- •2.1. Lead-in
- •2.2. Language input
- •2.2.1. Consult a dictionary and practice the pronunciation of the following words and word combinations, quote the sentences in which they are used in the text or submit the examples of your own.
- •2.3. Background information The Political and Economic Profile of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- •2.4. Comprehension
- •2.4.1. Give extensive answers to the questions. Use the following expressions to present your answers:
- •2.4.2. Scan the text and quest for definitions in the Internet to determine whether these statements are true (t) or false (f), and if they are false say why.
- •2.4.3. Develop the following ideas. Make use of the active vocabulary and helpful phrases given in brackets:
- •2.4.4. Comment on the following topics thinking like sociologists:
- •2.4.5. Match the sentences in the left-hand column with proper ending from the right-hand column. Use background information from ex.2.3.
- •2.4.6. Scan the text again and find the English equivalents for the following:
- •2.5. Practice
- •2.5.1. Here is the list of some abbreviations, which relate to the uk’s political and economic profile. Try to guess what they mean. Consult a dictionary if needed.
- •2.5.2. Read the extract and fill in prepositions or conjunctions wherever necessary. Translate the text. Give the text the appropriate heading.
- •2.5.3. Supply the missing words and finish the following sentences considering information from the text above. See 2.5.2
- •2.5.4. Read the following sentences and guess which of the political or economic terms and concepts given in the box they define:
- •2.5.5. A) Read the text and fill in the gaps with the suitable items (a-g) given below.
- •2.5.6 According to the meaning given in brackets find the only word to fill in the gap in the sentence.
- •2.7.2. Search the Internet for the key terms and great historical events:
- •2.8. Case study & role play
- •The uk economy - a fragile state?
- •2.9 Grammar back up: The Infinitive
- •1. Is the verb followed by a full or bare Infinitive?
- •Insert to before the infinitive where required. Translate the sentences into Russian.
- •2. Which verbs are followed by Complex Object?
- •3. Is the infinitive or the ing-form used after the verbs of perception?
- •With the verb “ turn out “.
- •B. Paraphrase the following using a Complex Subject with the verbs in brackets.
2.5.3. Supply the missing words and finish the following sentences considering information from the text above. See 2.5.2
1. Vast plots of agricultural land have remained uncultivated partly because of …
2. Today the UK is ranked the 15th largest …
3. The UK’s steel and manufacturing industries may become inoperative without …
4. The UK’s oil and gas deposits are situated …
5. The economic imbalance between Northern England and Scotland on one part and Southern England on the other part has lead to …
6. The population make-up in the UK was …
7. The rate of unemployment in the UK is …
SKILLS FOCUS
2.5.4. Read the following sentences and guess which of the political or economic terms and concepts given in the box they define:
Politics, European Commission, autonomous region, balance of trade, Economics, franchise, GDP, industries, constitutional monarchy, primogeniture, purchasing power parity – PPP, federalism, austerity, political system, Magna Carta, separation of powers, constitution, boost, a nation’s current account, offshore banking unit, subsidy, national currency. |
1. Bad economic conditions in which people do not have much money to spend. ___________________________
2. Something that helps somebody or something to increase or improve. __________
3. They can be classified on the basis of raw materials, size and ownership. ___________________________
4. A complete set of institutions, interest groups (such as political parties, trade unions, lobby groups), the relationships between those institutions and the political norms and rules that govern their functions (constitution, election law). ___________
5. A social science that analyzes the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. __________________________
6. The art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments. _________________________
7. A set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. ___________________________
8. A form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution. ___________________________
9. The Great Charter of the Liberties of England. ______________________
10. The legal right to vote in your country’s elections. ____________________
11. The executive body of the European Union responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and day-to-day running of the EU. ________________________________
12. The right, by law or custom, of the firstborn to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings. __________________________
13. Under this model, the state is divided into branches, each with separate and independent powers and areas of responsibility so that no branch has more power than the other branches. The normal division of branches is into a legislature, an executive, and a judiciary. ____________________________
14. The market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. ____________________________
15. A shell banking branch located in an international financial center. Its activities are not restricted by local monetary authorities or governments, but it is prohibited from accepting domestic deposits. _____________________________
16. The legal tender issued by a nation's central bank or monetary authority which is used for most financial transactions in that country. _______________________
17. One of the two primary components of the balance of payments, the other being capital account. It is the sum of the balance of trade. _____________________
18. An economic theory and a technique used to determine the relative value of currencies, estimating the amount of adjustment needed on the exchange rate between countries in order for the exchange to be equivalent to (or on par with) each currency's purchasing power. ____________________________
19. The difference between the monetary value of exports and imports of output in an economy over a certain period. _____________________________
20. Assistance paid to a business or economic sector. Most of them are made by the government to producers or distributed as subventions in an industry to prevent the decline of that industry. ____________________________
21. A political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. __________________________________
22. An area of a country that has a degree of autonomy, or freedom from an external authority. Typically it is either geographically distinct from the rest of the country or populated by a national minority. _______________________________