banned in state schools. But in most public schools it is still allowed. Can­ing is the usual punishment for serious misbehaviour in class, damage and vandalism. Many teachers remark that stan­dards of discipline have fallen since corporal punishment was banned by the government.

You may want to know whether there are any rewards and prizes for the best pupils. Of course, there are. Each school has its system of rewards: medals and prizes.

References

1. term — семестр, триместр (триває три місяці в школі та два місяці в університеті)

2. form tutor — керівник класу учнів або групи студентів

3. period — академічна година, урок, заняття

4. registration — регістрація учнів, що прибули в школу

5. assembly — зібрання, збір учнів та викладачів в школі (проводиться перед заняттями для читання молитв або оголошення об’яв по школі)

6. detentions — додаткові заняття після уроків

7. speech-day — актовий день (урочисте зібрання в кінці навчального року в школі, коледжі, на якому в присутності батьків почесний гість виголошує промову і вручає атестати та нагороди учням)

8. assembly area or hall — зала для зібрань, акто­вий зал

9. student common room — кімната для старшекласників (тж. common room for senior pupils)

10. Staff common room — кімната для штатного персоналу, учительска

11. sick room — медпункт

12. corporal punishment — тілесне покарання

13. caning — покарання пліттю чи розгами

DOS AND DON'TS

Basic Rules • Procedures

A school, like any other organized group or community, must have basic rules and procedures if it is to func­tion effectively.

Here are some of the regulations functioning at Lawnswood school in Leeds.

Rules

1. Appropriate school dress must be worn on all school occasions.

2. Bicycles shall not be ridden in the school grounds.

3. Ball games may not be played in areas close to unpro­tected windows.

4. Radios and tape-recorders of any type must not be brought to school.

5. No pupil is allowed to smoke on the school premises' or on school visits, or to bring cigarettes, matches or light­ers onto school premises. Chewing-gum is not allowed in school.

6. Pupils must move about the corridors and staircases in an orderly manner; running in corridors and on staircases is forbidden.

Procedures

1. Punctuality. Pupils must be in form rooms by 8.45 a.m. and before 1.45 p.m.

2. Lates. Pupils arriving late for registration will obtain a late form from their Form Tutor. Pupils arriving after 9.00 a.m. must report immediately to the Office2 in their building.

3. Notices. Notices may be displayed on school notice boards only with the permission of a member of Staff.

4. Classes left unsupervised. If a member of Staff does not arrive to take a lesson, the class will wait no longer than five minutes and then report the non-arrival to the Staff room.

5. Safe-keeping. Pupils should never bring valuable articles or large sums of money to school: money must be kept on one's person. In general, pupils are responsible for the safe­keeping of their own property.

6. Lost property. All personal property should be named. A pupil discovering the loss of any article of value will report the fact immediately and those finding property should hand it to a member of Staff.

7. Absences. If pupils are absent, their parents should in­form the school by letter, otherwise a card will be sent to their home after two days. On returning to school after any absence, pupils must give to their Form Tutor a note from their parents explaining their absence. Leave of absence can only be granted under certain circumstances {e. g. careers interviews3, non-school examinations, family holiday) and should be requested in advance by letter from the parents to the Head of House4.

8. Breakages. Any pupil responsible for damage to school property (furniture, windows, etc.) will inform the Deputy Head or Head of House immediately.

These rules and procedures are very much like the rules of your school, aren't they?

Many children in Britain earn pocket money. But it is against the law for children in Britain to work more than two hours on a schoolday. Jobs such as delivering daily newspapers or working in shops and supermarkets on Saturdays (when they can work longer hours) are popular with children.

References

1. school premises fprcmisiz ] — будівля з прилягаючою територією

2. office — офис, канцелярія

3. careers interviews — консультації по професійній орієнтації

4. Head of House — старший вихователь групи учнів різних класів, на які поділяються всі учні денної школи

PUBLIC SCHOOLS—FOR WHOM?

Preparatory Schools • Common Entrance • Public Schools • The Old School Tie ' Educating the Ruling Class

About 5 per cent of children are educated privately in what is rather confusingly called public schools. These are the schools for the privileged. There are about 500 public schools in England and Wales, most of them single-sex. About half of them are for girls.

The schools, such as Eton, Harrow, Rugby and Winchester, are famous for their ability to lay the foundation of a successful future by giving their pupils self-confidence, the right accent, a good academic background and, perhaps most important of all, the right friends and contacts. People who went to one of the public schools never call themselves school-leavers. They talk about 'the old school tie' and 'the old boy network'. They are just old boys or old girls, The fees are high and only very rich families can afford to pay so much. Public schools educate the ruling class of England. One such school is Gordonstoun, which the Prince of Wales, the elder son of the Queen, left in 1968. Harrow School is famous as the place where Winston Churchill was educated, as well as six other Prime Ministers of England, the poet Lord Byron, the playwright Ri­chard Brinsley Sheridan and many other prominent people.

Public schools are free from state control. They are indepen­dent. Most of them are boarding schools. The education is of a high quality; the discipline is very strict. The system of educa­tion is the same: the most able go ahead.

These schools accept pupils from preparatory schools at abo­ut 11 or 13 years of age usually on the basis of an examination, known as Common Entrance.

There are three sittings of Common Entrance every year in February, June and November. Scholarships are rarely awarded on the results of Common Entrance. The funda­mental requirements are very high. At 18 most public school-leavers gain entry to universities.

References

1. old school tie — галстук старої школи випускників привілейованих приватних середніх шкіл (символ приналежності до правлячого класу; перен. приятель)

2. Eton — Ітон (одна з дев’яти найстаріших престижних чоловічих средніх шкіл; знаходится в м. Ітон; заснована в 1440 р.)

3. Harrow — Харроу (одна з дев’яти найстаріших престижних чоловічих середніх шкіл в передмісті Лондона; заснована в 1571 р.)

4. Rugby — Рагбі (одна з дев’яти найсьаріших престижних чоловічих приватних середніх шкіл в м. Рагбі; заснована в 1567 р.)

5. Winchester — Уінчестерский коледж (одна з дев’яти старійших чоловічих привілейованих середніх шкіл; знаходиться в м. Уінчестер; заснована в 1382 р.)

6. old boy network — почуття дружби, взаємодопомоги (засновано на приналежності до однієї і жієї ж школи; культивується у її випускників і зберігається на все життя)

7. Winston Churchill — Уінстон Черчиль (1874—1965), прем’єр-міністр Великобританії в 1940-1945, 1951-1955 рр.

8. Richard Brinsley Sheridan — Ричард Бринслі Шерідан (1751—1816), англійский драматург, автор п’єси «Школа злословія» та ін.

9. boarding school — школа-інтернат, пансіон

SOCIAL, CULTURAL AND SPORTING LIFE

School Council Boy Scouts Girl Guides • Cadets * YCND

Each school or sixth-form college has its School or College Council. It helps to plan the policy for the whole school. It organizes the social and cultural life at the school.

School Councils in many schools and colleges are chaired by a student and have a majority of student members. They run discos and parties, stage drama productions and deco­rate the student common room. Music-making is part of school life. Some students help in local hospitals, homes for the handicapped and elderly people.

There are many clubs and societies. Very popular, espe­cially with senior pupils, is a school debating society.

Most clubs me­et regularly; daily, weekly or monthly, at lunch time or after school. Extra-curricular activities include various out­ings, visits to places of interest and dances. School choirs and orchestras give regular concerts. Sports are very popular too: running, jogging, swimming, self-defence, football, soccer, badminton, aerobics, rugby, etc.

There are many national voluntary youth organizations in Britain. You have probably read about the Scout and Giri Guides Associations. There are some clubs run by the churches. The three pre-service organizations (the Sea Cadet Corps, Army Cadet Force and Air Training Corps) arc not very large. Their activities are related to the work of the armed forces.

But the largest youth organizations, as you probably know, are the associations of the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides. There are about 1,300,000 boys and girls in them. The movement of Boy Scouts was founded by General Baden-Powell in 1908 and began to spring up in almost every town and village of the British Isles. Its aim is to help a Scout (a boy from 8 to 18) to develop into a good man and a useful citizen. He must be able to handle sails, to use a compass, to lay and light a fire out of doors, he must know first aid and develop his interest in music, literature, drama, arts and films. A Scout is a friend to animals, he is 'clean in thought, word and deed'. He must obey the Scout Law.

The Girl Guides Association was founded by Lord Baden-Powell in 1910. It is divided into three sections: Brownies (from 7,5 to 11), Guides (age 11—16) and Rangers (age 16—21). The programme of training is planned to develop intelligence and practical skills including cookery, needle­work and childcare. The training and the Law are much the same as those of the Scouts. Like a Scout a Girl Guide must be a friend to animals. She must be 'pure in thought, word and deed'. She must be loyal to God and the Queen.

There are several youth organizations associated with po­litical parties. The Youth Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (YCND) unites thousands of young people of Great Britain. It cooperates with the National Union of Students and many other youth organizations. It organizes mass rallies and meet­ings, demonstrations, marches of protest, festivals.

References

1. School Council — шкільна рада учнів

2. boy scout — бойскаут (хлопчик — член асоціації бойскаутов); бойскаут середньої дружини (від 11 до 15 років)

3. girl guide - герл-гайд (член організації герл-гайдов)

4. YCND = Youth Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament — «Молодіжний рух за ядерне ргоззброєння» (організація молодих прибічників миру)

5. debating society — дискусійний клуб (в средні школі, звич. в привілейованій приватній, або в університеті)

6. the Scout and Girl Guides Associations — асоціація бойскаутов і організація герл-гайдов (дівчат-скаутів)

7. Cadet Corps — організація військової підготовки (зазвичай в привілейовані приватній школі)

8. Army Cadet Force — воєнізована організація в англійських школах (готує юнаків 14—18 років для служби в армії)

9. Air Training Corps — воєнізована організація в англійских школах (готує юнаків 14—18 років до вступу в ВПС)

10. Brownies = brownie guides — брауни-гайды (молодша дружина дівчат-скаутів від 7,5 до 11 років в організації герл-гайдов)

11. guide — гайд, дівчина-скаут середньої дружини

12. Rangers = ranger guides — рейнджер-гайды (старша дружина дівчат-скаутов від 14 до 19 років)

LIFE AT COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY

The Oldest Universities ' University Degrees • Redbrick Univer­sities ' Polytechnics ' Colleges of Education • Further Educa­tion Colleges • The Open University

The academic year in Britain's universities. Polytech­nics, Colleges of Education is divided into three terms, which usually run from the beginning of October to the middle of December, from the middle of January to the end of March, and from the middle of April to the end of June or the beginning of July.

There are about one hundred universities in Britain. The oldest and best-known universities are located in Oxford, Cambridge, London, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Southampton, Cardiff, Bristol, Birmingham.

Good A-level results in at least two subjects are neces­sary to get a place at a university. However, good exam passes alone are not enough. Universities choose their students af­ter interviews. For all British citizens a place at a university brings with it a grant from their local education authority.

English universities greatly differ from each other. They dif­fer in date of foundation, size, history, tradition, general orga­nization, methods of instruction, way of student life.

After three years of study a university graduate will leave with the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, Science, Engineer­ing, Medicine, etc. Later he may continue to take a Master's Degree and then a Doctor's Degree. Research is an impor­tant feature of university work.

The two intellectual eyes of Britain—Oxford and Cam­bridge Universities—date from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

The Scottish universities of St. Andrews, Glasgow, Ab­erdeen and Edinburgh date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

In the nineteenth and the early part of the twentieth centuries the so-called Redbrick universities were founded. These include London, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield and Birmingham. During the late sixties and early seventies some new universities were set up. Sometimes they are called 'concrete and glass' universities. Among them are the universities of Sussex", York, East Anglia and some others.

During these years the Government set up thirty Poly­technics. The Polytechnics, like the universities, offer first and higher degrees. Some of them offer full-time and sand­wich courses. Colleges of Education provide two-year courses in teacher education or sometimes three years if the graduate specializes in some particular subject.

Some of those who decide to leave school at the age of 16 may go to a further education college where they can fol­low a course in typing, engineering, town planning, cook­ing, or hairdressing, full-time or part-time. Further educa­tion colleges have strong ties with commerce and industry.

There is an interesting form of studies which is called the Open University. It is intended for people who study in their own free time and who 'attend' lectures by watching televi­sion and listening to the radio. They keep in touch by phone and letter with their tutors and attend summer schools. The Open University students have no formal qualifications and would be unable to enter ordinary universities.

Some 80,000 overseas students study at British universi­ties or further education colleges or train in nursing, law, banking or in industry.

References

1. Redbrick universities — «Червоноцеглі» університети (розмовна назва університетів, що з’явилися в XIX — початку XX ст.)

2. College of Education — педагогічний коледж (трьохрічний педагогічний інститут; в 1965 р. такі коледжі отримали статус університета)

3. Open University — Відкритий університет, університет для всіх (функціонує з 1971 р.)

4. grant — стипендія (зазвич. Виплачується студентам із засобів державного бюджету або місцевих органів влади)

5. Bachelor of Arts — бакалавр мистецтв (власник стипендії бакалавра з однієї із гуманітарних або математичних наук в університетах)

6. Master's Degree — вчена ступінь магістра (присуджується університетом особам, що успішно завершили по крайній мірі рік навчання та дослідницької роботи після закінчення університета)

7. Doctors Degree — вчена ступінь доктора

8. St. Andrews — Сент-Андрус (при­морский місто-курорт в графстві Файф, Шотландія, де расташований найстаріший університет)

9. Aberdeen — м. Абердін (порт на Північному морі в Шотландії)

10. Sheffield — м. Шеффілд (важливий центр важкої промисловості)

11. Sussex — Суссекс (графство на південо-сході Англії)

12. York — Йорк (важливий транспортный вузол на півночі Англії; зберігши планування середньовічного міста-фортеці)

13. East Anglia — Схіжна Англія (район Англії на схід від Лондона; включає графства Кембріджшир, Ессекс, Норфолк та Суффолк)

14. sandwich course — курси «сандвіч» (для працюючих; звичайно при технічному коледжі, де заняття чергуються з роботою на підприємстві)

OXBRIDGE

At Oxbridge ' Oxford — the Golden Heart of Britain • A Col­lege in Oxbridge • Cambridge— Its Past and Present

Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest and most presti­gious universities in Great Britain. They are often called col­lectively Oxbridge. Both univer­sities are independent. Only the education elite go to Oxford or Cambridge. Most of their stu­dents are former public schools leavers.

The normal length of the degree course is three years, after which the students take the Degree of Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). Some courses, such as languages or medicine, may be one or two years longer. The students may work for other degrees as well. The degrees are awarded at public degree ceremonies. Oxford and Cambridge cling to their traditions, such as the use of Latin at degree ceremonies. Full academic dress is worn at examinations.

Oxford and Cam­bridge universities con­sist of a number of col­leges. Each college is different, but in many ways they are alike. Each college has its name, its coat of arms. Each col­lege is governed by a Master. The larger ones have more than 400 members, the smallest colleges have less than 30. Each college offers teaching in a wide range of sub­jects. Within the college one will normally find a chapel, a din­ing hall, a library, rooms for undergraduates, fellows and the Master, and also rooms for teaching purposes.

Oxford is one of the oldest universities in Europe. It is the second largest in Britain, after London. The town of Oxford is first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 911 A.D. and it was popular with the early English kings (Richard Coeur de Lion was probably here). The uni­versity's earliest char­ter is dated to 1213.

There are now twenty-four colleges for men, five for wo­men and another five which have both men and women members, many from overseas studying for higher de­grees. Among the oldest colleges are University College, All Souls and Christ Church.

The local car industry in East Oxford gives an impor­tant addition to the city's outlook. There is a great deal of bicycle traffic both in Oxford and Cambridge.

Cambridge University started during the 13th century and grew until today. Now there are more than thirty colleges.

On the banks of the Cam willow trees drown their branches into the water. The colleges line the right bank. There are beautiful college gardens with green lawns and lines of tall trees. The oldest college is Peterhouse, which was founded.

What Do You Know About...

1) basic rules and procedures in British schools?

2) social, cultural and sporting life in schools in En­gland?

3) life at college and university in England?

Fun Spot

J. Match the Following English and Russian Proverbs:

1. A good name is better than riches.

2. He will never set the Thames on fire.

3. Make hay while the sun shines.

4. Live and learn.

5. An hour in the morning is worth two in the evening.

А. Куй железо пока горячо.

Б. Добрая слава лучше богатства.

В. Век живи, век учись.

Г. Утро вечера мудренее.

Д. Он пороха не выдумает.

SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY LIFE IN THE USA

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

(From 6 to 12 years of age)

American children begin to go to school when they are six years old. The first school is called elementary or grade school. In elementary schools, as in all other schools in the USA, there are lessons every day, except Saturdays and Sun­days. The children come to school at 8.30 and each class gath­ers in its homeroom. There is a teacher on duty there who calls the names of the children, then lessons begin. Each les­son lasts half an hour. At 10.30 the children return to the homeroom where they have milk and crackers. At 11 o'clock they have a lesson of writing. There are about one hundred pupils in a big classroom and three teachers. One teacher uses technical aids, she writes new words and her writing is re­flected on the wall of the room. All the pupils can see and copy the words. As she writes the teacher speaks into a mi­crophone so that all the pupils can hear her. Her two assistants walk about the classroom and correct the children's writing.

At 11.50 the pupils return to their homeroom and prepare for lunch. They eat from 12 to 12.30 after which they have 20 minutes of physical training on the playground. After that one more lesson. This is a nature-study lesson and that is the end of the school day. At half past one all the children go home.