School. Olympiad (Form 9)

School is a special place. It’s a temple of knowledge, a place where you grow up and take courage. It’s also a place where we make friends, learn to value moral qualities in people and develop our talents and skills.

School teaches us to develop our critical and creative thinking, to form our views and outlook, our attitude to life and other people. It teaches us to love our Motherland, to treat Nature carefully, to be honest and hardworking.

As for me I study at Gymnasium №2 which is as I think the best school in our town. There is a great variety of subjects I study at school, but my favorite subjects are English, History and Math’s.

If you ask me why I go to school I’ll say that I go there to acquire general knowledge, to learn how to get that knowledge, then to learn discipline and order and of course I enjoy meeting other people and having a good time with them at school.

Our school as well as any other school has its rules and laws. The pupils should work regularly at home and at the lessons. Besides they have to keep things clean and tidy and mustn’t make dog’s ears in the books. And of course using foul, racist, offensive language are the things you should never do at school.

Our gymnasium offers modern facilities for studying. We have a good opportunity to learn English. In our library there are a lot of books, reference books, encyclopedias. Here we can search for information on the Internet and relax reading a book

In our Physics, Chemistry and Biology laboratories we can conduct experiments and carry our scientific projects.

Our school also offers sport clubs, excursions, school subject weeks and Olympiads.

We also have a wide range of out-of-class activities in our school. There is a number of sport clubs and societies to meet the interests of each pupil. They offer opportunities to develop different talents and skills.

As we go to school not only to learn, but also to communicate we have lots of traditions and holidays in our gymnasium. We celebrate the Day of Knowledge, the Last Bell, Graduation Day and others. We also take part in Health Day and school Olympiads.

I personally think our school teaches the whole child. It means that it pays attention to our academic growth of its students, their moral strength and physical development. It teaches us thinking skills through making decisions and choices, and it stirs our curiosity and creativity.

These are the reasons why I love my school.

My working day

In my opinion every pupil has the same working day. Every day begins with breakfast, then it is study at school. All time after school is occupied with preparing for classes for the next day. If children have any free time, they spend it before a TV-set screen or visit their friends

And now some words about my working day, I am an early riser. On week-days the alarm-clock wakes me up at 7 and my working day begins. I do my bed and go to the bathroom where I take a shower and clean my teeth. Then I go to the kitchen and have breakfast. While I’m having breakfast I switch on the radio and listen to the news.

Breakfast, as doctors say, must be the most substantial meal of the day. So for breakfast I usually have eggs and sausage, a cheese sandwich and a cup of coffee or tea. Sometimes I like to have some porridge.

After breakfast I leave for school. It takes me 15 minutes to get to school by bus, and a bit longer if I go on foot

My classes begin at 8.00. Six or seven lessons a day is my ordinary time-table. So I stay at school till 2.30 or 3p.m

When classes are over I go home. I walk home with my friends and we have a nice chat about school and other things

When I come home I like to relax by sitting down and talking to my mother about my day until dinner is ready. After dinner I do some cleaning or shopping just to help my mother and after some short rest I do my homework. We study many subjects at school and it takes me almost three or four hours to be ready with it. Sometimes I go to the library to write a report. You see, I have practically no time for television of friends. But nevertheless I try to find time to go to a swimming pool twice a week in order to be in shape.

Late in the evening, I say ‘goodnight’ to my parents and go to bed. As a rule, it’s about midnight

 

School (Form 8)

What facilities for studying does your school offer?

Our school offers modern facilities for studying. We have a good opportunity to learn English. We have 5 English lessons a week. At our lessons we get help from the experienced teachers and do a lot of things that help us to enrich our vocabulary and to get a good command of a foreign language.

In our library we have a lot of books, reference books, encyclopedias. Here we can search for the necessary information on the Internet and relax reading a book.

In our physics and chemistry laboratories we can conduct experiments and carry out scientific projects.

Our gymnasium also offers sport clubs, excursions, school subject weeks, Olympiads

Are there enough opportunities for out-of-class activities?

Our gymnasium has a wide range of out-of-class activities. There is a number of school clubs and societies to meet the interests of every pupil. They offer opportunities to develop different talents and skills and test them in various school events.

Does your school have any traditions? What is your favorite tradition?

Yes, we have a lot of holidays to celebrate. They are the Day of Knowledge, the School Birthday, the Last Bell, Graduation Day. We also take part in the Sports Week and in School Olympiads. We have parties and concerts on New Year’s Day, on Women’s Day and on Teacher’s Day.

The holiday I like best is the First of September- the Day of Knowledge. This day is special for everybody. The day starts with the school gathering when all classes and teachers stand in front of the school and listen to the welcoming speeches of their teachers, schoolmates and parents. Students look really nice in their new school uniforms. Everyone is excited to see their school friends and teachers after long summer holidays. After the school gathering teachers take their classes to their classrooms for the first lesson. When the lesson is over, students may have a class event- a picnic, a walk in the park or a class trip.

Do you remember your first day at school?

I will never forget the day my parents took me to school. It was the first day of September. The weather was so pleasant and warm, with gentle rays of the sun. We could see shining eyes and smiling faces everywhere. New schoolchildren with their parents carrying bunches of flowers were coming into the school yard looking smart and feeling important. Everybody realized it was a great day and felt cheerful and in a good mood. I was the happiest of all. My dream had come true. I had always wanted to enter that mysterious building where you could get into the world of wisdom and knowledge. Later on I didn’t feel disappointed...

Do you the system of the Unified State Exam is a good way to test students’ knowledge?

School is forever changing. Yet, every major change provokes disputes, arguments, and debates. Many of today’s changes are worth debating. One of such innovations is the introduction of the Unified State Exam ( USE). I think it’s the most objective way of assessing knowledge. All the school-leavers have equal opportunities and chances to pass the exam. Besides it’s very convenient because you don’t have to go to some other town, to find accommodation to think about meals etc. And when you get your results it’s easy to decide what university to apply to. But on the other hand some teachers just teach their students for passing a test not paying much attention to developing students’ talents and abilities.

What is your idea of a perfect school?

My idea of a perfect school would be the one that gave you subjects you enjoyed and would be of use to you. Pupils should be given more career information to prepare them more fully for going out into the world. I think that most young people who study at school have no idea of what they want to do. I think you should be prepared for a future job as well as for you future family life. Such subjects as “A perfect family”, “A good father”, or “ How to bring up a child” should be included into school curriculum. There should be plenty of opportunity for personal growth and developing your talents

The system of education in Belarus

Pre-school education is not compulsory in Belarus. But about 70% of children attend nursery schools or kindergartens before they start school. Most children in Belarus start school at the age of 6. Secondary education is divided into 3 levels: primary (1-4), basic (5-9) and secondary (10-11). Besides secondary schools there are also Lyceums and Gymnasiums in our country. Gymnasiums provide general secondary education at a higher level and Lyceums provide vocationally-oriented education All pupils follow the basic education curriculum up to the age of 15, and the vast majority of pupils stay at school until they finish their high school education at 18. At the age of 15 students that have successfully completed basic education receive a Certificate of Basic Education and they can attend colleges or professional technical institutions where they can focus on completing their high school education and work toward a professional certificate. Then they can continue their education at the university level. Education in Belarus is free at all levels except higher university education.

Education in Belarus

Belarusians have always shown a great concern for education. The right to education is stated in the Constitution of Belarus. It is ensured by compulsory secondary schools, vocational schools, and higher educational establishments. It is also ensured by the development of extramural and evening courses and the system of state scholarships and grants.

Education in Belarus is compulsory up to the 9^th form inclusive. The stages of compulsory schooling in Belarus are: primary education for ages 6-7 to 9-10 inclusive: intermediate school for ages 10-11 to 12-13 inclusive, and senior school for ages 13-14 to 14-15 inclusive. If pupils of a secondary school wishes to go on in higher education, they must stay at school for two more years. Primary and secondary school together comprise 11 years of study. Every school has a ‘core curriculum’ or academic subjects, such as Russian, Belarussian, Literature, Mathematics, History, a foreign language and others. Lyceums and Gymnasiums offer programs giving a profound knowledge in some field of study.

After finishing the 9^th form one can go on to a vocational school which offers programmers of academic subjects and a programmer of training in a technical field, or a profession

After finishing the 11^th form of a secondary school, a lyceum or a gymnasium one can go on in higher education. All applicants must take competitive examinations. Higher educational institutions, that is, institutes and universities, offer a 5-year programmer of academic subjects for undergraduates in a variety of fields, as well as a postgraduate course.

All secondary schools, institutes and universities until recently have been funded by state. Now there is quite a number of private fee-paying schools and universities

The system of education in Great Britain.

Children in Great Britain do not have to go to school until they reach the age of five and only very few go to nursery schools where they learn such things as numbers, letters, and colors and may begin to read and write.

Primary education takes place in infant school (pupils aged from 5 to 7 years and junior schools (from 8 to 11 years). Secondary schools take pupils from the age of 11 up to 18. Compulsory secondary education lasts five years. In the fifth form at the age of 16 students may either leave school or continue their education in the sixth form. Nowadays most British children go to comprehensive schools which take pupils of all abilities without any exams. Comprehensive schools offer a wide choice of subjects from art and craft to computer studying and sciences. All pupils move to the next class automatically at the end of the year. At the end of the fifth form pupils take their first public exam for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). Many people decide to leave school at the age of 16, and they can go to a Further Education College where they choose more practical courses, for example engineering, typing, hairdressing. Pupils who stay on into the sixth form, lasting two years, prepare for their “A” Level Exams. “A” stands for “Advanced”. Good “A” Level results in two-five subjects are necessary to get a place at one of the British universities.

Free secondary education is available to all children in Great Britain. Nevertheless some parents choose to pay for private education. Private or independent schools are called public schools, they are expensive. In a lot of public schools pupils live as well as study. They are called boarding schools. The most famous public schools are Harrow, Winchester, Eton. They are known for their high academic standards and are considered prestigious.

L ight is better than darkness, knowledge is better than ignorance