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Unit 8
Part1
Tom:
What kind of school did you go to, Ann?
Ann: Well, I went to a public primary
school and then to a
private high
school.
Tom: So which do you think is
better?
Ann:
Actually,
I
prefer
private
schools
because
of
the
smaller
classes
and
...
usually
you
have
a
wider
choice
of
subjects.
Tom:
Yeah, I suppose that's true.
Ann:
And
then
there
are
usually
better
sports
facilities.
For
example,
the
school
I
went
to
had
a
swimming pool and a huge
gym.
Tom:
Yeah
...
well,
the
public
high
school
I
went
to
had
great
sports
facilities.
Besides,
private
schools
are
really
expensive.
Ann: Yeah, but I think they're worth
it.
Tom: I don't know. I think you have
to judge every school
individually,
whether it's public or private.
Ann:
That
may
be
true
...
but
children
generally
get
a
better,
more ... well-rounded education in a
private school.
Tom: Maybe, but I'm not
totally convinced. By the way, Ann,
were
you
on
the
debating
team
in
high
school,
by
any
chance?
Ann: I sure was! I was the captain!
Part2
Although
education
is
compulsory
in
the
United
States,
it
is
not compulsory for all
children to get their education at
school. A number of parents believe
that they can provide a
better
education
for
their
children
at
home.
Children
who
are
educated
at home are known as
about
300
000
home-
schoolers
in the
United
States
today.
Interestingly,
results
show
that
home-
schooled
children
tend
to do better than average on national
tests in reading and
math.
David Guterson is an American writer.
He and his wife teach
their
three
children
themselves.
Guterson
says
that
his
children learn very differently from
children in a regular
school. Learning
starts with the children's interests and
questions. For example, when there is
heavy snowfall on a
winter
day,
it
may
start
a
discussion
or
reading
about
climate,
snow
removal
equipment,
Alaska,
polar
bears,
and
winter
tourism.
Or
a
spring
evening,
when
the
family
is
watching
the
stars, is a good time for setting up a
telescope and asking
questions about
satellites, comets, meteors, and the space
program.
At
dinner,
if
the
Brazilian
rain
forests
are
on
the
news, it could be a
perfect time to get out the atlas and
encyclopedia.
Then
there
might
be
two
hours
or
more
of
eating,
asking questions, looking up answers,
discovering how rain
forests influence
the climate, what the
is,
how
deserts
are
formed
and
how
the
polar
ice
caps
affect
ocean
levels.
Although home schooling offers
an experience that is often
more
interesting
than
regular
schools,
critics
point
out
that
home-schoolers
miss
out
on
many
important
things.
The
home-
schooler is an outsider who, because he or she
never
attended school, might be
uncomfortable mixing with other
people
in
adult
life.
Critics
also
say
that
most
parents
are
not well qualified to
teach their children and may pass on
their
own
narrow
views
to
their
children.
However,
most
parents
don't
have
the
time
or
desire
to
teach
their
children
at home, so schools
will continue to be where most children
get their formal education.
Part3
John James: I
disagree, Peter. I don't think it really
matters what your educational
background is. Anyone who is
bright
enough is going to do well whatever their
education.
Peter Davies: But John,
...
John
James: In
fact,
I
think
some
people
carry
on
with
their
education
when
they
would
do
a
lot
better
to
get
out
and
start
building their own careers by learning
things in real life.
Peter Davies:
Yes,
but
the
whole
point is, life is
getting
so
much
more
complicated
these
days
that
unless
you
carry
on
with your studies you
just can't cope.
John
James:
For
certain
things,
and
certain
people,
OK,
but
to
my
mind,
the
big
problem
in
education
is
that
you
specialize
too
quickly.
I
mean,
in
England,
you
start
specializing
from
the
third
year
in
secondary
school,
when
you're
about
14.
And
it
gets
steadily
narrower
until
you
do
your
levels
in
only
two or
three subjects. You either do languages, or
natural
sciences, or social sciences.
Peter
Davies: But
surely
these
days
you
have
to,
John
—
you
can't
possibly
study
everything
because
there's
just
too
much.
John
James
：
Yes, but how many
kids at the age of sixteen
really
know
what
they
want
to
do?
How
many
of
them
are
convinced
that
the
three
subjects
they've
chosen,
or
have
been
recommended,
are
the
ones
that
will
let
them
follow
the
careers
they eventually
decide on?
Peter Davies: Oh, I think
most young people who stay on at
school
have a fair idea of what they want to do.
John James
：
I'm
not so sure, Peter. And after all, that's
not the end of it. When they get to
university in England,
the
subjects
they
study
are
so
narrow
that
they
are
only
good
for one thing, so they are stuck with
it.
Peter Davies: But I don't really
see that there is any
alternative
if
people
are
going
to
learn
enough
to
be
competent
in their subject.
They've got to specialize early, and I
suppose
those
that
realize
they've
made
a
mistake
can
always
swap to something
else.
John
James
：
Ah,
but
that's
just
it.
You
can't.
Suppose
you
study
languages at university and then decide that you
are
not
cut
out
for
it
and
would
like
to
be
a
doctor.
You've
burnt
your
bridges.
You
can't
just
change
horses
in
midstream;
you've
got
to
go
right
back
to
the
beginning
and
you
lose
years.
I think the American system is much
better.
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