Before you begin
1 Look at the photographs. Education in different countries is shown. Which countries do you think they are?
Answers
a. South Korea b. Jordan
2 DW Read the words in the box. Which words are related to studying? Check the meanings of any word(s) that you do not know in the Glossary on pages 93–95 or in a dictionary.
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academic compulsory contradictory developed nation fluently optional tuition |
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Word |
Meaning in English |
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academic |
connected with education, especially at the college or university level |
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compulsory |
obligatory; required |
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contradictory |
if two ideas are contradictory they are completely different and thus unable to both be true |
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developed nation |
a rich country that has many industries, comfortable living for most people, and usually an elected government |
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fluently |
speaking a language very well, like a native speaker |
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optional |
not compulsory/ of your choice |
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tuition |
Teaching especially in small groups |
Which words are related to studying?
Answers:
Words that are related to studying are:
academic, compulsory, optional, tuition
3 This study presents findings on the time that students spend at school in different countries. In which countries do you think students spend the most time studying? Listen and read.
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The time we spend at school A few years ago, as many as 1,000 schools across the USA started making school years longer by adding up to ten extra days to the school year or by making each school day longer by half an hour. This was because it was found that secondary school students in the USA and the UK were spending the least time at school, with an average school year of 187 days. The typical Jordanian school year is longer than this. However, none of these are nearly as long as the school years in countries like Japan and South Korea. South Koreans attend school for 220 days per year, and in Japan, the school year numbers 243 days. According to a study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), students in Japan, Indonesia and South Korea spend the most time studying in the world. They want to learn as much as they can to ensure excellent exam grades. They go to school for about nine hours, although this includes optional after-school tuition and activities. They also spend about three hours on homework every day, which is three times as much as many other countries. Their high academic achievements do suggest that the longer you study, the better you do in final exams. In Finland, however, students are usually given less than half an hour of homework per night, and they attend school for fewer and shorter days than 85% of other developed nations. Despite this, they achieve top marks in subjects like Maths and Science. In addition, most students also speak at least two, and often three, languages fluently. The contradictory views of the study suggest 35 that the number and length of school days is not the only factor in determining whether students will succeed at school or not. |
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The time we spend at school A few years ago, as many as 1,000 schools across the USA started making school years longer by adding up to ten extra days to the school year or by making each school day longer by half an hour. This was because it was found that secondary school students in the USA and the UK were spending the least time at school, with an average school year of 187 days. The typical Jordanian school year is longer than this. However, none of these are nearly as long as the school years in countries like Japan and South Korea. South Koreans attend school for 220 days per year, and in Japan, the school year numbers 243 days. |
Some American schools started making the school year longer.
These schools made the school year longer by:
- adding up to ten days to the school year.
- making each school day longer by half an hour.
The reason for making the school year longer in some American schools is that:
They were one of the countries in which students were spending the least amount of time in school.
The average school year in the USA and the UK is 187 days./ Students attend school 187 days per year.
A typical Jordanian school year is longer than the school year in the USA.
Students in Japan attend school 243 days per year.
Students in South Korea attend school 220 days per year.
The underlined pronoun This(1) refers to making school years longer in the USA.
The underlined pronoun this(2) refers to the school year in the USA.
The underlined pronoun 'these' refers to the school years in Jordan and the USA.
| According to a study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), students in Japan, Indonesia and South Korea spend the most time studying in the world. They want to learn as much as they can to ensure excellent exam grades. They go to school for about nine hours, although this includes optional after-school tuition and activities. They also spend about three hours on homework every day, which is three times as much as many other countries. Their high academic achievements do suggest that the longer you study, the better you do in final exams. |
Students in Japan, Indonesia and South Korea spend the most time studying in the World to make sure they can get excellent exam results.
These students go to school for about nine hours a day including optional-after school activities.
The after-school activities in Japan and South Korea are optional.
The time a Japanese student spends in doing homework is three hours a day.
The time a Japanese student spends in doing homework is three times as much as many other countries.
The high academic achievements of students in Japan and South Korea show the success of the theory that says the longer you study, the better you do in final exams.
The underlined pronoun They x4 refers to students in Japan, Indonesia and South Korea.
The underlined pronoun 'this' refers to the time students in Japan and South Korea spend at school a day.(nine hours).
The underlined relative pronoun which refers to the time spent on doing homework.
The underlined pronoun Their refers to Students'
In Finland, the students are given less than half an hour of homework per night.
They attend school for fewer and shorter days than 85% of other developed countries.
Although the students in Finland attend school for fewer and shorter days, they achieve top marks in Math and science.
Most students in Finland can speak at least two or three languages fluently.
The results of the study suggest that the time students spend at school is not the only reason for success at school.
The underlined pronoun they x2 refers to students in Finland.
The underlined pronoun 'this' refers to the fact that the students in Finland attend school for fewer and shorter days.