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Ex. Write a question with “try”
Ex. 89. Translate into Russian
Ex. 90. Translate into Russian
Ex. 91. Translate the sentences into Russian, paying attention to Complex Object
Ex. 92. Answer the following questions
EDUCATION
You are a student of Ulyanovsk State University! Our congratulations to you!
Answer these questions.
2. What subjects are included in the first-year curriculum at your Faculty?
3. What subject is the most interesting;
the least interesting;
the one you think the most important;
the one you find the most difficult?
4. Was it easy for you to get accustomed to the University system of lectures and seminars after the school system of classes and home tasks?
5. Which are more useful in your opinion—lectures or seminars?
6. Do you have to work much after your lectures and seminars are over?
7. Do you often work at the University library?
8. What are the advantages and disadvantages of working at the library and at home?
What are Universities for?
The primary and central purpose of the university is the search for knowledge and fundamental understanding in all intellectual disciplines and the transmission of that knowledge and understanding.
It has also been a function of universities to give to young people from a relatively narrow age gap (say 17 – 24) an education designed to develop their capacities, more particularly their intellectual capacities, that is, the ability to judge evidence critically, to develop independence of mind, the ability to communicate, curiosity, reasoning power and factual accuracy.
The important thing on the one hand is to educate intellectually mobile specialists capable of renewing and endlessly adapting themselves to new problems and, on the other hand, to organize co-operation on specific problems between specialists. To meet these varying needs, the University of Novosibirsk, for example, divides its training into two parts: the first three years are devoted to basic education of a rather general and fundamental nature, and the last two years to specific research work, together with the preparation of a diploma paper. It tries, moreover, to give its students a civic and social formation which will enable them to be aware of the problems facing society and have a wish to solve them.
1. What are the necessary qualities of a university graduate?
2. How do our universities meet these needs? What are the first three years devoted to?
3. What else besides knowledge in the chosen field does the university provide for the
students?
Needs of Universities
Today, the first need among universities everywhere (though it has been less talked about and perhaps less thought about in America than in Europe), is learning power, which is native ability plus the will to learn. An able person, intellectually inquiring, reflective and industrious – with learning power can make himself educated, cultivated, and wise in this area of free public libraries, museums, and archives. A great teacher can speed the process. But if learning power is not there, the greatest teaching is only of partial value. A student cannot be lifted beyond the limits of his/her ability.
A great teacher may, and often does, inspire an individual student who has lacked the will of full opportunity to learn, and so sets his student on the road to education. But if large numbers of students arrive at the university without a solid academic foundation on which to build, the quality of university education must suffer.
_____________________________________________________________________________-
1. What is learning power?
2. What qualities are necessary in order to become educated?
3. What modern conditions exist which make it possible for a person to become educated and cultured? Can you think about other factors? What is the role of a teacher in this process? Why is the greatest teaching sometimes only of partial value? Do you agree that a student cannot be lifted beyond the limits of his ability?
4. Why is one’s pre-university level of knowledge important?
5. Do you agree that learning power is the primary need among universities?
6. What is more important for good education—learning power or good teaching? Why?
A Will to Learn
I was educated some in chemistry, and in biology and physics too, at Cornell University. I did badly and I soon forgot all they tried to teach me. The Army sent me to Carnegie Tech (=technical institute) and the University of Tennessee to study mechanical engineering. I did badly again. I am very used to failure, to being at the bottom of every class.
A cosine of mine, who was also a high-school classmate, did very badly at Cornell. His father asked him what the trouble was, and he made what I consider an admirable reply: “Don’t you know, Father? I’m dumb”. It was the truth.
(After Kurt Vonnegut)
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From the outside, reading textbooks, writing papers and essays, doing homework, engaging in classroom recitations and discussions, may have all the appearance of work that is good for the mind. But a closer look (and that is true of college as well as high school) shows how little thinking is really going on. This child labor, that both keeps the child off the streets and trains him in the carrying out of prescribed tasks. A history examination reveals it all: it asks for names, dates, and conclusions found in the textbook or outside reading. The real questions on the text are: “Did you do the job that you were told to do?”?Do you remember what were told?” “Have you learned to carry out a job carefully and accurately?” “Did you have the self-discipline to do this job despite all other things and activities that offered themselves?” “Can you sit longer and concentrate harder than the others in class?”
(After Ch. Reich)
1. What does a closer look at academic activities show?
2. Do you agree that this kind of training is also necessary and important?
3. Is the ability to carry out prescribed tasks a part of self-discipline?
4. What qualities does this kind of training develop?
5. What other things must be taught?
There is still, I think, not enough recognition by teachers of the fact that the desire to think—which is fundamentally a moral problem—must be induced before the power is developed. Most people, whether men or women, wish above all else to be comfortable, and thought is an uncomfortable process; it brings to the individual far more suffering than happiness in our imperfect world.
(From “The Testament of Youth” by Vera Britain)
Moscow State University
An important part in the development of higher education in Russia was played by Moscow University which was founded in 1755. It was not by accident that Moscow was chosen as the place for the first Russian University. Moscow was situated in the centre of the country and it was easier for students to come there from all parts of the country, besides, life in the older capital was cheaper than in St Petersburg.
Moscow University was opened on April, 26 (May,7) 1755 in the three-storied building where the State Historical Museum is situated. But it was too small for the University and several houses in Mokhovya Street were bought the next year. In 1786 the sum of 125,000 rubles was allotted by the government to build a new University building. It was built by a famous Russian architect Kazakov in Mokhovya Street.
The University had three faculties: philosophy, law and medicine. The philosophy faculty was considered to be preparatory and study there was obligatory for all students. Philosophical, natural and philological disciplines were studied for two or three years. Special attention was paid to “the history of the Russian Empire”. After finishing the courses at the philosophy faculty, students could choose to study either law or medicine. At the law faculty students were taught civil law, commercial law, military law and law of the sea. Each student could work independently according to an individual plan of studies which was based on the general university curriculum and he could study the disciplines which he had chosen in any order he wished. The University also contained a library, mineralogical museum, a “natural” museum, an anatomical theatre, a chemical laboratory, an astronomical observatory, etc. In accordance with the University Charter debates among students were organized. They were supervised by professors and “all lovers of the arts and sciences” were welcome to these debates. The best students were awarded gold and silver medals at the end of each year. After graduation they were sent abroad to perfect their knowledge.
All lectures were given in Latin. Professor Popovskiy who gave lectures on philosophy and literature was the first to propose giving lectures in Russian stating that “ther exist no idea that can’t be properly explained in Russian”. But lectures in Russian were not allowed until 12 years later in 1767.
The number of students at the University was small. Thus in 1755 there were only 61 students. Later their number gradually began to grow. Now at the University there are 16 faculties where more than 30,000 students are given instructions by about 10,000 teachers. (After “The History of Moscow”)
OXBRIDGE
Oxford and Cambridge are the oldest and most prestigious universities in Great Britain. They are often called collectively Oxbridge to denote an elitarian education. Both universities are independent. Only very rich and aristocratic families can afford to send their sons and daughters to these universities. Mostly they are former public school leavers.
The tutorial is the basic mode of instruction at Oxford and Cambridge, with lectures as optional extras.
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 Lion Hearted was probably here). The university’s earliest charter is dated back 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 Cambridge University started during the 13th century and grew until today. Now there are more than thirty colleges.
On the river bank of the Cam willow trees weep 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 in 1284, and the most recent is Robinson College, which was opened in 1977. The most famous is probably King’s College because of its magnificent chapel, the largest and the most beautiful building in Cambridge and the most perfect example left of English fifteenth-century architecture. Its choir of boys and undergraduates is also very well known.
The University was only for men until 1871, when the first women’s college was opened. In the 1970s, most colleges opened their doors to both men and women. Almost all colleges are now
mixed.
Many great men studied at Cambridge, among them Desiderius Erasmus, the great Dutch scholar, Roger Bacon, the philosopher Milton, the poet, Oliver Cromwell, the soldier, Newton, the scientist, and Kapitza, the famous Russian physicist.
The universities have over a hundred societies and clubs, enough for every interest one could imagine. Sport is part of students’ life at Oxbridge. The most popular sports are rowing and punting.
The University Library
In the course of the last half-century the importance of libraries in academic institutions has become more and more fully recognized. Universities have no doubt always been proud of their libraries but in the older days they tended to regard them more from the professional scholar’s point of view than from that of an ordinary undergraduate. For this the lecture system may have been partly responsible. But with the modern development of scholarship and science, the specialization, and the increasing domination of the book, it became obvious that oral teaching had to be more and more largely supplemented by the printed word and, as a result, libraries began to be more extensively used. This change of outlook may be noted in the emphasis repeatedly laid upon the profound importance of the library in the academic life of the University.
How to Read in English
Read the following text carefully. Write down things that are new to you and that you never used to do before when reading in English. In future try to follow this competent advice.
When you begin to read silently and you come to words and phrases that are new to you, use the following techniques: 1) Read the passage through for general sense first, without stopping to puzzle over unfamiliar words or constructions; then go back for a second, more careful reading. When you come to an unknown word read on at least to the next punctuation mark before you look it up. Try to get the meaning from the sentence without having to look it in the dictionary. 2) When you decide that you must look up a word, (a) underline the word with your pencil, (b) take a good look at the phrase that contains it, and pronounce the phrase aloud, (c) repeat the phrase over and over, aloud if possible, concentrating all your attention on its sound and spelling while you are looking for a key word in the vocabulary or dictionary, (d) when you find it, put a dot before the word in its column, (e) turn back to your page, find the last underlined word, and go on reading. Never write the translation into your language on the page. Doing so puts the emphasis on the native language equivalent and not on the English word, which the word that you must learn. When you finish your assignment, reread it and see how many of the phrases containing underlined words you still understand. Look up the words you haven’t yet learned and put another dot in front of them in the vocabulary list; look through the vocabulary once a week and make a special effort to learn the words with several dots. These are your “hard” words. Learn them now, or you will be spending hours looking them up month after month, year after year. And go back over your reading material to check you’re your understanding of the sentences that have underlined words and phrases.
Prepare for the future. If you learn English well, the skills that you acquire will be helpful in learning your next foreign language, whenever and wherever you learn it. You may then have to work with inadequate materials or with no materials at all and with a person who has had little or no training as a teacher. But if, in learning English, you have also learnt how to study languages in general, you will be able to apply this skill to the study of any other language at any time or place.
Text.
The universities in Russia educate students in the “university” disciplines. Among the sciences there are Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, and among the Arts History, Philosophy, Economics, Law and Philology.
University graduates work as teachers in universities, colleges and secondary schools, in cultural institutions, research institutes of Russian Academy of Sciences and other establishments.
While learning at a university or college, students have time to study not only such fundamental theoretical subjects as Mathematics, Chemistry, History and concrete disciplines pertaining to their specialty, but also such general-education subjects in the social and economic group of sciences as Philosophy and Economics. Great importance is also attached to educating students in the spirit of civic responsibility, to their acquiring organizational skills and the ability to perform social duties, as well as cultivating an interest in teamwork when dealing with co-workers.
In the first years of learning, there are set subjects for one’s specialty; in the latter years a certain amount of freedom in the choice of subjects is allowed, some of which are optional.
The work-load of a student, including his individual out-of-class work, is planned to take up approximately 50-55 hours a week. During the period of learning, every student must pass 35-40 term examinations not counting the written and oral tests. In the last stages of learning, special significance is attached to the students developing their creative abilities and skills in their chosen specialty. This stage culminates in preparing and publicly presenting (“defending”) a diploma paper (thesis, dissertation).
It is well-known that higher education must be closely connected with the development of science and advanced methods of production. This means that research and work in the actual production must be an integral part of the process of instruction, especially for undergraduates, while for post-graduates it is the chief form of activity.
In the last analysis all education is self-education. With an interest response by the learner to what is presented by teacher or book, with the will to learn and curiosity to solve the problems that confront one who would become educated, one may find mastery of any subject an interesting adventure.
The average learner often fails to make the right start. Time was not so long ago, that education was assumed to consist of memorizing a textbook. If that were a whole story, all that would be required would be to spread before the learner a series of facts, figures, rules, and formulas. Memorize this and one might be considered a learned person.
Such an education neglects to train the thinking facilities or to prepare the learner to utilize in any practical way what he has acquired. It would be well, then, before he enters upon the study of any one subject, for the learner to take a serious interest in how he should conduct this study. In other words, he should first learn the simple fundamentals of teaching.
(Webster’s New American Dictionary)
GIFT-GIVING
There are different customs of giving gifts around the world. There are, of course, individual preferences in what gifts you give and receive, but many gift-giving customs, such as when you give a gift, how you give it or when you open it, are based on broader cultural traditions. Once again, you may never be able to learn all the different customs, but it’s worth being aware that there may be differences, and being ready to ask what they might be.
On which of these occasions do you give gifts?
New Year, Christmas, someone’s birthday, mid-summer, mid-winter, a dinner party, a cocktail party, a house-warming party, a wedding, a name day, a funeral.
A Chinese student speaks:
Some gifts may not be appropriate in certain cultures. A bottle of perfume might be seen as a gift which indicates romance in certain cultures. It may be inappropriate for a man to offer any gift to a woman, even if she is the wife of a business associate. Wine and whisky are unacceptable gifts in Muslim countries. In China a clock suggests the passing of time, and death, and a handkerchief is a symbol of sadness. Monet may be very appropriate to, the bride at a Greek wedding, where the guests pin banknotes onto her dress, but not at a British wedding. A pair of scissors indicates the cutting of a relationship in Japan. Underwear in most countries is usually too intimate as a gift unless it’s for someone you know well.
It’s polite to bring a small gift of fruit, candy, or cakes when visiting friends. You should say that the candy is for the children. This is done to show that you do not assume that the person receiving the gift is greedy. We always bring the even number: this is a sign of a happiness and good luck. The host may return some of your gift, so if you bring a bag of oranges, he or she may give two of them back to you as you leave. This is to return some of the good luck.
We accept a gift by saying in at least three ways, “Oh, no, you shouldn’t…no need,” so as not to appear greedy. The person giving the gift should not be surprised by this and think that the gift is not appreciated. You need only say, ”I’m pleased that you accept it”.
It’s bad manners to open a gift in front of the person giving it. We aren’t offended if it is put aside until after we have left.
Some things carry bad luck. We avoid the following when buying gifts:
Straw sandals – they are worn at funerals.
Clocks – the Cantonese word for clock can also mean “go to funeral”.
Colors – white, blue, or black are associated with funerals. Red, pink, and yellow are
joyful colors; they are associated with good luck, wealth and protection from evil.
Sharp objects, such as knives and scissors – these symbolize the cutting off of a
friendship.
Handecherchifs – we consider these a sign of sadness.
“Hong bao” is a gift of money in a red packet to bring good luck. Parents and grandparents usually give “hong bao” to their children at the New Year, or to the bride and groom at a wedding. We give an even amount of money, using an even number of new banknotes, as this brings good luck. It’s also usual to give “hong bao” to employees.
A List of Do’s and Don’t s
Sit facing the table, don’t sit sideways. Keep your feet under the table, don’t stretch them all the way.
After stirring your tea remove the spoon and place it on the saucer.
Don’t use the spoon for what can be eaten with a fork.
When eating stewed fruit use your spoon to put the stones on your saucer.
Don’t put your knife into your mouth.
Vegetables, potatoes, macaroni are placed on your fork with the help of your knife.
Cut your meat into small pieces that can be chewed with ease. Cut off one piece at a time.
If your food is too hot don’t blow on it as though you were trying to start a campfire on a damp night.
Your spoon, knife and fork are meant to eat with, they are not drumsticks and should not be banged against your plate.
Try to make as little noise as possible when eating.
Don’t sip your soup as though you wanted the whole house to hear.
Don’t shovel food into your mouth. Take small pieces.
Don’t talk with your mouth full. First chew and then swallow.
Don’t put your elbows on the table while eating.
Don’t pick your teeth in company after the meal even if tooth-picks are provided for the purpose.
And, finally, don’t forget to say “thank you” for every favor or kindness.
Read the situations below and decide if an apology is necessary. If so, who should apology?
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