Say It better! Series. B2 First Season. Episode 4

Entrance to the cinema today is worth a quiz!

Say it better?

1. I was very pleased with my term exam results.
2. My school isn’t far from my house. I always go on foot to school.
3. To arrive on time, I must leave home to go to school very early in the morning.

You’ve got your ticket, you have! Check out our previous episode about travelling in case you need to brush up on this topic.

Why have I chosen the topic of EDUCATION for today’s episode?

Here are some Part 1 questions from the B2 First Speaking test. 

• “Can you tell me something about your school?”
• “What do you find is most difficult in studying English?”
• “How do you think you will use English in the future?”
• “Can you remember your first day at school?”
• “How important are exams in your country?”
• “Do you prefer to study alone or with other people? Why?”
• “What plans do you have for your future education?”
• “How often do you use the Internet to study?”
• “What new skill would you like to learn? Why?”

As you see, you must be ready to answer questions about your past, present and future learning journey.

To make sure you show a rich vocabulary range in the first part, as well as the fourth one of the Speaking test if the collaborative task in part 3 is education-related, today’s episode will help you enrich your active vocabulary related to the theme of education.

Why don’t we sort it out?

Are you ready for a new episode? Roll up your sleeves!

EDUCATION Matters

Topic vocabulary

Download the PDF. Translate and/or write the definition of the words in the list. Make sure while looking them up in the dictionary, you look for the episode-related meaning. 

Word formation

Download the PDF and complete the table with the missing words. 

ABSENTEEISM n., ADMISSION n., APPLY v., APPROVAL n., ASSESSMENT n., ASSIGNMENT n., ATTEND v., ENROL v., EXPECTATION n., INVOLVED adj., REQUIREMENT n., REWARDING adj., STUDIOUS adj., UNPREPARED adj.

Speaking paper

Step One: Read the questions. Make changes to the answers provided. Use the TOPIC language.

Step Two: Write your own answer. Use the TOPIC language.

Step Three (optional): Record yourself while answering the questions. Send your answers to your English teacher for assessment and feedback.

Part 1

Question:  “What is your favourite school subject?”

Answer:  “I like Physics a lot. I like all science subjects. When I first had a Physics lesson, I thought it would be very difficult. But in the end it wasn’t. I think it’s all about someone’s interest. That’s why I find even the exams easy. I get very good marks. My teacher has even congratulated me and told me to continue working as I am. She is awesome. She explains to us everything in detail. Besides studying the theory, we are doing a lot of experiments that help us understand and remember everything better. That’s why I like science subjects so much”

Have you used the following words when making changes? What other words would you replace or add?

Breeze through, sail through, keep up with sth, turn out (to be), hands-on approach, give praise for

One more change. You’ve seen how the word like is being repeated. Why don’t you replace it with other words or expressions to talk about your preferences? Check out this article on ways to express likes and dislikes.

Part 4

Question: “Giving prizes to students who do well is considered to be a good idea. What do you think?”

Answer:  “I’d say I partly agree with it. Prizes can of course motivate somebody who studies a lot and has got good marks. But I think that they cannot be the only motivation for somebody. What I mean is, doing well at school is a must for a student. The good marks are a kind of prize as well, aren’t they? Students have to understand that they must study to have a good job and a good life. If they only study to get prizes, I am sorry for them. In other words, in the long run, if we learn for our future, even if we are not given prizes, like cups and medals, all our efforts and time are the best prize.”

Reading and Use of English quiz

Part 1

Decide which answer best fits the gap.

When studying a language, whenever we cannot figure out the meaning of a new word, we must ……… up what its meaning is in a paper edition or online dictionary.

a. brush

b. look

c. pick

d. keep

Let’s practise a bit more with Part 1-like questions.

Look up these words in the dictionary. Make sure you understand the difference in meaning between them.

• Study, teach, learn
• Take part, assist, attend, join
• Know, find out, get to know

The options given in Part 1 of the Reading and Use of English paper are either similar words or, together with the words before and after the gap (e.g. a preposition), must form a grammatical collocation. Let’s look at the questions below. As you see, the four options, for each question, are similar. Since you already know their meaning, helped by the context, you’ll easily choose the correct one.

Decide which answer best fits the gap.

1. Who … you how to play the piano?

a. studied
b. taught
c. learnt
d. joined

2.  My best friend would like to … how to create applications. 

a. study
b. teach
c. learn
d. join

3. To do well at university, you must … hard.

a. learn
b. know
c. teach
d. study

4. My tutor will … me with the selection of the theme for my term paper.

a. attend
b. assist
c. join
d. teach

5. We hope all your parents will … the meeting.

a. attend
b. assist
c. know
d. joined

6. It is not easy to break the ice and get to … your classmates the first day if you have moved school. 

a. learn
b. find
c. know
d. join

7. I decided to … the theatre club because I like being on stage.

a. join
b. attend
c. learn
d. know

8. I am shy, and I don’t usually … in class conversations.

a. join
b. assist
c. take part
d. attend

Nota Bene!

• We learn a skill or get new knowledge
• We study when we go to classes, read books, etc to try to understand new ideas and facts.
• We teach someone by giving them new knowledge or skills.
• We find out something when we learn new information for the first time.
• We know something is we already have the information.
• We get to know somebody or something when we spend time with sb or sth, and we gradually learn more about them. 
• We take part in an activity when we are involved in the activity with other people.
• We join a club or an organization if we become its member.
• We attend something that we go to, like an event or place.
• We assist someone when we help them.

Part 2

Think of the words which fit the gap.

Before you hand in your term paper to your teacher, you ought to go … it to make sure there are no errors.

Part 3

Use the word given in CAPITALS to form a word that fits the gap.

The teacher noted down students’ … in the class register. ABSENT

Part 4

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word. You must use between three and five words.

“Well done! You’ve won the school competition!” the principal said to me. 

ON

The principal ________________ won the school competition.

Topic word cloud

The word clouds are a priceless learning tool. Make sure they are there for you, within easy eye-reach, in your cosy study corner. Check the one below. It’s got all the EDUCATION-related expressions, (phrasal) verbs, adjectives and nouns from the wordlist above, but in eye-catching layout.

Now that you’ve worked with today’s topic vocabulary, without looking at the Education wordlist, write down, in around 4 minutes, all the words and expressions related to this theme you can remember. Once you’ve done it, check which ones have been left out. Why don’t you try and use them in your own sentences?

Tip: The context should closely define you as a learner. The more personal the sentences are, the faster you will retain the expressions, and you are more likely to remember them forever. Let’s take this one for example: “My parents can’t find out that I skipped yesterday’s class!” 

Stay tuned for more words of advice and handy material!