Unit 1 English for teachers of science Task 1 Credit requirements Ask about the missing information: 1. You can be absent …………… times. 2. In this course you get credits for ……………. . 3. You need to submit ………………… . 4. We will deal with …………….. topics in this course. 5. The credit test takes place …………………… Task 2 In small groups design a mind map of pedagogy/ educational science. Task 3 Vocabulary I. Complete the sentences with one of these verbs in the correct form. skip attend revise resit do apply get study fail pass pay a) I hated maths at school. I didn´t do any of the homework, never …………… attention to the teacher and ……………….. classes whenever I could. Of course, the first time round I ………… my exams and had to ………… them the following year. The second time round I ……………, which I was really pleased about. It really boosted my confidence and I decided to …………. to one of the better universities. To my amazement, I got in and I´m there now – studying maths! b) Marc´s a very bright student. He always …………….. very well when he was at school. I´m sure he´ll ………… a good degree, even though he doesn´t …………… hard. Of course, he hardly ever ………….. lectures or ………… the things we´ve done. I sometimes resent the fact he´s so clever! What sort of student are you? What are the good and bad things about your studies? II. What is the one word all these expressions collocate with? intensive – introductory – intermediate – advanced – refresher – do – take – enrol on – sign up for – withdraw from – drop out of – complete – pass – fail Task 4 Idioms Can you spot idioms about learning in the sentences below? Can you guess their meaning? a) "I got very drunk once and was really sick. I won't do it again, I learnt my lesson." b) "I learnt all the vocabulary off by heart." c) "She's new here and is still learning the ropes." d) "He could never learn how to use the Internet. Just shows you can't teach an old dog new tricks." e) "She got into the university of her choice, because she passed all her exams with flying colours." f) “Other countries could teach us a lesson or two on educational policy.” g) "I studied at the University of Life." h) "I never knew that she was married. Oh well, you live and learn." i) “A new computer simulator teaches drivers how to handle a skid before they end up learning the hard way.” (For more, go to http://www.english-at-home.com/vocabulary/english-studying-vocabulary) Task 5 Listening – Being a non-native speaker of English Glossary Geordie – a way of speaking in the area around Newcastle, in the north-east of England RP – Received Pronunciation - the standard way in which middle-class speakers of southern British English pronounce words You´re going to listen to two people talking about their experience of being non-native speakers of English. What four questions do they answer? 1. __________________________________ ? 2. __________________________________ ? 3. __________________________________ ? 4. __________________________________ ? Listen again and mark the sentences below W (woman), M (man) or B (both). 1. They find some native speakers easier to understand than others. ___ 2. They feel comfortable about being corrected. ___ 3. They usually get what non-native speakers say because there is no hidden meaning. ___ 4. They think that native speakers don´t spell as well as some non-native speakers. ___ 5. They could have had an awkward conversation but, thankfully, it never occurred. ___ 6. They notice a gap in their knowledge of English. ___ Can you guess the meaning of these expressions/ phrases from the listening? As far as content is concerned… Some dialects are harder to decipher… They don´t use obscure cultural references… It never occurred to me that she may be talking about… I´m annoyed with myself when I make a recurring mistake… He insisted that it was spelt with single ´m´. I have to switch back to Hungarian. It would have been very embarrassing for me… Task 6 Vocabulary – Collocations 1. You have to say / speak / talk a number of languages to be a flight attendant. 2. The speaker went too fast, so it was impossible to pass for / pick up / take in all the information. 3. Bear in mind that children don´t always say / talk / tell the truth. 4. Did you manage to brush up / get by / pick up any Portuguese while you were in Lisbon? 5. Sorry, I didn´t get that. Can you say / speak / tell it again, please? 6. How will you pick up / get by / pass for in Kyoto if you don´t speak any Japanese? 7. He wants to have a few days off, so he needs to say / talk / tell to his boss. 8. She needs to brush up / pick up / take in her French before she takes up her new job in Paris. 9. The researchers found that 62% of those who learned Swedish between the ages of 1 and 11 took in / picked up / passed for native speakers with most of the judges. (Tasks 3,4 adapted from Oxenden, C. (2010). New English File Advanced Workbook. OXU.)