Today some young people think that having a good education is very important. Do you agree with them?

Does your school have any traditions?

Of course, our school has a lot of traditions and they are mostly connected with different holidays.

The school year starts on the 1^st of September with the school gathering in front of the school. All pupils come together after their long summer holidays and they are so excited and happy to belong to the school community. Then pupils organize concerts and celebrations on Teacher’s Day, on the 8^th of March and Mother’s Day. There is a good tradition to congratulate war veterans on Victory Day and take part in town celebrations.

The most remarkable day for school-leavers is the day of the last bell. The school-leavers are so nervous and so happy, their parting words are so touching and sincere.

Certainly, there are some other traditions in our school, but my speech about them may be very long, that’s why I’d rather stop here.

Ask me what problems I had when I was a student.

1. What problems did you have when you were at school?

2. Did you have much homework?

3. Did you go to school or did you walk there?

4. Did you argue with your teachers?

5. What did you dislike about your school?

You are talking with a British student. What would you advise him/her to do to prepare for an exam well?

As you know, for many students the run-up to important exams is a stressful time. Now I want to advise you what to do to prepare for exams well. Revising for exams can be really tiring. It really wouldn’t help if you stayed up late studying, because you would be tired the next day to do your best. So you need at least eight hours a night to feel really awake the next day.

Secondly, the best way to stay on top of the things is not to worry too much and to take time off from revision. Further, I want to say that some pupils get very stressed about exams a long time before they happen. So, don’t waste a lot of valuable revision time worrying about everything. Don’t believe in last-minute revision. Finally, concentrate for a limited time, so stop every hour for 10 minutes during your revision for exams. You may go for a walk to clear your head. Follow my advice and I think you’ll cope with your exams.

Today some young people think that having a good education is very important. Do you agree with them?

I fully agree with the people who think that having a good education is very important. Of course, higher education is not compulsory, but I strongly feel that going to university is very important to everybody. In my opinion, higher education gives great opportunities and opens all doors. Only an educated person can get a good job and be promoted . Nowadays perfect knowledge is demanded. Education helps develop skills and provides mental, moral and aesthetic development. Personally, I prefer communicating with intelligent people who know a lot of interesting facts and who can share their ideas with me.

CARD № 6

1. Let’s talk about studying at school. What can you tell me about your school?

I think I can make a long speech about my school. I have been going to one and the same school for

11 years. I started schooling when I was 6 and now I’m a school-leaver. I go to school №21 in Orsha.

My school is one of those ordinary schools that you would see in quite a number of small towns. I

mean the building first of all. The school is a three-storied building made of red and white brick. It’s

rather attractive outside. My school was built 20 years ago, in 1993.

So, I’ll take you around the school. On the ground floor there is a library, which is a pride of our

school, workshops, cloakrooms, a cinema hall and a dining room. I think that the dining room is the

most popular place in our school as some pupils run to it after every lesson. The headmaster’s room,

the deputy headmasters’ rooms, the teachers’ room, the medical room are also on the ground floor.

The first floor is for junior pupils mostly. There’s so much noise there. The gymnasium is on the

first floor too. It is large and tidy and the pupils are always welcome at the lessons and after classes

there. There are classes for studying chemistry, biology and Belarusian on the first floor.

The second floor is all occupied by classes for studying different subjects: Maths, Russian,

English, Physics, IT, Arts, Geography and Belarusian. All the classes are light and cozy. They have a

lot of flowers and equipped with books and necessary materials.

Unfortunately, our school is not properly designed for social activities. There’s no music room or

dancing hall. Parties and official gatherings are geld in the gymnasium or in the cinema hall.

Certainly, the gym is not designed for such things. There is one more thing I don’t like about my

school. I mean long and dark corridors. Of course, we decorate our school for special occasions to

make it look more pleasant.

In the end I’d like to say that school is not only classes. Our school provides high quality

education, so that all our pupils have the opportunity to achieve their potential. School has been a

comfortable place to study and enjoy life. I have good friends there. Our kind-hearted and patient

teachers not only give us deep knowledge in various subjects, but they also teach us to understand

what is good and what is bad, to treat each other carefully. I think I will be thankful to my teachers

for their work. But that’s already another story.

1. Do you agree that our school gives a person a good start in life? Why(not)?

I think, I do. And I’ll try to explain why. My school does not only provide a good education, but the teachers do their best to create a community spirit and encourage us to socialize all together between the years.

I want to start that during the years of study I learned many useful and interesting things. Our teachers gave us deep knowledge in all subjects. It was interesting for me to study because I learned a lot about my Fatherland, I broaden my outlook and get life experience. Besides, teachers also taught us to treat each other carefully, to love our Motherland. School also taught us to be good friends, treat our teachers, parents and grandparents kindly, attentively, with loving care and politeness. School taught us to set certain goals and do our best to achieve them. School helped to change my bad habits and improve my character, to differ what is good and what is bad.

I hope that in the future I’ll become a good citizen, a devoted friend, a loving son (daughter) and a qualified specialist.

1. Ask me whether I liked school when I was a pupil.
1. Did you like school when you were a pupil?
2. What were your favourite subjects?
3. What did you do during breaks?
4. Did you enjoy school lunches?
5. Did you take part in your school activities?
6. How often did you organize your school parties?
7. What social activities did you take part in?
2. What ideas from Belarusian school can you advise a teacher from Great Britain to use in British school?

Oh, it’s a difficult question. The fact is that I like the system of education of Great Britain. I like the way the pupils study at the comprehensive school. You know, they don’t have to study all the subjects in the 6^th form. There is a broad range of subjects to choose from when they sit for a national exam called “A” level exam at 18. Pupils need “A” level to enter a university and they don’t take central testing as we do in our country. What I don’t like in the British system of education is its undemocratic character. Only children of rich parents study in public schools and get a high-standard education. One more thing I would advise to change is the age of pupils going to primary school. To my mind five-year-old kids are too small for attending school.

1. Today some young people think that having a good education is not very important. Do you agree with them?

It’s true that some young people think that having a good education is not very important . Some of my friends say that they do not want to go to university and they would better get a well-paid job soon after leaving school. They consider it will give them an opportunity to get work experience and some useful skills. But I doubt that they will be offered a really good job and that they will be able to succeed without higher education.

Card №7

1. Let’s talk about school traditions. What traditions do you have at your school?

You know that a school year is nine months long and it is full of events. Many of them have become traditions because they happen every year on the same dates. Some traditions are similar in all Belarusian schools, some are unique.

The school year starts on the 1^st of September. This day is special for all school children, their teachers and parents. The day starts with the school gathering when all classes and teachers stand in front of the school and listen to welcoming speeches of their teachers, schoolmates, parents and guests. Pupils look really nice in their new school uniforms. Everyone is excited to see their school friends and teachers after long summer holidays. After the school gathering teachers take their classes to their classrooms for the first lesson. When the lesson is over pupils may have a class event – a walk to the park or a museum, or a class trip.

It has become a tradition in our school to celebrate a special Belarusian holiday called Dozhinky. We organize an autumn fair which is opened by pupils in national costumes. Pupils sing Belarusian songs and invite us to the fair.

Then comes October and of course Teacher’s Day comes with it. Pupils organize a concert with songs and dances for teachers in the assembly hall. The pupils are excited and give special cards and flowers to their teachers. We also mark Mother’s Day and invite our mothers and grandmothers to the concert where the children sing touching songs and recite poems devoted to our beloved mothers.

In December we celebrate Christmas and New Year. Pupils decorate their classes with small fir-trees and beautiful hand-made decorations. Parties are organized in every class.

On the first Saturday of February senior pupils prepare for reunion day when our former pupils come to school to meet their teachers. On the 23^rd of February we greet war veterans, men-teachers and boys. We give flowers and cards to the veterans and small souvenirs to our boys.

March is devoted to women. Pupils organize a concert and congratulate women-teachers on Women’s Day. Boys give small presents to their girl-classmates. The day is full of excitement, joy and happiness.

April is dedicated to ecology and Earth. We usually make wall-newspapers, collect old paper and take part in Subbotniks and other town events.

And now we come up to May. May is full of events. We take part in Victory Day celebrations and of course we all prepare for long-awaited the Last Bell Day devoted to the end of the school year.

As you can see our school life is rich in different activities and events many of which have become traditions.

1. Does your school differ from any other school you know?

As for my school, it doesn’t differ from any other one I know. All schoolchildren start going to the first form at the age of 6 or 7 and finish secondary school at the age of 17 or 18. All the subjects are compulsory nine-year education is compulsory in all schools of the Republic of Belarus.

1. Ask me about my school life.

1. When did you finish school?

2. What subjects did you study?

3. What were your favourite subjects?

4. Did you have favourite teachers?

5. Did you like to take part in extra-class activities?

6. I think your were a diligent pupil, were not you?

1. What can you advise a student who is not very good at languages to do to achieve better results?

In my opinion, everybody faces problems at some period of life. But you shouldn’t loose heart.

Ask someone who knows the language well for help. You may address your teacher or take up a

language course or attend optional classes at school. There are also a lot of on-line courses for

pupils and adults. Don’t forget to listen to English songs, watch films in English and read books and

magazines. It’s a good idea to find a virtual friend whose native language is English and chat with

him/her. You’d better learn rules and words and practice grammar and vocabulary. I’m sure if you

follow my advice you will brush up your language.

1. Nowadays some young people complain that they have lots of problems at school. Do you agree with them?

To some degree, yes. Some pupils have many problems at school. To start with, our teachers give us so much homework that some of us have to do it almost till midnight. So in the morning we often oversleep and come to school late. Secondly, some pupils have difficulties with some subjects, such as Physics, Chemistry, English and others. And they always feel uncomfortable at these lessons. Thirdly, we are often disappointed with our marks. One more problem is that some pupils are calm and shy at school. They feel hopeless and helpless as they can’t fit in with their classmates and they are often bullied.

I think there are some other smaller problems, but I’m sure all these problems can be easily solved if pupils do their best to change themselves and their attitude to studies.