HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE USA

The first American college was Harvard, which was founded in 1636 by the graduates of Cambridge University. Later, in 1693, the college of William and Mary was founded in Williamsburg, Virginia, with Yale soon following in 1701. By 1776, there were 9 colleges in the colonies, including Princeton, Pennsylvania, Columbia, Brown, Rutgers. Today these universities are among the most respectful not only in the USA but all over the world. They are very selective and very expensive. The most outstanding of them are called the Ivy League (группа старейших университетов): Brown, Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Darmouth College, Princeton and Pennsylvania.

About 40% of high school graduates go to college. Students pay tuition (платить за обучение) to study at public and private universities. Some of them have scholarships (стипендия) to help with the cost of tuition. Even with scholarship, higher education is very expensive; many families take out loans to pay for their children’s college education.

The USA now has about 3, 350 accredited colleges and universities. They offer a great variety of requirements for admission and so many different types of programs that foreign visitors usually have some difficulty identifying American colleges and universities with those of their own countries.

College-bound students generally take college admission tests during their last two years of high school.

The terms “college” and “university” are often used interchangeably, although the former often is a part of the latter.

An American college offers a blend of natural and social sciences and humanistic studies. Students, traditionally from 18 to 22 years old, attend classes for about 4 years to receive, if they successfully complete all requirements, a bachelor’s degree in arts or in sciences. A university is usually composed of an undergraduate college of arts and sciences, plus graduate schools and professional schools and facilities.

A student can accumulate (накопить, сдать) credits at one university, transfer them to a second and ultimately receive a degree from there or a third university.

American universities and colleges are usually built as a separate complex, called “campus”, with teaching blocks, libraries, dormitories (общежития), and many other facilities grouped together on one site, often on the outskirts of the city.

A student starting high school is called a freshman and becomes a sophomore in the second year. Eleven-grade students are called juniors, and twelfth-grade students are seniors. There are eight classes a day, usually from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The academic year (учебный год) begins in late August or early September and ends in May or June, for most colleges and universities. The semester system divides the academic year into two equal terms of approximately 16 weeks each. Usually there is also a fourth “summer quarter” for students who choose summer school and earn units which may help them to complete their degree work in a shorter length of time than normally is required.

At the end of term students get a grade of A/A- (outstanding/ extremely good work), B+/ B/ B- (very good work/ good work/ a bit better than average), C+/ C/ C- (better than average/ satisfactory/ almost satisfactory), D+/ D (not good/ barely passing), or F (fail) for each subject. As they finish each class, students get a credit. When they have enough of these, they can graduate.

Most colleges and universities in the United States have established “honor codes” «кодекс чести» – statements of certain rules students must follow in their academic year. Ignorance of the rules is not usually accepted as an excuse. You may be expelled from your school. There is a US idiom that applies here: “It is better to be safe than sorry”.

Cheating (списывание) is a failure of honesty. In the USA cheating means getting unauthorized help on an assignment, quiz or examination. You must not use unauthorized sources for answers during exam. You must not take notes or books to the exam if this is forbidden.

Plagiarism is a failure to do your own original work in written assignments (письменные задания). Plagiarism is using someone else’s words or ideas as though they were own. It is literary “theft”. If you commit any act of dishonesty even for the first time:

▪You will certainly receive an “F” (failing grade) for the assignment;

▪You will probably receive an “F” for the entire course;

▪You may be expelled from the school.

Methods of instruction: Lecture is the most common method of instruction at U.S. colleges and universities. Usually lectures are supplemented by an extra “discussion” class, reading assignments and periodic written assignments. Class discussion is regarded as a healthy sign of interest, attention and independent thinking. Seminars where students prepare presentations based on independent reading and research. Laboratories, esp. forscience courses where theory learned in the classroom is applied to practical problems. Term papers are based on researches students have done in the library or the lab. The professor usually assigns a term paper early in the course and near the end of the course. All papers must be typewritten.

Topics for discussion:

§ The history of the USA formation

§ Political system

§ Large cities

§ The economic system

§ Science

§ Language

§ Education

§ Mass Media, its power

§ American cultural life: music, cinema, theatre, Hollywood etc.

§ Holidays and traditions, American way of life

§ Youth: typical teenagers, youth and American values, free time, youth and their families

§ Sports: leisure sports, popular sports and games

UKRAINE

Ukraine is a sovereign state whose independence was declared in 1991.

Ukraine is situated in the south-eastern part of Central Europe. It borders on other European countries: Russia, Byelorussia, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova and Romania. The territory of our country is about 600.000 square kilometres. The population of our country is about 47 million people. It is diminishing due to emigration, low birth rate and low life level in Ukraine. Not only Ukrainians live in our country. There are also Russians, Jews, Byelorussians, Moldavians, Rumanians, Chinese, Georgians, Greeks, Tatars, Poles, Hungarians, Armenians, Germans, Gypsies and other nationalities. Because of a diversity of ethnic groups, Ukrainians do not look alike and cannot be stereotyped to one kind of appearance. However, many think that Ukrainian women are very attractive.

The official language of Ukraine is Ukrainian, but Russian is also widespread. More than 40% of the population of Ukraine speak Russian.

The state symbols of Ukraine are the State Flag, the State Emblem (the trident) and the State Anthem of Ukraine (“Ukraine Hasn’t Perished Yet”). The Ukrainian flag consists of two horizontal stripes: blue and yellow. They express the peaceful blue sky and yellow ripened wheat as a symbol of welfare of our nature.

The official currency of Ukraine is Hryvnia. It was introduced in September 1996.

The geographical position is very favourable for the development of its relations with European countries. 95% of the Ukrainian area is flat, lowlands occupy a considerable part of the country, and the rest of it is mountainous. The highest mountains in Ukraine are Roman Kosh in the Crimea and Goverla in the Carpathian Mountains. Ukraine is washed by the Black Sea and the Azov Sea.

The main navigable rivers are the Dnieper, the Dniester, the Proot, the Tissa, the South Bug, Seversky Donets, and the Danube. Our country has a lot of lakes. The largest is Yalpug.

The climate of Ukraine is mild, but in the southern part it is subtropical. Spring and summer are usually sunny, in autumn it often rains, in winter it is not very cold.

Nature of Ukraine is beautiful. You can see different kinds of trees as oak, asp, maple, pine, birch, beech, lime, poplars, bird cherry, snow-ball tree and evergreen trees: palm-tree, cypress, and eucalyptus in the south.

The fauna of Ukraine is various: the red deer, wild boar, fox, squirrel, elk, wolf, lynx, hare. There are about 350 kinds of birds in Ukraine, among them the dove, sea gull, crane, owl, wood pecker, sparrow. Near the sea coasts dolphins, some kinds of sharks can be seen. The lakes and rivers are rich in perches, pikes, carps and sheats. Ukraine has 12 national parks.

Ukraine is an industrialized country whose economic potential is great. Ukraine is relatively rich in natural resources, particularly in mineral deposits: iron, ore, coal, oil, natural gas, salt, manganese, graphite, marble, granite, nickel and other natural resources. There are many curative mineral waters in Ukraine.

The leading industries of the country are metallurgy, aircraft, shipbuilding, machine building, power industry, chemical industry, electronics and electrical engineering, coal-mining, automobile, textile, food industry, agriculture. Ukraine has a major ferrous metal industry, producing cast iron, steel and pipes. As of 2005, Ukraine was the world's eighth largest steel producer. Another important branch is the country's chemical industry which includes the production of coke, mineral fertilizers and sulfuric acid. Manufactured goods include metallurgical equipment, diesel locomotives, tractors, and automobiles. The country possesses a massive high-tech industrial base, including much of the former USSR's electronics, arms industry and space program. However, these fields are state-owned and economically underdeveloped. Ukraine is a major producer of grain, sugar, meat and milk products. It is the largest producer of sunflower oil in the world. Owing to the fact that Ukraine possesses 30% of the world's richest black soil, its agricultural industry has a huge underdeveloped potential. The agricultural industry in Ukraine is already highly profitable, with 40-60% profits.

The moderate climate and rich soil are favourable for agriculture. Ukraine grows sugar-beet, wheat, rice, maize, soya-bean, vegetables, fruit, sunflower. It is the famous producer of dairy products, meat, and poultry.

There are more than three hundred cities and towns in Ukraine. The biggest are Kharkiv, Donetsk, Lviv, Odessa, Kherson, Dnepropetrovsk and others.

Ukraine has a rich historical and cultural heritage. There are many higher educational establishments, theatres, libraries, museums, art galleries in Ukraine. It’s also famous for many outstanding writers, poets and musicians.

Ukraine is a member of the United Nation Organization and takes part in the work of many international organizations.

The capital of the country is Kiev. Kiev is one of the largest and most beautiful cities in the world. Kiev is over 1,500 years old. According to the legend Kiev was founded by 3 brothers: Kiy, Shchek and Khorif and their sister Lybid.

Nowadays Kiev is not only the capital of Ukraine, it is also a cultural, scientific, administrative and industrial centre. The main street is Kreschatik. Besides government offices and administrative buildings you can see large cinemas, restaurants, shops and cafes. There are a great number of historical monuments: Saint Volodymyr′s Cathedral, Sophia′s Cathedral, Saint Andrew′s Church, Pecherska Lavra, Golden Gate etc. There are many institutes, universities, technical and secondary schools. The Shevchenko University, the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine are also in Kiev. Kiev is proud of the Shevchenko Opera and Ballet Theatre, the Lesia Ukrainka Drama Theatre.

People in Ukraine are proud of their capital. Ukrainians in general are kind, open, generous, easy-going, hospitable, with a good sense of humour. They love good food and drink. They like holidays and merrymaking and have a hearty zest for life. Traditional They like to spend time with their family, dining, walking, playing and going on holidays together together. Ukrainian dishes include borsch, varenyky and holubtsi. Several years ago there was a competition in Paris for the best national dish, our borsch was awarded the 1^st prize.

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