SKKN đề CƯƠNG bài GIẢNG môn đất nước học

Countries within a Country The name United Kingdom refers to the union of what were once fourseparate countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland though most ofIreland is now indepen

SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO HÒA BÌNH

TRƯỜNG CAO ĐẲNG SƯ PHẠM

***

ĐỀ CƯƠNG BÀI GIẢNG

MÔN: ĐẤT NƯỚC HỌC

Ngành đào tạo: CĐSP Tiếng Anh

Họ và tên: Phạm Thị Minh Huyền Đơn vị: Khoa Trung học Cơ sở

Năm học 2019- 2020

Introduction

Chapter 1: The United Kingdom

Lesson 1: Introduction about the United Kingdom

A Understanding the names

Lesson 2: People, Beliefs and Religions

A Stereotypes and Change

B English versus British

B The Prime Minister

C The Civil Service

C Special Days

Chapter 2: The United states of America

Lesson 8: Introduction about the U.SA

A Weather and Climate

B Individual Freedom and Self- Reliance

C Equality of Opportunity and Competition

D Material Weath and Hard Work

E.Religions

Lesson 10: The Government, Political life and Election

A Power of the President

B Political Party System

C The Organization of the American Government

D The Development of the Government

C High Living Standard

D The Characteristics of American Business

This book is intended for the third-year students majoring in English,Department of Secondary Education, Hoa Binh College of Education, who aretrained to be teachers of English with the hope that they can improve theirEnglish language through various reading passages There is a collection oftopics from different sources about two famous English Speaking Countries:The United Kindom and The United States of America

The aims of this book

1 To give some background information about the country as well people inthe the UK and the USA

2 To raise student's awareness of political system in developed countries

3 To familiarize students with economic development in the UK and theUSA

4 To help students have an idea about two famous Educational Systems inthe world

5 To give students some main information about the most three importantholidays in the UK and the USA including Christmas, Easter and Halloween

6 To compare some special celebrations like birthdays and weddings betweenVietnamese culture and foreigners'

From this, students have an opportunity to share their findings and discusstheir opinions with their partners From then, they can develop theirpresentation skill which is important for their future career Hopefully thatstudents will have fun when taking part in this course and get an insight intothe British and American life in general

Chapter 1 The United Kingdom

Lesson 1: Introduction about The United Kingdom

A Lead-in

1 How many people (to the nearest million) live in Britain?

A 23 million B 48 million C 58 million?

2 What percentage of the British population belong to ethnic minorities:

6 Name the two most popular destinations in Europe for British tourists?

………

7 Which of the following is Britain's longest river?

A The Thames B The Severn C The Tyne?

8 What's the British National Anthem?

This is an abbreviation of ‘the United Kingdom of Great Britain and NorthernIreland’ It is the political name of the country which is made up of England,Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland Several islands off the British coastare also part of the United Kingdom (for example, the Isle of Wight, theOrkneys, Hebrides and Shetlands, and the Islands and the Isles of Man arenot However, all these islands do recognize the Queen

London is the capital Other big cities include Birmingham, Manchester,Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast

Countries within a Country

The name United Kingdom refers to the union of what were once fourseparate countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland (though most ofIreland is now independent)

HistoryHow was the United Kingdom formed? This took centuries, and a lot ofarmed struggle was involved In the 15th century, a Welsh prince, HenryTudor, became King Henry VII, united England and Walse under oneParliament in 1563 In Scotland a similar thing happened The King ofScotland inherited the crown of England and Wales in 1603, so he becameKing James I of England, Walse and Scotland were united century later in

1707 Scotland was separated from England Wales and Ireland were undersome English control but were not fully part of the kingdom The fourcountries were united by 1750

The UK’s full name is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and NorthernIreland Great Britain comprises only of England, Scotland and Wales GreatBritain is the largest island of the Britain Isles.

Great Britain

This is the name of the island which is made up of England, Scotland andWales and so, strictly speaking, it does not include Northern Ireland Theorigin of the world ‘Great’ is a reference to size, because in many Europeanand Brittany in France are the same In fact, it was the French who first talkedabout Grande Bretagne! In everyday speech the United Kingdom

Great Britain: Great Britain is the official name given to the two kingdoms ofEngland and Scotland, and the principality of Wales It is an island lying offthe western coast of Europe, comprising the main territory of the UnitedKingdom

England is part of an island called Great Britai, the largest island in Europe.Great Britain is divided into small regions called countries England – thecapital is London; Scotland – the capital is Edinburgh; Wales – the capital isCardiff; Northern Ireland – the capital is Belfast

Great Britain (or Britain) is only used in references to England, Scotland andWales

Great Britain is very often, but incorrectly, used as a synonym for thesovereign state properly known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain andNorthern Ireland (UK)

Great Britain is a political term which describes the combination of England,Scotland, and Wales, the three nations which together include all the land onthe island It is also a geographical term referring to the island on which thegreater parts of England, Wales and Scotland are situated

Great Britain has area of 229.850 km2 (88.745 sq m) and is the largest island

of the British Isles

Is Great Britain the same as Britain?

Yes, sometimes people use the shorten name Britain instead of Great Britain

England in Britain in the UK

'When people say England, they sometimes mean Great Britain, sometimesthe United Kingdom, sometimes the British Isles - but never England’ ‘How

to be an Alien' by George Mikes’

"England" is sometimes, wrongly, used in reference to the whole UnitedKingdom, the entire island of Great Britain (or simply Britain), or indeed theBritish Isles This is not only incorrect but can cause offence to people fromother parts of the UK The diverse history of England, Scotland and Waleshas led to very different cultural traditions; The Scots and Welsh have right tofeel aggrieved whenever the term 'English' is used wrongly, to mean all three.Most people in England call themselves “British” or “British” and “English”unless specified otherwise This of course is wrong British people can beScottish, Welsh, Irish (living in Northern Ireland) or English However, theScots and the Welsh are proud of their separate identities and tend to be moreforward about referring to themselves as Scottish or Welsh

Interesting Facts

England used to be known as England land, meaning the land of the Angles,people from continental Germany, who began to invade Britain in the late 5th

century, along with the Saxons and Jute

The term Great Britain was first used during the reign of King James I ofEngland (James VI of Scotland) in 1603, to refer to the separate kingdoms ofEngland and Scotland, on the same landmass, that were ruled over by thesame monarch Despite having the same monarch both kingdoms kept theirown parliaments

The ‘United Kingdom of Great Britain’ was formed in 1707 by the Act ofUnion that created a single kingdom with a single Parliament (Scotland hasalways retained its own legal system)

A hundred years later the Act of Union of 1801 joined Ireland to ‘GreatBritain’ and the name “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland” wasfirst used (Since 1921 only Northern Ireland has been a part of the UnitedKingdom and so the name changed)

Things BritishThis is the geographical name that refers to all the islands off the North Westcoast of the European continent: Great Britain, the whole of Ireland (Northernand Southern), the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man But it is important toremember that Southern Ireland – that is the Republic of Ireland (also called

‘Eire’) is completely independent

So you can see that ‘the United Kingdom’ is the correct name to use if youare referring to the country in a political, rather than in a geography way

‘British’ refers to peple from the UK, Great Britain or the British Isles ingeneral

The Scottish and Welsh are proud and independent people In the recent yearsthere have been attempts, particularly in Scotland where the ScottishNationalist Party was very strong for a while However, in a referendum in

1979 the Welsh and Scottish people are happy to form part of the UK eventhough they sometimes complain that they are dominated by England, andparticularly by London The whole of Ireland was united with Great Britishfrom 1801 up until 1922 In that year the independent Republic of Ireland wasformed in the South, while Northern Ireland was still dependent on GreatBritain

The flag of the United Kingdom, known as the Union Jack, is made up ofthree crosses The upright Red Cross is the cross of St George, the patronsaint of England The white diagonal cross (with the arms going into thecorners) is the cross of St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland The reddiagonal cross is the cross of St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland St David

is the patron saint of Wales

Why and how does England dominate the UK?

Land mass and population: England is a country in the UK and occupies most

of the southern two thirds of Great Britain England contains about 84% of the

UK population England is the largest country in the UK The total area ofEngland is 130.410 sq km (50,352 sq mi), equivalent to 57 per cent of thearea of Great Britain

Capital and Government: The capital, seat of government, and the largest

city in the United Kingdom is London London is also is the capital ofEngland All of Great Britain has been ruled by the UK government inLondon since 1707 (In 1999 the first elections to the newly created ScottishParliament and National Assembly for Wales took place leaving England asthe only part of the Great Britain with no devolved assembly or parliament.)

Language: As it names suggest, the English language, today spoken by

hundreds of millions of people around the world, originated as the languagefrom England, where it remains the principal tongue today English is theofficial language of the UK and the first language of the vast majority of thepopulation Both Wales and Scotland land have their own languages butEnglish is spoken in both countries more

Physical Geography and populationBritain has an area of about 242,000 sq km (93,000 sq miles) It is just under1,000 km (600 miles) from the south coast of England to the extreme north ofScotland, and just under 500 km (300 miles) across the widest part AlthoughBritain is quite small in terms of land area, it has a large population of nearly

59 million people, which ranks 18th in the world

Britain has a generally mild and temperate climate The weather, however,tends to be very changeable as a result of the constant influence of differentair masses The prevailing winds are south- westerly, which bring warm air in

from across the Atlantic There are few extremes in temperature, which rarelygoes above 32°C or below - 10°C.

The climate of Britain is more or less the same as that of the north- westernpart of the European mainland The popular belief that it rains all the time inBritain is simply not true The image of a wet, foggy land was created twothousand years ago by the invading Romans and has been perpetuated inmodern times by Hollywood

In fact, London gets no more rain in a year than most other major Europeancities, and less than some

The amount of rain that falls on a town in Britain depends on where it is.Generally speaking, the further west you go, the more rain you get The mildwinters mean that snow is a regular feature of the higher areas only.Occasionally, a whole winter goes by in lower- lying parts without any snow

at all The winters are in general a bit colder in the east of the country thanthey are in the west, while in summer, the south is slightly warmer andsunnier than the north

Why has Britain’s climate got such a bad reputation? Perhaps it is for thesame reason that British people always seem to be talking about the weather.This is its changeability There is a saying that Britain doesn’t have a climate,

it only has weather It may not rain very much altogether, but you can never

be sure of a dry day; there can be cool (even cold) days in July and some quitewarm days in January

The lack of extremes is the reason why, on the few occasions when it getsgenuinely hot or freezing cold, the country seems to be totally unprepared for

it A bit of snow and a few days frost and the trains stop working and theroads are blocked; if the thermometer goes above 27°C, people behave as ifthey were in Sahara and the temperature makes front- page headlines Thesethings happen so rarely that it is not worth organizing life to be ready forthem

What influences the weather? The main influence on our climate is our closeproximity to the Atlantic Ocean, our northern latitude, and the warming of thewaters around the land by the Gulf Stream (a warm current of the northernAtlantic Ocean) Our island is small compared with the other land masses inthe northern hemisphere – hence Britain is more influenced by the oceancompared with other European countries, and the Gulf Stream helps to keepwinters milder compared with other landlocked nations with a similar latitude

LanguagesEnglish is the official language, although the Welsh language has equal status

in Wales Many other languages are spoken by the ethnic minoritycommunities, which make up around 3 million people

English developed from Anglo-Saxon and is a Germanic language However,all the invading peoples, particularly the Norman French, influenced the

English language and you can find many words in English which are French

in origin Nowadays all Welsh, Scottish and Irish people speak English (even

if they speak their own language as well), but all the four countries in the UKhave difficulty in understanding one another English accents A southernEnglish accent is generally accepted to be the most easily understood, and isthe accent usually taught to foreigners

English is the predominant language in Britain Cornish, Gaelic (Irish), Gaelic(Scottish), Manx and Welsh (Cymae) are also spoken Although Celticlanguages persist in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, the lingual Francathroughout the United Kingdom is English Of course, due to thecosmopolitan nature of cities, such as London, several other internationallanguages are also spoken in the United Kingdom

2 Great Britain is made up of England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland

3 The United Kingdom consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

4 British Isles consist of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and Isle of Man

5 England is the common name used to refer to Great Britain or theUnited Kingdom

6 Southern Ireland is dependent on the United Kingdom

7 Great Britain is the largest island of the British Isles

8 England is part of an island called Great Britain, the largest island inEurope

9 Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland were not united until 1750

10 Great Britain is not the official name given to the two kingdoms ofEngland and Scotland, and the principality of Wales

Task 2: Read the text and work in groups to discuss the following questions

1 What is the difference between Great Britain, the British Isles, and theUnited Kingdom?

………Why is England or the UK sometimes called Britain?

5 Which countries are in Great Britain?

Task 3: Decide the following sentences true (T) or false (F).

1 It often rains every day in England

2 English weather is very changeable and it is difficult to predict it

3 The weather in Britain is the same most of the time

4 England has the hottest summer and the coldest winter in the Europeancontinent

5 The temperature in winter is rarely lower than 0°C and the temperature

in summer is rarely higher than 32°C

6 August and September are normally the warmest months in England

7 Around the coasts, February is normally the coldest month, but inlandthere is little to choose between January and February as the coldestmonth

8 Rainfall in Britain is the heaviest in Autumn and Winter

Task 4: Answer the questions below

1 What is the Climate like in Britain?

Lesson 2: People, Beliefs and religions in The United KIngdom

A.Lead- in

What have you known about the British people? Try this quiz

Decide whether these statements are true (T) or false (F)

1 Strangers usually do not talk to each other on trains

2 It is polite to queue for everything: buses, theatre tickets, in shops,etc

3 People say “thank you” when they give money to a shop assistant

4 People open presents in front of people they receive them

5 British people believe that Britain is a ‘land of tradition’

6 The stereotyped image of the London ‘city gent’ includes thewearing of a bowler hat.

B Reading Text

Stereotypes and ChangeLearning from the media and talking to older people, we pick up a lot ofstereotypes about other nations In every country there are plenty ofstereotypes about residents, some maybe true but most of them are untrue andvery wrongful

What are the first three things which come into your mind when you hear thewords 'England' or 'the English’? Mine are fish and chips, rolling hills andsarcasm On this page we have added what people around the world see as thestereotypes of the English

 ‘Men wearing bowler hats, a pin striped suit, a newspaper under thearm and carrying a long unopen umbrella’

 Big Ben; Shakespeare, creamtea; pubs; beefeatures

 Morris Dancing, Royal family, Union Jack, God Save the Queen, Battle

of Britain, Trooping the Colour

 England is a land of beer, sport (football; cricket) and bad weather;

(Contrary to popular belief, it DOES NOT rain every day in England! Invincible green suburbs; maids bicyclng through the morning mist.)

Tom Eccles aged 13: ‘I'm working in a school in Catalonia and they all think that it rains 24/7 in England, and that we eat bad food which is ironic because the food over here is terrible!! Oh, and they all think that we must know David Beckham because we are English!’ ‘Patriotic people, some think

we are snobs but we are just proud of our country and Queen We are very polite and patient although as in any country, there are the bad eggs But on the whole we are a very pleasant nation.’

 A lot of folks overseas think that the English are crazy about dogs andlove them more than their kids

 I think that English people are quite reserved I had to laugh when Iwent by tube and saw everyone sitting and reading their newspapers

 My in-laws are from the Middle East - they think that we boil all ourfood If the truth be told I would rather eat curry than boiled cabbage!

 Saying 'splendid' and 'terribly' (to mean ‘very’, e.g ‘terribly sorryto bother you’ etc.) and old fashioned words/phrases like 'cheerio', 'spiffing' etc, '' (We don't say these words!)

 People think the English are no good at learning foreign languages andhave the attitude that if they yell loud enough in English the

"foreigners" will evertually understand them a lot

Superstitions in Britain

Good Luck

1 Lucky to meet a black cat Black Cats are featured on many good luckgreetings cards and birthday cards in England

2 Lucky to touch wood

3 Lucky to find a clover plant with four leaves

4 A horseshoe over the door brings good luck But the horseshoe needs to

be the right way up The luck runs out of the horseshoe if it is upsidedown

5. On the first day of the month it is lucky to say "white rabbits, white

rabbits white rabbits," before uttering your first word of the day.

6 Catch falling leaves in Autumn and you will have good luck Every leafmeans a lucky month next year

Bad Luck

1 Unlucky to walk underneath a ladder

2 Seven years bad luck to break a mirror

3 Unlucky to see one magpie, lucky to see two, etc

4 Unlucky to spill salt If you do, you must throw it over your shoulder tocounteract the bad luck

5 Unlucky to open an umbrella in doors

6. The number thirteen is unlucky Friday the thirteenth is a very unluckyday Friday is considered to be an unlucky day because Jesus wascrucified on a Friday

7 Unlucky to put new shoes on the table

8 Unlucky to pass someone on the stairs

2. In some parts of the UK meeting two or three Ravens together isconsidered really bad One very English superstition concerns the tameRavens at the Tower of London It is believed if they leave then thecrown of England will be lost

3 It is said to be bad luck if you see bats flying and hear their cries In themiddle ages it was believed that witches were closely associated withbats

4 If a Sparrow enters a house it is an omen of death to one of the peoplewho live there In some areas it is believed that to avoid bad luck, anySparrow caught must be immediately killed otherwise the person whocaught it will die

5 In some areas black Rabbits are thought to host the souls of humanbeings White Rabbits are said to be really witches and some believe that

saying 'White Rabbit' on the first day of each month brings luck Acommon lucky charm is a Rabbit's foot, but not for the Rabbit.

6 It is thought very unlucky to have the feathers of a Peacock within thehome or handle anything made with them This is possibly because ofthe eye shape present upon these feathers i.e the Evil-Eye associatedwith wickedness

English versus BritishMany people think that 'English' is the same as 'British' It is not!

People who are English are from the country of England On the other hand,British people are people who live in Great Britain (Britain) and the UKwhich are made up of different countries All though everyone has a Britishcitizenship they have different nationalities

England is only one of the three countries in Britain (Scotland, Englandand Wales) The Scots and the Welsh sometimes get angry when they arereferred to as 'English' They do not live in England and they have their ownparliaments, so why should they take their identity from England? They havetheir own identity

There are often distinct differences between people living in each of the threecountries in Britain This is because different groups of people tend todevelop their own customs and way of life

National identity and citizenship are not always the same thing in GreatBritain

Most white people born in Great Britain, although British citizens, do notregard themselves as British and prefer to state their national identity asEnglish, Scottish or Welsh

People born in England are called English or British and can say that they live

in England, Britain and/or the UK Most people in England tend to say theyare British rather than English

Slang terms sometimes used for the English include "Sassenachs" (from theScots Gaelic), "Limeys" (in reference to the citrus fruits carried aboardEnglish sailing vessels to prevent scurvy) and "Pom / Pommy" (used inAustralian English and New Zealand English)

People born in Scotland are called Scottish or British and can say that theylive in Scotland, Britain and/or the UK Most people in Scotland will say theyare Scottish rather than British

People born in Wales are called Welsh or British and can say that they live inWales, Britain and/or the UK Most people in Wales will say they are Welshrather than British

MulticulturalismChanging Values and Norms of the British Family: The family in Britain ischanging The once typical British family headed by two parents hasundergone substantial changes during the twentieth century In particularthere has been a rise in the number of single-person households, which

increased from 18 to 29 per cent of all households between 1971 and 2002.

By the year 2020, it is estimated that there will be more single people thanmarried people Fifty years ago this would have been socially unacceptable inBritain

In the past, people got married and stayed married Divorce was very difficult,expensive and took a long time Today, people's views on marriage arechanging Many couples, mostly in their twenties or thirties, live together(cohabit) without getting married Only about 60% of these couples willeventually get married

In the past, people married before they had children, but now about 40% ofchildren in Britain are born to unmarried (cohabiting) parents In 2000,around a quarter of unmarried people between the ages of 16 and 59 werecohabiting in Great Britain Cohabiting couples are also starting familieswithout first being married Before 1960 this was very unusual, but in 2001around 23 per cent of births in the UK were to cohabiting couples People aregenerally getting married at a later age now and many women do not want tohave children immediately They prefer to concentrate on their jobs and putoff having a baby until late thirties

The number of single-parent families is increasing This is mainly due tomore marriages ending in divorce, but some women are also choosing to havechildren as lone parents without being married

1 Social Class System in Britain

Multiculturalism and a changing economy are gradually eroding the Britishclass system, but some features of the system still remain

 What is Class? Sociologists define social class as the grouping of

people by occupations Doctors and lawyers and university teachers aregiven more status than unskilled labourers The different positionsrepresent different levels of power, influence and money The Britishsociety is often considered to be divided into three main groups ofclasses- the Upper class, the Middle class, and the Lower or Workingclass This is known as the Class system

The Different Class Systems: There are three main class divisions

The Upper Class tends to consist of people with inherited wealth, and

includes some of the oldest families, with many of them being titledaristocrats The upper classes are defined by their title, but also by theireducation, and their pastimes which includes the traditional sporting lifeinvolving hunting, shooting and fishing, as well as a great deal of horse ridingfor both leisure and as a competitve pursuit

The Middle Classes are the majority of the population of Britain today They

include industrialists, professionals, businesspeople and shop owners

Working Class people are mostly agricultural, mine and factory workers.

 Status: You can tell class people belong to by the way they speak

(accent), their clothes, their interests, the way that they educate theirchildren, or even the type of food they seat

Being DifferentEnglish spoken in Britain is called ‘British English’ British English is not thesame as American or Australian English ‘Hi mate’ is not the correct andappreciated way to approach someone in the street Neither is ‘G’day’,

‘Howdy’ or ‘Hey Mister’ The British way to greet some one is ‘Goodmorning, good afternoon or good evening’ and, if you want to ask something,

‘Excuse me’ The use of language is extremely important to Britain’s classstructure Some educated English people, regardless or their class origin,strive to free themselves of regional or local accents in order to sound likeeducated English- speaking people Some people in England regard regionalaccents and slang as substandard On the other hand, many local people such

as Cockneys in East London and people in northern England, enjoy theirparticular way of speaking, regarding it as warmer and friendlier thanstandard English Scottish people appreciate the Scottish accent so much theyinsist the BBC carry programs with Scottish- accented speakers

ReligionsReligion has always played an important parti n life in Britan though prhapsless today than in the past The people are overwhelmingly Christian but thisreligion is divided into tow branches

Romance Catholic and Protestant (Church of England) in the last half of the20th century, there has been an increase in other faiths (Religions)

E’g Islams, Hindus

C Comprehension Check

Task 1: Read the text and work in groups to answer the following questions

1 What is family life like in Britain now?

2 Why has the British family size decreasing in the recent years?

3 What is a class?

4 What is status?

5 How many social classes are there in Britain now?

6 Who are upper classes? Who are middle classes? Who are workingclasses?

Task 2: Choose the best answer for each question below

1 Who are the ancestors of the English?

A The Germanic Angles and Saxons

B The French

C The German

D The Vikings

2 Who are the ancestors of the Welsh?

A The Germanic Angles and Saxons

B The French

C The German

D The ancient Britons

3 What makes the Scottish, Welsh, English and Northern Irish differentfrom each other?

A Their different ancestors

B Their different enemy

C Their different ways of living

D Their different belief

4 Who are the ancestors of the British?

A The The Germanic Angles and Saxons

B The French

C The Vikings

D The Celts, the Germanic Angles and Saxons, the Vikings and theNorman

5 Who are the British today?

A The mixed people of all invaders and immigrants

B The French

C The Germanic Angles and Saxons

D The ancient Britons

Task 3: Discuss the following questions

1 Why the British are not the English?

2 Are most Welsh and Scottish people happy to form part of the U.K?Why or why not?

3 Why has Britain become a multiracial country?

4 Does there exist a racial discrimination in Britain? What are the Britishdoing for this problem?

5 How does the multi- racial society (community) affect British culture?

6 What is the main religion of the British? Can you make the differencesbetween Roman Catholic and Protestant?

7 How many languages are there in Britain today?

Task 4: Work in pairs and decide the following cultural etiquettes True (T) or False (F) in Britain And explain why you think so.

1 A handshake is standard for business occasions and when visiting ahome Men should wait for a woman to extend her hand first Whenintroduced, one should say, “How do you do?” instead of “Nice to meetyou!” The question is rhetorical and one should not anticipate a response

2 The British are beginning to use first names more frequently – as it isthe typical case in the United States – however one should only do so at theinitiative of one’s host

3 It is polite to toast those who are older or more senior in age orposition

4 In general, one shouldn’t maintain very proper manners When dining,one shouldn’t always keep one’s hands above the table (but no elbows on thetable) When dining out, one should inquire about the food one sees around,and one should ask to sample the dishes of others

5 Men never hold doors open for women and rise when a woman enters aroom.

6 In conversation, one should have topics such as politics or religion andother controversial issues One should also ask personal questions to create aclose, intimate relationship

7 Jokes about the royal family are always appropriate General fare abouttravel, sports, music, sightseeing, theatre, movies and the likes areinappropriate subjects for discussion

8 The English are not in the habit of referring to all natives of the Britain

as “Brits”, this term is uniquitously appreciated by the Welsh and the Scots

9 It is both incorrect and insulting to call someone from Eire a “Brit”.Furthermore, the English often do not consider themselves European

10 If and when one is invited to a British home, one may bring flowers,liquor or champagne, and chocolates White flowers, which signify death, are

to be avoided One may wish to ask the florist about the appropriate type andnumber

11 In all correspondence, short and clipped notes (via regular mail orelectronic mail), using abbreviated terms or references, is usually consideredodd or impolite Don’t need to convey all forms of written correspondence inconventional form, you should use initializations or incomplete sentences thatare commonplace in North American cultures

12 In terms of paralanguage, it is considered impolite to talk with one’shands in one’s pockets

13 The British always look at the other person while they talk One shouldpoint with one’s finger to indicate something

14 Sitting with your ankle resting on your knee may be seen O.K

15 Tapping one’s nose conveys that a subject is confidential or a secret

16 In Britain, a wide physical space between conversational partners ismaintained

17 In casual settings, especially watching local soccer matchers (which inBritain are referred to as “football matches”), one should give the “victory”sign (a “V” with two fingers) with the palm facing outward

18 The British “pub” is the centerpiece of the social life Pubs have theirown special and circumscribed etiquette, which is practiced among regularvisitors

19 In Britain, the style of dress will depend upon the occasion Businessdress should be neat and modern, not typified by the traditional business suitfor both men and women You can wear what you like in all occasions

20 The Britain don’t seriously follow fashion They like to wear what canexpress themselves

21 People in Britain think being friendly means all the rules of formalitiescan be ignored

22 A sense of identity based on the place of inhabiting is not verycommon or strong in most parts of Britain

D Follow-up

Work in groups to present some main characteristics of the British andcompare them to the ones in Vietnam

Lesson 3: The government, political life and election

in the United Kingdom

A.Lead- in

Dicuss the following questions

1 Who is the Prime Minister of Britain today? When was he elected? Andwhich party does he belong to?

2 What is the Cabinet?

3 Where does the Government meet?

4 Where and Why does the Prime Minister answer the questions twice aweek?

5 Which British Minister would do the following jobs?

- Represent Britain at an international meeting

- Decide how much tax people should pay on their income?

- Announce reforms in the legal system?

Who does these jobs in your country?

B Reading Text

The Cabinet

As the head of the struture of government is the Cabinet which is chosen fromthe leading members of the majority party in the House of Commons, most

Cabinet Miniters are Heads of big government departments e.g the HomeOffice (which deals with important matters within Britain), the Foreign Office(which deals with Britain’s relations with other countries.), the Departments

of Finance, Defense, Transport etc There are about 20 Cabinet Minister (theTreasury; Defense; Justice; the Interior; Agriculture; Commerce; Labor;Health and Human Services; Housing and Urban Development;Transportation; Energy; Education; Veterans Affairs; and HomelandSecurity)

The Cabinet meets at the Prime Minister’s house – 10 Downing Street Twovery important conventions concerning the Cabinet are that all the discussions

of their meetings are secret and that every Minister has to accept the decisionsreached by the Cabinet and prepared to defend them in public If he/shecannot do this, he/she must resign

The Prime Minister

1 History of the office of Prime Minister and the Cabinet

Until the beginning of the 18th century, it was the custom that the King orQueen not only reigned but also ruled the country However, at that time,George I and George II were Kings of Britain They were German and notonly showed little interest in the country but could not even speak the Englishlanguage Much of the responsibility for governing the country wasundertaken by Sir Robert Walpole who was given the title of Prime Minister

He held the office for over 20 years by which time it had become wellestablished George III had long periods of insanity and could not carry outhis duties as King and this strengthened the office even more The PrimeMinisters established the practice of choosing the most important Ministers toform a Cabinet which met regularly to discuss important matters It isinteresting to note that the offices of Prime Minister and the Cabinet workentirely by convention (custom and tradition) in Britain and not by law (Act

of Parliament) The two institutions are closed linked The Prime Minister isoften referred to as “the first among equals”

2 The choice of Prime Minister

The Prime Minister is chosen by the King/Queen It is the convention thatshe/he chooses the leader of the party which has the largest number of seats inthe House of Commons after a General Election He/she is given the duty offorming a Government (about 100 positions)

1 The most important Duties of the Prime Minister

a He is responsible for forming a Government as he has been describedalready He must change Ministers as and when necessary

b He is responsible for advising the Queen to make any appointments.E.g to the House of Lords, senior officials of the Church of England andgranting various e.g knighthood (which gives a man the right to call himself

“Sir” instead of “Mr.” e.g Sir Winston Churchill A woman is called “Dame”e.g Dame Judith Hart)

c He meets the Queen regularly once a week and has the duty ofinforming her about the work of the government and of advising her on manyissues.

d He answers questions in the House of Commons for one hour everyTuesday and Thursday This is called Prime Minister’s Question Time ManyPrime Ministers have said this is a very difficult duty

e He is also the leader of his political party and has to keep their and theirsupport for this policies He must attend many political meetings and hisparty’s annual conference

Some famous Prime Ministers of the 20th century

1 Sir Winston Churchill (Conservative) 1940 – 1945 and 1951 – 1955

2 Mr Clement Attlee (Labor) 1945 – 1951

3 Mr Harold Wilson (Labor) 1964 – 1970 and 1974 – 1976

4 Mrs Margaret Thatcher (Conservative) 1979 – 1990

5 Mr Tony Blair (Labor) 1997

The Civil Service

1 Other members of the government

There are also some more junior Minister who are not members of theCabinet There are usually about 100 Ministers in a government In addition

to those, there are three hundred of Civil Servants who are not politicans andare not appointed by the Prime Minister They are administrators They servewhichever party is power

2 A typical Government Department

The Secretary of State (Minister) for Home Affairs, four or five Home officeMinisters (junior Ministers) are appointed by the Prime Minister from thesame party and thousands of Civil Servants serve politicians of any party

Parliament and Election

1 Political Parties

Since the 17th century, there have usually been two main political parties inBritain In the 19th century, there were the Conservative party and the Liberalparty The former was strongly supported by the Church of England and thearistocracy whereas the latter had much support among the middle classes(traders, industrialists, etc.) and people who were Christians but not members

of Church of England At the end of the nineteenth century, the workingclasses, especially the Trade Unions, founded their own party, the Labour(Socialist) party The Labour continues to have strong links with trade unions.The Labour party is different from the other two parties because it originatedoutside Parliament and then established itself in Parliament, whereas the other

2 parties were Parliamentary parties at the beginning and then built uporganizations outside Parliament

During the 20th century, the Labour party has become the main party opposed

to the Conservative party, which is now widely viewed as the party of bigbusiness The Liberals (or Liberal Democrats as they are now known) are

often referred to as the nation’s ‘third party’ There are several other minorsparties which rarely obtain many seats at elections The most important ofthese are the Scottish and Welsh Nationalist Parties which campaign for theindependence of Scotland and Wales but they only win a few seats even inthose countries (e.g.) in 1997 the Wlesh Nationalist party won 4 seats out of

40 in Wales and the Scottish Nationalist party won 6 seats out of 72 inScotland) There is a Communist party but it has not won any seat in House ofCommons since 1945 (when it won 2 seats)

2 The Election Campaign and the results

General Elections must be held at least once every 5 years but the PrimeMinister has the right to call a general election at any time and he/she willoften do so when his/her party appears to be popular There were 2 GeneralElections in 1911 and 1974

For Elections, the U.K is divided into 659 constituencies (areas represented

by an M.P – member of Parliament) Scotland has 72 MPs, Wales has 40 andNorthern Ireland has 18 the rest are for England (529) A constituencyconsists of approximately 50,000 voters

All British citizens over 18 are allowed to vite except for members of theHouse of Lords and people who are insane or in prisin Most people over theage of 21 are entitled to be Candidates for Parliament

Candidates for Parliament are usually selected by the local party associations.Almost all constituencies have a Conservatives, Labor and Liberall –Democrat association, which are made up of members of the political parties.Independent candidates can also stand and there are sometimes humorouscandidates (e.g the Monster Raving Looney party led by Screaming LordDutch) Such parties usually win very few votes All candidates have to pay adeposit of 500 pounds Sterling, which is not returned if they received lessthan 5% of the votes cast This rule is to discourage frivolous candidates (i.e.candidates who are not really serious)

3 Who has the right to vote in Britain?

4 Why do candidates have to pay a deposit of 500 Pounds Sterling?

5 Why do you think Governments often do badly in by – elections?

6 What does the “first – past – the – post” system mean?

Task 2: Work with your partner to decide the following sentences True

or False and then read the text to check answers.

1 The Prime Minister is the oldest of Members of Parliament (Ms.P)

2 The Prime Minister’s party has the most Ms.P.

3 The Cabinet is chosen by the voters

4 All Cabinet Ministers must agree in public

5 The Prime Minister does not explain his or her actions

6 The Prime Minister writes a speech about the Government’s plan forthe next year

7 The Prime Minister is not the most important in the Executive

8 The Prime Minister is the most important in the Legislature

9 The Prime Minister has the most political power in British government

10 The Prime Minister has to ask the Queen for advice in order to makeany important decisions

D Follow-up

Group- discussion: Does your country have the “first- past- the- post” system

or some other system? Do you think a system of proportional representationshould be introduced into Britain? Give reasons for your opinions

Lesson 4: Education in the United Kingdom

A.Lead- in

Work in small groups to discuss the following questions

Education and school exams

1 Do children in England wear a school uniform?

2 At what age do children start school in England?

3 What grades or year groups do you have in England?

4 On what days do children in England attend school?

5 What does a school look like in England?

6 What tests do the children do in a school in England?

7 What different types of schools do you have in England?

B Reading Text

Historical BackgroundEducation is important in England English children are required by law tohave an education until they are 16 years old Education is compulsory, butschool is not, children are not required to attend school They could beeducated at home

1996 Education Act of the UK

Section 7 of the 1996 Education Act states: The parent of every child ofcompulsory school age shall cause him to receive efficient full- time

education suitable – (a) to his age, ability and aptitude, and (b) to any specialaducational needs he may have, either by regular attendance at school orotherwise.

Education is free for all children from 5 to 18 About 94 per cent of pupils inthe UK receive free education from public funds, while 6 per cent attendindependent fee paying schools All government- run schools, state schools,follow the same National Curriculum British law requires all children to be infull- time education from the age of 5 to 16, but parents like, if possible, tosend younger children to a nursery school or playschool from the age of 2 or3

Most children go to state schools near their home Britain has serveraldifferent school systems Depending on where they live, the children may go

to an infant school from age 5 to 7 and then a junior school until they are 11.Others attend a primary school from age 5 to 11 They enter the receptionclass as “rising fives”, just before their fifth birthdat Most primary schoolsare mixed, taking boys and girls

At 11 children begin their secondary education They go to a grammar school,comprehensive school or high school, depending on their ability, theirparents’ wishes, and what schools there are nearby Some are college, aschool partly funded by industry Some students leave schools at 16 but manystay on a further two years in the sixth form

In a few areas children go to a first school at the age of 5, a middle school at 8and an upper school from 13 onwards

Special schools cater for people with special education needs, though manyparents of disabe children prefer them to attend an ordinary school Someprimary an few secondary schools are supported by the Church of England orthe Roman Catholic Church There are also some Islamic schools A smallnumber of children attend music schools or language schools were academicstudies are combined with special music or language lessons

Children of richer parents may be sent to a private preparatory school, oftencalled a prep school, for which they pay high fees, and then to an independentschool or a public school Many public schools are boarding schools

Organization And Recent Development

The academic year starts in September and is divided into three terms Pupilshave holidays at Christmas and Easter and during the summer, and shortbreaks at half- term National GCSE and “A level” exams take place in Mayand June

Most schools have a five- day week, from Monday to Friday The school daybegins around 9 a.m and ends around 3 p.m for the youngest children and 4p.m for older ones There is a break of 15 or 20 minutes in the morning andsometimes also in the afternoon Many children take a packed lunch fromhome; others have school dinner, a cooked meal at the school for whichparents have to pay

Parents may support their children’s school by joining the PTA (parents’ andteachers’ association) They meet teachers at regular parents’ evenings todiscuss their children progress.

We have a one week holiday at the end of every odd numbered term

School Life And Public ExamsAfter teachers have marked the register most schools start the day withassembly, a religious service Parents may have their child excused from thisservice

Pupils are divided into classes according to age Formerly, individual schoolsdecided how much time they would give to each subject, but in 1988 theNational Curriculum was introduced which set programs for study in a range

of subjects for all states schools in England and Wales It does not apply inScotland, and independent schools do not have to follow it, though many do

In primary schools a class teacher teaches most subjects, but some schoolshave specialist teachers for music or technology Pupils at primary schools donot usually have homework but many take part in after- school clubs Theirprogess is tested by their teachers through standard assessment tests (SATs)set nationally at the age of 7 and 11

Secondary schools are much larger than primary schools and students mayhave to travel longer distances by school bus or public transport Most

secondary schools students wear school uniform Students in each year may

be divided into groups based on abilities Classes are taught by teachers whohave specialist knowledge of a particular subject Students continue to studysubject in the National Curriculum and take SATs (Pupils are assessed atvarious stages throughout their education These national curriculum tests areknowns as ‘Sats’) at 14, and then work towards GCSEs in as many subjects asthey can manage, often eight or ten Students who hope to go to universitystay on at school or go to a sixth- form college to study for A levels in two,three or four subjects Some secondary schools now offer more practicalcourses leading to GNVQ as an introduction to work- related skills

In Scotland students take the Scottish Certificate of Education (SCE) Thestandard grade, which is roughly equivalent to GCSE, is taken at 16 at one ofthree levels, and the higher grade is taken at 17 Students take five or sixsubjects as Higher and may be take A levels

What types of Secondary Schools are there in England?

There are three main types of secondary schools –

When do kids finish school? English children are required to attend school

until they are 16 years old At the age of 16, students write an examinationcalled the GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) All studentsare tests in mathematics, English literature, English composition, chemistry,biology, physics, history of classics, one modern language, and one othersubject, such as art or computer studies After completing the GCSE, somestudents leave school, others go onto technical college, whilst others continue

at high school for two more years and take a further set of standardizedexams, known as A levels, in three or four subjects These exams determinewhether a student is eligible for university

2 What is the National Curriculum?

The national curriculum is compulsory in all state schools throughoutEngland It was introduced in 1988, and states what is taught in state schools

It is set by government guidelines

What are Sats? Pupils are assessed at various stages throughout theireducation These national curriculum tests are known as ‘Sats’

Key stages: Under the National curriculum, as a result of the Education

Reform Act 1988, four Key Stage were established These are: Key Stage 1: 5

to 7 years old/ Key Stage 2: 7 to 11 years old/ Key Stage 3: 11 to 14 yearsold/ Key Stage 4: 14 to 16 years old

3 Higher education

There is considerable choice of post-school education in Britain In addition

to universities, there are also polytechnics and a series of different types ofassisted colleges, such as colleges of technology, art, etc, which tend toprovide more work-orientated courses than universities Some of thesecourses are part-time, with the students being released by their employers forone day a week or longer periods Virtually all students on full-time coursesreceive grants or loans from the Government which cover their tuition feesand everyday expenses (accommodation, food, books, etc)

Universities in Britain enjoy complete academic freedom, choosing their ownstaff and deciding which students to admit, what and how to teach, and whichdegrees to award (first degrees are called Bachelor degrees) They are mainlygovernment-funded, except for the totally independent University ofBuckingham

There is no automatic admission to university, as there are only a limitednumber of places (around 100,000) available each year Candidates areaccepted on the basis of their A-level results Virtually all degree courses arefull-time and most last three years (medical and veterinary courses last five

or six years) Students who obtain their Bachelor degree (graduates) canapply to take a further degree course, usually involving a mixture of examcourses and research There are two different types of postgraduate courses

— the Master's degree (MA or MSc) and higher degree of Doctor ofPhilosophy (PhD), which takes 2 or 3 years

C Comprehension Check

Task 1: Discuss the following questions

The School Year

1 What are the school terms and holidays in England?

2 When are school vacations? How long do they last?

3 What school events are there in a typical school year?

4 At what time does school begin and end?

5 What is a typical day in an English school like?

6 What do school children eat at midday?

7 What is life like in a Secondary School?

8 What subjects are taught in a Secondary School?

9 What subjects do they learn in a Primary School?

10 What games do students play during break time?

11 What after school clubs are offered?

Types of School

12 What different types of schools do you have in England?

13 What is the difference between Grammar and Comprehensive schools?

14 What is a Public School?

15 Draw the chart showing the British Education System

16 What are the main subject British children spend most time studying?

17 At what age is Education in Britain free?

18 At what age is Education in Britain compulsory?

Task 2: Work with your partner to fill in the blanks in the blanks in the following table

PRIMARY PHASE

(Key Stages 1 and 2)

Infant Schools: … years

Junior Schools: … years

Primary Schools: … years

SECONDARY PHASE

(Key Stages 3 and 4)

Secondary Schools: … or 11- 18 years

5-Primary Schools 5- 11 First

Schools 8

Schools 11

1 The school leaving age is …

2 Pupils go to … school before secondary school

3 There are … schools for the under 5 years old

4 The national exam at 16 is … The national exam at 18 is …

5 University is part of …

SCHOOLS

In Britain, all children from five to sixteen go to school The spend (1) …year in “primary” schools, and (2) … go on to “secondary” school.

In Britain there are (3) … schools, which are free and (4) … schools forwhich parents pay (5) … British private schools are (6) … schools Thechildren stay at (7) … all the time, and only come (8) … in the holidays Theyusually wear (9) …

Teaching is usually quite (10) … Students often work together in (11) …,and go to the teacher (12) … when they need help

UNIVERSITIES

In Britain, you can get a degree in a university, in a polytechnic, or in some ofthe many colleges of further education There are 42 universities (1) …Britain There are also many (2) … in Britain that teach English (3) … aforeign language Some have (4) … courses (a few weeks or (5) …, and somehave one or (6) … year- courses)

University classes start in (7) … and go on until mid- June with two (8) …,one at Christmas, and one at (9) … Most degrees take three years, (10) …some take four

Discuss the following questions

1 Which is the fastest growing industrial sector in Britain?

2 Which is the main source of energy in Britain?

A natural gas B oil C hydro-electric power D solarpower?

3 What percentage of Britain's workforce are employed in agriculture:

4 In the league table of leading trading nations, where does Britain come?

5 Over 50% of Britain's exports go to?

A North America B the European Union

C the Asia-Pacific region D Africa

B Reading Text

Background InformationThe United Kingdom has a fiercely independent, developed, and internationaltrading economy that was at the forefront of the 19th-century IndustrialRevolution The country emerged from World War II as a military victor butwith a debilitated manufacturing sector Postwar recovery was relatively slow,

and it took nearly 40 years, with additional stimulation after 1973 frommembership in the European Economic Community (ultimately succeeded bythe European Union [EU]), for the British economy to improve itscompetitiveness significantly Economic growth rates in the 1990s comparedfavourably with those of other top industrial countries Manufacturing’scontribution to gross domestic product (GDP) has declined to about one-fifth

of the total, with services providing the source of greatest growth The UnitedKingdom’s chief trading ties have shifted from its former empire to othermembers of the EU, which account for more than half its trade in tangiblegoods The United States is a major investment and trading partner, and Japanhas become a significant investor in local production American and Japanesecompanies often choose the United Kingdom as their European base Inaddition, other fast-developing East Asian countries with export-orientedeconomies include the United Kingdom’s open market among their importantoutlets

Economic GrowthDuring the 1980s the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher pursuedthe privatization, or denationalization, of publicly owned corporations thathad been nationalized by previous governments Privatization, accompanied

by widespread labour unrest, resulted in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs

in the coal-mining and heavy industrial sectors Although there was someimprovement in the standard of living nationally, in general there was greaterprosperity in the South East, including London, than in the heavilyindustrialized regions of the West Midlands, northern England, Clydeside,and Belfast, whose economies suffered during the 1980s During the 1980sand ’90s, income disparity also increased Unemployment and inflation rateswere gradually reduced but remained high until the late 1990s The country’srole as a major world financial centre remained a source of economicstrength Moreover, its exploitation of offshore natural gas since 1967 and oilsince 1975 in the North Sea has reduced dependence on coal and imported oiland provided a further economic boost

Trade and Industry in The U.K

Agriculture

The United Kingdom is unusual, even among western European countries, inthe small proportion of its employed population (about 2 percent) engaged inagriculture With commercial intensification of yields and a high level ofmechanization, supported initially by national policy and subsequently by theCommon Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the EU, the output of someagricultural products has exceeded demand Employment in agriculture hasdeclined gradually, and, with the introduction of policies to achieve reduction

of surpluses, the trend is likely to continue Efforts have been made to createalternative employment opportunities in rural areas, some of which are remote

from towns The land area used for agriculture (about three-quarters of thetotal) has also declined, and the arable share has fallen in favour of pasture.Official agricultural policy conforms to the CAP and has aimed to improveproductivity, to ensure stable markets, to provide producers a fair standard ofliving, and to guarantee consumers regular food supplies at reasonable prices.

To achieve these aims, the CAP provides a system of minimum prices fordomestic goods and levies on imports to support domestic prices Exports areencouraged by subsidies that make up the difference between the worldmarket price and the EU price For a few products, particularly beef andsheep, there are additional payments made directly to producers More recentpolicies have included milk quotas, land set-asides (to compensate farmers fortaking land out of agricultural use), and reliance on the price mechanism as aregulator

The most important farm crops are wheat, barley, oats, sugar beets, potatoes,and rapeseed While significant proportions of wheat, barley, and rapeseedprovide animal feed, much of the remainder is processed for humanconsumption through flour milling (wheat), malting and distilling (barley),and the production of vegetable oil (rapeseed) The main livestock productsderive from cattle and calves, sheep and lambs, pigs, and poultry The UnitedKingdom has achieved a high level of self-sufficiency in the main agriculturalproducts except for sugar and cheese

Forestry

About one-tenth of the United Kingdom’s land area is devoted to productiveforestry The government-supported Forestry Commission manages almosthalf of these woodlands, and the rest are in private hands Domestic timberproduction supplies less than one-fifth of the United Kingdom’s demand Themajority of new plantings are of conifers in upland areas, but the commissionencourages planting broad-leaved trees where appropriate

as shellfish, including Nephrops (Norway lobsters), lobsters, crabs, and

oysters Estuarine fish farming—mainly of trout and salmon—has expandedconsiderably

Working in the UKThe UK has the third largest economy in Europe and an unemployment rate

of 4% at the end of July 2018 – the joint lowest since 1975 According to theOffice for National Statistics, there are just over 3.5 million non-UK nationalsworking in the UK However, although there were 74,000 more non-EUnationals working in the UK in the last year, the number of EU nationals injobs decreased by 86,000 in the same period This is the largest annual fallsince records began in 1997 Economic growth is concentrated in London andthe south east; unemployment is higher in the north of England, Scotland,Wales and Northern Ireland The London jobs market is booming with 10times more jobs on offer than the next best area of the country but of coursethere’s a lot more competition for those jobs If you want a professional orwell-paid job then you’ll need to speak good English (and having a secondlanguage also gives you an advantage) It’s easier to get a job if you don’t

need a work permit It is relatively easy to get part time or casual jobs but the

pay will be a lot lower

Available jobs in the UK

If you are a scientist, any type of engineer, in IT (architect, analyst, designer,programmer), an environmentalist, medical practitioner, science teacher, chef,professional orchestral musician, or dance choreographer, then you willprobably find it easy to get a job in the UK, as these occupations are all in

short supply in the UK Click here to see the up-to-date official list of

shortage jobs in the UK Hospitality and retail have a high staff turnover sothere are often vacancies in these sectors

British work environment and management culture

Most UK companies still have distinct hierarchies with managers makingmost of the decisions and being very firmly in charge of teams of employees.Leading a team efficiently and having a good relationship with staff areconsidered important management skills Teamwork within the team is highlyvalued It’s common for staff to go out for a drink at a pub or bar after work

You can read more in our article on business culture in the United Kingdom The British like meetings; lots of them They are usually planned

in advance with a set agenda and while they can be informal in tone, everyoneleaves with a specific task The low key, ironic British sense of humour withits understatement and euphemism is often used in the work place toindirectly express criticism or prevent embarrassment, and can be initiallyhard for foreigners to understand The British are polite but fairly formal andlogical; pragmatism is favoured over excessive red tape and bureaucracy Theannual budget is the focus of organisational planning Reaching or surpassingtargets may be rewarded with bonus payments It’s common for managers towork through lunch or take work home You may become aware of ‘class

distinctions’ shown mainly by a person’s accent, education and theirappearance and behaviour in the workplace Networks from the historicallyelite schools (such as Eton) and universities (like Cambridge and Oxford,sometimes combined as ‘Oxbridge’) – the so called ‘old boys’ club’ – stillplay a role in some sectors like the city, law, politics and sections of themedia Men still dominate higher management positions

Languages

If you speak another language other than English, you’ll have a big advantageover many British applicants – most of whom will only be able to speakEnglish – but you will almost certainly need to be able to speak English

yourself to get a job in the UK To get a visa to come to the UK to work, you

may need to prove your English language proficiency anyway If your Englishneeds improving, consider taking a course run by a language school The UK

Border Agency has a list of language tests that meet the Home Office

requirements There is a shortage of language teachers in the UK If you hold

a university degree and can speak English well, you might be able to take apost-graduate course to allow you to teach your mother tongue in an English

school or college See here for more information

Qualifications and references

You can find out how qualifications awarded in your home country relate to

British qualifications through UK NARIC If you want to know if your

professional qualifications are recognised in the UK, contact the relevantprofessional body You should make sure any references or testimonials aretranslated into English

C Comprehension Check

Task 1: Fill in the blanks with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS

1 Britain is the (1) … strongest economy in the world and the (2) …largest economy in Europe

2 Britain’s largest economic centre is (3) …

3 Britain’s main industries are (4) … industry and (5) …

4 Britain has got a strong economy thanks to low unemployment rate,low interest rate and (6) …

5 Britain’s agriculture is highly (7) … and extremely productive

6 British two biggest business partners are US and (8) …

7 British industry shifted from state-controlled structure to (9) … in the1990s

8 (10) … was the first female Prime Minister to change the industrystructure to give more freedom to businessmen

Task 2: Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false (F)

1 British people have high enthusiasm towards work

2 British people like brand-name goods

3 Like Vietnam, all British shops and supermarkets are open 7 days/week and very late at night.

4 Transport and accommodation make London a very expensive place tolive

5 To enter employment world, British children must have work permits

6 If employed, children of any age can work for how long they like

7 British economy ranks the 6th in the world in terms of GDP

D Follow-up

Work in groups to point out the common similarities and differences betweeneconomy in the UK and Vietnam

1 Pound Sterling and its role in British economy

2 Migrant workforce in Britain

3 British government’s efforts in controlling inflation rate and lessons forVietnam

4 British economic great depression

Lesson 6: Holidays in The United Kingdom

A.Lead-in: Work in pairs to do this crossword puzzle

1 Angel 11 Decorations 21 Mone 31 Stockings

2 Anticipation 12 Dinner 22 Noel 32 Toys

3 Bayberry 13 Excitement 23 Ornaments 33 Treats

5 Candles 15 Fruit 25 Presents 35 Wrapping

6 Candies 16 Gifts 26 Relatives 36 Yule

9 Church 19 Merriment 29 Spruce

10 Cookies 20 Mistletoe 30 Tinsel

B Reading Text

ChristmasWhile there are many English customs that are also shared by Americans andAustralians, when most people think of an English Christmas they think ofVictorian England depicted by Charles Dickens in his story

Decorating a tree for Christmas was introduced to the Royal Court by PrinceAlbert, husband to Queen Victoria in 1840 Another Christmas custom thatalso orginated in England during the 1840s was the first Christmas card, sent

to friends to give greetings and good wishes for the holiday season and theNew Year England, borrowing customs from ancient Druid rituals,reintroduced the use of holly, ivy and mistletoe for holiday greenery

“Stealing” a kiss under the mistletoe sprig has become a charming Christmastradition for sweethearts

In the day before Christmas groups of people go from house to house singingChristmas carols (song celebrating the birth of Christ) The singers are in theneighborhoods all over the country The singers may be family members orclub members or just a group of friends; rarely are they professionalperformers Sometimes they'll be offered a warm drink of cider or cocoa orsometimes a small amount of money On Christmas Eve (December 24th ) thechildren leave out mince pies and a warm drink or brandy for FatherChristmas They also leave carrots for the reindeer Children hang theirstockings either on the bedposts or from the fireplace mantle, excitedlywaiting for the next morning to see what Father Christmas brought them Theother gifts are placed under the Christmas tree to be opened on ChristmasDay On Christmas Eve before attending

Midnight Mass, many families enjoy a traditional dinner, which might be aroast turkey, goose or chicken with stuffing and roasted potatoes A populardessert is Christmas pudding and usually contain coins and lucky charms forchildren to pick out from their portion before eating the pudding One of thethings that make this pudding so special is that every member of the familygets to stir the pudding and make a wish Of course, there are mince pies,known as mincemeat, which is made with currants, raisins, suger, apples,candied orange and lemon peels, spices and suet ( the hard white fat fromoxen and sheep) There is also Christmas cake

A popular table favor are '' Christmas crackers'' invented by a Londonbaker in 1846 It is a brightly colored paper tube, which is twisted closed

at both ends and contain either a party hat, a riddle or a toy When theends are pulled apart, it makes a loud pop and the contents fall out.

The Yule log, which is a large piece of wood cut from a tree trunk, is burned

in the fireplace hearth at Christmas This is a tradition that comes frommedieval times when the log was large enough to burn for the entire 12 days

of Christmas from Christmas Day (December 25th) to Epiphany (January 6th)

In England, as in another parts of the world, people attend Christmas Eve orChristmas Day services at church, listen to the choir sing Christmas carols,hear the Christmas story and say special prayers for the holiday

The British people honor their Royal family and look forward to receiving theQueen’s tradional Christmas Day message of good wishes for the season andupcoming year, which is televised to the nation

British children in primary school love to put Nativity plays showing the birth

of

Christ in the manger surrounded by his mother, Mary, his father, Joseph andThree Wise Men A favourite children’s Christmas treat is attendingpantomimes, which are entertaining children’s stories with jokes, songs anddances

Another favorite tradition this time of year is Boxing Day ( December 26th ),which was originally named for the custom of giving a Christmas Box ofeither food or money to the deliverymen and tradespeople dealt withregularly throughout the year This tradition has been modified nowadays bysimply tipping, which is giving a small tip or gratuity of money to thesepeople instead

Easter

A notable occasion is Maundy Thursday, the Thursday before the Easter Onthis day the Queen gives money to the elderly in a church ceremony It isspecially minted silver coins called Maundy money

Besides the many church services during Holy Week, Easter in England iscelebrated with Easter Bunnies, hot cross buns and especially, Easter Eggs.The holiday celebrated much like the one in America, even with womenwearing Easter hats (bonnets)

Young children love the story of the Easter Bunny bringing Easter eggs totheir house and hiding the eggs for them to find This legend tells about thetime of famine in Germany, when a poor woman colored some eggs and hidthem in the nest as an Easter gift for her children Just as the hungry childrendiscovered the nest, the rabbit hopped away Word speards throughout theland that rabbit had brought the Easter eggs

Many adults exchange gifts of clothing, money or chocolate

A lot of families go on a brief weekend vacation during the Easter holidaybecause schools are closed and Easter Monday is a Bank holiday when manybusinesses are closed

HalloweenOriginally, Halloween in England was an ancient pagan festival that wasthe Celt’s New Year’ Eve It was on this eve that people thought the deadreturned to roam the earth in search of other spirits Bonfires were lit onHalloween (All Halloween's Eve) to ward off this spirits.

C Comprehension Check

Task: Discuss the following questions

1 What are the main colours at Chritsmas?

2 Who is Santa Claus? Where does he come from?

3 What are Ester eggs? Who brought them to children?

4 What activities do people like doing at Easter?

5 What activities do children like doing at Halloween?

Task 2 : Work in groups to read the text and decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F).

1 In the days before Christmas, groups of people go from house to housesaying “Trick or Treat” (F)

2 The Yule log, which is a large piece of wood cut from a tree trunk, isburned in the fireplace hearth at Christmas (T)

3 In England, people attend Christmas Eve or Christmas Day services atchurch, listen to the choir sing Christmas carols, hear the Christmas story andsay special prayers for the holiday (T)

4 Young children love the story of the Easter Bunny bringing Easter eggs

to their house and hiding the eggs for them to find (T)

5 People thought the dead returned to roam the earth in search ofother spirits on Halloween's Eve (T)

D Follow-up

Work in groups to present the main holidays in the UK