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Read the text and note the phrases and collocations in bold.
All education systems may ultimately be judged in terms of equality of opportunity1. This is not the same as the debates over selective2versus comprehensive3schooling4. It is rather a matter of whether everyone has the same opportunities for educational achievement or whether elitism5of one sort or another is inherent in6the system. League tables7for schools and colleges may actually help unintentionally to perpetuate8inequalities, while claiming to promote the raising of standards. Inevitably, league tables divide the world into good and bad, success and failure, resulting in a two-tier system9, even if that is only how the public perceives10it. The ability of the better-off11parents and well-endowed12schools to push children towards the institutions at the top of the league may, in the long term, have the effect of depressing13opportunity for the less well-off14or for children from home environment that do not provide the push and motivation to excel15.
1when everyone has the same chances
2 pupils take exams for entry
3 everyone enters without exams
4 education received at school
5 when you favour a small, privileged group
6 existing as a basic part of something
7 lists of schools or colleges from the best down to the worst
8 make something continue forever
9 a system with two separate levels, one of which is better than the other
10 sees, considers
11 richer
12 receiving a lot of money in grants, gifts from rich people, etc.
13 reducing
14 poorer
15 achieve an excellent standard
B Other debates and issues
| example sentence | meaning of words in bold |
| Some people think we should return to an emphasis on the three Rs. | reading, writing and arithmetic, the traditional, basic skills |
| Literacyand numeracyare skills no one can afford to be without. | - the ability to read - the ability to count / do basic maths |
| Curriculum reformis often done for political reasons rather than for good educational ones. | changes to the educational programme, e.g. the national syllabus |
| Nowadays, lifelong/continuing educationis an issue, and creating opportunities for mature studentsis important. | - education for all ages - adult students older than the average student |
| Special needs educationis expensive because class sizes need to be small or one-to-one. | - education for children who cannot learn in the normal way, because they have some disability - one teacher and one pupil, not a group |
| He was unhappy at his new school because the older boys were bullyinghim. | frightening or threatening |
‘Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.’ (US President John F. Kennedy)
Complete the collocations by filling in the missing words according to the meaning given in brackets.
1.League tables (lists of schools from best to worst)
2.selective education (entry to schools is decided by exam results)
3.equality of opportunity (when everyone has the same chances)
4.perpetuate inequalities (making inequalities continue forever)
Date: 2015-12-17; view: 2333
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