Thy Kien IFIGHT Lean Vocabulary Vol 1 E

Thầy Kiên iFIGHT – Lean Vocabulary Vol.
1 - Education
Lời nói đầu:
Từ vựng là phần chủ yếu cản trở bạn đến với điểm số IELTS mong muốn. Đa phần các
cuốn sách về vocabulary hiện tại dành cho IELTS chỉ list ra những từ “học thuật” theo chủ
đề, ít ví dụ về cách dùng, ít hoặc không có các từ đồng nghĩa với những từ vựng học thuật
đó. Phần thiếu sót có lẽ lớn nhất của các cuốn sách từ vựng hiện tại là “collocations” và
topic vocabulary, đây là các cụm từ hay đi cùng nhau và dùng đặc biệt trong cách topic
nhất định.
Việc thiếu từ đồng nghĩa sẽ làm bạn đọc hiểu rất khó vì từ vựng dùng trong bài đọc
thường được paraphrase ở trong câu hỏi để kiểm tra được độ rộng và mức độ hiểu của
người học.
Ngoài ra việc thiếu collocations sẽ làm bạn diễn đạt vô cùng khó khăn và thiếu tự nhiên
khi viết hoặc nói. Nhưng từ trình độ <8.0 thì lại khó nhận ra những collocations nào nên
học. Do đó cuốn sách này, mình đã trực tiếp highlight tất cả các collocations hay, hay gặp
và có giá trị dùng lại rất nhiều trong quá trình nói và viết của các bạn. Sau khi học xong 6
cuốn trong bộ “LEAN VOCABULARY”, chắc chắn bạn sẽ nhận biết được một lượng
collocations đủ lớn để có thể nghe hiểu, đọc hiểu tốt và nhất là dùng được tốt khi nói và
viết.
Để học tốt cuốn sách:

Bước 1: Chọn 1 bài đọc bất kì, tập trung đọc hiểu và xem phần “synonym – từ đồng
nghĩa” của các từ được in đậm, đây là các từ ảnh hưởng trực tiếp đến mức độ hiểu của bạn
khi đọc 1 câu văn.
Bước 2: Đọc lại thật kĩ và chú ý các “cụm từ được gạch chân” – đây là các collocations
hay dùng.
Bước 3: Chọn 3-5 cụm THẬT SỰ ẤN TƯỢNG và luyện nói hoặc viết bằng cách đặt câu
hoàn chỉnh. Các câu đặt cần đảm bảo: Là câu đơn và ít bị thay đổi so với câu gốc nhất, có
liên quan đến bản thân nhất. (Nên có bút highlight để lưu lại những cụm đó)
Bước 4: Đọc lại 1 lần vào ngày hôm sau trước khi học bài mới.
(Sách có 210 bài đọc chia thành 6 chủ đề lớn: Technology (30), Health & Sports (30),
Environment (45), Education (45), Business & Economy (45), Science (45), nên với các
bạn còn thời gian (6 tháng), hãy chọn chủ đề mình yếu từ vựng nhất, hoặc từ cuốn dễ nhất:
Education  Business  Health  Evironment  Tech  Science - học ít nhất 1 bài 1
ngày và ít nhất 30 bài, học thật sâu và đọc hiểu. Với các bạn còn 3 tháng thì có thể học 1
ngày 3 bài, nhưng nên chia ra 3 lần học, không nên học 1 lúc 2 bài)
Không cần làm đề nhiều. Chỉ cần 1 tháng làm 1 đề để kiểm tra lại khả năng tiếng Anh. Sẽ
có những collocations các bạn thấy có highlight nhưng không hiểu, khi đó hãy đánh dấu
nháy nháy và cụm đó lên google: “…………” thì sẽ có ví dụ và giải nghĩa của nó.
2
Thầy Kiên cùng team làm sách của IELTS – iFIGHT chúc bạn thành công.
Thầy Kiên iFIGHT – Lean Vocabulary Vol.1 - Education
Lời cảm ơn:

Công sức của các bạn sẽ giúp nhiều, rất nhiều các bạn khác đạt được mục tiêu.
Nguyễn Đình Hạnh – Khóa 9 - UNETI
Hoàn thành highlight từ vựng học thuật, giải thích và synonym
cho hơn 45 bài đọc cho Vol.4 - Environment của bộ LEAN
VOCABULARY.
Nguyễn Thu Loan: K58 – NEU (bạn thứ 2 bên trái sang nhé
:P )
Hoàn thành highlight từ vựng học thuật, giải thích và
synonym cho 30 bài đọc cho Vol.1 - Education - của bộ LEAN
VOCABULARY.
Hoàng Phương Linh: Du học sinh Úc

Hoàn thành highlight từ vựng học thuật, giải thích và synonym
cho hơn 45 bài đọc cho Vol.6 - Science - của bộ LEAN
VOCABULARY
Vũ Thị Ba: K57 - FTU

Hoàn thành highlight từ vựng học thuật, giải thích và synonym cho 30
bài đọc cho Vol.3 – Sports and Health - của bộ LEAN VOCABULARY
Nguyễn Thu Phương: K60 - NEU

Hoàn thành highlight từ vựng học thuật, giải thích và synonym cho
hơn 30 bài đọc cho Vol.2 – Business & Economy của bộ LEAN
VOCABULARY
3
Lời nói đầu: ............................................................................................................................ 1

Lời cảm ơn: ............................................................................................................................ 3
Reading 1: STUDY CENTRE COURSES ........................................................................... 6
Reading 2: PRIVATE SCHOOLS ........................................................................................ 8
Reading 3: Do literate women make better mothers? .............................................. 11
Reading 4: Activities for Children................................................................................... 15
Reading 5: Children’s Literature ..................................................................................... 18
Reading 6: Gifted children and learning ...................................................................... 21
Reading 7: The Nature of Genius .................................................................................... 24
Reading 8: Children Tested to Destruction? ................................................................ 28
Reading 9: Nurturing talent within the family........................................................... 31
Reading 10:What’s the purpose of gaining knowledge? ............................................ 35
Reading 11:Communicating Styles and Conflict ......................................................... 38
Reading 12:The Benefits of Being Bilingual ................................................................. 42
Reading 13:Early Childhood Education ......................................................................... 46
Reading 14:Persistent bullying is one of the worst experiences a child can face 50
Reading 15:What is speed reading, and why do we need it? ................................. 54
Reading 16:Learning by Examples ................................................................................. 57
Reading 17:LAND OF THE RISING SUN ....................................................................... 60
Reading 18:Greying population stays in the pink ...................................................... 64
Reading 19:Twist in the Tale ........................................................................................... 68
Reading 20:Learning color words ................................................................................... 71
Reading 21:Should a university teach a killer? ........................................................... 75
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Reading 22:'Rewards don't improve school attendance' .......................................... 79
Reading 23:Where do teachers get the most respect? .............................................. 83
Reading 24:Do schools help or hinder social mobility?.............................................. 85
Reading 25:The MIT factor: ............................................................................................. 90
Reading 26:celebrating 150 years of maverick genius ............................................. 90
Reading 27:Language diversity........................................................................................ 94
Reading 28:Overcoming the language barrier ............................................................. 98
Reading 29:SAVING LANGUAGE .................................................................................. 101
Reading 30:The meaning of volunteering ................................................................... 105
Listening Section ........................................................................................................... 109
Keywords......................................................................................................................... 134
Common words/expressions & alternatives:........................................................................ 143
Subtopics ............................................................................................................................ 146
Examples ............................................................................................................................ 153
5
STUDY CENTRE COURSES
A
However difficult you find it to arrange your
time, it will pay off in the long run if you set aside allocation /,ælə'kei∫n/ : the act or process of giving
a certain part of the day for studying - and stick out parts of a whole
to it. It is best to make a weekly allocation of synonyms: allotment, assignment, distribution,
your time, making sure that you have enough apportionment
left for recreational activities or simply to be
recreational activity /rekri'ei∫ənl æk'tiviti/: things
'with' yourself: reading a novel or watching a
people do for fun and enjoyment
television programme. synonyms: recreational facilities, recreational
interests, recreation, pastime
B
As part of your weekly schedule, it is also tackle /ˈtak(ə)l/: make determined efforts to deal with
advisable to consider exactly what you have to (a problem or difficult task).
do in that week, and make sure that you tackle
the most significant tasks first, leaving the synonyms: address, deal with, take care of,
easier or less urgent areas of your work until handle, manage
later.
significant /sɪɡˈnɪfɪk(ə)nt/: sufficiently great or
C important to be worthy of attention; noteworthy.
On a physical level, make sure that you have
an area or space for studying. Don't do it just synonyms: notable, remarkable, important,
anywhere. If you always study in the same of importance, serious, crucial,
extraordinary, exceptional, special
place, preferably a room of your own, you will
find it easier to adjust mentally to the activity
when you enter that area. You should have urgent /ˈəːdʒ(ə)nt/: Requiring immediate action or
everything that you might need at hand. attention.
D synonyms: acute, grave, pressing, serious,

Make sure that all the physical equipment that intense
you use, such as a desk, chair etc. is at a good
height for you. If you use a personal computer,
there are plenty of guidelines available from the
government on posture, angles, lighting and
the like. Consult these and avoid the typical
student aches and pains.
6
E
If you are doing a long essay or research paper
which involves the use of library books or other
articles, it helps to keep details of the titles and
authors on small cards in a card box. It is also
a good idea to log these alphabetically so that
you can find them easily - rather like keeping
telephone numbers. It's all too easy to read
something and then forget where it came from.
F
Make use of equipment that is available to you.
If you find a useful article in the library, it is best
to make a copy of the relevant pages before
you leave. Then, when you get back to your
study, you can mark the article and make any
comments that you have in the margin.
G
If you are working on a topic your teacher has
set, but finding it hard to concentrate, it may be
that you actually need to take your mind right
off it for a period of time. 'Airing the mind' can
work wonders sometimes. After a period away
from the task, having not thought about it at all,
you may return to it refreshed and full of ideas.
H
Similarly, it may help to discuss a topic with
disorganised /dɪsˈɔːɡənʌɪzd/: Not properly planned
other people, especially if you feel that you
and controlled
have insufficient ideas, or too many
disorganised ideas. Bring your topic up in synonyms: disorderly, disordered, confused,
conversations at meal times or with other unorganized, mixed up, muddled, messy
students and see what they have to say. You
don't want to copy their ideas but listening to
what they think about something may well help refine /rɪˈfʌɪn/: improve an idea, method,
you develop or refine your own thoughts.
system, etc. by making small changes
synonyms: improve, perfect, polish (up), hone,
fine-tune, edit
7
PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Most countries’ education systems have had disaster /dəˈzastər/: a sudden event, such as an
what you might call educational disasters, but, accident or a natural catastrophe, that causes
sadly, in many areas of certain countries these great damage or loss of life.
‘disasters’ are still evident today. The English
synonyms: catastrophe, calamity, cataclysm, tragedy,
education system is unique due to the fact that
accident
there are still dozens of schools which are
evident /ˈevədənt/: plain or obvious; clearly seen
known as private schools and they perpetuate
or understood.
privilege and social division. Most countries
have some private schools for the children of the synonyms: obvious, apparent, noticeable, visible,
wealthy; England is able to more than triple the clear
average number globally. England has around
3,000 private schools and just under half a unique /ju:'ni:k/: being the only one of its kind;
million children are educated at them whilst
some nine million children are educated at unlike anything else.
synonyms: distinct, individual, special,
state schools. The overwhelming majority of
solitary, exclusive
students at private schools also come from
middle-class families.
privilege /'privəlidʒ/ a special right, advantage, or
The result of this system is evident and it has
much English history embedded within it. The immunity granted or available only to a particular
facts seem to speak for themselves. In the person or group of people.
private system almost half the students go on to synonyms: advantage, benefit
University, whilst in the state system only about
eight per cent make it to further education.
8
However, statistics such as these can be
Wealthy /'welθi/: having a great deal of money,
deceptive due to the fact that middle-class
children do better at examinations than working resources, or assets; rich.
class ones, and most of them stay on at school synonyms: rich, well off, loaded, flush
after 16. Private schools therefore have the
advantage over state schools as they are
deceptive /di'septiv/: giving an appearance or
entirely ‘middle class’, and this creates an impression different from the true one; misleading.
environment of success where students work synonyms: Misleading, specious; ambiguous
harder and apply themselves more diligently to
their school work.
diligently /'dilidʒəntli/: in a way that shows care
Private schools are extortionately expensive,
and conscientiousness in one's work or duties.
being as much as £18,000 a year at
somewhere such as Harrow or Eton, where
Princes William and Harry attended, and at extortionately expensive /ik'stɔ:∫ənətli ik'spensiv/:
least £8,000 a year almost everywhere else. cost too much money
There are many parents who are not wealthy or synonyms: prohibitively expensive, pricey,
even comfortably off but are willing to sacrifice exorbitant, extravagant
a great deal in the cause of their children’s
schooling. It baffles many people as to why they comfortably off /ˈkʌmftəbli/: having
enough money to lead a good life
need to spend such vast amounts when there
are perfectly acceptable state schools that don’t
cost a penny. One father gave his reasoning for sacrifice /ˈsakrɪfʌɪs/: Give up (something valued)
sending his son to a private school, ‘If my son for the sake of other considerations.
gets a five-percent-better chance of going to
University then that may be the difference baffle /'bæfl/: to cause someone to
be completely unable to understand
between success and failure.” It would seem to
synonyms: puzzle, mystify, confuse, muddy
the average person that a £50,000 minimum
total cost of second level education is a lot to pay
for a five-percent-better chance. Most children, posh /pɒʃ/: expensive and of high quality
given the choice, would take the money and
spend it on more enjoyable things rather than synonyms: fancy, fashionable, luxurious,
deluxe, exclusive, lavish, upscale,
shelling it out on a school that is too posh for its
upmarket
own good.
However, some say that the real reason that
fork out /fɔːrk aʊt/: to pay an amount of
parents fork out the cash is prejudice: they money, especially unwillingly
don’t want their little kids mixing with the synonyms: pay money, lay smth out
“workers”, or picking up an undesirable accent.
In addition to this, it wouldn’t do if at the next din- prejudice /'predʒʊdis/: preconceived opinion that
ner party all the guests were boasting about is not based on reason or actual experience
sending their kids to the same place where the synonyms: preconception, prejudgment
son of the third cousin of Prince Charles is going,
and you say your kid is going to the state school boasting /boʊst/: talk with excessive pride and
down the road, even if you could pocket the self-satisfaction about one's achievements,
money for yourself instead, and, as a result, be possessions, or abilities.
able to serve the best Champagne with the
synonyms: show off; exaggerate
smoked salmon and duck.
It is a fact, however, that at many of the best
private schools, your money buys you
9
something. One school, with 500 pupils, has 11 pocket /ˈpɒkɪt/: take or receive (money or other
science laboratories; another school with 800 valuables) for oneself
pupils, has 30 music practice rooms; another
has 16 squash courts, and yet another has its
own beach. Private schools spend £300 per
pupil a year on investment in buildings and
facilities; the state system spends less than well-kept /ˌwel ˈkept/: kept clean, tidy, and in good
£50. On books, the ratio is 3 to 1. condition.
One of the things that your money buys which is synonyms: clean, tidy, neat, spotless
difficult to quantify is the appearance of the
school, the way it looks. Most private schools
that you will find are set in beautiful, well-kept
country houses, with extensive grounds and
gardens. In comparison with the state schools,
they tend to look like castles, with the worst of
the state schools looking like public lavatories,
perhaps even tiled or covered in graffiti. Many
may even have an architectural design that is
just about on the level of an industrial shed.
10
Do literate women make better mothers?
Children in developing countries are healthier

and more likely to survive past the age of five
when their mothers can read and write.
Experts in public health accepted this idea
decades ago, but until now no one has been
able to show that a woman's ability to read in
itself improves her children’s chances of
survival.
Most literate women learnt to read in primary
school, and the fact that a woman has had an
education may simply indicate her family’s
wealth or that it values its children more
highly. Now a long-term study carried out in eliminated /ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt/: completely remove or get
Nicaragua has eliminated these factors by rid of (something)
showing that teaching reading to poor adult
women, who would otherwise have remained synonyms: remove, get rid of, end, stop,
illiterate, has a direct effect on their children’s eradicate, destroy
health and survival.
In 1979, the government of Nicaragua
established a number of social programmes,
including a National Literacy Crusade. By
1985, about 300,000 illiterate adults from all
over the country, many of whom had never
attended primary school, had learnt how to
read, write and use numbers.
During this period, researchers from the
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, the
Central American Institute of Health in
Nicaragua, the National Autonomous
11
University of Nicaragua and the Costa Rican
Institute of Health Interviewed nearly 3,000
women, some of whom had learnt to read as
children, some during the literacy crusade and
some who had never learnt at all. The women
were asked how many children they had given nourished /ˈnʌrɪʃt/: provide (someone or
birth to and how many of them had died in something) with food and other things that are
infancy. The research teams also examined needed to live, be healthy, etc.
the surviving children to find out how well- synonyms: feed, provide for, sustain, maintain
nourished they were.
The investigators' findings were striking. In striking /ˈstrʌɪkɪŋ/: Attracting attention by reason
the late 1970s, the infant mortality rate for of being unusual, extreme, or prominent
the children of illiterate mothers was around
110 deaths per thousand live births. At this synonyms: noticeable, obvious, conspicuous,
point in their lives, those mothers who later evident, visible, distinct, prominent
went on to learn to read had a similar level of
child mortality (105/1000). For women
educated in primary school, however, the infant mortality rate: tỷ lệ tử vong ở trẻ nhỏ
infant mortality rate was significantly lower, at
80 per thousand.
In 1985, after the National Literacy Crusade
had ended, the infant mortality figures for
those who remained illiterate and for those
educated in primary school remained more or
less unchanged. For those women who learnt
to read through the campaign, the infant
mortality rate was 84 per thousand, an
impressive 21 points lower than for those
women who were still illiterate. The children of
the newly-literate mothers were also better
nourished than those of women who could not
read.
Why are the children of literate mothers better
off? According to Peter Sandiford of the
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, no one
Knows for certain. Child health was not on
the curriculum during the women’s lessons, so
fie /fai/: (exclamation ) used
fie and his colleagues are looking at
to express anger, disapproval, or disappointment
other factors. They are working with the same
group of 3,000 women, to try to find out
whether reading mothers make better use of
hospitals and clinics, opt for smaller families,
exert more control at home, learn modern exert /ig'zɜ:t/: to use (strength, ability, etc.)
childcare techniques more quickly, or whether
they merely have more respect for themselves
and their children.
The Nicaraguan study may have important
implications for governments and aid agencies
12
that need to know where to direct their
resources. Sandiford says that there is
increasing evidence that female education, at
any age, is "an important health intervention in
its own right’. The results of the study lend
support to the World Bank's recommendation
that education budgets in developing
countries should be increased, not just to help
their economies, but also to improve child budget /ˈbʌdʒɪt/: the amount of money you
health. have available to spend
'We’ve known for a long time that maternal synonyms: allowance, allocation, funds,
education is important,’ says John Cleland of resources, capital
the London School of Hygiene and Tropical
Medicine. ‘But we thought that even if we
started educating girls today, we'd have to wait
a generation for the pay off. The Nicaraguan bypass /ˈbʌɪpɑːs/: to avoid or ignore (someone or
study suggests we may be able to bypass something), especially to get something done
that.' quicker
Cleland warns that the Nicaraguan crusade synonyms: avoid, evade, dodge, escape, elude
was special in many ways, and similar
campaigns elsewhere might not work as well.
It is notoriously difficult to teach adults skills notoriously /nəʊˈtɔːrɪəsli/: in a way that
that do not have an immediate impact on their is famous for something bad
everyday lives, and many literacy campaigns
in other countries have been much less
successful. 'The crusade was part of a larger
effort to bring a better life to the people,’ says
Cleland. Replicating these conditions in other
countries will be a major challenge for
development workers.
13
14
Activities for Children
A Twenty-five years ago, children in London

walked to school and played in parks and playing
fields after school and at the weekend. Today they
are usually driven to school by parents anxious
about safety and spend hours glued to television anxious /'æηk∫əs/: afraid or nervous especially about
screens or computer games. Meanwhile, what may happen
community playing fields are being sold off to
property developers at an alarming rate. ‘This synonyms: worried, concerned, nervous, worried sick
change in lifestyle has, sadly, meant greater
restrictions on children,’ says Neil Armstrong,
Professor of Health and Exercise Sciences at the
University of Exeter. ‘If children continue to be this storing up: to act in a way that will
inactive, they’ll be storing up big problems for the
make your problems much worse in the future
future.’
B In 1985, Professor Armstrong headed a five-
year research project into children’s fitness. The
results, published in 1990, were alarming. The
survey, which monitored 700 11-16-year-olds,
found that 48 per cent of girls and 41 per cent
of boys already exceeded safe cholesterol
levels set for children by the American Heart
Foundation. Armstrong adds, “heart is a muscle
and need exercise, or it loses its strength.” It also
found that 13 per cent of boys and 10 per cent
of girls were overweight. More disturbingly, the
survey found that over a four-day period, half the
girls and one-third of the boys did less exercise
than the equivalent of a brisk 10-minute walk. equivalent /i'kwivələnt/: equal in value, amount,
High levels of cholesterol, excess body fat and function, meaning, etc.
synonyms: equal, identical, same; similar
15
inactivity are believed to increase the risk of
coronary heart disease. brisk /brɪsk/: Active and energetic.
synonyms: quick, rapid, fast, swift, speedy
C Physical education is under pressure in the UK
– most schools devote little more than 100
minutes a week to it in curriculum time, which
is less than many other European countries. Three excess /ɪkˈsɛs/: An amount of something that is more
European countries are giving children a head than necessary, permitted, or desirable.
start in PE, France, Austria and Switzerland –
offer at least two hours in primary and synonyms: remainder, rest, residue; leftovers;
secondary schools. These findings, from the surplus, extra
European Union of Physical Education
Associations, prompted specialists in children’s coronary heart disease: bệnh mạch vành
physiology to call on European governments to
give youngsters a daily PE programme. The
survey shows that the UK ranks 13th out of the
25 countries, with Ireland bottom, averaging head start /ˌhɛd ˈstɑːt/: an advantage that you have or
under an hour a week for PE. From age six to get when you are starting to do something
18, British children received, on average, 106
minutes of PE a week. Professor Armstrong, who
presented the findings at the meeting, noted that
since the introduction of the national curriculum
there had been a marked fall in the time devoted
to PE in UK schools, with only a minority of pupils
getting two hours a week. advocate /'ædvəkeit/: publicly recommend or support.
synonyms: recommend, prescribe, advise,
D As a former junior football international, support, favor, endorse
Professor Armstrong is a passionate advocate for
sport. Although the Government has poured
millions into beefing up sport in the community, beef up /bif ʌp/: to make something stronger or
there is less commitment to it as part of the
crammed school curriculum. This means that more effective by adding more support
many children never acquire the necessary skills synonyms: toughen up, strengthen, build up,
to thrive in team games. If they are no good at reinforce, consolidate, improve
them, they lose interest and establish an inactive
pattern of behaviour. When this is coupled with a
poor diet, it will lead inevitably to weight gain. thrive /θraiv/: grow or develop well or vigorously.
Seventy per cent of British children give up all synonyms: flourish, prosper, burgeon,
sport when they leave school, compared with blossom, mushroom, succeed
only 20 per cent of French teenagers. Professor
Armstrong believes that there is far too great an
emphasis on team games at school. “We need to emphasis /ˈɛmfəsɪs/: Special importance, value, or
look at the time devoted to PE and balance it
between individual and pair activities, such as prominence given to something
aerobics and badminton, as well as team sports. synonyms: importance, significance, value,
“He added that children need to have the weight, attention, priority
opportunity to take part in a wide variety of
individual, partner and team sports.
E The good news, however, is that a few small outrageous /aʊt'reidʒəs/: very strange or unusual:
companies and children’s activity groups have surprising or shocking
reacted positively and creatively to the problem.
Take That, shouts Gloria Thomas, striking a disco
pose astride her mini-spacehopper. Take That,
echo a flock of toddlers, adopting outrageous
16
postures astride their space hoppers. ‘Michael spoof /ˈspuːf/: a funny and silly piece of
Jackson, she shouts, and they all do a spoof fan- writing, music, theatre, etc. that copies the style of
crazed shriek. During the wild and chaotic hopper an original work
race across the studio floor, commands like this
are issued and responded to with untrammelled
glee. The sight of 15 bouncing seven-year-olds
who seem about to launch into orbit at every shriek /∫ri:k/ :a high-pitched piercing cry or sound; a
bounce brings tears to the eyes. Uncoordinated, scream
loud, excited and emotional, children provide raw synonyms: scream, screech, squeal,
comedy. squawk, roar, howl, shout
F Any cardiovascular exercise is a good option, untrammeled/ʌn'træmld/: not limited by

and it doesn’t necessarily have to be high rules or any other controlling influence
intensity. It can be anything that gets your heart synonyms: independent, autonomy
rate up: such as walking the dog, swimming,
miming, skipping, hiking. “Even walking through
the grocery store can be exercise,” Samis-Smith launch into /lɑːntʃ/: suddenly begin doing or saying
said. What they don’t know is that they’re at a Fit (something) in an energetic way
Kids class, and that the fun is a disguise for the
serious exercise plan they’re covertly being taken synonyms: start, commence, burst into
through. Fit Kids trains parents to run fitness
classes for children. ‘Ninety per cent of children disguise /dɪsˈɡaɪz/: concealing the nature or
don’t like team sports,’ says company director, existence of (a feeling or situation)
Gillian Gale.
synonyms: conceal, hide, cover up, dissemble,
G A Prevention survey found that children whose
parents keep in shape are much more likely to dissimulation
have healthy body weights themselves. “There’s
nothing worse than telling a child what he needs
to do and not doing it yourself,” says Elizabeth covertly /ˈkəʊvəːtli/: Without being openly
Ward, R.D., a Boston nutritional consultant and acknowledged or displayed; secretly.
author of Healthy Foods, Healthy Kids. “Set a
good example and get your nutritional house in
order first.” In the 1930s and ’40s, kids expended
800 calories a day just walking, carrying water,
and doing other chores, notes Fima Lifshitz, M.D., obese /oʊˈbiːs/: extremely fat in a way that
a pediatric endocrinologist in Santa Barbara. isdangerous for health
“Now, kids in obese families are expending only
200 calories a day in physical activity,” says synonyms: fat, overweight, fleshy, heavy, portly,
Lifshitz, “incorporate more movement in your plump
family’s life, park farther away from the stores at
the mall, take stairs instead of the elevator, and
walk to nearby friends’ houses instead of driving.”
17
Children’s Literature
Stories and poems aimed at children have an

exceedingly long history: lullabies, for example, lullabies /'lʌləbai/: a quiet, gentle song sung to send
were sung in Roman times, and a few nursery a child to sleep.
games and rhymes are almost as ancient. Yet
so far as written-down literature is concerned,
while there were stories in print before 1700 that seize on /si:z/: to use, accept, or take advantage of
children often seized on when they had the something quickly or enthusiastically
chance, such as translations of Aesop’s fables, synonyms: take advantage of, make good use of,
fairy-stories and popular ballads and romances, cash into
these were not aimed at young people in
particular. Since the only genuinely child-
oriented literature at this time would have been
a few instructional works to help with reading
morality /mə'ræləti/: principles concerning the
and general knowledge, plus the odd Puritanical
distinction between right and wrong or good and bad
tract as an aid to morality, the only course for
behavior.
keen child readers was to read adult literature.
synonyms: ethics, rights and wrongs, ethicality
This still occurs today, especially with adult
thrillers or romances that include more exciting,
graphic detail than is normally found in the
literature for younger readers.
By the middle of the 18th century there were cater to /'keitə[r]/: provide what is wanted or needed
enough eager child readers, and enough synonyms: serve
parents glad to cater to this interest, for
publishers to specialize in children’s books
whose first aim was pleasure rather than
education or morality. In Britain, a London
merchant named Thomas Boreham produced
Cajanus, The Swedish Giant in 1742, while the
more famous John Newbery published A Little
Pretty Pocket Book in 1744.1ts contents—
rhymes, stories, children’s games plus a free gift anticipated /æn'tisipeitid/: to imagine or
(‘A ball and a pincushion’)—in many ways expect that something will happen
anticipated the similar lucky-dip contents of
18
children’s annuals this century. It is a tribute to synonyms: plan, expect, predict
Newbery’s flair that he hit upon a winning
formula quite so quickly, to be pirated almost a tribute to :
immediately in America. something showing the benefit or positive effect of
something else
Such pleasing levity was not to last. Influenced
by Rousseau, whose Emile(1762) decreed that lucky-dip: A game in which small prizes are
all books for children save Robinson Crusoe
concealed in a container and chosen at random by
were a dangerous diversion, contemporary
critics saw to it that children’s literature should participants. (bốc thăm may mắn)
be instructive and uplifting. Prominent among pirated /ˈpaɪr.ə.t̬ ɪd/: illegally copied and sold
such voices was Mrs. Sarah Trimmer, whose
magazine The Guardian of Education (1802) synonyms: poach, copy illegally, reproduce
carried the first regular reviews of children’s illegally
books. It was she who condemned fairy-tales
for their violence and general absurdity; her
own stories, Fabulous Histories (1786) levity /'levəti/: humour or lack of seriousness,
described talking animals who were always especially during a serious occasion
models of sense and decorum. synonyms: joke, josh, wit
So the moral story for children was always

threatened from within, given the way children instructive /ɪnˈstrʌk.tɪv/: giving useful or
have of drawing out entertainment from the
interesting information
sternest moralist. But the greatest blow to the
improving children’s book was to come from an synonyms: informative, instructional,
unlikely source indeed: early 19th century informational, explanatory
interest in folklore. Both nursery rhymes,
selected by James Orchard Halliwell for a
folklore society in 1842, and collection of fairy- Uplifting /ʌpˈlɪf.tɪŋ/: making someone feel
stories by the scholarly Grimm brothers, swiftly
translated into English in 1823, soon rocket to better
popularity with the young, quickly leading to new synonyms: cheer up, brighten up, inspiring
editions, each one more child-centered than the happiness
last. From now on younger children could expect
stories written for their particular interest and
with the needs of their own limited experience of condemned /kənˈdemd/: prove or show the guilt of.
life kept well to the fore.
synonyms: incriminate, implicate
What eventually determined the reading of older
children was often not the availability of special
children’s literature as such but access to books absurdity /əb'sɜ:diti/ : the quality or state of being
that contained characters, such as young people ridiculous or wildly unreasonable.
or animals, with whom they could more easily synonyms: ridiculousness, stupidity, foolishness,
empathize, or action, such as exploring or silliness, insanity
fighting, that made few demands on adult
maturity or understanding. decorum /di'kɔ:rəm/: behaviour that is
The final apotheosis of literary childhood as controlled, calm, and polite
something to be protected from unpleasant synonyms: Propriety, correctness; politeness,
reality came with the arrival in the late 1930s of courtesy
child-centered best-sellers intend on
entertainment at its most escapist. In Britain
novelist such as Enid Blyton and Richmal Stern /stərn/: strict and severe; using extreme
Crompton described children who were always
measures or terms
free to have the most unlikely adventures,
19
secure in the knowledge that nothing bad could synonyms: strict, severe, stringent, harsh, hard, tough, extreme
ever happen to them in the end. The fact that ruthless.
war broke out again during her books’ greatest
popularity fails to register at all in the self-
enclosed world inhabited by Enid Blyton’s young swiftly /'swiftli/: at high speed; quickly.
characters. Reaction against such dream- synonyms: fast, rapidly, quickly, speedily, hurriedly
worlds was inevitable after World War II,
coinciding with the growth of paperback sales, to the fore: in or into a place of importance
children’s libraries and a new spirit of moral and
social concern. Urged on by committed
publishers and progressive librarians, writers
slowly began to explore new areas of interest empathize /ˈɛmpəθʌɪz/: Understand and share the
while also shifting the settings of their plots from feelings of another.
the middle-class world to which their chiefly
adult patrons had always previously belonged. synonyms: sympathize with, be in sympathy
with, understand
Critical emphasis, during this development, has
been divided. For some the most important task
was to rid children’s books of the social maturity /məˈtʃʊərəti/: the state of being fully
prejudice and exclusiveness no longer found developed in the body or the mind
acceptable. Others concentrated more on the
synonyms: adulthood, full growth
positive achievements of contemporary
children’s literature. That writers of these works
are now often recommended to the attentions of inevitable /in'evitəbl/: certain to happen
adult as well as child readers echoes the 19th- synonyms: unavoidable, inescapable, certain,
century belief that children’s literature can be sure, fixed; destined, unpreventable
shared by the generations, rather than being a
defensive barrier between childhood and the
necessary growth towards adult understanding. paperback /ˈpeɪpəbak/: A book bound in stiff paper
or flexible card.
prejudice /'predʒʊdis/: preconceived opinion that is

not based on reason or actual experience
synonyms: preconception, prejudgment
defensive /dɪˈfɛnsɪv/: used to protect someone or

something against attack
synonyms: defending, protective
20
Gifted children and learning
A Internationally, ‘giftedness’ is most frequently

determined by a score on a general intelligence
test, known as an IQ test, which is above a
chosen cutoff point, usually at around the top cutoff /ˈkʌtɒf/: a fixed point or level at which
2-5%. Children’s educational environment something stops
contributes to the IQ score and the way
intelligence is used. For example, a very close
positive relationship was found when children’s
IQ scores were compared with their home
educational provision (Freeman, 2010). The
higher the children’s IQ scores, especially over
backup /ˈbæk.ʌp/: help or support.
IQ 130, the better the quality of their
educational backup, measured in terms of synonyms: help, support, assistance, aid
reported verbal interactions with parents,
number of books and activities in their home
etc. Because IQ tests are decidedly influenced manipulate /məˈnɪp.jə.leɪt/: to use or change
by what the child has learned, they are to some (numbers, information, etc.) in a skillful way or for
extent measures of current achievement based a particular purpose
on age-norms; that is, how well the children synonyms: manage, control, handle, use, utilize
have learned to manipulate their knowledge
and know-how within the terms of the test. The
vocabulary aspect, for example, is dependent know-how /ˈnəʊhaʊ/: Practical knowledge or skill;
on having heard those words. But IQ tests can expertise.
neither identify the processes of learning and
thinking nor predict creativity. synonyms: knowledge, expertise, skill, skillfulness
B Excellence does not emerge without
appropriate help. To reach an exceptionally
emerge / i'mɜ:dʒ/: move out of or away from
high standard in any area very able children
something and come into view.
need the means to learn, which includes
synonyms: come out, appear, become visible
material to work with and focused challenging
tuition -and the encouragement to follow their
dream. There appears to be a qualitative
21
difference in the way the intellectually highly regulation /regjʊ'lei∫n/: an official rule or
able think, compared with more average-ability the act of controlling something
or older pupils, for whom external regulation synonyms: rule, order, law, command
by the teacher often compensates for lack of
internal regulation. To be at their most effective
in their self-regulation, all children can be compensate for /'kɒmpenseit/: provide
helped to identify their own ways of learning – something good as a balance against something
metacognition – which will include strategies of bad or undesirable
planning, monitoring, evaluation, and choice of
what to learn. Emotional awareness is also part
of metacognition, so children should be helped
to be aware of their feelings around the area to
be learned, feelings of curiosity or confidence, curiosity /kjʊəri'ɒsəti/: a strong desire to know or
learn something.
for example.
synonyms: interest, spirit of inquiry, inquisitiveness
C High achievers have been found to use self-
regulatory learning strategies more often and
more effectively than lower achievers, and are
better able to transfer these strategies to deal
with unfamiliar tasks. This happens to such a
high degree in some children that they appear
to be demonstrating talent in particular areas.
Overviewing research on the thinking process
of highly able
children, (Shore and Kanevsky, 1993) put the succinctly /sək'siηktli/: in a way
instructor’s problem succinctly: ‘If they [the that expresses what needs to be said clearly and
gifted] merely think more quickly, then we need without unnecessary words
only teach more quickly. If they merely make synonyms: concise, short, brief, compact,
fewer errors, then we can shorten the practice’. condensed, crisp, to the point
But of course, this is not entirely the case;
adjustments have to be made in methods of
learning and teaching, to take account of the
many ways individuals think.
D Yet in order to learn by themselves, the gifted
do need some support from their teachers.
Conversely, teachers who have a tendency to
‘overdirect’ can diminish their gifted pupils’
learning autonomy. Although ‘spoon-feeding’
diminish /di'mini∫/: make or become less.
can produce extremely high examination
synonyms: decrease, lessen, decline, reduce,
results, these are not always followed by die down, abate
equally impressive life successes. Too much
dependence on the teachers risks loss of
autonomy and motivation to discover.
For a young child, it may be just the simple
question ‘What have you learned today?’ which
helps them to recognise what they are doing.
Given that a fundamental goal of education is
to transfer the control of learning from teachers
to pupils, improving pupils’ learning to learn
22
techniques should be a major outcome of the fundamental /fʌndə'mentl/: forming a necessary
school experience, especially for the highly base or core; of central importance.
competent. There are quite a number of new synonyms: basic, underlying, core, root
methods which can help, such as child- initiated foundational, elemental,
learning, ability-peer tutoring, etc. Such elementary
practices have been found to be particularly
useful for bright children from deprived areas. competent /'kɒmpitənt/: able to do something well
E But scientific progress is not all theoretical, synonyms: capable, able, proficient, adept,
accomplished, complete, skillful,
knowledge is a so vital to outstanding
skilled, gifted, talented, expert
performance: individuals who know a great
deal about a specific domain will achieve at a
higher level than those who do not (Elshout, vital /vaitl/: absolutely necessary or important;
1995). Research with creative scientists by essential.
Simonton (1988) brought him to the conclusion synonyms: essential, critical, crucial, key,
that above a certain high level, characteristics indispensable, integral
such as independence seemed to contribute
domain /də(ʊ)ˈmeɪn/: an area of knowledge or
more to reaching the highest levels of expertise
activity
than intellectual skills, due to the great
synonyms: field, area, arena, sphere
demands of effort and time needed for learning
and practice. Creativity in all forms can be seen
as expertise se mixed with a high level of
motivation (Weisberg, 1993).
F To sum up, learning is affected by emotions
of both the individual and significant others. facilitate /fə'siliteit/: make (an action or process)
Positive emotions facilitate the creative easy or easier.
aspects of earning and negative emotions synonyms: make easy/easier, make possible,
inhibit it. Fear, for example, can limit the promote
development of curiosity, which is a strong
force in scientific advance, because it Inhibit /in'hibit/: prevent or prohibit (someone)
motivates problem-solving behaviour. In from doing something.
Boekaerts’ (1991) review of emotion the synonyms: prevent, disallow, exclude, forbid,
prohibit, ban, interdict
learning of very high IQ and highly achieving
children, she found emotional forces in
harness. They were not only curious, but often
had a strong desire to control their In harness /ˈhɑr·nəs/: working together
environment, improve their learning efficiency to achieve something
and increase their own learning resources.
Synonyms: accompanying, cooperatively
23
The Nature of Genius
There has always been ari interest in geniuses genius /'dʒi:niəs/ : exceptional intellectual or creative
and prodigies. The word ‘genius’, from the power or other natural ability.
Latin gens (= family) and the term ‘genius’, synonyms: brilliance, intelligence, intellect,
meaning ‘begetter’, comes from the early ability, cleverness, talent, gift, flair,
Roman cult of a divinity as the head of the knack
family. In its earliest form, genius
prodigy /'prɒdidʒi/: a young person who is unusually
was concerned with the ability of the head of
talented in some way
the family, the paterfamilias, to
synonyms: genius, mastermind, virtuoso
perpetuate himself. Gradually, genius came to
represent a person’s characteristics and thence paterfamilias /pæitəfə'miliæs/: gia trưởng
an individual’s highest attributes derived from
his ‘genius’ or guiding spirit. Today, people still
look to stars or genes, astrology or genetics, in derived from /dɪˈraɪv/: to come from something
the hope of finding the source of exceptional synonyms: originate in, stem from, descend
abilities or personal characteristics. from, spring from, be taken from
The concept of genius and of gifts has become
part of our folk culture, and attitudes are ambivalent /ɒm'bivələnt/: having mixed feelings or
ambivalent towards them. We envy the gifted contradictory ideas about something or someone.
and mistrust them. In the mythology of synonyms: equivocal, uncertain, unsure,
giftedness, it is popularly believed that if people doubtful, indecisive, inconclusive
are talented in one area, they must be
defective in another, that intellectuals are envy /'envi/: to feel a desire to have what someone
impractical, that prodigies burn too brightly too else has
soon and burn out, that gifted people are synonyms: be envious of, be jealous of
eccentric, that they are physical weaklings,
defective /di'fektiv/: having a fault in it and does
that there’s a thin line between genius and
not work correctly.
madness, that genius runs in families, that the
synonyms: faulty, flawed, imperfect, inoperative, deficient
24
gifted are so clever they don’t need special
help, that giftedness is the same as having a
high IQ, that some races are more intelligent
eccentric /ik'sentrik/: unconventional and slightly
or musical or mathematical than others, that
strange.
genius goes unrecognised and synonyms: unconventional, uncommon,
unrewarded, that adversity makes men wise or irregular, odd, strange, weird,
that people with gifts have a responsibility extraordinary
to use them. Language has been enriched with
such terms as ‘highbrow’, ‘egghead’, ‘blue- weakling /ˈwiːklɪŋ/: a weak person
stocking’, ‘wiseacre’, ‘know-all’, ‘boffin’ and, for
many, ‘intellectual’ is a term of denigration. adversity /əd'vɜ:səti/: a difficult situation or condition
synonyms: misfortune, bad luck, trouble,
The nineteenth century saw considerable difficulty, hardship, distress,
interest in the nature of genius, and produced disaster, suffering, sorrow, misery
not a few studies of famous prodigies. Perhaps
for us today, two of the most significant aspects
of most of these studies of genius are the denigration /,deni'grei∫n/: The action of unfairly
frequency with which early encouragement and criticizing someone or something.
teaching by parents and tutors had beneficial
effects on the intellectual, artistic or musical
development of the children but caused
great difficulties of adjustment later in their
lives, and the frequency with which
abilities went unrecognised by teachers and
schools. However, the difficulty with the
evidence produced by these studies,
fascinating as they are in collecting together
anecdotes and apparent similarities and
exceptions, is that they are not what we would
today call norm-referenced. In other words, collate /kə'leit/: to gather together information from
when, for instance, information is different sources in order to study it carefully
collated about early illnesses, methods of synonyms: collect, gather, accumulate,
upbringing, schooling, etc., we must also take assemble; combine, aggregate
into account information from other historical
sources about how common or
exceptional these were at the time. For
instance, infant mortality was high and life life expectancy /laifik'spektənsi/: the average
expectancy much shorter than today, home number of years that a person or animal can expect to
tutoring was common in the families of the live
nobility and wealthy, bullying and corporal synonyms: life span, longevity, lifetime, life's duration
punishment were common at the best
independent schools and, for the most part, the nobility /nəʊ'biləti/: honesty, courage, and kindness
synonyms: virtue, goodness, honor, decency
cases studied were members of the privileged
classes. It was only with the growth of corporal /'kɔ:pərəl/: relating to the human body.
paediatrics and psychology in the
twentieth century that studies could be carried vantage point /'væntidʒ/: The quality of having a
out on a more objective, if still not always superior or more favorable position.
very scientific, basis.
synonym: advantage, superiority, benefit, head start
Geniuses, however they are defined, are but
the peaks which stand out through the mist of
25
history and are visible to the particular observer
from his or her particular vantage point.
mundane /mʌn'dein/: very ordinary and
Change the observers and the vantage points,
therefore not interesting
clear away some of the mist, and a different lot
synonyms: dull, boring, tedious, unexciting,
of peaks appear. Genius is a term we apply to repetitive, ordinary, day-to-day,
those whom we recognise for their outstanding run-of-the-mill, commonplace
achievements and who stand near the end of
the continuum of human abilities which reaches
back through the mundane and mediocre to mediocre /,mi:di'əʊkə[r]/: moderate quality; not very
the incapable. There is still much truth in Dr good.
Samuel Johnson’s observation, the true genius synonyms: ordinary, average, middling,
undistinguished, unexceptional,
is a mind of large general powers, accidentally
unexciting, unremarkable,
determined to some particular direction’. We
run-of-the-mill, pedestrian
may disagree with the ‘general’, for we doubt if
all musicians of genius could have become nurtured /'nɜ:t∫ə[r]/: to help (something or someone)
scientists of genius or vice versa, but there is to grow, develop, or succeed
no doubting the accidental determination which synonyms: bring up, care for, take care of,
nurtured or triggered their gifts into those look after, tend, rear, raise,
channels into which they have poured their support, foster
powers so successfully. Along the continuum of
abilities are hundreds of thousands of gifted triggered /'trigə[r]/: cause (an event or situation) to
men and women, boys and girls. happen or exist.
synonyms: trip, actuate, activate, set off, spark
What we appreciate, enjoy or marvel at in their off, spark, trigger off,
works of genius or the achievements of
prodigies are the manifestations of skills or marvel at /ˈmɑːv(ə)l/: Be filled with wonder or
abilities which are similar to, but so much astonishment
superior to, our own. But that their minds are
synonyms: be amazed, be astonished,
not different from our own is demonstrated by
be surprised, wonder
the fact that the hard-won discoveries of
scientists like Kepler or Einstein become the
commonplace knowledge of schoolchildren manifestations /,mænife 'stei∫n/: The action or fact of
and the once outrageous shapes and colours showing something.
of an artist like Paul Klee so soon appear on synonyms: display, demonstration, show,
the fabrics we wear. This does not minimise the exhibition, presentation
supremacy of their achievements,
which outstrip our own as the sub-four-minute supremacy /s(j)uːˈprɛməsi/: The state or condition of
milers outstrip our jogging. being superior to all others in authority, power, or
status.
To think of geniuses and the gifted as having
uniquely different brains is only reasonable if synonyms: predominance, primacy, dominion,
we accept that each human brain is uniquely authority, mastery, control, power, rule, sover
different. The purpose of instruction is to make
US even more different from one another, and outstrip /aʊtˈstrɪp/: move faster than and overtake
in the process of being educated we can learn (someone else).
from the achievements of those more gifted
than ourselves. But before we try to emulate synonyms: go faster than,outrun, outdistance, outpace, leave
geniuses or encourage our children to do so we behind, get (further) ahead of
should note that some of the things we learn
from them may prove unpalatable. We may
envy their achievements and fame, but we
26
should also recognise the price they may have emulate /ˈɛmjʊleɪt/: try to be like (someone or
paid in terms of perseverance, single- something you admire)
mindedness, dedication, restrictions on their
synonyms: imitate, copy, mirror, echo, follow
personal lives, the demands upon their
energies and time, and how often they had to
display great courage to preserve their unpalatable /ʌn'pælətəbl/: Difficult to put up with or
integrity or to make their way to the top. accept.
Genius and giftedness are relative descriptive synonyms: disagreeable, unpleasant
terms of no real substance. We may, at best,
give them some precision by defining them and
placing them in a context but, whatever we do, perseverance /pəːsɪˈvɪər(ə)ns/: continue trying to do
we should never delude ourselves into something even though it is difficult
believing that gifted children or geniuses are
different from the rest of humanity, save in the synonyms: persistence, tenacity, determination
degree to which they have developed the
performance of their abilities. integrity /in'tegrəti/: the quality of being honest and
fair
synonyms: honesty, probity, honor
delude /dɪˈl(j)uːd/: Make (someone) believe

something that is not true.
synonyms: mislead, deceive, fool, take in, trick
27
Children Tested to Destruction?
English primary school pupils subjected to more

tests than in any other country
unprecedented /ʌnˈprɛsɪdɛntɪd/: Never done or
English primary school pupils have to deal with known before.
unprecedented levels of pressure as they face
tests more frequently, at a younger age, and in synonyms: unheard of, unknown, new, novel
more subjects than children from any other
country, according to one of the biggest
international education inquiries in decades. The
damning indictment of England’s primary indictment /ɪnˈdaɪtm(ə)nt/: a sign that
education system revealed that the country’s a policy, system, society, etc. is bad or wrong
children are now the most tested in the world. synonyms: blaming, accusing
From their very earliest days at school they must
navigate a set-up whose trademark is ’high
stakes’ testing, according to a recent report.
navigate /ˈnavɪɡeɪt/: lead smth in
Parents are encouraged to choose schools for a particular direction, or to deal effectively with
their children based on league tables of test a difficult situation
scores. But this puts children under extreme
pressure which could damage their motivation
and self-esteem, as well as encouraging schools league tables: a list of teams, schools, hospitals, etc.
to teach to the test at the expense of pupils’ wider that shows them in order from best to worst
learning, the study found. The findings are part of
a two-year inquiry – led by Cambridge University
– into English primary schools. Other parts of the
UK and countries such as France, Norway and
intrusive /ɪnˈtruːsɪv/: annoying someone by
Japan used testing but it was,’less intrusive, less
interfering with their privacy
comprehensive, and considerably less frequent’,
Cambridge’s Primary Review concluded.
England was unique in using testing to control
what is taught in schools, to monitor teaching
standards and to encourage parents to choose
schools based on the results of the tests,
according to Kathy Flail, from the National
University of Ireland in Cork, and Kamil Ozerk,
from the University of Oslo, who conducted the
28
research. ‘Assessment in England, compared to pervasive /pəˈveɪsɪv/: spreading widely throughout
our other reviewed countries, is pervasive, an area or a group of people.
highly consequential, and taken by officialdom
synonyms: prevalent, extensive, ubiquitous,
and the public more generally to portray
widespread
objectively the actual quality of primary education
in schools, ’their report concluded. Teachers’
leaders said the testing regime was ‘ past its sell- fundamental /fʌndə'mentl/: forming a necessary base
by date’ and called for a fundamental review of or core; of central importance.
assessment. synonyms: basic, underlying, core, root
foundational, elemental, elementary
Steve Sinnott, General Secretary of the National
Union of Teachers, said England’s testing system devastating /ˈdɛvəsteɪtɪŋ/: causing severe shock,
was having a ‘devastating’ impact on schools. distress, or grief
’Uniquely, England is a country where testing is
used to police schools and control what is synonyms: shocking, traumatic, overwhelming,
taught,’ he said. ‘When it comes to testing in crushing, distressing, terrible
England, the tail wags the dog. It is patently
absurd that even the structure and content of police /pəˈliːs/: have the duty of maintaining law and
education is shaped by the demands of the tests. order in or at (an area or event).
I call on the Government to initiate a full and
independent review of the impact of the current
testing system on schools and on children’s the tail wags the dog: used to describe a situation in
learning and to be prepared to dismantle a which an important or powerful person, organization,
system which is long past its sell-by date.’ etc., is being controlled by someone or something that
John Dunford, General Secretary of the is much less important or powerful
Association of School and College Leaders,
warned that the tests were having a damaging
effect on pupils. The whole testing regime is absurd /əbˈsəːd/: wildly unreasonable, illogical, or
governed by the need to produce league tables,’ inappropriate.
he said. ‘It has more to do with holding schools to
synonyms: ridiculous, idiotic, stupid, foolish,
account than helping pupils to progress.’
silly, insane
The fear that many children were suffering
intolerable stress because of the tests was dismantle /dɪsˈmant(ə)l/: gradually cause
voiced by Mick Brookes, General Secretary of the (something) to come to an end
National Association of Head Teachers. There
are schools that start rehearsing for key stage synonyms: take apart, pull apart, break up,
two SATs [Standard Assessment Tests] from the break down, strip (down); knock down, pull
moment the children arrive in September. That’s down, demolish
just utterly ridiculous,’ he said. There are other
schools that rehearse SATs during Christmas intolerable /ɪnˈtɒl(ə)rəb(ə)l/:
week. These are young children we are talking too bad or unpleasant to deal with or accept
about. They should be having the time of their
lives at school not just worrying about tests. It is synonyms: unbearable, insufferable,
the breadth and richness of the curriculum that unendurable
suffers. The consequences for schools not
reaching their targets are dire – heads can lose utterly /ˈʌtəli/: completely and without qualification;
their jobs and schools can be closed down. With absolutely.
this at stake it’s not surprising that schools let the
tests take over’. synonyms: completely, totally, absolutely,
29
David Laws, the Liberal Democrat schools entirely, wholly, fully, thoroughly
spokesman, said: The uniquely high stakes
placed on national tests mean that many primary
ridiculous /rɪˈdɪkjʊləs/: extremely silly or
schools have become too exam focused.’
unreasonable
However, the Government rejected the criticism.
The idea that children are over-tested is not a synonyms: laughable, absurd, comical, funny,
view that the government accepts,’a spokesman hilarious, amusing, silly
said. The reality is that children spend a very
small percentage of their time in school being
breadth /bredθ/: Wide range or extent.
tested. Seeing that children leave school up to
the right standard in the basics is the highest
priority of the government.’
In another child-centred initiative, both major
political parties in the UK – Labour and the initiative /ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/: a person who
Conservatives – have announced plans to make has recently joined a group
Britain more child-friendly following a report by synonyms: supporters, members, defenders
UNICEF which ranked the UK the worst place to
be a child out of 21 rich nations.
Parents were warned that they risked creating a
generation of ’battery-farmed children’ by always
keeping them indoors to ensure their safety. The
family’s minister, Kevin Brennan, called for an ensure /ɛnˈʃʊə/: make certain that (something) shall
end to the ’cotton wool’ culture and warned that occur or be the case.
children would not learn to cope with risks if they
were never allowed to play outdoors. synonyms: make sure, make certain
30
Nurturing talent within the family
What do we mean by being ‘talented’ or

‘gifted’? The most obvious way is to look at the
work someone does and if they are capable of
significant success, label them as talented. The
purely quantitative route - ‘percentage
definition’ - looks not at individuals, but at
simple percentages, such as the top five per
cent of the population, and labels them - by
definition - as gifted. This definition has fallen
from favour, eclipsed by the advent of IQ tests,
luminaries /ˈluːmɪn(ə)ri/: a very famous or
favoured by luminaries such as professor
successful person
Hans Eysenck, where a series of written or
verbal tests of general intelligence leads to a synonyms: inspiration, role model, hero, heroine,
score of intelligence. leader, expert, master; lion, legend,
celebrity
The IQ test has been eclipsed in turn. Most
people studying intelligence and creativity in
the new millennium now prefer a broader millennium /mɪˈlɛnɪəm/: a period of 1,000 years
definition, using a multifaceted approach where
talents in many areas are recognised rather
than purely concentrating on academic
achievement. If we are therefore assuming that
talented, creative or gifted individuals may
need to be assessed across a range of abilities,
does this mean intelligence can run in families
as a genetic or inherited tendency? Mental
31
dysfunction - such as schizophrenia - can, so is inherited /ɪnˈhɛrɪtɪd/: receive (money, property,
an efficient mental capacity passed on from or a title) as an heir at the death of the previous
parent to child? holder.
Animal experiments throw some light on this synonyms: become heir to, come into/by,
question, and on the whole area of whether it is be left, receive
genetics, the environment or a combination of
the two that allows for intelligence and creative
ability. Different strains of rats show great
differences in intelligence or ‘rat reasoning’. If
these are brought up in normal conditions and
then run through a maze to reach a food goal,
the ‘bright’ strain make far fewer wrong turns
that the ‘dull’ ones. But if the environment is
made dull and boring the number of errors
becomes equal. Return the rats to an exciting Discrepancy /dɪsˈkrɛp(ə)nsi/: a difference
maze and the discrepancy returns as before -
especially between things that should be the
but is much smaller. In other words, a dull rat in same
a stimulating environment will almost do as well
as a bright rat who is bored in a normal one. synonyms: difference, disparity, disagreement,
This principle applies to humans too - someone inconsistency, dissimilarity,
may be born with innate intelligence, but their mismatch, incompatibility, conflict
environment probably has the final say over
whether they become creative or even a innate /ɪˈneɪt/: existing from the time a person or
genius. animal is born
Evidence now exists that most young children, synonyms: inborn, natural, inherent, instinctive,
if given enough opportunities and spontaneous, unlearned, untaught
encouragement, are able to achieve significant
and sustainable levels of academic or sporting
prowess. Bright or creative children are often
prowess /'praʊis/: great ability or skill
physically very active at the same time, and so
may receive more parental attention as a result synonyms: skill, ability, skillfulness, mastery
- almost by default - in order to ensure their
safety. They may also talk earlier, and this, in
turn, breeds parental interest. This can
sometimes cause problems with other siblings
who may feel jealous even though they fruition /frʊˈɪʃ(ə)n/: the point at which a plan or
themselves may be bright. Their creative project is realized.
talents may be undervalued and so never
synonyms: fulfillment, realization, attainment,
come to fruition. Two themes seem to run
achievement, accomplishment,
through famously creative families as a result. resolution
The first is that the parents were able to identify
the talents of each child, and nurture and
encourage these accordingly but in an even- even-handed /,i:vn'hændid/: Fair and impartial in
handed manner. Individual differences were treatment or judgement.
encouraged, and friendly sibling rivalry was not
seen as a particular problem. If the father is,
say, a famous actor, there is no undue pressure
for his children to follow him onto the boards,
but instead their chosen interests are
32
encouraged. There need not even by any
obvious talent in such a family since there
always needs to be someone who sets the
family career in motion, as in the case of the
Sheen acting dynasty.
Martin Sheen was the seventh of ten children
born to a Spanish immigrant father and an Irish
mother. Despite intense parental disapproval
he turned his back on entrance exams to
university and borrowed cash from a local priest
to start a fledgling acting career. His acting fledgling /ˈflɛdʒlɪŋ/: new and without
successes in films such as Badlands and experience
Apocalypse Now made him one of the most
highly-regarded actors of the 1970s. Three synonyms: inexperienced, innocent, new, raw,
sons - Emilio Estevez, Ramon Estevez and immature, underdeveloped
Charlie Sheen - have followed him into the
profession as a consequence of being inspired
by his motivation and enthusiasm.
A stream seems to run through creative
families. Such children are not necessarily
smothered with love by their parents. They feel
loved and wanted, and are secure in their smother /'smʌðə[r]/: make (someone) feel
home, but are often more surrounded by an trapped and oppressed by acting in an overly
atmosphere of work and where following a protective manner toward them.
calling appears to be important. They may see
from their parents that it takes time and synonyms: overwhelm, inundate, envelop
dedication to be master of a craft, and so are
in less of a hurry to achieve for themselves
once they start to work. craft /kræft/: skill in carrying out one's work.
synonyms: skill, skillfulness, ability, capability,
The generation of creativity is complex: it is a talent, flair, craftsmanship,
mixture of genetics, the environment, parental expertise
teaching and luck that determines how
successful or talented family members are.
This last point - luck - is often not mentioned
where talent is concerned but plays an
undoubted part. Mozart, considered by many
to be the finest composer of all time, was
lucky to be living in an age that encouraged
the writing of music. He was brought up
surrounded by it, his father was a musician who
encouraged him to the point of giving up his job
to promote his child genius, and he learnt
musical composition with frightening speed -
the speed of a genius. Mozart himself simply
wanted to create the finest music ever written
but did not necessarily view himself as a genius
- he could write sublime music at will, and so sublime /səˈblaɪm/: extremely good,
often preferred to lead a hedonistic lifestyle
33
that he found more exciting than writing music beautiful, or enjoyable
to order.
synonyms: admirable, amazing, awesome,
Albert Einstein and Bill Gates are two more
examples of people whose talents have brilliant, incredible, outstanding, superb
blossomed by virtue of the times they were
living in. Einstein was a solitary, somewhat hedonistic /hi:də'nistik/ : engaged in the pursuit
slow child who had affection at home but whose of pleasure.
phenomenal intelligence emerged without any synonyms: self-indulgent, pleasure-seeking,
obvious parental input. This may have been decadent
partly due to the fact that at the start of the 20th
Century a lot of the Newtonian laws of physics blossom /'blɒsəm/: mature or develop in a
were being questioned, leaving a fertile
ground for ideas such as his to be developed. promising or healthy way
Bill Gates may have had the creative vision to synonyms: develop, grow, mature, evolve;
develop Microsoft, but without the new flourish, thrive, prosper, bloom,
burgeon
computer age dawning at the same time he
may never have achieved the position on the
world stage he now occupies.
solitary /'sɒliteri/: done or existing alone
synonyms: lonely, companionless,
unaccompanied, by oneself,
on one's own, alone, friendless
fertile ground for smth/'fɜ:rtl/:

a situation or place that produces good results or
a lot of ideas
synonyms: potential, prospect, viable
34
What’s the purpose of gaining

knowledge?
A
‘I would find an institution where any person
can find instruction in any subject' That was the
founders motto for Cornell University, and it
seems an apt characterization of the different
apt /apt/: appropriate or suitable in the
university, also in the USA, where I currently
teach philosophy. A student can prepare for a circumstances.
career in resort management, engineering, synonyms: suitable, fitting, appropriate,
interior design, accounting, music, law befitting, applicable
enforcement, you name it. But what would the
founders of these two institutions have thought
of a course called Arson for Profit’? I kid you undergraduate /ʌndəˈɡradjʊət/: a student at a
not: we have it on the books. Any college or university who has not yet earned a
undergraduates who have met the academic bachelor's or equivalent degree.
requirements can sign up for the course in our
program in 'fire science’. synonyms: student, undergrad, scholar,
freshman
B
Naturally, the course is intended for arson /ˈɑːs(ə)n/: the illegal burning of a building or
prospective arson investigators, who can learn
other property
all the tricks of the trade for detecting whether
a fire was deliberately set, discovering who did
it, and establishing a chain of evidence for
effective prosecution in a court of law. But
wouldn’t this also be the perfect course for
35
prospective arsonists to sign up for? My point criticize /ˈkrɪtɪsʌɪz/: express disapproval of
is not to criticize academic programs in fire (someone or something)
science: they are highly welcome as part of the
increasing professionalization of this and many synonyms: find fault with, censure, denounce,
other occupations. However, it’s not unknown condemn, attack, disparage,
for a firefighter to torch a building. This example denigrate, give bad press to
suggests how dishonest and illegal behavior,
with the help of higher education, can creep into
occupation /ɒkjʊˈpeɪʃ(ə)n/: a job or profession.
every aspect of public and business life.
C synonyms: job, profession, work, line of work,
employment, position, situation,
I realized this anew when I was invited to speak business, career, field
before a class in marketing, which is another of
our degree programs. The regular instructor is
a colleague who appreciates the kind of ethical
perspective I can bring as a philosopher. There
Anew: again
are endless ways I could have approached this
assignment, but I took my cue from the title of
the course: 'Principles of Marketing’. It made
me think to ask the students, 'Is marketing
principled?’ After all, a subject matter can have
principles in the sense of being codified, codify /ˈkəʊdɪfʌɪ/: arrange (laws or rules) into a
having rules, as with football or chess, without systematic code
being principled in the sense of being ethical. synonyms: systematize, systemize, organize,
Many of the students immediately assumed arrange, order, structure
that the answer to my question about marketing
principles was obvious: no. Just look at the
ways in which everything under the sun has
been marketed; obviously it need not be done
in a principled (=ethical) fashion.
D
Is that obvious? I made the suggestion, which downright /ˈdaʊnrʌɪt/: to an extreme degree
may sound downright crazy in light of the
evidence, that perhaps marketing is by synonyms: thoroughly, utterly, positively,
definition principled. My inspiration for this profoundly, really, completely,
judgement is the philosopher Immanuel Kant, totally, entirely
who argued that any body of knowledge
consists of an end (or purpose) and a means.
E
Let us apply both the terms 'means' and ‘end'
to marketing. The students have signed up for
a course in order to learn how to market
effectively. But to what end? There seem to be
two main attitudes toward that question. One is
that the answer is obvious: the purpose of
marketing is to sell things and to make money.
The other attitude is that the purpose of
marketing is irrelevant: Each person comes to
the program and course with his or her own acquisition /ˌakwɪˈzɪʃ(ə)n/: The learning or
plans, and these need not even concern the developing of a skill, habit, or quality
acquisition of marketing expertise as such. My
36
proposal, which I believe would also be Kant's, synonyms : obtaining, getting, acquiring,
is that neither of these attitudes captures the
significance of the end to the means for acquirement, gain
marketing. A field of knowledge or a
professional endeavor is defined by both the
means and the end; hence both deserve endeavor /ɛnˈdɛvə/: an attempt to achieve a goal.
scrutiny. Students need to study both how to
achieve X, and also what X is. synonyms: attempt, try, bid, effort, venture
F
scrutiny /ˈskruːtɪni/: the act of carefully examining
It is at this point that ‘Arson for Profit’ becomes
something especially in a critical way
supremely relevant. That course is presumably
all about means: how to detect and prosecute synonyms: examination, inspection, survey,
criminal activity. It is therefore assumed that the study, investigation
end is good in an ethical sense. When I ask fire
science students to articulate the end, or
purpose, of their field, they eventually
generalize to something like, ‘The safety and
welfare of society,’ which seems right. As we articulate /ɑːˈtɪkjʊleɪt/: express (an idea or feeling)
have seen, someone could use the very same fluently and coherently.
knowledge of means to achieve a much less synonyms: express, voice, vocalize,
noble end, such as personal profit via communicate, state, utter, say,
destructive, dangerous, reckless activity. But speak, pronounce
we would not call that firefighting. We have a
separate word for it: arson. Similarly, if you
employed the ‘principles of marketing’ in an noble /ˈnəʊb(ə)l/: Of excellent or superior quality
unprincipled way, you would not be doing
marketing. We have another term for it: fraud. synonyms: magnificent, splendid, grand,
Kant gives the example of a doctor and a stately, dignified, proud, striking,
poisoner, who use the identical knowledge to impressive
achieve their divergent ends. We would say
that one is practicing medicine, the other,
reckless /ˈrɛkləs/: (of a person or their actions)
murder.
without thinking or caring about the consequences
of an action.
synonyms: rash, careless, thoughtless,
heedless, unheeding, hasty
divergent /dɪˈvəːdʒ(ə)nt/: tending to be different or
develop in different directions.
synonyms: differing, varying, different, unalike
dissimilar, disparate, contrasting,
contrastive, conflicting,
incompatible, contradictory
37
Communicating Styles and Conflict
Knowing your communication style and having a mix of styles on your team can provide
a positive force for resolving conflict.
A As far back as Hippocrates’ time (460- temperament /ˈtɛmp(ə)rəm(ə)nt/: a person's or

370B.C.), people have tried to understand animal's nature, especially as it permanently
other people by characterizing them according affects their behavior.
to personality type or temperament.
Hippocrates believed there were four different synonyms: disposition, nature, character,
body fluids that influenced four basic types of personality, makeup, constitution,
temperament. His work was further developed mind, spirit
500 years later by Galen. These days there
are any number of self-assessment tools that body fluid /ˈfluːɪd/: liquids within the bodies of
relate to the basic descriptions developed by living people (dịch cơ thể)
Galen, although we no longer believe the
source to be the types of body fluid that dominate /ˈdɒmɪneɪt/: Have power and influence
dominate our systems. over.
B The values in self-assessments that synonyms: control, influence, exercise control

help determine personality style. Learning over, command, be in command of, be in charge
styles, communication styles, conflict-handling of, rule, govern, direct
styles, or other aspects of individuals is that depersonalize /diːˈpəːs(ə)n(ə)lʌɪz/: remove from
they help depersonalize conflict in a person, organization, object, etc. the qualities or
interpersonal relationships. The features that make them particular or special
depersonalization occurs when you realize
38
that others aren’t trying to be difficult, but they
need different or more information than you
do. They’re not intending to be rude: they are resolve /rɪˈzɒlv/: settle or find a solution to a
so focused on the task they forget about problem
greeting people. They would like to work faster
synonyms: settle, sort out, solve, fix, deal with,
but not at the risk of damaging the
rectify
relationships needed to get the job done. They
understand there is a job to do. But it can only
be done right with the appropriate information, Sanguine /ˈsaŋɡwɪn/: optimistic or positive,
which takes time to collect. When especially in an apparently bad or difficult
used appropriately, understanding situation.
communication styles can help resolve
conflict on teams. Very rarely are conflicts true synonyms: optimistic, bullish, hopeful, buoyant, positive,
personality issues. Usually they are issues of confident, cheerful, cheery
style, information needs, or focus.
C Hippocrates and later Galen determined Phlegmatic /flɛɡˈmatɪk/: not easily upset, excited,
there were four basic temperaments: or angered
sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic and
choleric. These descriptions were developed synonyms: calm, cool, composed, controlled,
centuries ago and are still somewhat apt, serene, tranquil
although you could update the wording. In
today’s world, they translate into the four fairly
common communication styles described melancholic /mɛlənˈkɒlɪk/: expressing
below: feelings of sadness
D The sanguine person would be the
synonyms: sad, unhappy, down in the dumps, a
expressive or spirited style of communication.
These people speak in pictures. They invest a long face
lot of emotion and energy in their choleric /ˈkɒlərɪk/: get angry easily
communication and often speak quickly.
Putting their whole body into it. They are easily synonyms: bad-tempered, irritable, angry, grumpy. cranky,
sidetracked onto a story that may or may not tempered, peppery, short-tempered
illustrate the point they are trying to make.
Because of their enthusiasm, they are great
team motivators. They are concerned about apt /apt/: appropriate or suitable in the
people and relationships. Their high levels of circumstances.
energy can come on strong at times and their
synonyms: suitable, fitting, appropriate,
focus is usually on the bigger picture, which
befitting,applicable
means they sometimes miss the details or the
proper order of things. These people find
conflict or differences of opinion invigorating sidetrack /ˈsʌɪdtrak/: Cause (someone) to be
and love to engage in a spirited discussion. distracted from an immediate or important issue.
They love change and are constantly looking
for new and exciting adventures. synonyms: distract, divert, deflect, disturb
someone's concentration, divert
E Tile phlegmatic person - cool and
someone's attention
persevering - translates into the technical or
systematic communication style. This style of
communication is focused on facts and enthusiasm /ɪnˈθjuːzɪaz(ə)m/: strong excitement
technical details. Phlegmatic people have an about something
orderly methodical way of approaching tasks, synonyms: eagerness, keenness, fervor,
and their focus is very much on the task, not passion, energy
on the people, emotions, or concerns that the
task may evoke. The focus is also more on the
39
details necessary to accomplish a task. invigorating /ɪnˈvɪɡəreɪtɪŋ/: Making one feel
Sometimes the details overwhelm the big strong, healthy, and full of energy.
picture and focus needs to be brought back to
the context of the task. People with this style synonyms: exciting, interesting, fascinating,
think the facts should speak for themselves, absorbing, arresting
and they are not as comfortable with conflict.
They need time to adapt to change and need
to understand both the logic of it and the steps persevering /ˌpəːsɪˈvɪərɪŋ/: Continuing in a
involved. course of action despite difficulty or delay in
F Tile melancholic person who is soft hearted achieving success.
and oriented toward doing things for others
translates into the considerate or sympathetic synonyms: persist, continue, carry on, go on,
communication style. A person with this keep going, struggle on, hammer
communication style is focused on people and away, be persistent, be determined
relationships. They are good listeners and do
things for other people-sometimes to the evoke /ɪˈvəʊk/: cause (a particular reaction or
detriment of getting things done for response) to happen
themselves. They want to solicit everyone’s
opinion and make sure everyone is synonyms: bring to mind, put one in mind of,
comfortable with whatever is required to get invoke, elicit, induce, kindle,
the job done. At times this focus on others can stimulate, awaken, recall
distract from the task at hand. Because they
are so concerned with the needs of others and
smoothing over issues, they do not like detriment /ˈdɛtrɪm(ə)nt/: a cause of harm or
conflict. They believe that change threatens damage.
the status quo and tends to make people feel
uneasy, so people with this communication synonyms: harm, damage, injury, hurt, loss,
style, like phlegmatic people need time to impairment, disadvantage,
consider the changes in order to adapt to disservice, mischief
them.
G The choleric temperament translates into solicit /səˈlɪsət/: ask for (something, such as
the bold or direct style of communication. money or help) from people, companies, etc.
People with this style are brief in their
communication - the fewer words the better.
They are big picture thinkers and love to be distract /dɪˈstrakt/: prevent (someone) from giving
involved in many things at once. They are full attention to something.
focused on tasks and outcomes and often
forget that the people involved in carrying out synonyms: divert, sidetrack, draw away,
the tasks have needs. They don’t do detail disturb
work easily and as a result can often
underestimate how much time it takes to
achieve the task. Because they are so direct, brief /briːf/: concise in expression; using few
they often seem forceful and can be very words.
intimidating to others. They usually would
synonyms: concise, succinct, short, incisive,
welcome someone challenging them. But
abbreviated, compact, thumbnail
most other styles are afraid to do so. They also
thrive on change, the more the better.
H A well-functioning team should have all of intimidating /ɪnˈtɪmɪdeɪtɪŋ/: Having a frightening
these communication styles for true or threatening effect.
effectiveness. All teams need to focus on the synonyms: daunting, creepy, dread, scary, hairy,
task, and they need to take care of
terrifying
relationships in order to achieve those tasks.
40
They need the big picture perspective or the
context of their work, and they need the details
to be identified and taken care of for success. thrive /θrʌɪv/: grow or develop successfully
We all have aspects of each style within us. synonyms: flourish, prosper, burgeon, bloom,
Some of us can easily move from one style to blossom, mushroom, advance,
another and adapt our style to the needs of the succeed
situation at hand-whether the focus is on tasks
or relationships. For others, a dominant style
is very evident, and it is more challenging to dominant /ˈdɒmɪnənt/: most important, powerful,
see the situation from the perspective of or influential.
another style. The work environment can
influence communication styles either by the synonyms: ruling, governing, controlling,
type of work that is required or by the commanding, authoritative
predominance of one style reflected in that
environment. Some people use one style at
work and another at home. reflect /rɪˈflɛkt/: represent (something) in a faithful
or appropriate way.
The good news about communication styles is
that we have the ability to develop flexibility in synonyms: indicate, show, display, disclose,
our styles. The greater the flexibility we have, demonstrate, be evidence of,
the more skilled we usually are at handling reveal, betray, express
possible and actual conflicts. Usually it has to
be relevant to us to do so, either because we
flexibility /ˌflɛksɪˈbɪlɪti/: the ability to change
think it is important or because there are
incentives in our environment to encourage it. or be changed easily according to the situation
The key is that we have to want to become
flexible with our communication style. As synonyms: adapting, modifying, adjustment,
Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can accommodation
or you can’t, you’re right!”
incentive /ɪnˈsɛntɪv/: a thing that motivates or

encourages one to do something.
synonyms: inducement, motivation, motive,
reason, stimulant, encouragement
41
The Benefits of Being Bilingual
A bilingual /bʌɪˈlɪŋɡw(ə)l/: (of a person) speaking two

languages fluently.
According to the latest figures, the majority of
the world’s population is now bilingual or
multilingual, having grown up speaking two or
more languages. In the past, such children multilingual /mʌltɪˈlɪŋɡw(ə)l/: using several
were considered to be at a disadvantage languages.
compared with their monolingual peers. Over
the past few decades, however, technological
advances have allowed researchers to look peer /pɪə/: A person of the same age, status, or ability
more deeply at how bilingualism interacts with
as another specified person.
and changes the cognitive and neurological
systems, thereby identifying several clear synonyms: equal, coequal, fellow, confrere;
benefits of being bilingual. contemporary; compeer
B
Research shows that when a bilingual person interacts with /ɪntərˈakt/: act in such a way as to have
uses one language, the other is active at the an effect on another
same time. When we hear a word, we don’t
synonyms: communicate, interface, connect,
hear the entire word all at once: the sounds
cooperate; meet, socialize
arrive in sequential order. Long before the word
is finished, the brain’s language system begins
to guess what that word might be. If you hear
42
‘can’, you will likely activate words like ‘candy’
and ‘candle’ as well, at least during the earlier
stages of word recognition. For bilingual activation /aktɪˈveɪʃ(ə)n/: The action or process of
people, this activation is not limited to a single making something active or operative.
language; auditory input activates
synonyms: actuation, causing things to happen
corresponding words regardless of the
language to which they belong. Some of the
most compelling evidence for this
phenomenon, called ‘language co-activation’, auditory /ˈɔːdɪt(ə)ri/: relating to the sense of hearing
comes from studying eye movements. A
Russian-English bilingual asked to ‘pick up a
marker’ from a set of objects would look more
at a stamp than someone who doesn’t know
Russian, because the Russian word for
‘stamp’, marka, sounds like the English word he
or she heard, ‘marker’. In cases like this, persistent /pəˈsɪst(ə)nt/: continuing to do something
language co-activation occurs because what even though it is difficult
the listener hears could map onto words in
either language. synonyms: constant, continuous, continuing,
continual, nonstop, never-ending,
C steady, uninterrupted, endless,
perpetual, sustained
Having to deal with this persistent linguistic
competition can result in difficulties, however. tip-of-the-tongue states: If a word, name, etc., is on
For instance, knowing more than one language
the tip of your tongue, you know it but cannot
can cause speakers to name pictures more
remember it.
slowly, and can increase ‘tip-of-the-tongue
states’, when you can almost, but not quite,
bring a word to mind. As a result, the constant
juggling of two languages creates a need to access /ˈaksɛs/: to be able to get or use something
control how much a person accesses a
language at any given time. For this reason, synonyms: use, get, reach, attain
bilingual people often perform better on tasks
that require conflict management. In the classic
Stroop Task, people see a word and are asked excel at /ɪkˈsɛl/: be exceptionally good at or proficient
to name the colour of the word’s font. When the in an activity or subject.
colour and the word match (i., the word ‘red’
printed in red), people correctly name the synonyms: shine, be excellent, be outstanding, be
colour more quickly than when the colour and skillful, be talented, stand out
the word don’t match (i., the word ‘red’ printed
in blue). This occurs because the word itself
(‘red’) and its font colour (blue) conflict. ignore /ɪɡˈnɔː/: refuse to take notice of or
Bilingual people often excel at tasks such as acknowledge
this, which tap into the ability to ignore
competing perceptual information and focus synonyms: disregard, take no notice of, pay no attention
on the relevant aspects of the input. Bilinguals to, pay no heed to;
are also better at switching between two tasks; turn a blind eye to, turn a deaf ear
for example, when bilinguals have to switch to
from categorizing objects by colour (red or
green) to categorizing them by shape (circle or
triangle), they do so more quickly than perceptual /pəˈsɛptjʊəl/: relating to the ability to
monolingual people, reflecting better cognitive interpret or become aware of something through the
control when having to make rapid changes of senses.
strategy.
43
D
It also seems that the neurological roots of the
bilingual advantage extend to brain areas more
traditionally associated with sensory
processing. When monolingual and bilingual
adolescents listen to simple speech sounds
without any intervening background noise, intervene /ɪntəˈviːn/: occur as a delay or obstacle to
they show highly similar brain stem responses. something being done
When researchers play the same sound to both
groups in the presence of background noise, synonyms: occur, happen, take place, arise,
however, the bilingual listeners’ neural come about, befall
response is considerably larger, reflecting
better encoding of the sound’s fundamental
pitch /pɪtʃ/: the quality of a sound governed by the rate
frequency, a feature of sound closely related to
pitch perception. of vibrations producing it; the degree of highness or
lowness of a tone.
E
synonyms: tone, timbre, key
Such improvements in cognitive and sensory
processing may help a bilingual person to
process information in the environment, and rooted in /ruːt/: establish deeply and firmly
help explain why bilingual adults acquire a third
language better than monolingual adults synonyms: embedded, fixed, established,
master a second language. This advantage entrenched, ingrained, stem from,
may be rooted in the skill of focusing on spring from
information about the new language while
reducing interference from the languages they interference /ɪntəˈfɪər(ə)ns/: involvement in the
already know. activities and concerns of other people is not wanted
F
synonyms: intrusion, intervention, disruption,
Research also indicates that bilingual disturbance, disorder, obstruction,
experience may help to keep the cognitive conflict
mechanisms sharp by recruiting alternate
brain networks to compensate for those that
become damaged during aging. Older
bilinguals enjoy improved memory relative to alternate /ɔːlˈtəːnət/: occurring by turns
monolingual people, which can lead to real- synonyms: alternative, other, another, second,
world health benefits. In a study of over 200 different, substitute, interchanging
patients with Alzheimer’s disease, a
degenerative brain disease, bilingual patients
reported showing initial symptoms of the compensate for /ˈkɒmp(ə)nseɪt/: give (someone)
disease an average of five years later than something, typically money, in recognition of loss,
monolingual patients. In a follow-up study, suffering, or injury incurred; recompense.
researchers compared the brains of bilingual
and monolingual patients matched on the synonyms: recompense, repay, pay back,
severity of Alzheimer’s symptoms. Surprisingly, reimburse
the bilinguals’ brains had more physical signs
of disease than their monolingual counterparts,
even though their outward behaviour and
abilities were the same. If the brain is an
engine, bilingualism may help it to go farther on
the same amount of fuel.
G
44
Furthermore, the benefits associated with
bilingual experience seem to start very early. In
one study, researchers taught seven-month-old
babies growing up in monolingual or bilingual
homes that when they heard a tinkling sound, a
puppet appeared on one side of a screen.
Halfway through the study, the puppet began
appearing on the opposite side of the screen.
In order to get a reward, the infants had to
adjust the rule they’d learned; only the bilingual
babies were able to successfully learn the new
rule. This suggests that for very young children,
as well as for older people, navigating a impart /ɪmˈpɑːt/: to give (a specified quality)
multilingual environment imparts advantages
that transfer far beyond language. synonyms: give, bestow, grant, lend, afford,
provide, supply
45
Early Childhood Education
New Zealand's National Party spokesman on education, Dr Lockwood Smith,

recently visited the US and Britain. Here he reports on the findings of his trip and
what they could mean for New Zealand's education policy
A
‘Education To Be More' was published last
August. It was the report of the New Zealand
Government's Early Childhood Care and
Education Working Group. The report argued enhanced /ɪnˈhɑːnst/: better than before
for enhanced equity of access and better
funding for childcare and early childhood synonyms: increase, magnify, strengthen, build
education institutions. Unquestionably, that's a up, supplement, boost, raise, lift,
real need; but since parents don't normally elevate; improve, enrich, complement
send children to pre-schools until the age of
three, are we missing out on the most important
years of all?
B
A 13 - year study of early childhood
development at Harvard University has shown
46
that, by the age of three, most children have the
potential to understand about 1000 words -
potential /pə(ʊ)ˈtɛnʃ(ə)l/: a chance or possibility that
most of the language they will use in ordinary
something will happen or exist in the future
conversation for the rest of their lives.
Furthermore, research has shown that while synonyms: possibilities, potentiality, prospects;
promise, capability, capacity
every child is born with a natural curiosity, if
can be suppressed dramatically during the
second and third years of life. Researchers curiosity /kjʊərɪˈɒsɪti/: a strong desire to know or learn
claim that the human personality is formed something.
during the first two years of life, and during the
first three years children learn the basic skills synonyms: interest, spirit of inquiry,
inquisitiveness
they will use in all their later learning both at
home and at school. Once over the age of
three, children continue to expand on existing suppress /səˈprɛs/: prevent the development, action,
knowledge of the world. or expression of (a feeling, impulse, idea, etc.)
C synonyms: conceal, restrain, stifle, smother,
It is generally acknowledged that young people contain
from poorer socio-economic backgrounds tend
to do less well in our education system. That's
expand /ɪkˈspand/: become or make larger or more
observed not just in New Zealand, but also in
extensive.
Australia, Britain and America. In an attempt to
overcome that educational under- synonyms: extend, broaden, widen, develop,
achievement, a nationwide programme called
'Headstart' was launched in the United Slates diversify, build up, spread
in 1965. A lot of money was poured into it. It
took children into pre-school institutions at the
age of three and was supposed to help the overcome /əʊvəˈkʌm/: succeed in dealing with (a
children of poorer families succeed in school. problem or difficulty).
Despite substantial funding, results have been synonyms: get the better of, control, master,
disappointing. It is thought that there are two conquer, defeat, beat; get over
explanations for this. First, the programme
began too late. Many children who entered it at substantial /səbˈstanʃ(ə)l/: of considerable
the age of three were already behind their importance, size, or worth.
peers in language and measurable intelligence.
Second, the parents were not involved. At the synonyms: considerable, real, significant,
end of each day, 'Headstart' children returned important, notable, major, valuable,
to the same disadvantaged home environment. useful
D
As a result of the growing research evidence of
the importance of the first three years of a
child's life and the disappointing results from
'Headstart', a pilot programme was launched in
Missouri in the US that focused on parents as
the child's first teachers. The 'Missouri'
predicate /ˈprɛdɪkeɪt/: found or base something on.
programme was predicated on research
showing that working with the family, rather synonyms: base, be dependent, found, establish,
ground
47
than bypassing the parents, is the most
effective way of helping children get off to the
bypass /ˈbʌɪpɑːs/: to avoid or ignore (someone or
best possible start in life. The four-year pilot
something)
study included 380 families who were about to
have their first child and who represented a synonyms: avoid, evade, dodge, escape, elude,
cross-section of socio-economic status, age circumvent, get around, ignore
and family configurations. They included
single-parent and two-parent families, families
in which both parents worked, and families with
either the mother or father at home.
The programme involved trained parent-
educators visiting the parents' home and
working with tire parent, or parents, and the foster /ˈfɒstə/: encourage or promote the development
child. Information on child development, and of (something, typically something regarded as good).
guidance on things to look for and expect as the synonyms: encourage, promote, further,
child grows were provided, plus guidance in stimulate, advance, cultivate, nurture,
fostering the child's intellectual, language, strengthen, enrich; help, aid, assist,
social and motor-skill development. Periodic contribute to, support
check-ups of the child's educational and
sensory development (hearing and vision) were
made to detect possible handicaps that detect /dɪˈtɛkt/: discover or investigate
interfere with growth and development. synonyms: discover, uncover, find out, turn up,
Medical problems were referred to dig up, expose, reveal
professionals.
Parent-educators made personal visits to handicap /ˈhandɪkap/: a circumstance that makes
homes and monthly group meetings were held progress or success difficult.
with other new parents to share experience and
discuss topics of interest. Parent resource synonyms: impediment, obstacle, barrier,
centres, located in school buildings, offered obstruction, constraint, restriction;
learning materials for families and facilitators disadvantage, drawback, difficulty,
limitation
for child care.
E
interfere /ɪntəˈfɪə/: prevent (a process or activity) from
At the age of three, the children who had been continuing or being carried out properly.
involved in the 'Missouri' programme were
synonyms: impede, obstruct, hinder, inhibit,
evaluated alongside a cross-section of children
restrict, constrain, handicap
selected from the same range of socio-
economic backgrounds and family situations,
and also a random sample of children that age.
The results were phenomenal. By the age of
three, the children in the programme were
significantly more advanced in language stride /strʌɪd/:an important positive development
development than their peers, had made
greater strides in problem solving and other synonyms: making progress and advancing, grow,
intellectual skills, and were further along in development, advancement
social development, in fact, the average child
on the programme was performing at the level
of the top 15 to 20 per cent of their peers in such auditory /ˈɔːdɪt(ə)ri/: Relating to the sense of hearing.
48
things as auditory comprehension, verbal
ability and language ability.
verbal /ˈvəːb(ə)l/: relating to words
Most important of all, the traditional measures
of 'risk', such as parents' age and education, or synonyms: literal
whether they were a single parent, bore little or
no relationship to the measures of achievement
and language development. Children in the abuse /əˈbjuːs/: cruel and violent treatment of a person
programme performed equally well regardless or animal.
of socio-economic disadvantages. Child abuse synonyms: mistreatment, maltreatment, indecent, assault,
was virtually eliminated. The one factor that
was found to affect the child's development was injury, hurt, harm, damage
family stress, leading to a poor quality of
parent-child interaction. That interaction was
eliminate /ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt/: completely remove or get rid of
not necessarily bad in poorer families.
(something).
F
synonyms: remove, get rid of, put an end to, end, stop,
These research findings are exciting. There is terminate, eradicate, destroy
growing evidence in New Zealand that children
from poorer socio-economic backgrounds are perpetuate /pəˈpɛtʃʊeɪt/: make (something, typically
arriving at school less well developed and that an undesirable situation or an unfounded belief)
our school system tends to perpetuate that continue
disadvantage. The initiative outlined above
could break that cycle of disadvantage. The synonyms: keep going, preserve, conserve,
concept of working with parents in their homes, sustain, maintain, continue, extend,
or at their place of work, contrasts quite carry on, keep up, prolong
markedly with the report of the Early Childhood
Care and Education Working Group. Their initiative /ɪˈnɪʃətɪv/: an act or strategy intended to
focus is on getting children and mothers access resolve a difficulty or improve a situation; a fresh
to childcare and institutionalised early approach to something.
childhood education. Education from the age of
three to five is undoubtedly vital, but without a synonyms: plan, scheme, strategy, stratagem,
similar focus on parent education and on the measure, proposal, step, action,
vital importance of the first three years, some approach
evidence indicates that it will not be enough to
overcome educational inequity. vital /ˈvʌɪt(ə)l/: absolutely necessary or important
synonyms: essential, critical, crucial, key, integral
indispensable
49
Persistent bullying is one of the worst

experiences a child can face
How can it be prevented? Peter Smith, Professor of Psychology at the University

of Sheffield, directed the Sheffield Anti-Bullying Intervention Project, funded by
the Department for Education
Her he reports on his findings.
50
A
Bullying can take a variety of forms, from the Bully /ˈbʊli/: use superior strength or influence to
verbal - being taunted or called hurtful names intimidate (someone)
- to the physical - being kicked or shoved - as
well as indirect forms, such as being excluded synonyms: persecute, harass, intimidate
from social groups. A survey I conducted with
Irene Whitney found that in British primary
schools up to a quarter of pupils reported taunt /tɔːnt/: tease or provoke (someone)
experience of bullying, which in about one in
ten cases was persistent. There was less synonyms: mock, provoke, tease, torment
bullying in secondary schools, with about one
in twenty-five suffering persistent bullying,
but these cases may be particularly shove /ʃʌv/: push (someone or something) roughly.
recalcitrant.
synonyms: push, thrust, force, ram, knock,
B jostle, hustle
Bullying is clearly unpleasant, and can make

the child experiencing it feel unworthy and recalcitrant /rɪˈkalsɪtr(ə)nt/: unwilling to
depressed. In extreme cases it can even lead obey orders or to do what should be done
to suicide, though this is thankfully rare.
Victimised pupils are more likely to experience synonyms: uncooperative, intractable,
difficulties with interpersonal relationships as insubordinate, headstrong,
adults, while children who persistently bully are contrary, perverse, difficult
more likely to grow up to be physically violent,
and convicted of anti-social offences. suicide /ˈs(j)uːɪsʌɪd/: the act of killing yourself
C because you do not want to continue living
Until recently, not much was known about the synonyms: self-destruction, taking one's own life,
topic, and little help was available to teachers self-murder, self-slaughter
to deal with bullying. Perhaps as a
consequence, schools would often deny the
problem. ‘There is no bullying at this school’ convicted /kənˈvɪktɪd/: to decide officially in
has been a common refrain, almost certainly a law court that someone is guilty of a crime
untrue. Fortunately, more schools are now
synonyms: find guilty, sentence
saying: There is not much bullying here, but
when it occurs we have a clear policy for
dealing with it.’ refrain /rɪˈfreɪn/: a comment or complaint that is
often repeated.
D
Three factors are involved in this change. First
is an awareness of the severity of the problem.
Second, a number of resources to help tackle
bullying have become available in Britain. For
example, the Scottish Council for Research in
Education produced a package of materials,
Action Against Bullying, circulated to all schools
in England and Wales as well as in Scotland in
halve /hɑːv/: divide into two parts of equal or roughly
summer 1992, with a second pack, Supporting
equal size.
Schools Against Bullying, produced the
51
following year. In Ireland, Guidelines on explicit /ɪkˈsplɪsɪt/: very clear and complete
Countering Bullying Behaviour in Post-Primary
synonyms: clear, plain, straightforward,
Schools was published in 1993. Third, there is
crystal clear, easily understandable;
evidence that these materials work, and that
precise, exact, specific, detailed
schools can achieve something. This comes unambiguous; comprehensive
from carefully conducted ‘before and after’
evaluations of interventions in schools,
monitored by a research team. In Norway, after sanction /ˈsaŋ(k)ʃ(ə)n/: a threatened penalty for
an intervention campaign was introduced disobeying a law or rule
nationally, an evaluation of forty-two schools
synonyms: penalty, punishment, deterrent;
suggested that, over a two-year period, bullying punitive action, discipline, ban,
was halved. The Sheffield investigation, which restriction, prohibition
involved sixteen primary schools and seven
secondary schools, found that most
schools succeeded in reducing bullying. consultation /kɒnsəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/: a discussion about
something that is being decided
E
synonyms: discussion, dialogue, discourse,
Evidence suggests that a key step is to develop debate, negotiation, deliberation
a policy on bullying, saying clearly what is
meant by bullying, and giving explicit
guidelines on what will be done if it occurs, what impose /ɪmˈpəʊz/: force (something unwelcome or
records will be kept, who will be informed, what unfamiliar) to be accepted or put in place.
sanctions will be employed. The policy should synonyms: foist, force, inflict, press
be developed through consultation, over a
period of time - not just imposed from the head
teacher’s office! Pupils, parents and disseminate /dɪˈsɛmɪneɪt/: spread (something,
staff should feel they have been involved in the especially information) widely.
policy, which needs to be disseminated
synonyms: spread, circulate, distribute,
and implemented effectively. disperse, promulgate, propagate,
Other actions can be taken to back up the publicize
policy. There are ways of dealing with the topic
through the curriculum, using video, drama and implement /ˈɪmplɪmɛnt/: put (a decision, plan,
literature. These are useful for raising agreement, etc.) into effect.
awareness, and can best be tied in to early
phases of development, while the school is synonyms: execute, apply, put into action, put into
starting to discuss the issue of bullying. They practice, carry out/through,
are also useful in renewing the policy for new perform, enact; fulfil, bring
pupils, or revising it in the light of experience. about, achieve, realize, actualize
But curriculum work alone may only have short-
term effects; it should be an addition to policy substitute /ˈsʌbstɪtjuːt/: a thing or person
work, not a substitute.
that is used instead of another thing or person
There are also ways of working with individual
pupils, or in small groups. Assertiveness synonyms: alternate, replacing, exchanging
training for pupils who are liable to be victims Assertiveness /əˈsəːtɪvnəs/: confident and forceful
is worthwhile, and certain approaches to group behavior
bullying such as 'no blame’, can be useful in
changing the behaviour of bullying pupils synonyms: insistence, firmness, confidence
without confronting them directly, although
52
other sanctions may be needed for those who liable to /ˈlʌɪəb(ə)l/: likely to do or to be something.
continue with persistent bullying.
synonyms: likely, inclined, tending, dispose,
Work in the playground is important, too. One apt, predisposed, prone, given
helpful step is to train lunchtime supervisors to
distinguish bullying from playful fighting, and
confronting /kənˈfrʌnt/: face up to and deal with (a
help them break up conflicts. Another
problem or difficult situation).
possibility is to improve the playground
environment, so that pupils are less likely to be synonyms: tackle, address, face, deal with,
led into bullying from boredom or frustration. take care of, handle, manage
F
supervisor /ˈsuːpəvʌɪzə/: a person who is
With these developments, schools can expect in charge of a group of people or an area
that at least the most serious kinds of bullying
can largely be prevented. The more effort put in of work and who makes sure that the work is
and the wider the whole school involvement, done correctly and according to the rules
the more substantial the results are likely to be.
synonyms: manager, director, overseer,
The reduction in bullying - and the consequent
controller, chief, steward
improvement in pupil happiness - is surely
a worthwhile objective.
distinguish /dɪˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ/: o notice or recognize a
difference between people or things
synonyms: differentiate, tell apart, discriminate
between
playful /ˈpleɪfʊl/: funny and not serious

synonyms: humourous, joke, josh, wit
53
What is speed reading, and why do

we need it?
A
Speed reading is not just about reading fast. It
is also about how much information you can
remember when you have finished reading. The qualify /ˈkwɒlɪfʌɪ/: to have the necessary skill or
World Championship Speed-Reading knowledge to do a particular job or activity
Competition says that its top competitors synonyms: be eligible for, be permitted, meet
average between 1,000 and 2,000 words a the requirements for; be entitled to
minute. But they must remember at least 50
percent of this in order to qualify for the
competition. essential /ɪˈsɛnʃ(ə)l/: absolutely necessary; extremely
important.
B
synonyms: crucial, necessary, key, vital,
Nowadays, speed reading has become an indispensable, important,
essential skill in any environment where critical, compulsory
people have to master a large volume of
information. Professional workers need reading
deal with /diːl/: take action in order to
skills to help them get through many documents
achieve something or in order to solve a problem
every day, while students under pressure to
deal with assignments may feel they have to synonyms: cope with, handle, manage, treat,
read more and read faster all the time. take care of, take charge of, take in
hand, sort out, tackle, take on;
C control
Although there are various methods to increase
reading speed, the trick is deciding what skim /skɪm/: look over or read (something) quickly,
information you want first. For example, if you especially to find the main ideas
only want a rough outline of an issue, then you
can skim the material quickly and extract the synonyms: glance through, flick through,
key facts. However, if you need to understand leaf through, read quickly, scan,
every detail in a document, then you must read run one's eye over
it slowly enough to understand this.
D extract /ɪkˈstrakt/: get (something, such as information)
from something
54
Even when you know how to ignore irrelevant synonyms: select, copy, take, choose
detail, there are other improvements you can
make to your reading style which will increase
your speed. For example, most people can read
much faster if they read silently. Reading each irrelevant /ɪˈrɛlɪv(ə)nt/: not important or relating to what
word aloud takes time for the information to is being discussed
make a complete circuit in your brain before
being pronounced. Some researchers believe synonyms: beside the point, unconnected,
that as long as the first and last letters are in unrelated, inapplicable; unimportant,
insignificant, off-topic
place, the brain can still understand the
arrangement of the other letters in the word
because it logically puts each piece into place. circuit /ˈsəːkɪt/: a roughly circular line, route, or
movement that starts and finishes at the same place
E
synonyms: lap, turn, round, circle
Chunking is another important method. Most
people learn to read either letter by letter or
word by word. As you improve, this changes.
You will probably find that you are fixing your Chunking /tʃʌŋ.kɪŋ/: a way of dealing with
eyes on a block of words, then moving your
eyes to the next block of words, and so on. You or remembering information by separating it into
are reading blocks of words at a time, not small groups
individual words one by one. You may also
notice that you do not always go from one block
to the next: sometimes you may move back to
a previous block if you are unsure about
something.
F
A skilled reader will read a lot of words in each
block. He or she will only look at each block for
an instant and will then move on. Only rarely will
the reader’s eyes skip back to a previous block
of words. This reduces the amount of work that
the reader’s eyes have to do. It also increases
flow /fləʊ/: a steady, continuous stream of something.
the volume of information that can be taken in
over a given period of time. synonyms: movement, flux, circulation, stream
G
On the other hand, a slow reader will spend a
muddle /ˈmʌd(ə)l/: bring into a disordered or confusing
lot of time reading small blocks of words. He or
she will skip back often, losing the flow and state.
structure of the text, and muddling their overall synonyms: confuse, mix up, disarrange,
disorganize, disorder, disturb,
understanding of the subject. This irregular eye
mess up
movement quickly makes the reader tired. Poor
readers tend to dislike reading because they
feel it is difficult to concentrate and comprehend
written information.
H
55
The best tip anyone can have to improve their
reading speed is to practise. In order to do this
effectively, a person must be engaged in the
material and want to know more. If you find
yourself constantly having to re-read the same
paragraph, you may want to switch to reading
material that grabs your attention. If you enjoy
what you are reading, you will make quicker
progress.
56
Learning by Examples
A Learning theory is rooted in the work of Ivan governing /ˈɡʌv(ə)nɪŋ/: Having authority to conduct the
Pavlov, the famous scientist who discovered and policy, actions, and affairs of a state, organization, or
documented the principles governing how people
animals (humans included) learn in the 1900s.
synonyms: rule, control, be in charge of,
Two basic kinds of learning or conditioning occur,
command, lead, dominate; run,
one of which is famously known as the classical
head, administer, manage,
conditioning. Classical conditioning happens regulate, supervise
when an animal learns to associate a neutral
stimulus (signal) with a stimulus that has
intrinsic meaning based on how closely in time neutral stimulus /ˈstɪmjʊləs/: kích thích trung tính
the two stimuli are presented. The classic
intrinsic /ɪnˈtrɪnsɪk/: belonging naturally
example of classical conditioning is a dog's ability
to associate the sound of a bell (something that synonyms: innate, inborn, natural; deep-rooted,
originally has no meaning to the dog) with the integral, basic, fundamental,
presentation of food (something that has a lot of essential
meaning to the dog) a few moments later. Dogs
are able to learn the association between bell and salivate /ˈsalɪveɪt/: produce saliva (chảy nước rãi)
food, and will salivate immediately after hearing
circumstance /ˈsɝː.kəm.stæns/: a fact or condition
the bell once this connection has been made.
connected with or relevant to an event or action.
Years of learning research have led to the
creation of a highly precise learning theory that synonyms: situation, conditions, position;
can be used to understand and predict how and events, occurrences, happenings,
under what circumstances most any animal will context, background, environment
learn, including human beings, and eventually
help people figure out how to change their emphasis on /ˈemfəsəs/: special importance, value, or
behaviours. prominence given to something.
57
B Role models are a popular notion for guiding synonyms: prominence, importance, weight,
child development, but in recent years very significance, value; stress, attention,
interesting research has been done on learning priority
by examples in other animals. If the subject of
animal learning is taught very much in terms of
classical or operant conditioning, it places too equip /i'kwip/: supply with the necessary items for a
much emphasis on how we allow animals to
particular purpose.
learn and not enough on how they are equipped synonyms: provide, furnish, supply, issue,
to learn. To teach a course of mine, I have been stock, provision
dipping profitably into a very interesting and
accessible compilation of papers on social
learning in mammals, including chimps and dip into /dɪp/: spend some of your money
human children, edited by Heyes and Galef synonyms: draw on, spend part of, touch, use, make use
(1996). of, have recourse to
C The research reported in one paper started
with a school field trip to Israel to a pine forest
where many pine cones were discovered, compilation /ˌkɑmpəˈleɪʃ(ə)n/: a thing, especially a book,
stripped to the central core. So the investigation record, or broadcast program
started with no weighty theoretical intent, but was
synonyms: collection, selection, treasury,
directed at finding out what was eating the
compendium, album
nutritious pine seeds and how they managed to
get them out of the cones. The culprit proved to
be the versatile and athletic black rat, (Rattus versatile /ˈvərsədl/: able to adapt or be adapted to many
rattus), and the technique was to bite each cone different functions or activities.
scale off at its base, in sequence from base to tip
following the spiral growth pattern of the cone. synonyms: adaptable, flexible, adjustable,
multipurpose, handy
D Urban black rats were found to lack the skill
and were unable to learn it even if housed with
spiral /ˈspaɪrəl/: có hình xoắn ốc
experienced cone strippers. However, infants of
urban mothers cross-fostered by stripper
mothers acquired the skill, whereas infants of
stripper mothers fostered by an urban mother
could not. Clearly the skill had to be learned from
the mother. Further elegant experiments showed
that naive adults could develop the skill if they
were provided with cones from which the first naive /naɪˈiv/: having or showing a lack of experience or
complete spiral of scales had been removed;
knowledge
rather like our new photocopier which you can
work out how to use once someone has shown synonyms: innocent, unsophisticated,
you how to switch it on. In the case of rats, the ingenuous, inexperienced, immature
youngsters take cones away from the mother
when she is still feeding on them, allowing them
to acquire the complete stripping skill.
E A good example of adaptive bearing we might
conclude, but let’s see the economies. This was
determined by measuring oxygen uptake of a rat
stripping a cone in a metabolic chamber to
calculate energetic cost and comparing it with the
58
benefit of the pine seeds measured by
calorimeter. The cost proved to be less than 10%
of the energetic value of the cone. An acceptable
profit margin. scattered /ˈskædərd/: covering a wide area
F A paper in 1996, Animal Behaviour by synonyms: throw, strew, toss, fling; sprinkle,
Bednekoff and Baida, provides a different view of spread, distribute, sow
the adaptiveness of social learning. It concerns
the seed caching behaviour of Clark's Nutcracker
(Nucifraga columbiana) and the Mexican Jay
(Aphelocoma ultramarina). The former is a solitary /ˈsɑləˌtɛri/: done or existing alone.
specialist, caching 30,000 or so seeds in
scattered locations that it will recover over the synonyms: lonely, companionless, one's own,
months of winter; the Mexican Jay will also cache unaccompanied, alone, friendless;
food but is much less dependent upon this than antisocial, unsociable
the Nutcracker. The two species also differ in
their social structure: the Nutcracker being rather
solitary while the Jay forages in social groups.
comical /ˈkɑmək(ə)l/: amusing.
G The experiment is to discover not just whether
a bird can remember where it hid a seed but also synonyms: funny, comic, humorous, witty,
if it can remember where it saw another bird hide hilarious, amusing, entertaining
a seed. The design is slightly comical with a
cacher bird wandering about a room with lots of perch /pərtʃ/: sit on or be on something high or on
holes in the floor hiding food in some of the holes, something from which it is easy to fall
while watched by an observer bird perched in a
cage. Two days later, cachers and observers are synonyms: roost, sit, rest; alight, settle,land
tested for their discovery rate against an
estimated random performance. In the role of
cacher, not only the Nutcracker but also the less
specialised Jay performed above chance; more adept at /əˈdɛpt/: very good at doing something that is
surprisingly, however, jay observers were as not easy
successful as jay cachers whereas nutcracker
synonyms: expert, accomplished, skillful,
observers did no better than chance. It seems
talented, masterly, masterful,
that, whereas the Nutcracker is highly adapted at brilliant, splendid, marvelous,
remembering where it hid its own seeds, the outstanding, excellent
social living Mexican Jay is more adept at
remembering, and so exploiting, the caches of
others. exploit /ɪkˈsplɔɪt/: to get value or use from (something)
synonyms: utilize, harness, use, make use of,
turn/put to good use, make the most
of, capitalize on, benefit from
59
LAND OF THE RISING SUN
A
Japan has a significantly better record in terms attainment /əˈteɪnmənt/: A thing achieved, especially a
of average mathematical attainment than skill or educational achievement
England and Wales. Large sample international
comparisons of pupils' attainments since the synonyms: achievement, accomplishment, fulfilment,
1960s have established that not only did fulfilling, completion
Japanese pupils at age 13 have better scores of
average attainment, but there was also a
larger proportion of 'low' attainers in England, reasonably /ˈriz(ə)nəbli/: to a moderate or acceptable
where, incidentally, the variation in attainment degree: fairly.
scores was much greater. The percentage of synonyms: passably, somewhat, quite moderately,
Gross National Product spent on education is relatively, comparatively
reasonably similar in the two countries, so how
is this higher and more consistent attainment in
maths achieved?
spacious /ˈspeɪʃəs/: having a large amount of space
B
synonyms: roomy, capacious, sizeable, large, big, vast,
Lower secondary schools in Japan cover three immense, ample, extensive
school years, from the seventh grade (age 13)
to the ninth grade (age 15). Virtually all pupils at
this stage attend state schools: only 3 per cent let off steam: to do or say something that helps you to
are in the private sector. Schools are usually get rid of strong feelings or energy
modem in design, set well back from the road
and spacious inside. Classrooms are large and synonyms: give vent to one's feelings, sound off, lose
pupils sit at single desks in rows. Lessons last one's inhibitions, let oneself go
for a standardised 50 minutes and are always
followed by a 10-minute break, which gives the
pupils a chance to let off steam. Teachers mutual bowing: cúi chào
begin with a formal address and mutual
bowing, and then concentrate on whole-class
teaching.
Classes are large - usually about 40 - and are
unstreamed. Pupils stay in the same class for
all lessons throughout the school and develop
considerable class identity and loyalty. Pupils
60
attend the school in their own neighbourhood, unstreamed /ʌnˈstriːmd/: (of schoolchildren, a class, or
which in theory removes ranking by school. In a school) not arranged in streams
practice in Tokyo, because of the
relative concentration of schools, there is some
competition to get into the 'better' school in a
particular area.
C
Traditional ways of teaching form the basis of
the lesson and the remarkably quiet classes
take their own notes of the points made and the
examples demonstrated. Everyone has their
own copy of the textbook supplied by the central
education authority, Monbusho, as part of the
concept of free compulsory education up to the
age of 15. These textbooks are, on the whole, compulsory /kəmˈpʌls(ə)ri/: having the power of forcing
small, presumably inexpensive to produce, but someone to do something
well set out and logically developed. (One
teacher was particularly keen to introduce colour synonyms: obligatory, mandatory, required, requisite,
and pictures into maths textbooks: he felt this necessary, essential, statutory, prescribed
would make them more accessible to pupils
brought up in a cartoon culture.) Besides
approving textbooks, Monbusho also decides
the highly centralised national curriculum
and how it is to be delivered.
D
Lessons all follow the same pattern. At the
beginning, the pupils put solutions to the
homework on the board, then the teachers
comment, correct or elaborate as necessary.
Pupils mark their own homework: this is an elaborate /ɪˈlabəreɪt/: Add more detail concerning what
important principle in Japanese schooling as it has already been said
enables pupils to see where and why they made
a mistake, so that these can be avoided in synonyms: expand on, enlarge on, add to, flesh out, add
future. No one minds mistakes or ignorance as detail to
long as you are prepared to learn from them.
After the homework has been discussed, the
teacher explains the topic of the lesson, slowly
and with a lot of repetition and elaboration.
Examples are demonstrated on the board;
questions from the textbook are worked
through first with the class, and then the class is
set questions from the textbook to do
individually. Only rarely are supplementary individually /ɪndɪˈvɪdʒʊ(ə)li/: One by one
worksheets distributed in a maths class. The
synonyms: singly, separately, discretely, independently,
impression is that the logical nature of the
apart
textbooks and their comprehensive coverage of
different types of examples, combined with the
61
relative homogeneity of the class, renders work
sheets unnecessary. At this point, the teacher
distribute /ˈdɪstrɪbjuːt/: to give or deliver (something) to
would circulate and make sure that all the pupils
people
were coping well.
E synonyms: give out, deal out, hand out, hand round,
It is remarkable that large, mixed-ability classes issue, dispense, administer, pass round
could be kept together for maths throughout all
their compulsory schooling from 6 to 15.
Teachers say that they give individual help at the render /ˈrɛndə/: Provide or give (a service, help, etc.)
end of a lesson or after school, setting extra
synonyms: give, provide, supply, furnish, make
work if necessary. In observed lessons, any
available, contribute
strugglers would be assisted by the teacher or
quietly seek help from their neighbour. Carefully
fostered class identity makes pupils keen to help
each other - anyway, it is in their interests since assist /əˈsɪst/: Help (someone), typically by doing a
the class progresses together. share of the work.
This scarcely seems adequate help to enable synonyms: help, give assistance to, be of use to, do
slow learners to keep up. However, the someone a favour
Japanese attitude towards education runs along
the lines of 'if you work hard enough, you can do
almost anything'. Parents are kept closely seek /siːk/: Ask for (something) from someone.
informed of their children's progress and will play
synonyms: request, solicit, entreat, beg for, appeal for,
a part in helping their children to keep up
apply for, put in for
with class, sending them to 'Juku' (private
evening tuition) if extra help is needed
and encouraging them to work harder. It seems
to work, at least for 95 per cent of the school scarcely /ˈskɛːsli/: Used to suggest that something is
population. unlikely to be or certainly not the case.
F synonyms: rarely, seldom, infrequently, not often, hardly

ever, almost never, on rare occasions, every once in a
So what are the major contributing factors in the while
success of maths teaching? Clearly, attitudes
are important. Education is valued greatly in
Japanese culture; maths is recognised as an adequate /ˈadɪkwət/: Satisfactory or acceptable in
important compulsory subject throughout quality or quantity.
schooling; and the emphasis is on hard work
coupled with a focus on accuracy. synonyms: sufficient, enough, ample, requisite, apposite,
appropriate, suitable
Other relevant points relate to the supportive
attitude of a class towards slower pupils, the lack
of competition within a class, and the positive
emphasis on learning for oneself and improving
one's own standard. And the view of repetitively accuracy /ˈakjʊrəsi/: The quality or state of being correct
boring lessons and learning the facts by heart, or precise.
which is sometimes quoted in relation to
Japanese classes, may be unfair and synonyms: correctness, precision, rightness, exactness,
unjustified. No poor maths lessons perfection
62
were observed. They were mainly good and one repetitively /rɪˈpɛtɪtɪvli/: involving doing or saying the
or two were inspirational. same thing several times
synonyms: monotonous, tedious, boring, uninteresting
quote /kwəʊt/: to mention (something) as an example to

support an idea or statement
synonyms: cite, mention, refer to, make reference to,
give, name
unjustified /ʌnˈdʒʌstɪfʌɪd/: Not shown to be right or

reasonable.
synonyms: irrational, unreasonable, unsound,
unreasoned, unfounded
inspirational /ɪnspɪˈreɪʃ(ə)n(ə)l/: causing people to want

to do or create something
synonyms: exciting, fascinating, spirited, stimulating,
moving, inspiring, passionate, impassioned
63
Greying population stays in the pink
Elderly people are growing healthier, happier

and more independent, say American afflict /əˈflɪkt/: to cause pain or suffering to
scientists. The results of a 14-year study to be (someone or something)
announced later this month reveal that
synonyms: trouble, burden, distress, cause
the diseases associated with old age are
trouble to, cause suffering to, harass, affect
afflicting fewer and fewer people and when they
do strike, it is much later in life.
In the last 14 years, the National Long-term strike /strʌɪk/: occur suddenly and have harmful
Health Care Survey has gathered data on the or damaging effects on.
health and lifestyles of more than 20,000 men
and women over 65. Researchers, now analysing synonyms: affect, afflict, attack, hit, come upon,
the results of data gathered in 1994, say arthritis, smite
high blood pressure and circulation problems - accelerate /əkˈsɛləreɪt/: Increase in rate,
the major medical complaints in this age group - amount, or extent.
are troubling a smaller proportion every year. And
the data confirms that the rate at which these synonyms: increase, rise, go up, advance, leap,
diseases are declining continues to accelerate. surge, speed up, escalate
Other diseases of old age - dementia,
dementia /dɪˈmɛnʃə/: sa sút trí tuệ
stroke, arteriosclerosis and emphysema - are
also troubling fewer and fewer people.
64
'It really raises the question of what should be
considered normal ageing,' says Kenneth
Manton, a demographer from Duke University in nutrition /njʊˈtrɪʃ(ə)n/: The process of providing
North Carolina. He says the problems doctors or obtaining the food necessary for health and
accepted as normal in a 65-year-old in 1982 are growth.
often not appearing until people are 70 or 75.
synonyms: nourishment, nutriment, nutrients,
Clearly, certain diseases are beating a retreat in sustenance, food, daily bread
the face of medical advances. But there may be
other contributing factors. Improvements in
childhood nutrition in the first quarter of the predecessor /ˈpriːdɪsɛsə/: a person who had a
twentieth century, for example, gave today's job or position before someone else
elderly people a better start in life than their
predecessors. synonyms: ancestor, forefather, forebear,
progenitor, antecedent
On the downside, the data also reveals failures in
public health that have caused surges in some
illnesses. An increase in some cancers and surge /səːdʒ/: A sudden large increase, typically
bronchitis may reflect changing smoking habits a temporary one.
and poorer air quality, say the researchers.
'These may be subtle influences,' says Manton, synonyms: sudden increase, rise, growth,
'but our subjects have been exposed to worse upswing, upsurge, escalation, jump, leap, boost
and worse pollution for over 60 years. It's not
surprising we see some effect.'
bronchitis /brɒŋ'kaitis/: viêm phế quản
One interesting correlation Manton uncovered is
that better-educated people are likely to live subtle /ˈsʌt(ə)l/: so delicate or precise as to be
longer. For example, 65-year-old women with difficult to analyse or describe.
fewer than eight years of schooling
are expected, on average, to live to 82. Those synonyms: fine, nice, minute, precise
who continued their education live an extra
seven years. Although some of this can be
attributed to a higher income, Manton believes attribute to /əˈtrɪbjuːt/: Regard something as
it is mainly because educated people seek more being caused by.
medical attention.
synonyms: ascribe, assign, accredit, credit,
The survey also assessed how independent impute, allot, allocate
people over 65 were, and again found a striking
trend. Almost 80% of those in the 1994 survey
could complete everyday activities ranging from unaided /ʌnˈeɪdɪd/: Needing or having no
eating and dressing unaided to complex tasks assistance; without help.
such as cooking and managing their finances.
That represents a significant drop in the number synonyms: independent, self-help, solo,
of disabled old people in the population. If the unaccompanied
trends apparent in the United States 14 years ago
had continued, researchers calculate there would
be an additional one million disabled elderly
people in today's population. According to
Manton, slowing the trend has saved the United burden /ˈbəːd(ə)n/: A duty or misfortune that
States government's Medicare system more than causes worry, hardship, or distress.
$200 billion, suggesting that the greying
65
of America's population may prove less of a synonyms: responsibility, onus, charge, duty,
financial burden than expected. obligation, liability
The increasing self-reliance of many elderly massive /ˈmasɪv/: Exceptionally large.
people is probably linked to a massive increase
in the use of simple home medical aids. For synonyms: huge, great, enormous, immense,
instance, the use of raised toilet seats has tremendous, vast
more than doubled since the start of the study,
and the use of bath seats has grown by more
than 50%. These developments also bring some retain /rɪˈteɪn/: Continue to have (something);
health benefits, according to a report from keep possession of.
the MacArthur Foundation's research group on
successful ageing. The group found that synonyms: keep, keep possession of, keep,
those elderly people who were able to retain a hang on to, maintain, continue, preserve,
sense of independence were more likely to reserve, conserve
stay healthy in old age.
deteriorating /dɪˈtɪərɪəreɪtɪŋ/: Becoming
Maintaining a level of daily physical activity may progressively worse.
help mental functioning, says Carl Cotman, a
neuroscientist at the University of California at synonyms: worsen, decay, spoil, erode
Irvine. He found that rats that exercise on
a treadmill have raised levels of brain-derived
neurotrophic factor coursing through their brains. self-esteem /ˌsɛlfɛˈstiːm/: Confidence in one's
Cotman believes this hormone, which keeps own worth or abilities; self-respect.
neurons functioning, may prevent the brains of
active humans from deteriorating. synonyms: self-respect, pride in one's abilities,
faith in oneself, pride, dignity, morale, self-
As part of the same study, Teresa Seeman, a confidence, confidence
social epidemiologist at the University of
Southern California in Los Angeles, found a drawback /ˈdrɔːbak/: something that causes
connection between self-esteem and stress difficulty
in people over 70. In laboratory simulations of synonyms: disadvantage, snag, downside,
challenging activities such as driving, those obstacle
who felt in control of their lives pumped out lower
levels of stress hormones such as isolated /ˈʌɪsəleɪtɪd/: Having minimal contact or
cortisol. Chronically high levels of these little in common with others.
hormones have been linked to heart disease.
synonyms: solitary, lonely, companionless,
But independence can have drawbacks. unaccompanied, on one's own, alone, all alone,
Seeman found that elderly people who felt friendless
emotionally isolated maintained higher levels of
fare /fɛː/: succeed or be treated in
stress hormones even when asleep.
the stated way
The research suggests that older people fare
best when they feel independent but know synonyms: do, make one’s way, manage,
they can get help when they need it. survive
'Like much research into ageing, these results
support common sense,' says Seeman. They
also show that we may be underestimating the underestimate /ʌndərˈɛstɪmeɪt/: to think that
impact of these simple factors. 'The sort of thing something is less or lower than it really is
66
that your grandmother always told you turns out synonyms: set too low, underrate, undervalue,
to be right on target,' she says. understate
67
Twist in the Tale
Fears that television and computers would kill children’s desire to read couldn’t
have been more wrong. With sales roaring, a new generation of authors are
publishing’s newest and unlikeliest literary stars
A Less than three years ago, doom merchants doom merchant /ˈməːtʃ(ə)nt/:
were predicting that the growth in video games A person who always focuses on the potential
and the rise of the Internet would sound the
death knell for children’s literature. But contrary negative outcomes of a situation
to popular myth, children are reading more
books than ever. A recent survey by Books
Marketing found that children up to the age of 11 knell /nɛl/: Used in reference to an announcement,
read on average for four hours a week, event, or sound that warns of the end of something
particularly girls.
synonyms: end, beginning of the end, presage of the
B Moreover, the children’s book market, which end, death knell
traditionally was seen as a poor cousin to the
more lucrative and successful adult market, has myth /mɪθ/: an idea or story that is believed by many
come into its own. Publishing houses are now people but that is not true
making considerable profits on the back of new
children’s books and children’s authors can now synonyms: misconception, fallacy, mistaken belief,
command significant advances. ‘Children’s false notion, misbelief, fairy story, fairy tale, fiction
books are going through an incredibly fertile
period,’ says Wendy Cooling, a children’s
literature consultant. ‘There’s a real buzz around lucrative /ˈluːkrətɪv/: Producing a great deal of profit.
them. Book clubs are happening, sales are
good, and people are much more willing to listen synonyms: profitable, gainful, moneymaking, high-
to children’s authors.’ income, well paid, high-paying, cost-effective
C The main growth area has been the market for command /kəˈmɑːnd/: Be in a strong enough
eight to fourteen-year-olds, and there is little position to have or secure.
doubt that the boom has been fuelled by the
68
bespectacled apprentice, Harry Potter. So synonyms: receive, be given, get, gain, obtain,
influential has J. K. Rowling’s series of books secure
been that they have helped to make reading
fashionable for pre-teens. ‘Harry made it OK to
be seen on a bus reading a book,’ says Cooling.
fertile /ˈfəːtʌɪl/: able to grow or develop
‘To a child, that is important.’ The current buzz
around the publication of the fourth Harry Potter
beats anything in the world of adult literature.
apprentice /əˈprɛntɪs/: a person who learns a job or
D ‘People still tell me, “Children don’t read skill by working for a fixed period of time for
nowadays”,’ says David Almond, the award- someone who is very good at that job or skill
winning author of children’s books such as
Skellig. The truth is that they are skilled, creative synonyms: trainee, learner, neophyte, raw recruit,
readers. When I do classroom visits, they ask fledgling
me very sophisticated questions about use of
language, story structure, chapters and
dialogue.’ No one is denying that books are sophisticated /səˈfɪstɪkeɪtɪd/: developed to a high
competing with other forms of entertainment for degree of complexity.
children’s attention but it seems as though
children find a special kind of mental synonyms: advanced, highly developed, subtle,
nourishment within the printed page. refined
E ‘A few years ago, publishers lost confidence

and wanted to make books more like television,
the medium that frightened them most,’ says nourishment /ˈnʌrɪʃm(ə)nt/: The food necessary for
children’s book critic Julia Eccleshare. ‘But growth, health, and good condition
books aren’t TV, and you will find that children
always say that the good thing about books is synonyms: food, sustenance, nutriment, nutrition,
that you can see them in your head. Children are subsistence, provisions, fare, daily bread
demanding readers,’ she says. ‘If they don’t get
it in two pages, they’ll drop it.’ negotiate /nɪˈɡəʊʃɪeɪt/: to discuss something
F No more are children’s authors considered formally in order to make an agreement
mere sentimentalists or failed adult writers.
'Some feted adult writers would kill for the sales,’ synonyms: deal, discuss, consult together, confer
says Almond, who sold 42,392 copies of Skellig fanatical /fəˈnatɪk(ə)l/:
in 1999 alone. And advances seem to be
growing too: UK publishing outfit Orion recently extremely interested in something
negotiated a six-figure sum from US company
Scholastic for The Seeing Stone, a children's synonyms: enthusiastic, eager, keen, fervent,
novel by Kevin Crossley-Holland, the majority of passionate, devoted, dedicated
which will go to the author.
G It helps that once smitten, children are loyal bushfire /ˈbʊʃ ˌfaɪr/: a fire burning in the bush (=
and even fanatical consumers. Author a wild area of land) that is difficult to control and
Jacqueline Wilson says that children spread
sometimes spreads quickly
news of her books like a bushfire. 'My average
reader is a girl of ten,’ she explains. ‘They’re
sociable and acquisitive. They collect. They
have parties - where books are a good present.
If they like something, they have to pass it on.’
After Rowling, Wilson is currently the best- boom /buːm/: grow or expand suddenly
selling children’s writer, and her sales have synonyms: prosper, thrive, flourish, grow, increase,
boomed over the past three years. She has sold burgeon
more than three million books, but remains
69
virtually invisible to adults, although most ten-
year-old girls know about her.
contemporary /kənˈtɛmp(ə)r(ər)i/: Belonging to or
H Children’s books are surprisingly relevant to occurring in the present.
contemporary life. Provided they are handled
synonyms: modern, present-day, present, current,
with care, few topics are considered off-limits
for children. One senses that children’s writers present-time
relish the chance to discuss the whole area of
topics and language. But Anne Fine, author of
many award-winning children’s books is off-limits: If an area of land is off-limits, you are
concerned that the British literati still ignore not allowed to enter it.
children’s culture. ‘It’s considered worthy but
boring,’ she says.
derive from /dɪˈrʌɪv/: to take or get (something) from
I I think there’s still a way to go,’ says Almond,
who wishes that children’s books were taken (something else)
more seriously as literature. Nonetheless, he synonyms: found, build, construct, form, establish,
derives great satisfaction from his child ground, root
readers. ‘They have a powerful literary culture,’
he says. ‘It feels as if you’re able to step into the
store of mythology and ancient stories that run
through all societies and encounter the great encounter /ɪnˈkaʊntə/: Unexpectedly be faced with
themes: love and loss and death and or experience something
redemption.’
synonyms: experience, come into contact with, run
J At the moment, the race is on to find the next into, come across, face, be faced with, confront
Harry Potter. The bidding for new books at
Bologna this year - the children’s equivalent of
the Frankfurt Book Fair - was as fierce as redemption /rɪˈdɛmpʃ(ə)n/: The action of saving or
anything anyone has ever seen. All of which being saved from sin, error, or evil.
bodes well for the long-term future of the market
- and for children’s authors, who have
traditionally suffered the lowest profile in
literature, despite the responsibility of their role. fierce /fɪəs/: powerful and destructive.
synonyms: powerful, strong, violent, forceful, bitter
70
Learning color words
Young children struggle with color concepts, and the reason for this may have something
to do with how we use the words that describe them.
A In the course of the first few years of their repertoire /ˈrɛpətwɑː/: A stock of skills or types of
lives, children who are brought up in English- behaviour that a person habitually uses
speaking homes successfully master the use of
distinguish /dɪˈstɪŋɡwɪʃ/: notice or recognize a
hundreds of words. Words for objects, actions,
difference between people or things
emotions, and many other aspects of the
physical world quickly become part of their synonyms: differentiate, tell apart, discriminate,
repertoire. For some reason, however, when it discern, determine, pick out
comes to learning color words, the same
children perform very badly. At the age of four mapping /ˈmapɪŋ/: An operation that associates
months, babies can distinguish between basic each element of a given set with one or more
color categories. Yet it turns out they do this in elements of a second set
much the same way as blind children. "Blue" and haphazard /hapˈhazəd/: Lacking any obvious
"yellow" appear in older children's expressive principle of organization.
language in answer to questions such as "What
color is this?", but their mapping of objects to synonyms: random, unplanned, unsystematic,
individual colors is haphazard and disorganized, disorderly, irregular, indiscriminate,
interchangeable. If shown a blue cup and chaotic
asked about its color, typical two-year-olds
interchangeable /ɪntəˈtʃeɪn(d)ʒəbl/: able to
seem as likely to come up with "red" as "blue."
be exchanged with each other without making
Even after hundreds of training trials, children as
any difference or without being noticed
old as four may still end up being unable to
accurately sort objects by color. synonyms: exchangeable, transposable,
replaceable
B In an effort to work out why this is, cognitive
scientists at Stanford University in California incompetence /ɪnˈkɒmpɪt(ə)ns/: Inability to do
hypothesized that children's incompetence at something successfully
color-word learning may be directly linked to the
71
way these words are used in English. While synonyms: ineptitude, inability, lack of ability,
word order for color adjectives varies, they are incapability, lack of skill, lack of proficiency,
used overwhelmingly in pre-nominal position clumsiness, inefficiency
(e.g. "blue cup"); in other words, the adjective
comes before the noun it is describing. This is in
contrast to post-nominal position (e.g. "The cup
is blue") where the adjective comes after the
noun. It seems that the difficulty children have unique /juːˈniːk/: Being the only one of its kind;
may not be caused by any unique property of unlike anything else.
color, or indeed, of the world. Rather, it may synonyms: distinctive, individual, special, isolated
simply come down to the challenge of having to
make predictions from color words to the objects
they refer to, instead of being able to make
predictions from the world of objects to the color
words.
To illustrate, the word "chair" has a meaning that entity /ˈɛntɪti/: something that exists by itself
applies to the somewhat varied set of entities in
the world that people use for sitting on. Chairs synonyms: existence, being
have features, such as arms and legs and
backs, that are combined to some degree in a
systematic way; they turn up in a range of chairs
of different shapes, sizes, and ages. It could be
said that children learn to narrow down the set
of cues that make up a chair and in this way they
learn the concept associated with that word. On
the other hand, color words tend to be unique
and not bound to other specific co-occurring
features; there is nothing systematic about color
words to help cue their meaning. In the speech
that adults direct at children, color adjectives
occur pre-nominally ("blue cup") around 70
percent of the time. This suggests that most of
what children hear from adults will, in fact, be
unhelpful in learning what color words refer to.
C To explore this idea further, the research team
recruited 41 English children aged between 23
and 29 months and carried out a three- phase
experiment. It consisted of a pre-test, followed
by training in the use of color words, and finally novel /ˈnɒv(ə)l/: Interestingly new or unusual.
a post-test that was identical to the pre-test. The
pre- and post-test materials comprised six synonyms: new, unusual, unfamiliar, different,
objects that were novel to the children. There creative
were three examples of each object in each of
three colors—red, yellow, and blue. The objects
were presented on trays, and in both tests, the
children were asked to pick out objects in
response to requests in which the color word
72
was either a prenominal ("Which is the red
one?") or a post-nominal ("Which one is red?").
In the training, the children were introduced to a
"magic bucket" containing five sets of items
familiar to 26-month-olds (balls, cups, crayons,
glasses, and toy bears) in each of the three
colors. The training was set up so that half the
children were presented with the items one by
one and heard them labelled with color words
used pre-nominally ("This is a red crayon"),
while the other half were introduced to the same
items described with a post-nominal color word
("This crayon is red"). After the training, the
children repeated the selection task on the
unknown items in the post-test. To assess the
quality of children's understanding of the color
words, and the effect of each type of training,
correct choices on items that were consistent
across the pre- and post-tests were used to
measure children's color knowledge.
D Individual analysis of pre- and post-test data,
which confirmed parental vocabulary reports,
showed the children had at least some
knowledge of the three colour words: they
averaged two out of three correct choices in
response to both pre- and post-nominal question
types, which, it has been pointed out, is better
than chance. When children's responses to the
question types were assessed independently,
performance was at its most consistent when
children were both trained and tested on post-
nominal adjectives, and worst when trained on
pre-nominal adjectives and tested on post-
nominal adjectives. Only children who had been
trained with post- nominal color-word
presentation and then tested with post-nominal
question types were significantly more accurate
than chance. Comparing the pre- and post-test
scores across each condition revealed a
significant decline in performance when children
were both pre- and post-tested with questions
that placed the color words pre-nominally.
As predicted, when children are exposed to
color adjectives in post-nominal position, they
learn them rapidly (after just five training trials
per color); when they are presented with them
pre-nominally, as English overwhelmingly tends
to do, children show no signs of learning.
73
74
Should a university teach a killer?
How should a university treat an application from

a mass murderer?
This was the question facing the University of

Oslo, when Norwegian mass killer Anders
terror /ˈtɛrə/: violence that is committed by a
Behring Breivik applied from prison to take its
person, group, or government in order to frighten
political science degree.
people and achieve a political goal
In July 2011, Breivik had killed 77 people in a
bomb and gun terror attack in Oslo and on the
island of Utoya.
The university's decision on whether to teach

him was made particularly difficult because
some of the people killed by Breivik had been
friends with students at the university.
'For our sake, not his' far-right: Belonging to or representing the views of
the extreme right wing of a political party or group.
He had even named professors at the university (bảo thủ)
as targets in his far-right "manifesto".
And in what the university's vice-rector called a

"traumatic paradox", Breivik's chosen degree
would involve studying the very political
institutions his extremist ideology had extremist ideology: tư tưởng cực đoan
attacked.
Nevertheless, three years ago the university

agreed to let Breivik study under strict conditions
and he has continued as an undergraduate
student, taking a course which includes political
theory, party politics, public administration and
international relations.
Course materials are given to him by a prison

officer and he has no contact with students or
academics or access to the internet.
The university said teaching Breivik (who has

pursue /pəˈsjuː/: Seek to attain or accomplish (a
since decided to change his name) was about
goal) over a long period.
honouring the right of prisoners to pursue
75
higher education if they meet the admission synonyms: strive for, push towards, seek, aim for,
requirements. have as a goal, have as an objective, aspire to
Former rector Ole Petter Ottersen said it was

"for our own sake, not his."
Professor Svein Stolen became Oslo's rector predecessor /ˈpriːdɪsɛsə/: A person who held a job
last year and agrees with his predecessor's or office before the current holder.
decision. synonyms: former holder of the post, previous
holder of the post, forerunner
Norway's 'low key' approach
"There is not one opinion in a large university to some extent /ɪkˈstɛnt/: The particular degree to
and it is more difficult for those that were closely which something is or is believed to be the case.
affected, but to some extent I feel that we are synonyms: degree, scale, level, amount, size
collectively satisfied that we chose this
solution," he said.
collectively /kəˈlɛktɪvli/: As a group; as a whole.
"It was not easy but I think it was a kind of
principled action from the university." synonyms: acting, being or existing together
Prof Stolen said the university's first

consideration before accepting Breivik's welfare /ˈwɛlfɛː/: statutory procedure or social effort
application was the welfare of students and designed to promote the basic physical and material
staff. well-being of people in need.
"It was extremely important to take care of the synonyms: benefit, advantage, well-being, public
other students, the teachers and the assistance, social security
administration, so there were a lot of discussions
about how we can ensure that this does not
affect them too much," he said.
Professor Ase Gornitzka, Oslo's vice-rector,

said she saw Breivik's attack as being partly
against the university, because it is part of
Norway's liberal democratic political order.
She said the university's response was in line

with the wider Norwegian response to Breivik.
"It is very low key and part of the general

sentiment in Norway that he is not given any
space," she said.
sentiment /ˈsɛntɪm(ə)nt/: A view or opinion that is
"He has rights by law to take studies but of held or expressed.
course he cannot come here or engage in the
synonyms: view, point of view, way of thinking,
ways that normal students do."
feeling, attitude, thought, opinion, belief, idea
76
'Better he is an educated man than if he is not'
Thomas, a former student representative at Oslo dignify /ˈdɪɡnɪfʌɪ/: Make (something) seem worthy
University, knew people who were killed in the and impressive.
attack and now refuses to dignify Breivik by
even saying his name. synonyms: distinguish, add dignity to, enhance,
magnify, elevate, upgrade
"Not because of fear but because he does not
deserve it," he explained. "Fame is what he
wanted."
He is worried that Breivik might only be taking

the course to show that he has changed and
thereby try to get out of prison.
Nonetheless, Thomas supports the university's rehabilitation /riːəbɪlɪˈteɪʃ(ə)n/: The action of

decision. restoring someone to health or normal life through
training and therapy after imprisonment, addiction,
"I can't see him being let out [of prison], but if he or illness.
does it is better he is an educated man than if he
is not," he said. synonyms: resilience
"Revenge is not part of the penal system, it is for

rehabilitation." controversial /kɒntrəˈvəːʃ(ə)l/: relating to or causing
much discussion, disagreement, or argument
Emil, a recent graduate from the university, said
synonyms: contentious, disputed, at issue,
he thought Oslo's leaders did the right thing,
disputable, debatable, arguable
even though it was a controversial decision.
"It was a test for Norway's liberal policies when

Anders Behring Breivik did this awful thing. But renowned /rɪˈnaʊnd/: Known or talked about by
education can only be good for him," he said. many people
synonyms: famous, celebrated, famed, eminent,
Is the university's decision, and the response to distinguished, acclaimed
it, particularly Norwegian?
The country is renowned for freedom, tolerance

and equality, and perhaps a university in the UK
or the US would not have accepted someone defer /dɪˈfəː/: Put off (an action or event) to a later
with Breivik's criminal record. time
Anthony Seldon, the vice-chancellor of synonyms: postpone, put off, delay, put back
Buckingham University, said he would have
deferred the decision to the families of Breivik's
victims. overwhelmingly /əʊvəˈwɛlmɪŋli/: To a very great
degree or with a great majority.
synonyms: completely, wholly, absolutely
77
"I'm a deep believer in the power of education to
change human beings for the better, and in the remorse /rɪˈmɔːs/: Deep regret or guilt for a wrong
power of redemption," he said. committed.
"But this man has done such unspeakable horror synonyms: contrition, deep regret, feelings of guil,
to so many, that it is not in the gift of the self-accusation
university to decide," he said.
"If the families of the victims overwhelmingly grief /ɡriːf/: Intense sorrow, especially caused by
believe he can receive an education from the someone's death.
university, and if he expresses remorse, then he
synonyms: sorrow, misery, sadness, pain, distress
should. But if they are caused further grief by it,
it's a no no."
Seven years after the attack, Thomas said recover /rɪˈkʌvə/: Return to a normal state of
Norway has finally recovered from the tragic health, mind, or strength.
events. synonyms: recuperate, get better, get well, get
stronger, get back on one's feet
"Only now is Norway back to where it was," he
said. "We are not victims any more."
tragic /ˈtradʒɪk/: Suffering extreme distress or
sorrow.
synonyms: sad, unhappy, moving, distressing,
painful, sorrowful, pitiful
78
'Rewards don't improve school attendance'
It's the back-to-school season - and many young

people may be feeling reluctant about returning for
the start of another academic year.
deliberate /dɪˈlɪb(ə)rət/: Done consciously and
And in many schools there are deliberate intentionally.
attempts to boost attendance by giving rewards,
school prizes and commendations to those who synonyms: intentional, calculated, conscious,
have the best records for not missing any lessons. intended, planned, purposeful
But do such prizes really change behaviour?
According to a large-scale study of secondary

school students in California in the US, awards for
good school attendance seem to make no
significant difference - and in some absenteeism /abs(ə)nˈtiːɪz(ə)m/: a tendency to be
circumstances, could make absenteeism worse. away from work or school without a good reason
The study, published by the Harvard Kennedy
synonyms: non-attendance, non-appearance
School of Government in Massachusetts,
examined the effect of rewards schemes on more
than 15,000 students in 14 school districts in
California.
'Demotivating'
Researchers, including Carly Robinson, found

that if prizes were promised in advance, it made
no difference to whether pupils attended. retrospective /rɛtrə(ʊ)ˈspɛktɪv/: taking effect from a
date in the past.
If the rewards were retrospective, in recognition
of high levels of attendance, it seemed to have a
negative impact on the winners' future school
attendance.
This was completely opposite to what was

expected by teachers and education officials. The
study found only 2% of staff expected the award
schemes not to have a positive impact.
It's also official policy in California to support such

reward schemes, so why is there such a big gap
between the good intentions and the outcome?
The researchers, from Harvard University,

Stanford University and the University of
California, Los Angeles, said that such awards
seemed to send "unintended messages" which
could have a "demotivating" effect.
79
inadvertent /ˌɪnədˈvəːt(ə)nt/: not intended or
Students winning awards could get the planned: accidental
"inadvertent signal" that their attendance had
been much higher than expected - and so they synonyms: unintentional, unintended, accidental,
could take a more relaxed approach in future. unpremeditated, unplanned
'Unintended message' exceptional /ɪkˈsɛpʃ(ə)n(ə)l/: Unusually good;

outstanding.
It could tell youngsters that their behaviour had
been exceptional, rather than what was required. synonyms: outstanding, extraordinary, remarkable,
In response, they might feel they could try less special, excellent, phenomenal
hard next time.
"The award may have resulted in recipients

recipient /rɪˈsɪpɪənt/: A person or thing that receives
feeling allowed to miss a future day of school,"
said the study, which included students from a or is awarded something.
representative range of incomes, ethnicities, synonyms: beneficiary, receiver
inner-city, suburban, rural and English and
Spanish-speaking families.
There is also strong social pressure among conform /kənˈfɔːm/: to obey or agree with something
teenagers to conform and such prizes could synonyms: comply with, obey, follow, keep to, hold to
make unusually high attendance seem to be
outside the norm for their peer group.
Those with high attendance levels might get the peer /pɪə/: A person of the same age, status, or
message that the school sees "normal" ability as another specified person.
attendance as being much lower, making them
synonyms: equal, fellow, co-worker
feel uncomfortably different.
As a result they might adapt their behaviour to

miss a few more days.
'Employee of the month' merit /ˈmɛrɪt/: The quality of being particularly good
or worthy, especially so as to deserve praise or
The study focused on the most widely used type
reward.
of rewards, based on public praise, such as giving
a certificate of merit, rather than one-off synonyms: excellence, standard, quality, level, grade,
competitions or cash prizes. high quality, worth, good
The researchers say these public commendations

are similar to the "Employee of the Month"
schemes widely used by employers - and the
school study provides an insight into their impact.
Workplace absenteeism costs the US

economy more than $200bn (£155bn) per year,
says the study, and there might be an assumption
that awards for attendance might reduce lost days. conflicting /kənˈflɪktɪŋ/: different and opposing
80
synonyms: Incompatible, contradictory, different,
But the study says there can be conflicting opposing
evidence.
It points to previous research from the University

of California, Riverside, which examined an
employers' scheme which gave recognition to
workers with good attendance and punctuality,
and which entitled winners to take part in a prize
draw for gift vouchers.
Risk of 'backfiring'
eligible /ˈɛlɪdʒɪb(ə)l/: Having the right to do or obtain
This had superficially appeared to be making something
improvements. But the study found that some
staff, rather than really improving on attendance, synonyms: entitled, permitted, allowed, qualified
were focusing on gaming the system to be eligible
for the chance of winning prizes.
conscientious /ˌkɒnʃɪˈɛnʃəs/: putting a lot
But the biggest problem was the negative impact of effort into your work
on staff who had previously been self-motivated,
conscientious, hard workers. synonyms: diligent, industrious, painstaking,
dedicated, careful, meticulous, hard-working
They thought the system of praise for some
individuals was unfair and if they were not part of
the prize draw they were demotivated - and their productivity /prɒdʌkˈtɪvɪti/: the rate at which goods
punctuality and attendance declined. are produced or work is completed
The overall conclusion was that productivity had synonyms: efficiency, production, output, yield,
been lowered rather than increased. capacity, productive capacity
There are many different ways of using incentives

to influence behaviour - with some industries
prevalence /ˈprɛvələns/: the fact of
offering big cash bonuses attached to
performance. something existing or happening often
synonyms: commonness, currency, widespread
But the academics say that despite the presence, generality, extensiveness, ubiquity
prevalence of rewards there is surprisingly little
examination of the outcomes.
In the case of attendance rewards in Californian implication /ɪmplɪˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/: something that is

schools, it says that even among the staff using suggested without being said directly
them "almost none" had expected them to have a synonyms: suggestion, hint, indication
negative effect.
"These findings have implications for when and

how awards should be used to motivate desirable backfire /bakˈfʌɪə/: have an opposite and
behaviours - and when they may backfire," the undesirable effect to what was intended.
study concludes.
synonyms: rebound, come back, have an adverse
effect
81
82
Where do teachers get the most respect?
If teachers want to have high status they should

work in classrooms in China, Malaysia or Taiwan,
because an international survey suggests these
are the countries where teaching is held in the
highest public esteem.
But their colleagues in Brazil, Israel and Italy are at

the other end of this "teacher status index", based
on research from the National Institute of Economic
and Social Research and the Varkey Foundation.
The UK is in the upper half of the rankings of 35

countries, with the teaching profession held in
higher regard than in the United States, France and
Germany.
But China leads the way - with 81% believing

that pupils respect their teachers, compared
with an international average of 36%, in a
survey of 35,000 people.
Culture of respect pessimism /ˈpɛsɪmɪz(ə)m/: a tendency to see the

worst aspect of things or believe that the worst will
In Europe and South America there were "generally happen; a lack of hope or confidence in the future.
higher levels of pessimism about students'
respect for teachers". synonyms: negativity, negative thinking,
hopelessness, depression,
This culture of respect seems to be particularly despair
strong in Asia, including countries such as
South Korea and Singapore.
83
hand-in-hand /ˌhand ɪn ˈhand/: Closely
Pupils in these countries are also top performers in associated or connected.
international tests and the researchers suggest that
a well-regarded teaching profession, which can synonyms: in close association, closely together,
attract talented staff, seems to go hand-in-hand together, in partnership
with high standards.
Another way of looking at the perceived status of desirable /dɪˈzʌɪərəb(ə)l/: wanted or wished for
teaching was to ask if people saw it as a desirable as being an attractive, useful
career for their own children.
synonyms: advantageous, recommendable;
In China, India and Ghana, high numbers of
helpful, useful, beneficial,
families would encourage their children to become
teachers. worthwhile, preferable
But in Russia, Israel and Japan it was more likely encourage /ɪnˈkʌrɪdʒ/: give support and advice to
that parents would actively discourage children (someone) so that they will do or continue to do
from entering the profession. something.
synonyms: persuade, urge, push, prompt,
In the UK, only 23% of adults would push their
influence
child to become a teacher, the ninth lowest
among the countries surveyed.
discourage /dɪsˈkʌrɪdʒ/: prevent or seek to
The study of public attitudes also asked about prevent (something) by showing disapproval or
teachers' working lives. creating difficulties.
In most of the countries examined, the public synonyms: prevent, stop, put a stop to,
underestimated teachers' working hours - whether inhibit, hinder
it was New Zealand, which had some of the
longest, or Panama or Egypt, with some of the
lowest.
The exceptions to this were two of the highest-

achieving education systems - Canada and Finland
- where the public thought their teachers were
working even more hours than they were in reality.
Teachers in the UK worked the fourth longest

hours, more than 50 a week, including work at
home such as marking.
Performance pay out of fashion

The study is a follow-up to similar research on
attitudes to teaching five years ago.
Among the biggest differences was the shift in shift /ʃɪft/: A slight change in position, direction, or
opinion on performance-related pay for teachers, tendency.
which had been much in discussion at the time.
synonyms: change, alteration, adjustment,
variation, modification, reversal
84
In every country, support for linking teachers' pay
to results had fallen between 2013 and 2018.
In Finland, it had dropped from 80% in favour to

21% and in the UK, backing for performance
pay had gone down from 74% to 34%.
The survey has been published by the Varkey

Foundation education charity, organisers of the
Global Teacher Prize, which aims to raise the
profile of teaching.
Sunny Varkey, founder of the foundation, said: instinctively /ɪnˈstɪŋktɪvli/: in a way that is
"This index finally gives academic proof to not thought about, planned, or developed
something that we've always instinctively known -
the link between the status of teachers in society by training
and the performance of children in school.
"Now we can say beyond doubt that respecting

teachers isn't only an important moral duty - it's
essential for a country's educational outcomes."
moral /ˈmɒr(ə)l/: Standards of behaviour;
principles of right and wrong.
Top 8 for teacher status
synonyms: ethical, social
1. China
2. Malaysia
3. Taiwan
4. Russia
5. Indonesia
6. South Korea
7. Turkey
8. India
Do schools help or hinder social mobility?
Do schools help social mobility and fairness? Or

do they give even more advantages to the better-
off?
85
social mobility /ˈsəʊʃ(ə)l məʊˈbɪləti/:
Even if they can't make up for all inequalities, at the ability to move from one level of
least we might expect them to make the playing society to another
field more level.
(di động xã hội)
But a major international study on social
mobility from the OECD economics think tank
shows a more sobering picture.
sobering /ˈsəʊbərɪŋ/: make or become more
serious, sensible, and solemn.
Each year that a child spends in education, the
gap between rich and poor grows wider.
On average, across more than 60 countries, that equivalent to /ɪˈkwɪv(ə)l(ə)nt/: having the same
difference between the richest and poorest is the value, use, meaning, etc.
equivalent to three years of schooling by the age
of 15. synonyms: equal to, amounting to, as good as, more
or less, comparable to
Only about one in 10 children from poor prosperous /ˈprɒsp(ə)rəs/: having success usually
backgrounds will achieve the same results at
by making a lot of money
those from wealthy backgrounds.
synonyms: thriving, flourishing, successful,
lucrative, wealthy, rich, moneyed,
Gap getting wider substantial
The study tracked test results taken by 10-year-

olds in 1995, 15-year-olds in 2000 and then a accumulation /əkjuːmjʊˈleɪʃ(ə)n/: a mass or quantity
decade later for young adults in their mid-20s. of something that has gradually gathered or been
acquired.
At each point the social divide, with few
exceptions, tended to widen. synonyms: build-up, mass, pile, heap, stack,
collection, stock, store, reserve, gathering
It's not that difficult to see how this happens.
amplify /ˈamplɪfʌɪ/: to increase the size or
The children of more prosperous families are
travelling in an educational fast lane, with more effect of something
support from home, a higher chance of getting
into a good school and university, and benefiting synonyms: magnify, intensify, increase, boost,
from the interventions of better-educated step up, raise
parents.
The accumulation of advantages will amplify

differences.
According to the study, on average by the age

of 15 about 13% of the variation in students'
performance will be determined by their
social background.
This varies between countries. In the UK, it's

below average at 11%, with Norway and
Estonia lower at 8%. In France it's 20% and in
Germany and Switzerland it's 16%.
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pessimism /ˈpɛsɪmɪz(ə)m/: a tendency to see the
worst aspect of things or believe that the worst will
Defying the odds happen; a lack of hope or confidence in the future.
But it's not all pessimism. The OECD's head of synonyms: negativity, negative thinking,
education Andreas Schleicher, argues there is hopelessness, depression, despair
also plenty of evidence to say that "poverty need
not be destiny".
There are school systems where many more

disadvantaged children do well.
In countries such as Singapore, Japan and

Finland, the test results of the poorest 20%
are higher than the richest 20% in the Slovak
Republic, Uruguay, Brazil and Bulgaria.
The UK does quite well on this measure, with the

median point for UK students being above the
wealthiest 20% in Italy and not far behind those
similarly advantaged students in Spain.
optimism /ˈɒptɪmɪz(ə)m/: Hopefulness and
"It shows that students from very similar confidence about the future or the success of
backgrounds can have very different outcomes," something.
says Mr Schleicher.
synonyms: hopefulness, hope, confidence,
He says it's a cause for optimism that some positiveness, positive attitude
countries have made sure that "excellent
teaching" is available for rich and poor pupils.
The study also found other factors associated

with disadvantaged pupils defying the odds,
including in Vietnam and China. cluster /ˈklʌstə/: come together to form a group.
synonyms: congregate, gather, collect, group,
One pattern that emerged strongly was the
importance of the social profile of the school they assemble
attended.
In many countries, disadvantaged students tend

to be clustered together in schools with other
similarly disadvantaged students.
If this can be prevented, the study shows that

disadvantaged students taught in schools with a
wealthier intake tend to have much higher absorb /əbˈzɔːb/: Take control of (a smaller or less
results. powerful entity) and make it a part of a larger one.
synonyms: incorporate, assimilate, integrate,
More places, fewer choices include, co-opt
But the research also shows how easily

inequality can be absorbed into education
systems.
87
"A rising tide doesn't automatically lift all boats,"

says Mr Schleicher.
Numbers going into university have increased -

but that doesn't necessarily make it a fairer
system.
In Singapore, many going to university will be the

first in their families to get a degree. It's an
example of social mobility and widening doors.
But in Italy, wealthier families have been much

more likely to benefit from extra university places,
widening the education gap.
In terms of "equity", Italy has been going

backwards, says Mr Schleicher. withering /ˈwɪðərɪŋ/: intense
synonyms: extreme, strong, very great
There are also generational divides.
In the US, looking at people between 26 and

65, the older age groups are much more likely
than the younger ones to have advanced
further in education than their parents.
kick-start /ˈkɪkstɑːt/: cause (something) to start
You can see educational mobility withering quickly
through the more recent decades.
Social division
The big picture is the struggle to kick-start social

mobility in Western democracies.
A report earlier this year from the OECD showed
that in the UK, social mobility was so frozen that
it would take five generations for poorer
families to reach the average income.
"Meritocracy is the big promise of our

democracies, and social mobility is the truth test
for meritocracy," says Mr Schleicher.
"So, yes, I think we need to worry if social mobility

is limited or slowing down."
embedded /ɪmˈbɛdɪd/: existing or firmly
He says the slowdown is not simply a case of
there being many more people with higher attached within something
qualifications competing with each other,
because the demand for graduates and skilled
workers has increased at least as rapidly. accelerate /əkˈsɛləreɪt/: make something
happen sooner or faster
88
synonyms: speed up, go faster, increase
Instead he warns of a system in which social speed
division becomes embedded.
"Lower social mobility and higher income underprivileged /ʌndəˈprɪvɪlɪdʒd/: having fewer
inequality tend to go together," he says. advantages, privileges, and opportunities than most
people
As the wealthiest families accelerate even
further ahead, it's likely to even further narrow the
chances for "talented yet underprivileged
individuals" who are being left behind.
"It's a worry, because it shows our education

systems have not been able to moderate social
inequality. Instead social inequality has grown,"
says Mr Schleicher.
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The MIT factor:
celebrating 150 years of maverick genius
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has led the world into the future for 150 years
with scientific innovations.
The musician Yo-Yo Ma’s cello may not be the obvious /ˈɒbvɪəs/: easy to see, recognize,
obvious starting point for a journey into one of or understand
the world’s great universities. But, as you quickly
synonyms: clear, crystal clear, evident,
realise when you step inside the Massachusetts
apparent, transparent, distinct,
Institute of Technology, there’s precious little
noticeable, visible
going on that you would normally see on a
university campus. The cello, resting in a corner
of MIT’s celebrated media laboratory — a hub of precious /ˈprɛʃəs/: very valuable or important
creativity — looks like any other electric classical
synonyms: valuable, costly, expensive;
instrument. But it is much more. Machover, the
invaluable, priceless
composer, teacher and inventor responsible for
its creation, calls it a ‘hyperinstrument’, a sort of
thinking machine that allows Ma and his cello to interact /ɪntərˈakt/: talk or do things with other
interact with one another and make music people
together. ‘The aim is to build an instrument
synonyms: communicate, connect, cooperate; meet,
worthy of a great musician like Yo-Yo Ma that
socialize, mix, work together
can understand what he is trying to do and
respond to it,’ Machover says. The cello has
numerous sensors across its body and by virtuoso /ˌvəːtʃʊˈəʊsəʊ: A person highly skilled in
measuring the pressure, speed and angle of the music or another artistic pursuit.
virtuoso’s performance it can interpret his
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mood and engage with it, producing synonyms: genius, expert, master, artist,
extraordinary new sounds. The virtuoso cellist marvel, professional; star
frequently performs on the instrument as he
tours around the world.
interpret /ɪnˈtəːprɪt/: perform (something, such as a
Machover’s passion for pushing at the song or a role) in a way that shows your own
boundaries of the existing world to extend and thoughts and feelings about it
unleash human potential is not a bad
synonyms: perform, act, play, render, depict,
description of MIT as a whole. This unusual
portray
community brings highly gifted, highly motivated
individuals together from a vast range of
disciplines, united by a common desire: to leap extraordinary /ɪkˈstrɔːd(ə)n(ə)ri/: Very unusual or
into the dark and reach for the unknown. remarkable.
The result of that single unifying ambition is synonyms: remarkable, exceptional, amazing, astonishing,
visible all around. For the past 150 years, MIT incredible, phenomenal, outstanding,
has been leading the world into the future. The impressive, unique unusual
discoveries of its teachers and students have
become the common everyday objects that we unleash /ʌnˈliːʃ/: allow or cause (something very
now all take for granted. The telephone, powerful) to happen suddenly
electromagnets, radars, high-speed
photography, office photocopiers, cancer synonyms: let loose, release, (set) free, untie,
treatments, pocket calculators, computers, the unloose
Internet, the decoding of the human genome,
lasers, space travel ... the list of innovations leap /liːp/: make a large jump or sudden
that involved essential contributions from MIT
and its faculty goes on and on. movement, usually from one place to another
From the moment MIT was founded by William synonyms: spring, jump, jump up, hop, bound
Barton Rogers in 1861, it was clear what it was
not. While Harvard stuck to the English model of
unify /ˈjuːnɪfʌɪ/: Make or become united, uniform, or
a classical education, with its emphasis on Latin
whole
and Greek, MIT looked to the German system of
learning based on research and hands-on synonyms: unite, bring together, join (together), integrate
experimentation. Knowledge was at a premium,
but it had to be useful.
innovation /ɪnəˈveɪʃ(ə)n/: a new idea, device, or
This down-to-earth quality is enshrined in the method
school motto, Mens et manus - Mind and hand -
as well as its logo, which shows a gowned
scholar standing beside an ironmonger bearing hands-on /handzˈɒn/: Involving or offering active
a hammer and anvil. That symbiosis of intellect participation rather than theory.
and craftsmanship still suffuses the institute’s
classrooms, where students are not so much synonyms: empirical, pragmatic, real, actual, active,
taught as engaged and inspired. applied, experimental, non-theoretical
Take Christopher Merrill, 21, a third-year

undergraduate in computer science. He is down-to-earth /,daʊn'tʊ'ɜ:θ/: practical,
spending most of his time on a competition set
in his robotics class. The contest is to see which reasonable, and friendly
student can most effectively program a robot to
build a house out of blocks in under ten minutes.
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Merrill says he could have gone for the easiest enshrine in /ɪnˈʃrʌɪn/: Preserve (a right, tradition, or
route - designing a simple robot that would build idea) in a form that ensures it will be protected and
the house quickly. But he wanted to try to master respected.
an area of robotics that remains unconquered
synonyms: preserve, contain, include,
— adaptability, the ability of the robot to rethink
treasure
its plans as the environment around it changes,
as would a human.
ironmonger /ˈʌɪənmʌŋɡə/: A person or shop selling
‘I like to take on things that have never been
hardware such as tools and household implements.
done before rather than to work in an iterative
way just making small steps forward,’ he unconquered /ʌnˈkɒŋkəd/:
explains. not overcome or defeated
Merrill is already planning the start-up he wants
to set up when he graduates in a year’s time. He
has an idea for an original version of a contact iterative /ˈɪt(ə)rətɪv/: doing something again and
lens that would augment reality by allowing again, usually to improve it
consumers to see additional visual information. synonyms: reiterative, repetitious
He is fearful that he might be just too late in
taking his concept to market, as he has heard
that a Silicon Valley firm is already developing
something similar. As such, he might become
one of many MIT graduates who go on to form
companies that fail. Alternatively, he might
spectacular /spɛkˈtakjʊlə/: especially great
become one of those who go on to succeed in
spectacular fashion. And there are many of synonyms: impressive, magnificent, splendid,
them. A survey of living MIT alumni* found that remarkable, outstanding
they have formed 25,800 companies, employing
more than three million people, including about
delights in /dɪˈlʌɪt/: enjoy something
a quarter of the workforce of Silicon Valley. What
MIT delights in is taking brilliant minds from synonyms: take pleasure in, adore, love,
around the world in vastly diverse disciplines relish
and putting them together. You can see that in
its sparkling new David Koch Institute for
Integrative Cancer Research, which brings
scientists, engineers and clinicians under one
roof.
Or in its Energy Initiative, which acts as a bridge
for MIT’s combined work across all its five
schools, channelling huge resources into the
search for a solution to global warming. It works forge ahead /fɔːdʒ/: Take the lead or make good
to improve the efficiency of existing energy progress.
sources, including nuclear power. It is also
synonyms: advance rapidly, progress quickly,
forging ahead with alternative energies from
make rapid progress, increase
solar to wind and geothermal, and has recently speed
developed the use of viruses to synthesise
batteries that could prove crucial in the
advancement of electric cars. crucial /ˈkruːʃ(ə)l/: Of great importance.
synonyms: paramount, essential, vital, important, essential
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In the words of Tim Berners-Lee, the Briton who
invented the World Wide Web, ‘It’s not just
another university.
Even though I spend my time with my head bump into /bʌmp/: Meet by chance.
buried in the details of web technology, the nice synonyms: meet, meet by chance, encounter,
thing is that when I do walk the corridors, I bump run into/across, come across
into people who are working in other fields with
their students that are fascinating, and that
keeps me intellectually alive.’ fascinating /ˈfasɪneɪtɪŋ/: Extremely interesting.
adapted from the Guardian synonyms: interesting, engrossing, absorbing, compelling,

compulsive
* people who have left a university or college
after completing their studies there
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Language diversity
One of the most influential ideas in the study of

languages is that of universal grammar (UG).
interpret /ɪnˈtəːprɪt/: explain the meaning of
Put forward by Noam Chomsky in the 1960s, it
is widely interpreted as meaning that all (information, words, or actions).
languages are basically the same, and that the synonyms: explain, elucidate, expound,
human brain is born language-ready, with an in- explicate, clarify
built programme that is able to interpret the
common rules underlying any mother tongue.
For five decades this idea prevailed, and prevail /prɪˈveɪl/: be widespread in a particular area
influenced work in linguistics, psychology and at a particular time
cognitive science. To understand language, it synonyms: prevalent, common, widespread
implied, you must sweep aside the huge
diversity of languages, and find their common
human core.
sweep aside /swiːp/: to refuse to consider
Since the theory of UG was proposed, linguists
have identified many universal language rules. something or to treat it as important
However, there are almost always exceptions. synonyms: ignore, neglect
It was once believed, for example, that if a
language had syllables[1] that begin with a
vowel and end with a consonant (VC), it would
also have syllables that begin with a consonant
and end with a vowel (CV). This universal
lasted until 1999, when linguists showed that
Arrernte, spoken by Indigenous Australians
from the area around Alice Springs in the
Northern Territory, has VC syllables but no CV
syllables.
94
Other non-universal universals describe the
basic rules of putting words together. Take the
rule that every language contains four basic
word classes: nouns, verbs, adjectives and
adverbs. Work in the past two decades has
shown that several languages lack an open
adverb class, which means that new adverbs
cannot be readily formed, unlike in English
where you can turn any adjective into an
adverb, for example ‘soft’ into ‘softly’. Others,
indigenous /ɪnˈdɪdʒɪnəs/: Originating or occurring
such as Lao, spoken in Laos, have no
naturally in a particular place
adjectives at all. More controversially, some
linguists argue that a few languages, such as synonyms: native, original; local, first
Straits Salish, spoken by indigenous people
from north-western regions of North America,
do not even have distinct nouns or verbs. distinct /dɪˈstɪŋ(k)t/: physically separate.
Instead, they have a single class of words to synonyms: separate, different, specific,
include events, objects and qualities. distinctive, individual
Even apparently indisputable universals have
been found lacking. This includes recursion, or indisputable /ɪnˈdɪspjʊtəb(ə)l/: Unable to be
the ability to infinitely place one grammatical challenged or denied.
unit inside a similar unit, such as ‘Jack thinks
that Mary thinks that ... the bus will be on time’. synonyms: incontrovertible, undeniable,
It is widely considered to be the most essential unquestionable, unarguable,
certain, sure, definite, clear,
characteristic of human language, one that sets
obvious
it apart from the communications of all other
animals. Yet Dan Everett at Illinois State
University recently published controversial
work showing that Amazonian Piraha does not
have this quality.
But what if the very diversity of languages is the
key to understanding human communication?
Linguists Nicholas Evans of the Australian
National University in Canberra, and Stephen
Levinson of the Max Planck Institute for
Psycholinguistics in Nijmegen, the
Netherlands, believe that languages do not sheer /ʃɪə/: used to emphasize the large amount,
share a common set of rules. Instead, they say, size, or degree of something
their sheer variety is a defining feature of
human communication - something not seen in
other animals. While there is no doubt that
human thinking influences the form that
language takes, if Evans and Levinson are
correct, language in turn shapes our brains. diverse /dʌɪˈvəːs/: including many different
This suggests that humans are more diverse
than we thought, with our brains having types of people or things
differences depending on the language
synonyms: various, multiple; varied, varying,
environment in which we grew up. And that diversified
leads to a disturbing conclusion: every time a
95
language becomes extinct, humanity loses an
important piece of diversity.
extinct /ɪkˈstɪŋkt/: no longer existing
If languages do not obey a single set of shared
rules, then how are they created? ‘Instead of synonyms: vanished, lost, died out, gone,
destroyed
universals. you get standard engineering
solutions that languages adopt again and
again, and then you get outliers.' says Evans. obey /əˈbeɪ/: Submit to the authority of (someone)
He and Levinson argue that this is because any
given language is a complex system shaped by synonyms: comply with, observe, conform
to, follow, stick to
many factors, including culture, genetics and
history. There- are no absolutely universal traits
of language, they say, only tendencies. And it
is a mix of strong and weak tendencies that
characterises the ‘bio-cultural’ mix that we call
language.
According to the two linguists, the strong
tendencies explain why many languages
display common patterns. A variety of factors
tend to push language in a similar direction,
efficiency /ɪˈfɪʃ(ə)nsi/: the good use of time
such as the structure of the brain, the biology of
speech, and the efficiencies of and energy in a way that does not waste
communication. Widely shared linguistic
elements may also be ones that build on a any
particularly human kind of reasoning. For synonyms: coherence; productivity,
example, the fact that before we learn to speak effectiveness
we perceive the world as a place full of things
causing actions (agents) and things having
actions done to them (patients) explains why
most languages deploy these grammatical deploy /dɪˈplɔɪ/: Bring into effective action.
categories.
synonyms: use, utilize, employ, exploit, take
Weak tendencies, in contrast, are explained by advantage of
the idiosyncrasies of different languages.
Evans and Levinson argue that many aspects
of the particular natural history of a population
may affect its language. For instance, Andy
Butcher at Flinders University in Adelaide,
South Australia, has observed that indigenous
Australian children have by far the highest
incidence of chronic middle-ear infection of any
population on the planet, and that most
indigenous Australian languages lack many
sounds that are common in other languages,
but which are hard to hear with a middle-ear persuasively /pəˈsweɪsɪvli/: making you want to do
infection. Whether this condition has shaped or believe a particular thing
the sound systems of these languages is
unknown, says Evans, but it is important to synonyms: convincing, compelling, forceful,
consider the idea. powerful,
impactful, impressive, influential
96
Levinson and Evans are not the first to question
the theory of universal grammar, but no one
squeeze /skwiːz/: Manage to get into or through a
has summarised these ideas quite as
narrow or restricted space.
persuasively, and given them as much reach.
As a result, their arguments have generated synonyms: force, cram, stuff, pack, press,
widespread enthusiasm, particularly among squash
those linguists who are tired of trying to
squeeze their findings into the straitjacket of
‘absolute universals’. To some up, it is the final straitjacket /ˈstreɪtdʒakɪt/: something
nail in UG’s coffin. Michael Tomasello, co- that severely limits development or activity
director of the Max Planck Institute for in a way that is damaging
Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig,
Germany, has been a long-standing critic of the
idea that all languages conform to a set of rules. a nail in somebody's coffin /neɪl/: An action or
‘Universal grammar is dead,’ he says. event regarded as likely to have a detrimental or
[1] a unit of sound devastating effect on (a situation or person)
97
Overcoming the language barrier
The discovery that language can be a barrier to govern /ˈɡʌv(ə)n/: Conduct the policy, actions, and
communication is quickly made by all who affairs of (a state, organization, or people) with
travel, study, govern or sell. Whether the authority
activity is tourism, research, government,
policing, business, or data dissemination, the synonyms: rule, control, be in charge of,
command, lead, dominate; run,
lack of a common language can severely
head, administer, manage,
impede progress or can halt it altogether. regulate, supervise
'Common language' here usually means a
foreign language, but the same point applies in
principle to any encounter with unfamiliar dissemination /dɪˌsɛmɪˈneɪʃn/: The act of spreading
dialects or styles within a single language. something, especially information, widely
'They don't talk the same language' has a major
synonyms: spreading, circulation, dispersal, diffusion
metaphorical meaning alongside its literal one.
Although communication problems of this kind
must happen thousands of times each day, impede /ɪmˈpiːd/: delay or prevent (someone or
very few become public knowledge. Publicity something) by obstructing them
comes only when a failure to communicate has
major consequences, such as strikes, lost synonyms: hinder, obstruct, holdback/up,
orders, legal problems, or fatal accidents - delay, interfere with, disrupt, slow
(down)
even, at times, war. One reported instance of
communication failure took place in 1970, when
several Americans ate a species of poisonous halt /hɔːlt/: stop (something or someone) from moving
mushroom. No remedy was known, and two of or continuing
98
the people died within days. A radio report of synonyms: stop, come to a stop, stop, put a
the case was heard by a chemist who knew of stop to, put an end to, terminate,
a treatment that had been successfully used in end
1959 and published in 1963. Why had the
American doctors not heard of it seven years encounter /ɪnˈkaʊntə/: an unexpected or casual
later? Presumably because the report of the meeting with someone or something.
treatment had been published only in journals
written in European languages other than synonyms: meeting, chance meeting
English.
Several comparable cases have been reported. consequence /ˈkɒnsɪkw(ə)ns/: a result or effect of an
But isolated examples do not give an action or condition.
impression of the size of the problem —
synonyms: result, outcome, effect,
something that can come only from studies of
repercussion
the use or avoidance of foreign-language
materials and contacts in different
communicative situations. In the English- poisonous /ˈpɔɪzənəs/: causing or capable of
speaking scientific world, for example, surveys causing death or illness if taken into the body.
of books and documents consulted in libraries
synonyms: toxic, noxious, fatal, lethal, mortal
and other information agencies have shown
that very little foreign-language material is ever
consulted. Library requests in the field of remedy /ˈrɛmɪdi/: A medicine or treatment for a
science and technology showed that only 13 disease or injury.
per cent were for foreign language periodicals.
Studies of the sources cited in publications lead synonyms: treatment, cure, medicine,
medication, drug
to a similar conclusion: the use of foreign-
language sources is often found to be as low as
10 per cent. periodical /pɪərɪˈɒdɪk(ə)l/: a magazine that is
published every week, month, etc.
The language barrier presents itself in stark
form to firms who wish to market their products synonyms: journal, publication, magazine,
in other countries. British industry, in particular, newspaper, paper
has in recent decades often been criticised for
its linguistic insularity — for its assumption that
stark /stɑːk/: very obvious
foreign buyers will be happy to communicate in
English, and that awareness of other insularity /ˌɪnsjʊˈlarɪti/: Ignorance of or lack of
languages is not therefore a priority. In the interest in cultures, ideas, or peoples outside one's
1960s, over two-thirds of British firms dealing own experience.
with • non-English-speaking customers were
using English for outgoing correspondence; synonyms: narrow-mindedness
many had their sales literature only in English;
and as many as 40 per cent employed no-one
able to communicate in the customers' priority /prʌɪˈɒrɪti/: The fact or condition of being
languages. A similar problem was identified in regarded or treated as more important than others.
other English-speaking countries, notably the
synonyms: prime concern, most important consideration, primar
USA, Australia and New Zealand. And non- issue
English-speaking countries were by no means
exempt - although the widespread use of
English as an alternative language made them correspondence /kɒrɪˈspɒnd(ə)ns/: A close
less open to the charge of insularity. similarity, connection, or equivalence.
99
The criticism and publicity given to this problem synonyms: correlation, agreement, similarity,
since the 1960s seems to have greatly consistency, compatibility,
improved the situation, industrial training resemblance, parallel
schemes have promoted an increase in
linguistic and cultural awareness. Many firms notably /ˈnəʊtəbli/: In particular; especially.
now have their own translation services; to take
just one example in Britain, Rowntree synonyms: remarkably, especially, specially, extremely,
Mackintosh now publish their documents in six exceptionally, particularly
languages (English, French, German, Dutch,
Italian and Xhosa). Some firms run part-time promote /prəˈməʊt/: Support or actively encourage (a
language courses in the languages of the cause, venture, etc.); further the progress of.
countries with which they are most involved;
some produce their own technical glossaries, to synonyms: encourage, further, advance,
ensure consistency when material is being assist, nurture, develop, boost,
translated. It is now much more readily stimulate
appreciated that marketing efforts can be
delayed, damaged, or disrupted by a failure to
take account of the linguistic needs of the
customer. dawn /dɔːn/: Come into existence.
The changes in awareness have been most synonyms: begin, start, beborn, appear,
marked in English-speaking countries, where emerge; arise, rise, develop
the realisation has gradually dawned that by no
means everyone in the world knows English
well enough to negotiate in it. This is especially
a problem when English is not an official
language of public administration, as in most
parts of the Far East, Russia, Eastern Europe,
the Arab world, Latin America and French-
speaking Africa. Even in cases where foreign
customers can speak English quite well, it is permeate /ˈpəːmɪeɪt/: Spread throughout (something)
often forgotten that they may not be able to synonyms: pervade, spread through, fill, filter
understand it to the required level - bearing in through, diffuse through, pass
mind the regional and social variation which through
permeates speech and which can cause major
problems of listening comprehension. In
securing understanding, how 'we' speak to
'them' is just as important, it appears, as how
'they' speak to 'us'.
100
SAVING LANGUAGE
For the first time, linguists have put a price on language. To save a language from
extinction isn’t cheap - but more and more people are arguing that the alternative
is the death of communities
There is nothing unusual about a single extraordinary /ɪkˈstrɔːd(ə)n(ə)ri/: very unusual or
language dying. Communities have come and remarkable.
gone throughout history, and with them their
synonyms: remarkable, exceptional, amazing,
language. But what is happening today is
incredible, unbelievable, outstanding
extraordinary, judged by the standards of the
past. It is language extinction on a massive
scale. According to the best estimates, there massive /ˈmasɪv/: Exceptionally large.
are some 6,000 languages in the world. Of
these, about half are going to die out in the synonyms: huge, enormous, vast, immense,
large, big, great, tremendous, giant
course of the next century: that’s 3,000
languages in 1,200 months. On average,
there is a language dying out somewhere in dying out /dʌɪ/: Become extinct.
the world every two weeks or so.
synonyms: become extinct, vanish, disappear
How do we know? In the course of the past
two or three decades, linguists all over the
world have been gathering comparative data.
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If they find a language with just a few
speakers left, and nobody is bothering to pass
the language on to the children, they conclude
that language is bound to die out soon. And
we have to draw the same conclusion if a
language has less than 100 speakers. It is not
likely to last very long. A 1999 survey shows
that 97 per cent of the world’s languages
are spoken by just four per cent of the
people.
It is too late to do anything to help many
languages, where the speakers are too few or
too old, and where the community is too busy
just trying to survive to care about their
language. But many languages are not in
such a serious position. Often, where
languages are seriously endangered, there
are things that can be done to give new life to
them. It is called revitalisation.
Once a community realises that its language
revitalize /riːˈvaɪt(ə)laɪz/: make (someone or something)
is in danger, it can start to introduce measures
active, healthy, or energetic again
which can genuinely revitalise. The
community itself must want to save its synonyms: reenergize, boost, regenerate,
language. The culture of which it is a part refresh
must need to have a respect for minority
languages. There needs to be funding, to
minority /mʌɪˈnɒrɪti/: a smaller number or part
support courses, materials, and teachers. And
there need to be linguists, to get on with the
basic task of putting the language down on
paper. That’s the bottom line: getting the
language documented - recorded, analysed,
written down. People must be able to read
and write if they and their language are to
have a future in an increasingly computer-
literate civilisation.
But can we save a few thousand languages,
just like that? Yes, if the will and funding were
available. It is not cheap, getting linguists into
the field, training local analysts, supporting the
community with language resources and
teachers, compiling grammars and
dictionaries, writing materials for use in
schools. It takes time, lots of it, to revitalise an
endangered language. Conditions vary so
much that it is difficult to generalise, but a
figure of $ 100,000 a year per language
cannot be far from the truth. If we devoted that
amount of effort over three years for each of
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3,000 languages, we would be talking about
some $900 million.
There are some famous cases which illustrate
what can be done. Welsh, alone among the
Celtic languages, is not only stopping its
steady decline towards extinction but
showing signs of real growth. Two Language decline /dɪˈklʌɪn/: become smaller, fewer, or less;
Acts protect the status of Welsh now, and its decrease.
presence is increasingly in evidence wherever synonyms: decrease, reduce, lessen, contract,
you travel in Wales. fall off; drop, fall
On the other side of the world, Maori in New
Zealand has been maintained by a system of
so- called ‘language nests’, first introduced in
1982. These are organisations which provide
children under five with a domestic setting in
which they are intensively exposed to the
language. The staff are all Maori speakers
from the local community. The hope is that the
children will keep their Maori skills alive after
leaving the nests, and that as they grow older
they will in turn become role models to a new
generation of young children. There are cases
like this all over the world. And when the
reviving language is associated with a degree
of political autonomy, the growth can be
especially striking, as shown by Faroese,
spoken in the Faroe Islands, after the
islanders received a measure of autonomy
from Denmark.
In Switzerland, Romansch was facing a
difficult situation, spoken in five very different diminish /dɪˈmɪnɪʃ/: Make or become less.
dialects, with small and diminishing synonyms: decrease, lessen, decline, reduce,
numbers, as young people left their fade
community for work in the German-speaking
cities. The solution here was the creation in
the 1980s of a unified written language for all
these dialects. Romansch Grischun, as it is
now called, has official status in parts of
Switzerland, and is being increasingly used in
spoken form on radio and television.
A language can be brought back from the very
brink of extinction. The Ainu language of
Japan, after many years of neglect and
repression, had reached a stage where there
were only eight fluent speakers left, all elderly. neglect /nɪˈɡlɛkt/: the action of not taking care of
However, new government policies brought someone or something.
fresh attitudes and a positive interest in synonyms: disregard of/for, ignoring of,
survival. Several ‘semispeakers’ - people who
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had become unwilling to speak Ainu because overlooking of; inattention to,
of the negative attitudes by Japanese indifference to
speakers - were prompted to become active
speakers again. There is fresh interest now
repression /rɪˈprɛʃən/: The restraint, prevention, or
and the language is more publicly available
inhibition of a feeling, quality, etc.
than it has been for years.
synonyms: restraint, holding back, keeping
If good descriptions and materials are back, suppression
available, even extinct languages can be
resurrected. Kaurna, from South Australia, is
an example. This language had been extinct
for about a century, but had been quite well
resurrect /rɛzəˈrɛkt/: to cause (something that had
documented. So, when a strong movement
ended or been forgotten or lost) to exist again, to be
grew for its revival, it was possible to
used again, etc.
reconstruct it. The revised language is not the
same as the original, of course. It lacks the synonyms: revive, restore, regenerate, revitalize
range that the original had, and much of the
old vocabulary. But it can nonetheless act as
a badge of present-day identity for its people.
And as long as people continue to value it as
a true marker of their identity, and are
prepared to keep using it, it will develop new badge /badʒ/: A feature or sign which reveals a
functions and new vocabulary, as any other particular quality.
living language would do. synonyms: sign, symbol, indication, signal, mark
It is too soon to predict the future of these
revived languages, but in some parts of the
world they are attracting precisely the range of
positive attitudes and grass roots support
which are the preconditions for language
survival. In such unexpected but heart-
warming ways might we see the grand total heart-warming /ˈhɑːrtˌwɔːr.mɪŋ/: emotionally rewarding
of languages in the world minimally increased. or uplifting.
synonyms: touching, moving, uplifting,

pleasing, cheering, encouraging
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The meaning of volunteering
A
Volunteering, as some people consider
mistakenly is a plethora of people from all walk
of life as well as activities, but data from the
other side of the world suggest otherwise. For
example, a survey on who participated in
volunteering by the Office for National
Statistics (ONS) in the United Kingdom (UK)
showed that people in higher income
households are more likely than others to
volunteer. In England and Wales, 57% of
adults with gross annual household
incomes of £75.000 or more, have
volunteered formally in the 12 months prior
to the survey date. They were almost twice
more likely to have done so than those living in
households with as annual income under
£10.000.
B
As well as having high household incomes,
volunteers also tend to have higher academic
exclusive /ɪkˈskluːsɪv/: limited to only
qualifications, be in higher socio-economic
one person or group of people
groups and be in employment. Among people
with a degree or postgraduate qualification, synonyms: sole, unique, only, individual,
79 per cent had volunteered informally and personal, private
57 per cent had volunteered formally in the
previous 12 months. For people with no
qualifications the
corresponding proportions were 52 per cent
and 23 per cent at all. However, voluntary
work is certainly not the exclusive preserve of
the rich. Does the answer not lie perhaps in the
fact that the rich tend to have money to allow
them the time to be become involved in well-off /wɛlˈɒf/: Wealthy.
synonyms: fortunate, lucky, comfortable
105
voluntary work compared to less well-
off people?
breakdown /ˈbreɪkdaʊn/: An explanatory analysis,
C especially of statistics.
A breakdown in the year 2000 of the range of synonyms: analysis, classification,
volunteering activities taken from The Australia examination, investigation, dissection
Bureau of Statistics gives an idea of the scale
of activities in which people are typically
involved. Eleven sectors are given ranging
from Community and Welfare, which
accounted for just over a quarter of the total
hours volunteered in Australia, to Law/ cohort /ˈkəʊhɔːt/: A group of people with a common
justice/ politics with 1.2 percent at the other statistical characteristic.
and of the scale. Other fields included sport/ synonyms: group, grouping, category, class
recreation, religious activities and
education, following at 21/1 per cent, 16.9
and 14.3 per cent of the total hours. The data expertise /ˌɛkspəːˈtiːz/: Expert skill or knowledge in a
here also seem to point to a cohort particular field.
of volunteers with expertise and experience. synonyms: skill, expertness, proficiency,
D knowledge, mastery, ability,
facility, capability
The knock-on effect of volunteering on the
lives of individuals can be profound. Voluntary
work helps foster independence and imparts knock-on effect: A secondary, indirect, or cumulative
the ability to deal with different situations, effect.
often simultaneously, thus teaching people how
to work their way through different systems. It
therefore brings people into touch with the real impart /ɪmˈpɑːt/: make (something) known to
world; and, hence, equips them for the future. someone
E synonyms: communicate, tell, make known,

make public, report, announce
Initially, young adults in their late teens might
not seem to have the expertise or knowledge to
impart to others that say a teacher or harness /ˈhɑːnəs/: use (something) for a particular
agriculturalist or nurse would have, but they do purpose
have many skills that can help others. And in synonyms: exploit, utilize, use, employ,
the absence of any particular talent, their make use of, capitalize on
energy and enthusiasm can be harnessed for
the benefit of their fellow human beings, and
ultimately themselves. From all this, the gain to favorably /ˈfeɪv(ə)rəbli/: in a way that
any community no matter how many volunteers shows someone or something is liked or
are involved is immeasurable.
approved of
F
synonyms: positively, approvingly, appreciatively
Employers will generally look favorably on
people who have shown an ability to work as
part of a team. It demonstrates a willingness to
learn and an independent spirit, which would be
desirable qualities in any employee. So to
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satisfy employers’ demands for experience
when applying for work, volunteering can act as
elude /ɪˈluːd/: fail to be achieved by (someone)
a means of gaining experience that might
otherwise elude would-be workers and can
ultimately lead to paid employment and the
desired field.
G prerequisite /priːˈrɛkwɪzɪt/: A thing that is required as
a prior condition for something else to happen or
But what are the prerequisites for becoming a exist.
volunteer? One might immediately think of
attributes like kindness, selflessness, strength synonyms: precondition, essential, must,
of character, ability to deal with others, requirement, necessity;
determination, adaptability and flexibility and a
capacity to comprehend the ways of other attribute /ˈatrɪbjuːt/: a good quality or feature that
people. While offering oneself selflessly, someone or something has
working as a volunteer makes further demands
on the individual. It requires a strength of will, a synonyms: quality, characteristic, trait, feature
sense of moral responsibility for one’s fellow
human beings, and an ability to fit into the comprehend /kɒmprɪˈhɛnd/: to understand
ethos of an organization. But it also requires (something, such as a difficult or complex subject)
something which in no way detracts from
valuable work done by volunteers and which synonyms: understand, grasp, see
may seem at first glance both contradictory and
surprising: self interest.
moral /ˈmɒr(ə)l/: concerning or relating to what is right
H and wrong in human behavior
Organizations involved in any voluntary work synonyms: ethical, social

have to be realistic about this. If someone,
whatever the age is going to volunteer and
ethos /ˈiːθɒs/: the set of beliefs, ideas, etc. about
devote their time without money, they do need
the social behaviour and relationships of
to receive something from it for themselves.
a person or group
People who are unemployed can use volunteer
work as a stepping-stone to employment or as synonyms: principles, standards, ethics
a means of finding out whether they really like
the field the plan to enter or as a way to help
detract /dɪˈtrakt/: make something seem
them find themselves.
I less valuable or less deserving of admiration
It is tempting to use some form of community synonyms: diminish, reduce, lessen,

minimize, devalue
work as an alternative to national service or as
punishment for petty criminals by making the
latter for example clean up parks, wash away devote /dɪˈvəʊt/: give all or a large part of one's time
graffiti, work with victims of their own or other or resources to (a person, activity)
people. Thus may be acceptable, but it does
not constitute volunteer work, two cardinal synonyms: dedicate
rules of which are the willingness to volunteer
without coercion and working unpaid. constitute /ˈkɒnstɪtjuːt/: to be or be
considered as something
107
synonyms: be equivalent to, be, be regarded
as
coercion /kəʊˈəːʃ(ə)n/: the use of force to

persuade someone to do something that they are
unwilling to do
synonyms: force, compulsion, enforcement,
harassment, intimidation, threats
108
Listening
Section
109
Youth Council
CAROLINE:
Good Morning. Youth Council. Caroline speaking.
ROGER:
Oh, hello, I’m interested in standing for …………………. to the Youth Council, and I was told to
………………….………………….
CAROLINE:
That’s good. Could I have your …………………., please?
ROGER:
Yes, it’s Roger …………………..
CAROLINE:
Thank you. I’m Caroline, the Youth Council ………………….. So do you know much about what the
Council …………………., Roger?
ROGER:
I’ve …………………. to Stephanie - l think she’s the chair of the Council.
CAROLINE:
That's right.
ROGER:
And she told me a lot about it. How it’s a way for young people to …………………. local issues, for
example, and make …………………. to the town council. That's what made me …………………..
CAROLINE:
Fine. Well let me take down some of your ………………….. First of all, how old are you. You know the
Council is for young people aged from 13 to 18?
ROGER:
I’ve just turned 18.
CAROLINE:
And where do you live, Roger?
110
ROGER:
Well, that’s a bit c………………….. At the moment I’m looking for a flat to rent here, so I’m in
a …………………. from Monday to Friday. I go back to my parents’ place at the weekend.
CAROLINE:
OK so where’s the best …………………. to send you some information about the Council.
ROGER:
Oh to my parents’ address, please. That's 17 … Street - …………………. Street, Stamford,
Lincolnshire, though you don’t really need the county.
CAROLINE:
Oh, I know Stamford - it’s a …………………. town. And what’s the ………………….?
ROGER:
………………….
CAROLINE:
Right, thank you. So are you working here, or are you a …………………..
ROGER:
I started studying at the university a couple of weeks ago, and I've got a part-time ………………….
for a few hours a week.
CAROLINE:
What do you do?
ROGER:
Well, I’ve done several different things. I've just finished a short-term contract as a ………………….,
and now I’m working as a …………………. in one of the big hotels.
CAROLINE:
Uhuh. That can't leave you much time for studying!
ROGER:
Oh, it’s not too bad. I manage to …………………..
CAROLINE:
What are you ………………….?
ROGER:
My ambition is to go into parliament eventually, so my major subject is ………………….. That’s partly
why I think the Youth Council is important and want to be a part of it.
CAROLINE:
And I …………………. you’re also taking a minor subject, aren’t you? I know a lot of people study
…………………. too.
ROGER:
I chose history. To be honest, I’m not finding it as interesting as I expected!
111
CAROLINE:
OK, so with your studying and your part-time job, do you have time for any other interests or
………………….?
ROGER:
Well. I spend quite a lot of time …………………. - both around town to get to university and to work,
and also long-distance, from here to London, for instance.
CAROLINE:
That’s pretty ………………….! Anything else?
ROGER:
For relaxation I’m also keen on the …………………. - I used to go at least once a week, but I can’t
…………………. to go so often now.
CAROLINE:
Right. Are you sure you’ll have …………………. time for the Youth Council?
ROGER:
Yes, I’ve worked out that I can …………………. to reduce my hours at work, and that will make the
time.
CAROLINE:
So is there any particular …………………. of the Youth Council’s work that …………………. to you,
Roger?
ROGER:
Well, my sister is blind, so I’m particularly interested in working with ………………….………………….,
to try and improve the quality of their lives.
CAROLINE:
That’s great. Well, the best way to get …………………. is to be nominated by some people who you
know.
ROGER:
Right. Can you tell me how to set about …………………. that?
CAROLINE:
You should talk to Jeffrey, our Elections Officer. I can …………………. a meeting in the council office
with him, if you like.
ROGER:
Yes, please.
CAROLINE:
He’ll be here next Monday, if that …………………. you.
ROGER:
That’s the 14th, isn’t it?
CAROLINE:
Yes.
112
ROGER:
I can manage …………………..
CAROLINE:
Would you like to suggest a ………………….? He generally leaves around 5.30.
ROGER:
Well, would …………………. be OK? My last class finishes at 4. so I’d have plenty of time to get to
your office.
CAROLINE:
Right, that’s fine. Oh, and could I have a phone number we can …………………. you on?
ROGER:
Yes, my mobile number’s ………………….
CAROLINE:
Thank you. Well, we’ll look forward to seeing you next week.
ROGER:
Thanks very much. Goodbye.
CAROLINE:
Bye.
113
114
115
Questions 1-10 Listen from here

Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Example
Name: Roger Brown
Age: 18
Currently staying in a 1 during the week
Postal address: 2 17, Street, Stamford, Lines
Postcode: 3
Occupation: student and part-time job as a 4
Studying 5 (major subject) and history (minor subject)
Hobbies: does a lot of 6 , and is interested in the 7
On Youth Council, wants to work with young people who are 8
Will come to talk to the Elections Officer next Monday at 9 pm
Mobile number: 10
116
Expertise in creative writing
For my short presentation today, I’m going to …………………. the work I’ve done so far on
my research project: to explore …………………. in creative writing. Essentially, I’ll share with you the
…………………. I underwent to gather my interim findings.
First of all, I should give a little …………………. background information about myself - before I
started my current degree course in cognitive psychology, I studied …………………. and, as you can
imagine, this meant I spent a great deal of time thinking about the notion of …………………. and
what makes people develop into ………………….. However, the idea for this research project came
from a very specific source - I became …………………. the idea of what makes an expert creative
writer when I read a well-known twentieth century writer’s ………………….. I won’t say which one, at
this stage, because I think that might …………………. your interpretation! Anyway, this got me
thinking about the different …………………. to expertise. Specifically I wondered why some people
become experts at things whilst others fail to do so, in spite of the fact that they may be equally
…………………. and work equally hard.
I started to read about how other researchers had …………………. similar questions in other fields. I
began to see a pattern - that those studies which involved research in a …………………. were too
controlled for my purposes and I decided to avoid reading them. I was quite surprised to find that the
clearest guidance for my topic came from investigations into what I call …………………. such as
hairdressing or waiting tables. Most of these studies tended to use a similar set of ………………….,
which I eventually …………………. for my own project.
Student: I’ll now explain what these procedures were. I decided to compare what ………………….
writers do with what experienced writers do. In order to investigate this, I looked for four people whom
I regarded as real …………………. in this field - which proved easy ... perhaps unsurprisingly. It
proved much harder to locate people with suitably extensive experience who were ………………….
to take part in my study. I asked the first four to do a set writing task and as they wrote, to talk into a
tape-recorder ... a technique known as ‘think aloud’ ... this was in order to get …………………. data.
Whilst they were doing this, a research assistant recorded them using …………………. - I thought it
might be helpful for me in my …………………. later on. I then asked four experienced writers to do
exactly the same task. After this, I made a …………………. between the two sets of data and this
helped me to produce a …………………. for analysis. In particular, I identified five major stages which
all creative writers seem to go through when …………………. this genre of text. I think it was fairly
effective but still needs some work ... so I intend to tighten this up later for use with subsequent data
sets.
I then wanted to see whether experienced writers were actually producing the better ………………….
of writing. So I asked an …………………., an expert in reviewing creative writing, to decide which
were the best pieces of writing. This person put the eight pieces of work in order of …………………. -
in rank order - and, using his evaluations, I was then able to work out which …………………. of the
five stages seemed to lead to the best quality writing.
117
Now my findings are by no means …………………. as this point ... I still have a long way to go but if
any of you have any questions, I’d be happy to answer them and ...
118
119
Questions 1-10
You will hear a psychology undergraduate describing the research she is currently doing on expertise
in creative writing.
Complete the flow chart below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
Expertise in creative writing

Background - researcher had previously studied 1
Had initial idea for research - inspired by a book (the 2 of a famous novelist).
Posed initial question - why do some people become experts whilst others don't?
Read expertise research in different fields.
Avoided studies conducted in a 3 because too controlled.
Most helpful studies-research into 4 e.g. waiting tables.
Found participants: four true 5 in creative writing (easy to find) and four with extensive
experience.
Using ‘think aloud’ techniques, gathered 6 data from inexperienced writer.
(During session - assistant made 7 recordings).
Gathered similar data from experienced writers.
Compared two data sets and generated a 8 for analysis

Locate Listen from here
(Identified five major stages in writing will be refined later).
120
Got an expert 9 to evaluate the quality of the different products.
Locate Listen from here
Identified the most effective 10 of stages in producing text.
121
Do-It-Yourself house painting
You will hear part of a radio programme about Do-It-Yourself house painting.
Speaker: Good morning everyone, and welcome to our weekly series on home …………………..
Today’s programme is about Do-It-Yourself house painting ... There’s never been a better time for
people who like to do their own interior house …………………... Although people still lead very busy
lives, …………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………
………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..………
In two thousand and nine alone,
…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………
..…………………..…………………..………………….. - that’s enough to fill twenty one Olympic-sized
swimming pools.
It's easy to overestimate how much paint you’ll need to ………………….. your room if you use
guesswork. And if you know exactly how much ………………….. is needed, you avoid unnecessary
waste.
…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………
..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..………………
…..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..……………
Then simply measure the circumference and height of the room in metres, enter this into the
calculator along with the type of ………………….. you're painting, and it will tell you how many litres
of paint you’ll need.
But if you do end up with ………………….. paint, you can donate it to an organisation like Community
RePaint.
…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………
..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..……………
, so it goes to a good home. You can find more information about Community RePaint on
communityrepaint - all one word - dot org dot uk.
Speaker: Another way of ………………….. paint wastage is to check you're completely happy with
your colour choice before starting to paint. For example,
…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………
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, then paint a board and move it around the room, so you can see how it looks against your
………………….., and in different lights. Also, it’s always better to buy high quality paints, because
you get what you pay for. If you buy cheap paint you might need to ………………….. two or three
coats to achieve the same ………………….. that you’d get from one coat of a good-quality paint. You
could also spend a week on a job that could have been done in a day or two. And consider the
environment.
…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………
..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..……………
You can also buy paint that’s ………………….. in recyclable containers. There’s a lot more choice
than there used to be.
You can only do a good job, which will last, if you prepare the surfaces thoroughly before painting. In
fact, in many ways if you want to do a professional-looking job, this is more important than the
painting itself. If there are any ………………….. or patches of loose plaster, painting over them won’t
solve the problem. …………………..…………………..…………………..………………….., allowing
enough time for the new ………………….. to dry. And you won’t get a smooth finish if the walls are
dusty or ………………….., so washing with water isn’t
enough. …………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..………………….. and
rinse well with warm water afterwards.
When you're ready to paint, we suggest you use a medium-pile roller for
…………………..…………………... A lot of people tend to use short-pile rollers, but these give a
patchy finish, and that wastes paint and time. Similarly, long-pile rollers can create a thick, textured
effect, …………………..…………………... The same goes for brushes. The stronger the bristles, the
easier they are to wash and reuse. And as you’ve chosen a water-based
paint, …………………..………………….., because it’s more energy-efficient that way. As you're
decorating, keep transferring small amounts of paint into a ………………….. and keep topping it up
when you need to. This reduces the chance of it being contaminated by dust and pieces of dirt ... And
finally, water-based paint doesn’t have a lingering smell, so that's not an issue any more, but it’s air
flow rather than heat that helps the paint ………………….., so to help finish the job in the quickest
time …………………..…………………..…………………... The faster the paint is dry and the job
finished, the quicker you can start enjoying your room!
In tomorrow’s programme I’ll be giving some advice ...
123
124
125
Questions 1-4
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
1 According to the speaker, why is it a good time for D-l-Y painting?
A There are better products available now.
B Materials cost less than they used to.
C People have more free time than before.
2 What happened in 2009 in the UK?
A A record volume of paint was sold:
B A large amount of paint was wasted.
C There was a major project to repaint public buildings.
3 What does the speaker say about paint quantity?
A It’s not necessary to have exact room measurements.
B It’s better to overestimate than to underestimate.
C An automatic calculator can be downloaded from the Internet.
4 What does Community RePaint do?
A It paints people’s houses without payment.
B It collects unwanted paint and gives it away.
C It sells unused paint and donates the money to charity.
126
Questions 5-6
Choose TWO letters, A-E.
What TWO pieces of advice does the speaker give about paint?
A Don’t buy expensive paint.
B Test the colour before buying a lot.
C Choose a light colour.
D Use water-based paint.
E Buy enough paint for more than one application.
Questions 7-8
What TWO pieces of advice does the speaker give about preparation?
A Replace any loose plaster.
B Don’t spend too long preparing surfaces.
C Use decorators’ soap to remove grease from walls.
D Wash dirty walls with warm water.
E Paint over cracks and small holes.
Questions 9-10
What TWO pieces of advice does the speaker give about painting?
A Put a heater in the room.
B Wash brushes in cold water.
C Use a roller with a short pile.
D Apply paint directly from the tin.
E Open doors and windows.
127
Benefits of student work placements
You will hear two engineering students, a woman in her sixth year called Linda and a man in his fifth
year called Matthew, discussing the benefits of student work placements.
Hi Linda. Can you spare a few minutes?
Hello Matthew, no problem.
I just wanted to talk to you about ………………….. work placements ... I’ve never really thought there
was a good reason for doing one. I’ve got some ………………….., so I don’t really need the money at
the moment.
But …………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..………….
You did a placement last year didn’t you?
I did, yes. In my case I wanted to find out if I was making the right …………………..before I began
applying for …………………..…………………... I thought I wanted to work in car manufacturing but I
wasn’t sure. So I ………………….. to Toyota.
What was the application ………………….. like?
Lengthy. There were a lot of different parts to it. The dullest one was a psychometric test - you know,
when you have to answer ………………….. of questions about yourself.
And you’re trying to guess what’s the best thing to say!
Yes. Then …………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………...
Engineers are renowned for being a bit unsociable, but I thought we made a great team.
And we had an ………………….. too. We had to sort through various business documents and
………………….. them. It was just like what you have to do as a student really, just with different
content.
What exactly were you doing on the …………………..?
I was helping to design some diagnostic software to ………………….. any waste in the car assembly
process
Do you mean waste of materials?
No, time. …………………..…………………..…………………..helps to cut costs.
How did the work placement ………………….. to being a student? Was it hard work?
128
Yes, it was. I’d had full-time work before - I’ve done various ………………….. jobs during university
holidays, and some of those involved long hours - so I thought I’d find it easy. I was wrong though. I
think …………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..…………………..
So you push yourself hard to …………………..?
Yes. But I got a lot of support from my employers. They were always helpful. And then at the end of
the placement I was given formal feedback.
Do you mean on your engineering …………………..?
Well, no, I didn’t really need that because we had team meetings every other day, and so I had the
chance to discuss …………………..………………….. and ask about anything that wasn’t clear. The
evaluation was about general workplace things, like …………………..………………….., initiative ...
That sort of thing ...
I get the impression you think you benefited from the placement ... ?
Well the best thing is that …………………..…………………..…………………..for next year!
Depending on my exam results of course, but still ...
A permanent one?
Yes! But apart from that I learned so much . The industrial environment was much more
…………………..than the academic one, so my general skills improved. Like time Management ...
meeting deadlines ... And on the technical side I learned new software packages like MS Project.
Well, I think you’ve convinced me that work placements are worthwhile ... But while you’re here can
you give me advice on something else?
I’m about to make a start on the Engineering Materials module, and I’ve got a ………………….. here -
can you have a quick look and tell me what you would recommend - that’s if you can remember?
Let’s see ... I do remember some of them ... Yes, this one ... …………………..…………………... I
found the subject quite hard generally, but this book is very ………………….. so it suited me. It
doesn’t cover everything though ...
What about this one then . …………………..…………………..?
Oh yes, I do remember that. But it’s a bit …………………..now isn’t it, unless it’s a new edition?
I don’t think so ...
But what I liked about it were the pictures. They really helped to understand the …………………... It’s
useful just from that point of view ... Let’s see ... What else? Oh yes ... That one there
- …………………..…………………..- I think out of all these that’s got the widest coverage ...
But I’ve looked at the contents page, and it hardly mentions nanotechnology.
Yes, you’re right. The …………………..…………………..does though. It’s a recent publication so it
covers all the latest developments. It’s a bit thin on the nineteen sixties though, and that decade was
quite important.
Well it sounds as if they all ………………….. each other in some ways. I don’t suppose you can lend
me .
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130
131

Choose the correct letter; A, B or C.
1 Why is Matthew considering a student work placement?
A He was informed about an interesting vacancy.
B He needs some extra income.
C He wants to try out a career option.
2 Which part of the application process did Linda find most interesting?
A The psychometric test.
B The group activity.
C The individual task.
3 During her work placement, Linda helped find ways to
A speed up car assembly.
B process waste materials.
C calculate the cost of design faults.
4 Why did Linda find her work placement tiring?
A She wasn’t used to full-time work.
B The working hours were very long.
C She felt she had to prove her worth.
5 What did Linda’s employers give her formal feedback on?
A engineering ability
B organisational skills
C team working
6 What was the main benefit of Linda’s work placement?
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A Improved academic skills.
B An offer of work.
C The opportunity to use new software.

Show workspace

What does Linda think about the books on Matthew’s reading list?
Choose FOUR answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-F, next to questions 7-10.
Books
7 The Science of Materials
8 Materials Engineering
9 Engineering Basics
10 Evolution of Materials
Opinions
A helpful illustrations
B easy to understand
C up-to-date
D comprehensive
E specialised
F useful case studies
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Keywords
Facilities/Amenities
campus language lab classroom
auditorium daycare playground
lab (laboratory) library theatre/er
art/music/film studio media center student housing
sports/athletic facility dormitory/dorm room commons/union
AV lab (audio-visual lab) medical clinic/nurse’s station locker/change room
lecture hall gymnasium cafeteria
student center computer room/center/lab school bus
sports field/arena/stadium
Others:
Earned
degree experience diploma
certificate know-how award
recognition respect reputation
credit(s) qualification(s)
Others:
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Degrees
BA/B.A.: Bachelor of Arts BBA: Bachelor of Business Administration PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)
Baccalaureate BSC: Bachelor of Science MA ( Master of Art)
post-doctoral major B.A. (Hons) (with honours)
minor double major major/minor
undergraduate graduate post-graduate
GED (General Education BFA (Fine Arts), B.Ed. (Education), B.Comm. (Commerce), etc.
Development)
Others:
Studies
theory liberal arts special ed.
co-op (co-operative) physical education internship
humanities sociology apprenticeship
academic skills science fair
critical thinking problem solving tutorial
business administration fine arts (art, dance, music, drama) psychology
social sciences political science philosophy
practice residency subjects
rote ECE (Early Childhood Education) sex ed.
STEM fields (Science Technology ESL/EFL (English as a Second/Foreign
Engineering Mathematics) Language)
Others:
Special Occasions
assembly homecoming commencement
prom mock field trip orientation pep rally
UN initiation
spelling bee graduation ceremony fire drill

Others:
Schools
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college university polytechnic
community college technical college preschool
elementary secondary tertiary
preparatory boarding school nursery (school)
higher education alma mater kindergarten
post-secondary international/domestic Montessori/Waldorf
vocational school cram school public/private school
homeschooling law/medical/business school language school
accredited recognized non-traditional
Others:
Course related
course of study prerequisite syllabus
research matriculate unit
dissertation reading list commencement
rubric learning needs attendance
elective compulsory citations
curriculum credit thesis
goals/aims strategies hours
Others: Groups
alumni sorority student union

pledge fraternity lobby groups
student government study group student organization
student body faculty Department of Ed.
Board of Ed. school team Ministry of Education
student government sponsors
UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization)
Others:
School
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policy accredited institution
grant scholarship administration
intramural organization department
Others:
Evaluation
experiment assignment paper
conduct project exam
debate homework test
pass fail submit
hypothesis review revise
grade proficiency mark
re-sit a test GPA (grade point average) take-home exam
standardized testing SAT, GRE, GMAT, etc. merit
multiple choice exam essay quiz
spelling oral exam feedback
qualitative quantitative skills
makeup test extra credit open-/closed-book
report card assessment hand in
Others:
Tools
technology chalk textbook
uniform marker whiteboard
smartboard projector audio/visual aids
database copier printer
software blackboard device
hardware keypad scanner
Others:
Skills
organizational time-management communication/ive
137
technical soft skills people person
expert/expertise novice amateur
professional develop hone
writing listening empathy
public speaking technological analytical thinking
Others:
Student
dyslexia student life discipline

self-esteem gifted student loans
homework absence debt
self-educated/taught procrastinate suspension
plagiarism cheat expulsion
ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder) bullying
peer pressure course load competition
introvert extrovert popular
gifted protégé well-rounded
application student-centered rebellious
identity nerd/geek prom king/queen
popular jock overachiever
high achiever learning disabilities/challenges underachiever
lazy procrastinate apathetic
Others:
Teacher
advisor scholar evaluation
outcomes/objectives professor lesson plan
138
credentials tutor instructor
pedagogue coach patience
approachable role model compassion
educator guide faculty
classroom management mentor trainer
Others:
People
bully substitute (teacher) peers

classmate headmaster/mistress dean
lab assistant lab technician colleague
(guidance) counsellor secretary specialist
TA (teaching assistant) guest lecturer senior
exchange student experts from the field junior
principal examiner protégé
proctor pupil sophomore
fellow freshman candidate (PhD.)
mature student trainee apprentice
co-ed associate roommate
adjunct registrar researcher
international student
Others:
Time
gap year schedule sabbatical
tenure school/academic year grace period
night school term semester/trimester
139
due date vacation timetable
period timeslot/ window lunch
year abroad calendar year recess
deadline after-school school year
Professional Development Day extracurricular detention

Others:
General Education
knowledge numeracy teaching
training tuition paradigm shift
evolution lesson academia
multi-disciplinary discourse scholastic
remedial cultivate upbringing
rearing brainwash preparation
edification breeding reform
tutelage il/literacy erudition
illumination culture ignorance
cultivation dogma methodology
intelligent smart wise
clever sharp bright
witty trade skill
knowledge transfer pedagogy didactic
collegiate development raising
guidance refinement remedial
prodigy enlightenment craft
holistic immersion aptitude
Others:
Idiomatic language
fall behind honor roll make up
catch up school of hard knocks drop out
full ride (scholarship) school of thought ace the test
140
know-how show of hands hazing
bookworm school someone in something make the grade

learn the ABC’s cut / skip class A for effort
brainstorm you can’t teach an old dog new tricks back to basics
old school learn one’s lesson hit the books
burn out teach someone a lesson flunk out

pull an all-nighter a quick learner cover a lot of ground
pick on teacher’s pet eager beaver
book smarts street smarts lead by example
carrot & stick approach brush up on fall behind
sign up for take up
Others:
Collocations
due date get a degree finish school

take/sit for a test do homework miss a class
make progress do one’s best make a mistake
know-how do research get good grades

take a class skip school pass/fail a test, class
learn by heart formal education eradicate illiteracy
school system teacher training core subjects
be accepted/rejected join a class get a good education
Others:
Verbs
teach initiate educate
train coach discipline
instruct indoctrinate edify
drill hone form
141
nurture blunt rear
school advise instill
dispel cultivate dull
nourish sway support
convert confuse persuade
foster preach influence
quiz spell out decipher
test decode encourage
further absorb familiarize
doubt process double-check
captivate inquire question
mold require ascertain
shape stunt lead
accomplish demand register
enlighten imbue (with) discipline
drive assign delegate
collaborate figure out participate
overcome dissemble disabuse
sit (for) a test transform enlighten
acclimate cram reach
confirm prep impress
digest reveal clarify
guide inform impart
sharpen acquaint broaden
inculcate provoke motivate
Others: take part in
142
Common words/expressions & alternatives:
Study:
Students who study the humanities can learn critical thinking.
… major in …
… minor in…
… concentrate on…
… whose field of study is…
… whose concentration is…
… focus on…
… whose education revolves around…
… learn…
… explore…
conduct research in…
… examine…
… take courses in…
… enroll in courses in…
143
Learn:
gain knowledge of
hone particular skills acquire skills in
grasp the material/information absorb ideas
take in knowledge (of/about) familiarize oneself with
read up on a topic master a topic/skill
review material on
Student:
high schooler pupil
undergraduate (bachelor)
learner graduate (master)
trainee
postgraduate (doctorate) scholar (professional student) post-doctoral
disciple
researcher apprentice novice attendee/participant
freshman sophomore junior senior protégé
Colleges have a duty to provide students with skills for the real world.
Universities… … give…
Tertiary academic institutions… … equip with…
Institutions of higher education/learning… … supply/furnish with…
Post-secondary schools … … prepare…by giving them…
144
Attend: Obtain:
Many people go to college in order to get a degree …
… attend… … obtain…
… enroll in …. … acquire…
… enter… … pursue…
… join… … secure…
…complete courses/studies toward a degree in…
…take courses to enhance/upgrade/develop their skills
Teacher/Teach:
It is the responsibility of teachers to teach their pupils the fundamentals of

any subject.
… educators… … educate…
… professors… … instruct…
… instructors… … train…
… lecturers… … enlighten… on the…
… trainers… … expound to…
… faculty members… … ground… in the…
… tutors… … develop their pupils’ basic understanding in…
… coaches… … prepare… in the…
… mentors… … explain to their pupils….
… edify their pupils on…
… imbue their pupils with a basic understanding…
145
Subtopics
Abroad vs. Domestic Studies

Fees/costs: tuition (international vs. domestic, currency exchange), housing,
boarding (groceries and other essentials), equipment and materials
(textbooks, lab equipment, computer, printing & binding (papers), etc.)
Socialization: language, social interaction, networking, cultural norms & cues,
global experience
Culture: culture shock, customs and traditions, gender relations, student-
teacher relations, general relationships, expectations,
tolerances/intolerances
Educational expectations: skills, work ethic, standards (schools’, peers’,
professors’, etc.)
Post-studies career opportunities: internship, mentorship, apprenticeship,
network
Scholarships and grants: international fees vs. local tuition, student loans,
subsidies
Personal issues: homesickness, ability to support family with part-
time work, financial burden, family expectations, temptations,
distractions, influences Other:
Private vs. Public

Image: elite, reputable, snobby, entitled, social, middle-class, upper-class,
superior, inferior, common, alumni
Cost: tuition, government subsidized, investment in future, uniform, ancillary
costs/fees
Academics: teacher quality, academic content, Ministry/Board of Education
involvement, curriculum, schedule, teachers’ strike, disruptions, textbooks,
bias
Student life: uniforms, commute, social sphere, networking, old boys’
club, communal, worldview, integration, cultural identity Other:
Online vs. On Campus
146
Computer literacy: Microsoft Office suite, Google docs, internet savvy,
computer lab and assistance, technical support
Fees: ancillary fees, textbooks, e-books, equipment, software, commuting,
accommodations, food
Convenience: commute, schedule, comfort of one’s living room, crowded
classroom/lecture hall, travel, ability to work part time, ask teacher questions
directly and receive answers quickly
Social aspect: working alone vs. in groups, after-class interactions, face-to-
face interaction vs. on-screen, human contact, networking
Reputation: school name, accreditation, respectability of program, employer
attitudes, connections/network
Student: motivation, discipline, self-determination, self-scheduling, introvert
vs. extrovert, 2dimensional vs. 3-dimensional interaction, understanding
Support: computer lab, teacher interaction, fellow students, facilities,
writing lab, tutoring, mentoring Other:
Vocational School, College, or University

Content: theoretical vs. practical, hands-on, skills, knowledge, concrete vs.
abstract, trades
Instructors: real-world experience vs. academia, Masters vs. Doctors, real-
world contacts, scholars vs. trained professionals, ivory tower vs. lay person
Fees: materials, books, tuition, subsidies, scholarships, grants, government
support
Time: 6 months to one-year training vs. four-year degree
Earned: certificate, degree, diploma, credits, experience
Results: employable skills, employability, hit the ground running,
postgraduate studies, professional vs. skilled labour Other:
147
Learning a Foreign Language
Sources: native vs. nonnative speaker, textbooks vs. real-life situations,
immersion, practice, online forums & courses, language school, elementary
school, videos
Levels: (low-, high-) beginner, intermediate, advanced, fluent, native-like,
near-native
Byproduct: culture loss, culture sharing, influence, foreign ideas and
concepts, assimilation, integration, global networking, employable skill,
global mobility, international trade and cooperation, personal
relationships (friends, partners, etc.) Other:
Theory vs. Practical Training; Arts/Humanities vs. STEM (science, technology,

engineering, math); School vs. Internship/Apprenticeship
Knowledge: base, foundation, essence, deeper understanding, abstract
thinking, critical thinking, imagination, adaptability, potential, broad horizons,
broad-minded, brain development, humanities, professions—medicine, law,
engineering, architecture
Practical applications: employable skills, hit the ground running, workplace
competition, specialization, expertise, know-how, can train others, limited
knowledge, less flexible employment opportunities, narrow-minded,
dependence on industry
Path: theory reinforced with practical skills and vice versa, university students
often go to other school to gain employable skills and training, theory allows
flexibility to adapt to context-specific training
Arts/humanities: imagination, innovation, human element, preservation of
culture, language, society; history, cross-cultural tolerance and
communication, wide perspective, do not repeat mistakes of past (history)
STEM: digital world, advancing technology, automated workplace, greater
benefits to greater numbers, concrete applications (water desalination,
building, agriculture, internet, education, etc.)
School: set curriculum, peers and fellows, guidance, knowledgeable teachers,
trained teachers, pedagogy, socialization, standards and limitations, strict
rules
Apprenticeship: limited peers (usually older), less social interaction,
hands-on training, skilled and experienced trainers, real-world
experience, great for resume, outside-the-box thinking Other:
148
Technology in the Classroom
Devices: smartphones, tablets, laptops/notebooks, smartboard, e-books/e-
readers, scanners
Impacts: (+) access to information, speed, interaction, global village,
globalized learning, ondemand knowledge, independent learning, multi-
media, multi-faceted (audio, video), engagement, collaboration, unlimited
information, adaptability
(-) distraction, ADHD, inaccuracies, Wikipedia, plagiarism, cheating, laziness,
dependence, addiction, lose skills (handwriting, spelling, grammar, research,
basic math), cyberbullying
(+/-) instant gratification; teaching aid, training
Parental involvement: lag behind, tutoring, control, discipline, safety
(cyberbullying, predators, scammers)
School: affordability, maintenance, technicians, IT staff,
trained teachers Other:
Teacher
Qualities: patience, motivation, inspiration, care, empathy, thirst for
knowledge, eagerness, guidance, counselling
Qualifications: B.Ed., certification, Teacher’s College, specialization,
practicum
Types: kindergarten teacher, K-12, assistant professor, teacher’s assistant,
adjunct, tenured, tutor, coach, mentor, emeritus
Duties: teach, guide, educate, tutor, lead, evaluate, assess, test, discipline,
babysit, shepherd
Parents: emotionally attached, biased, subjective, vested interest, rely on
teachers, not qualified, more or less strict, lacking motivational skills,
disciplining skills, can’t relate to being a child, cares about family
name/reputation
Teacher: objective, in charge of many, trained to assess and overcome
problems, cares about school’s reputation, knows the curriculum and
national requirements, knows what universities demand, knows the
subject material, repetitive work Other:
149
Dorms vs. Off-Campus Housing
Rules: house rules, dorm supervisor, resident-hall director, communal
bathroom, duties, freedom, responsibilities, housekeeping, experience
People: rumors, gossip, assigned vs. chosen roommate, parties, landlord,
other tenants, neighbor(hood)
Costs: utilities, bills, meal plan, credit, outfitting (furniture, appliances, etc.),
cafeteria, commute
Convenience: proximity, social environment, quiet, privacy, part
time work Other:
Tests vs. Projects/Independent Studies

Tests: level playing field, ability to adapt to situation, real-world demands,
conformity, overall picture, relative scores, regional comparisons, test of
ability to prepare for a test, mean score, relative achievement, not personal,
pressure, stress, anxiety, make or break, university entrance
Projects: teamwork, collaboration, self-motivation, discipline, deadlines,
asking for assistance, research skills, critical thinking, writing skills,
organization, time management, easier to cheat, paid work, outsourcing,
plagiarism, internet sources, resourcefulness Other:
Homework
Student: pressure, time constraints, can’t engage other hobbies/activities,
boredom, indoors, repetition, discipline
Teachers: burn out, extra work, unpaid, less time teaching new material &
more time checking, parents’ demands, planning
Effects: reinforce learning, real-world demands, competition, eliminate
misunderstandings, keep up, independent learning, time management
skills, organizational skills, practice makes perfect Other:
Discipline/Motivation
Self: set own goals, deadlines, parameters, push oneself to work,
procrastinate, drive, inspiration, learn by doing/from experience,
150
conformity, know oneself, know what one wants and go after it, lose
direction
Others (teachers, parents, society): punishment, deterrence, drive,
tradeoffs, punish by withholding, motivate with incentives, carrot and stick
approach,
How: self-driven, establish clear aims and targets, have a mentor, role
model, observe and mimic, ask questions, set & meet deadlines Other:
Internet
(+): tool, unlimited resource, fast, global, connectivity, network, ask others,
discover new things, places, ideas, share, collaborate on a global scale, get
involved, engage, employable skills
(-): unreliable, anyone can post info, sifting through endless data, hackers,
cyberbullying, distractions (games, ads, videos), security, abuse, addiction,
inappropriate sites and messages
(-/+): social media, Wi-Fi, 24/7 connectivity, can connect with
anyone (new friends, predators) Other:
Bullying
Victim: trauma, emotional scars, distraction from schoolwork, school as
microcosm of world, path to adulthood, psychology, obstacles, kids can be
cruel, status, appearance, lose motivation, retreat into a shell
Bully: home life, need/cry for attention, peer pressure, compensate for faults
or lacks, revenge (against system, society, parents, teachers, others), social
media, the Other, rebel, sociopath
Treatment/Punishment: zero-tolerance, expulsion, counselling, parent-
teacher meetings, show a better way, understanding, guidance, lend an
ear, pay attention Other:
Miscellaneous
Gap year: work, travel, experience life, rest the brain, find oneself, lose/find a
direction, lose focus, lose momentum, hard to return to disciplined study and
focus, make money, become adult/mature
Volunteering (as a student): experience, social engagement, community
outreach, extra credits, extracurricular activity, looks good on
application/resume/CV/Personal Statement, appreciate what one has, not
151
just books, different voices and insights, learn from those outside usual social
sphere/circle
Uniforms vs. Free Choice: standardization, focus on studies not fashion,
popularity not a matter of money or style, uniformity, status quo,
responsibility, consequences, public opinion, gossip, personal identity,
experimentation, find social circle
Genders: equal abilities, preferred subjects, male dominance in certain areas
(engineering), changing attitudes, social/cultural/religious attitudes, modern
gender roles, more working women means more educated women, benefit
to workforce/economy, different perspectives, patriarchy
Continuing Education: evolution, the strongest/smartest survive, world
changes–need to adapt, automation, new and improved tech that requires
new skill sets, stay ahead of the competition, improve in one’s own field with
new insights, methods, systems, etc., digitized environment, cutting-edge,
state-of-the-art, keep up-to-date, job loss, career change, safety net, new
hobbies, retirement, lifelong learning, active brain-healthy brain, dementia,
boredom, freshness, teachers should also be students, relate to students,
younger generation, employees, extra workload, time, pressure, cost
Health: nutrition, exercise, school cafeteria, physical education classes,
demonstrate consequences of unhealthy lifestyle choices, establish good
habits, teach parents to reinforce healthy lifestyle, remove sugary drinks
from school vending machines, child obesity is huge problem, hygiene
Money: teach students to appreciate money they did not earn, start work
etiquette classes before they are of legal working age, teach them to
manage their money and make appropriate choices, tradeoffs (e.g., video
game now or save for bicycle later), financial basics, prioritizing, sacrifice,
valuation, big picture thinking, long-term vs. instant gratification
Soft skills: public speaking, sharing a space sharing equipment, learning to
read body and facial cues, gestures, tolerance, listening skills (listen to
others, not always try to speak), social cues, social norms, worldviews,
cultural differences (handshake vs. bow vs. kiss on the cheek, etc.)
Sports: major focus, student athletes, determination, strategizing, exercise,
health, desire to win, teamwork, school spirit, reputation, athletics vs.
academics, sports starts can be school heroes, boys teams and girls teams,
funding, scholarship, commercialization, learn the thrill of victory and pain
of defeat, relate to everyday life (win some battles, lose others), fair play,
sportsmanship, sacrifice, effective communication (written, oral) Other:
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Examples
Scientific examples:
Research, studies, surveys, polls—conducted, presented, held, looked into,

released by; found, concluded, backed up, supported, reinforced the idea that…,
Researchers, sociologists, linguists, scientists, lawyers, doctors, … at

place/organization/school
Statistics—numbers, percentages, 120 per 1000, twice/four times more likely to, half as many
Research conducted by Harvard University’s Faculty of Education found that

students who spend at least one hour doing homework every day are three times
more likely than their peers to have above-average grades.
Recent studies released by the Ministry of Labour found that graduates with strong
writing skills were able to secure employment within six months of leaving school,
whereas those whose writing skills were poor often had to return to school to
improve this aspect of their skillset.
This idea is supported by scientific polls in which participants were asked whether
they would be willing to complete their studies abroad if this meant a better
chance of finding a good job thereafter; over 85% of respondents said they would.
Sociologists at the University of California at Berkeley who had studied the effects
of bullying on young children found that as many as 280 students per 1000 had
experienced some form of abuse during their academic careers, and as many as 30
were emotionally scarred by the experience.
In fact, a Cambridge University study on student behavior, conducted by the

Behavioral Sciences Department, concluded that students who wore uniforms at
school were more likely to be organized and conform to set standards upon
entering the workplace; on the other hand, those who were free to dress as they
pleased were found to be more innovative and open to risk-taking.
Personal examples:
To illustrate, take my cousin Vincent; after several failed attempts to score well on
law school admissions tests, he was finally accepted to a program based on his
153
performance at a mock court session, where the presiding guest judge, a law
professor, recognized Vincent’s exceptional talent and gave him a chance to
demonstrate it at his law school.
To support this idea, I need only look as far as my aunt. After graduating from high
school, she married her boyfriend and they traveled the world together. While
traveling, she learned how to write magazine articles and take professional quality
photographs. Today, she is a leading travel writer for a well-known magazine and
makes a very good living despite never having gone to college.
My sister is a perfect example of this. At the age of thirty-five she decided that she
wanted a career change. She went back to school to learn coding and now owns
her own business as a front-end website developer and has many small businesses
as clients.
My own experience with this is a perfect example. While taking a year off between
college and high school, I worked to save some money to travel. I then spent six
months backpacking through Asia and met many people who wanted to learn
English. I then returned to school and decided to major in English so that I could
travel the world as an English teacher.
154
Concrete, real-world examples:
Steve Jobs: Co-founder of Apple Inc.; dropped out of college; took a calligraphy
course because of interest, which led to fonts on Mac; gave a commencement
speech to Stanford graduates, told them to “stay hungry” follow their passions and
that “the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it
yet keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when
you find it.”; school friends were in two groups: those interested in electronics and
engineering and those interested in the arts and literature
Khan Academy: A free online education platform that uses videos and online
materials to provide high-quality education to anyone with internet access; a non-
profit created in 2006. This company aims to help educate the world, especially
those who would be unable to better themselves through education that would
otherwise be unaffordable.
MOOC: Massive Open Online Courses—see Khan Academy above
Wikipedia: A free online encyclopedia, whose entries are posted by random and
unverifiable sources; citations are often lacking, so the veracity of the material is
questionable; however, it can provide a good starting point to further research and
it provides at least a basic idea of a topic. Most teachers do not consider it a true
source of information and prohibit students from using it in their bibliographies or
Works Cited pages.
Social media: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram: These internet-based social
platforms allow friends and strangers to connect to each other from anywhere in
the world in real time to share messages, photos, videos, news, etc. These are also
used as a tool to spread false information and can be used as well to prey on
victims. Young people are often targeted by predators and bullies and many
schools have started to teach students about proper etiquette and safe practices
on these platforms.
Waldorf and Montessori teaching methods: These are nontraditional teaching
approaches based on a pedagogical theory that a child can teach him/herself and
peers, within limits. The systems do not focus on tests but rather independent
learning tasks that allow the students to find expression based on freedom rather
than a strict adherence to rules and standards.
Concrete, yet general examples:

To illustrate, consider the American chemistry expert who only studied science-
related courses; this person may be highly qualified in his field, but because he
never studied the humanities or geography, he will have a difficult time
155
understanding the ways of his Indian, Chinese, or Brazilian colleagues. In the long
term, this will be a liability that may overshadow his technical expertise.
Take for instance, a young girl whose parents are both overweight; if her school
does not educate her on the consequences of poor dietary choices and she only
learns about this aspect of her life from observing her parents, it is very likely that
she too will become obese and her health will be at risk.
For example, a 40-year-old who is not adept at using application software on his
phone, but whose industry is moving in that direction, may be replaced by a
younger, more tech-savvy employee who can provide the company with what it
needs.
Facts:
According to the Times Higher Education Rankings, 2014, of the top 100 ranked
universities in the world, 46 are based in the US (10—UK; 6—Germany)
In 2014, the graduation rate of high school students in the US and Canada was over
80%
The number of people who speak (as a first language): Chinese (Mandarin)—900
million; Spanish—430 million; English—339 million
English is spoken as a first or second language by 1.5 billion people
English is the most used language on the internet but this rate is dropping: Chinese
and Arabic are climbing fast.
Terms:
Zero-tolerance policy— a policy that does not allow for any exceptions when a rule
is broken. For instance if a person is caught bullying even once, he/she is to be
expelled from the school with no second chance.
3 strikes— a term from baseball: when a batter is served three strikes he loses his
turn to bat again. A person in everyday life is given two chances. On the third
occurrence of a rule break he/she is kicked out/disciplined.
Core curriculum— the subjects all students must take regardless of school or
location (English math social science).
Other:
156

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Thầy Kiên iFIGHT – Lean Vocabulary Vol.

Để học tốt cuốn sách:

Lời cảm ơn:

Hoàng Phương Linh: Du học sinh Úc

Vũ Thị Ba: K57 - FTU

Nguyễn Thu Phương: K60 - NEU

Lời nói đầu: ............................................................................................................................ 1

Reading 1: STUDY CENTRE COURSES ........................................................................... 6

Reading 2: PRIVATE SCHOOLS ........................................................................................ 8

Reading 3: Do literate women make better mothers? .............................................. 11

Reading 4: Activities for Children................................................................................... 15

Reading 5: Children’s Literature ..................................................................................... 18

Reading 6: Gifted children and learning ...................................................................... 21

Reading 7: The Nature of Genius .................................................................................... 24

Reading 8: Children Tested to Destruction? ................................................................ 28

Reading 9: Nurturing talent within the family........................................................... 31

Reading 10:What’s the purpose of gaining knowledge? ............................................ 35

Reading 11:Communicating Styles and Conflict ......................................................... 38

Reading 12:The Benefits of Being Bilingual ................................................................. 42

Reading 13:Early Childhood Education ......................................................................... 46

Reading 15:What is speed reading, and why do we need it? ................................. 54

Reading 16:Learning by Examples ................................................................................. 57

Reading 17:LAND OF THE RISING SUN ....................................................................... 60

Reading 18:Greying population stays in the pink ...................................................... 64

Reading 19:Twist in the Tale ........................................................................................... 68

Reading 20:Learning color words ................................................................................... 71

Reading 21:Should a university teach a killer? ........................................................... 75

Reading 23:Where do teachers get the most respect? .............................................. 83

Reading 24:Do schools help or hinder social mobility?.............................................. 85

Reading 25:The MIT factor: ............................................................................................. 90

Reading 26:celebrating 150 years of maverick genius ............................................. 90

Reading 27:Language diversity........................................................................................ 94

Reading 28:Overcoming the language barrier ............................................................. 98

Reading 29:SAVING LANGUAGE .................................................................................. 101

Reading 30:The meaning of volunteering ................................................................... 105

Listening Section ........................................................................................................... 109

STUDY CENTRE COURSES

D synonyms: acute, grave, pressing, serious,

Do literate women make better mothers?

Children in developing countries are healthier

Activities for Children

A Twenty-five years ago, children in London

F Any cardiovascular exercise is a good option, untrammeled/ʌn'træmld/: not limited by

Stories and poems aimed at children have an

So the moral story for children was always

prejudice /'predʒʊdis/: preconceived opinion that is

defensive /dɪˈfɛnsɪv/: used to protect someone or

Gifted children and learning

A Internationally, ‘giftedness’ is most frequently

The Nature of Genius

delude /dɪˈl(j)uːd/: Make (someone) believe

Children Tested to Destruction?

English primary school pupils subjected to more

Nurturing talent within the family

What do we mean by being ‘talented’ or

fertile ground for smth/'fɜ:rtl/:

What’s the purpose of gaining

Communicating Styles and Conflict

A As far back as Hippocrates’ time (460- temperament /ˈtɛmp(ə)rəm(ə)nt/: a person's or

B The values in self-assessments that synonyms: control, influence, exercise control

incentive /ɪnˈsɛntɪv/: a thing that motivates or

The Benefits of Being Bilingual

A bilingual /bʌɪˈlɪŋɡw(ə)l/: (of a person) speaking two

Early Childhood Education