1 UNIT 1. HELLO! MEETING PEOPLE DISCUSSION POINTS Introduce yourself by answering the following questions. What is your first name? What is your second name? Have you got a middle name, a nickname, or a name day? What are you? What’s your occupation? What are your parents’ names? What is your marital status - are you married, single, divorced? Have you got siblings? What are their names? What are they? Let’s talk about age! How old are you? How old are your parents? How old is your girl/boy friend? Let’s talk about where someone is from. What city are you from? What is the name of your country? Is Romania a foreign country for you? What is the capital of your country? What is your mother tongue? How many inhabitants are there in your country? Talking about friends. Have you got a girlfriend/boyfriend? How old is she/he? What is her/his name? Have you got friends abroad? Greeting someone. What do you say when you meet someone for the first time? How do you greet your friends? What are the greetings in English? Spelling. Can you spell in English? Are you familiar with the English alphabet?
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1
UNIT 1. HELLO! MEETING PEOPLE
DISCUSSION POINTS
Introduce yourself by answering the following questions.
What is your first name? What is your second name? Have you
got a middle name, a nickname, or a name day? What are you?
What’s your occupation? What are your parents’ names? What
is your marital status - are you married, single, divorced?
Have you got siblings? What are their names? What are they?
Let’s talk about age! How old are you? How old are your
parents? How old is your girl/boy friend?
Let’s talk about where someone is from. What city are
you from? What is the name of your country? Is Romania a
foreign country for you? What is the capital of your country?
What is your mother tongue? How many inhabitants are there
in your country?
Talking about friends. Have you got a
girlfriend/boyfriend? How old is she/he? What is her/his
name? Have you got friends abroad?
Greeting someone. What do you say when you meet
someone for the first time? How do you greet your friends?
What are the greetings in English?
Spelling. Can you spell in English? Are you familiar with
the English alphabet?
2
READING
- Good morning! Let me introduce myself to you. My name
is Mrs. Black and I am a teacher. I am your teacher of English.
You are students. You are all my students. You are all
freshmen. You are not teachers. You are all present for our
first class. I’m happy to see that nobody is absent. She is a girl
and he is a boy. She is not a woman and he is not a man. We
are all in the classroom. It is our classroom. It is not their
classroom.
Let‟s have a talk in English, to know one another better.
Please answer my questions, will you?
- What are you?
- We are students.
- What is my name and what am I?
- Your name is Mrs. Black and you are our English teacher.
- What are they?
- They are students, too. They are our colleagues.
- What is your name?
- My name is David.
- What is her name?
- Her name is Marianne.
- What is his name?
- His name is Dan.
- What are their names?
- Their names are David, Marianne and Dan.
- Who are you?
- I am Martin.
- How old are you, Marianne?
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- I am twenty years old. I’m young. I’m a young woman,
you know. We are all young people.
- Who is he?
- He is Dan. He is my colleague and friend, too.
- How old is Dan? Is he twenty, too?
- No, he is not. He is not twenty. He is nineteen years
old.
- How are you today?
- I’m fine, thanks. We are all very well.
- How is your girl friend, today, David?
- She is not so well, I’m afraid. She is not in the pink. She
is rather ill, right now.
- I’m sorry to hear that. How are your colleagues? How
are they?
- Oh, they are all right.
- Where is the teacher, Jane?
- The teacher is in the classroom, and so are we all.
- What country are you from, Benjamin and what is your
native language?
- I’m from England and English is my native language,
of course.
- Where is Martin from and what is his mother tongue?
- He is from Romania and Romanian is his language.
English is a foreign language for him. Martin is from
Bucharest. I know Bucharest is the capital of Romania, as
London is the capital of England and Paris is the capital of
France.
On greeting a person in the morning we say Good
morning; in the afternoon, we say Good afternoon; after
dark, we say Good evening when meeting a person and
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Good night when parting with him or her. Besides, there are
some familiar forms of greeting such as : Hello! Hi! And
farewells: Bye-bye! See you later!
Always add the word please when asking somebody to
do something for you; and never forget to thank him or her
even if he or she failed to give satisfaction.
Say I beg your pardon? Or just Pardon? When you do
not hear very well or understand what you have been told.
In other words, the equivalent would be: Please repeat! Or
Say that again, please!
If you are in want for some information or other,
address your interlocutor with the introductory words:
Could you tell me where is.../ please. Or else: Would you be
so kind as/to show me the way to.../please.
Dialogue:
- Spell your name, please.
- Shall I spell my first name or my family name
(surname)?
- Spell both your first name and your family name.
- My spelling in English is not very good but nevertheless,
let me try to remember. As my name is Mary Brown the
spelling of my name is: [em, ei, a:, wai, bi:, a:, ou, dΛbl ju:,
en].
- Your first name is Mary so, you have a name day besides
a birthday.
- Yes, I celebrate my name day twice a year, in August and
in September.
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- Have you a nickname too?
- No, I haven‟t, but many people have. Some writers have
pen names. Mark Twain for example. His real name was
Samuel Langhorne Clemens.
- You are right. And some persons are called with a short
form of their names, which is also called a nickname. Dick, for
example, comes from Richard and Will from William.
On the other hand, we know that many family names in
English, as in any other language, represent occupations,
colours, things, places, characteristics, such as: Bush (tufiş),
Brown (maro), Carpenter (tâmplar), Cook (bucătar), Copper
(aramă, cupru), Cooper (dogar), Franklin (răzeş), Ford (vad),
Green (verde), Goldsmith (aurar), Hood (glugă), Hill (deal),
Irons (fier), Miller (morar), Millet (mei), Turner (strungar),
Smith (fierar), Shepherd (oier), Scot (taxă, impozit) and so on.
- Good, it‟s enough for today. Our lesson is over. See you
next week.
Greetings:
Hello! – Salut!
Good morning! – Bună dimineaţa!
Good afternoon! – Bună ziua!
Good evening! – Bună seara!
Good night! – Noapte bună!
Good bye! – La revedere!
So long! – Cu bine!
See you later! – Ne vedem mai tarziu!
See you soon! – Ne vedem în curand!
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Greetings in every day life
Ten minutes to 8. I am going to the office. In front of the
elevator door, my neighbour greets me: “Morning”.
“Morning”, I reply absent-minded.
After 9 hours I meet his uncle in the very place I‟ve met
him this morning. “Afternoon”, I say. “Afternoon”, he answers.
7 o‟clock p.m. I‟d like to watch the news. But grandpa
has a terrible headache.
“Have to go to the chemist‟s to buy some pills for him”, I
say to myself.
“Good evening”, I say. The chemist asks me smilingly:
“Good evening. What can I do for you?”
“I need something against a terrible headache”, I answer.
She gives me a plastic bottle with some
pills.
“Twenty lei”, she adds.
“Here you are. Thank you. Good night”.
“Good night”, she says.
Our entire social life is marked by greetings. People‟s
greetings are connected with either certain moments of the day
or with certain events.
The greetings we utter in our everyday life are:
- 6-12 a.m. : “Good morning” to which we reply “Good
morning”. In the informal speech we use the short form
“Morning”.
- 12-6 p.m. : “Good afternoon”, which will be answered
the same way.
- After 6 p.m. : “Good evening” and “Good night”.
- No matter the hour we can say “Hello” when we meet
somebody and “Goodbye” when we leave a place or, more
7
informally, “Hi” and “Bye”
What do you say if you meet someone you‟ve never met
before? You‟ll have to introduce yourself to the person whom
is sitting next to you at a workshop/symposium or conference.
You will say your name and surname “My name is
Elizabeth Parker”.
You may be introduced to an unknown person by one of
your acquaintances: “Robert, this is Elizabeth Parker.” Robert
will say “Hello, Elizabeth”. You can answer: “Hello, Robert”.
The interest shown by the speaker is obvious in the question
“How are you?”, which is generally answered “Very well,
thank you”, “Fine”, “Not bad”.
A polite person says: “Nice to meet you” if you see that
person for the first time or “Nice to see you”, if you know the
speaker well.
If you arrive at a company for an appointment, your
introduction will be more official. You‟ll be expected to say
not only your full name, i.e. name and surname - Sebastian
Chirimbu - but also the reason why you are there.
“My name‟s Sebastian Chirimbu. I have an appointment
with Mr. Smith at 8.30 a.m.”, or “Can I introduce myself?”
“I‟m Sebastian Chirimbu from the Spiru Haret University,
Department of Foreign Languages”.
If a person who knows both speakers is there he will say:
“I don‟t think you know each other, do you? Sebastian, this is
Robert White, our new marketing assistant manager. Robert,
this is Sebastian Chirimbu, the English trainer I‟ve told you
about”.
If you introduce a person who is visiting your
organisation, be it school, college or office, to your colleagues,
8
you‟ll say: “Mr. White, may I introduce my colleague, Daniel
Green to you. Daniel, this is Ms. Samantha”.
After saying your name clearly, you add: “How do you
do?”, sentence which has no particular meaning, it‟s simply a
greeting.
If you are welcoming a visitor, you‟ll be more polite than
when welcoming an old friend:
“Mr. Green? How do you do?”
“How do you do, Miss Parker?”
“Do come into my office. I‟m very pleased to meet you
again”
Compare the above conversation, which is polite, formal
with the following quite informal one:
“Hi, you must be Laura”.
“Oh, no, Liz, I haven‟t seen you for ages! ”
“Since we graduated. In the 1996. Makes 17 years ago.”
“How are things going?”
Reading comprehension:
a. According to the text, what are the greetings we utter
every day?
b. What can we say when we meet somebody for the first
time?
1. Practise introductions after the following models:
I‟m Martin Gruber from Bonn, Germany. I‟m a German
citizen although my mother comes from Romania. I live at
Number 10 Weisstrasse Street. My parents and I live in a large
house. I‟m the only child. My family is rather small. My uncle
and aunt are both clerks. My cousin is a football player. I work
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as a consultant in a large software company. I like playing
sports, climbing mountains, reading novels and poetry and
speaking English. I also like travelling both inside Germany
and abroad. So far, I‟ve visited some Eastern and Western
European countries. I also visited Romania, the USA, Canada,
Japan, China and Thailand. I‟d like to travel all over the world.
I consider that all countries are very interesting from many
points of view. They really deserve to be visited.
I‟m Ioana Pavelescu from Ploieşti, Romania. I‟m 23
years old. I‟m a Romanian. I live at Number 12, Iancului Street
in a block of flats at the 3rd
floor, apartment no 22. My
telephone number is 021. 2506421. I have a large family. My
dad is a businessman and my mum is a teacher. I also have two
younger sisters who are pupils at an elementary school in
Bucharest. My uncle is an economist, my aunt is an accountant
and my cousins are both doctors. I‟m a student. I love speaking
English and listening to English pop music, which is a great
way of learning new words and every day expressions. I also
like listening to music and travelling a lot both inside Romania
and abroad. I visited some Western European countries. In
future, I‟d like to visit some countries from other continents,
such as Canada or the USA. I know they are very interesting.
Now, I‟d like to give you some more details about my family.
My father speaks English and Russian very fluently. He wants
me to speak it well enough so that I can join his company after
graduating university. But I‟d rather work in public relations in
the near future.
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GRAMMAR FOCUS
PHONETIC SYMBOLS
i : i foarte lung feet [f i: t]
i i scurt
fit [f i t]
e e deschis ca în românescul „set“
set [set]
æ e foarte deschis, aproape a ca în
românescul „seamă“
bad [bæd]
ε∂ e foarte deschis urmat de ă scurt Mary
['mε∂ri]
a: a foarte deschis, format în cerul gurii bar [b a:]
כo scurt, deschis, pronunţat spre „a“
cod [kכd]
:כo lung deschis
door [dכ:]
u u foarte scurt cook [k uk]
u: u foarte lung
boon [bu:n]
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Λ a foarte scurt şi închis ca în
românescul „sapă“
supper
[sΛp∂]
∂ simbol fonetic similar cu „ă“
sitter [sit∂]
∂ : simbol fonetic similar cu „ă“ foarte
lung
sir [s∂:]
k simbol fonetic similar consoanei
româneşti „c“
cut [kΛt]
η n velar ca în românescul „lângă“
bunker
[bΛηk∂]
З simbol fonetic similar cu „j“
românesc foarte sonor
rouge [ru:З]
dЗ d îmbinat cu j ca în românescul „gi“
jam [dЗæm]
θ
consoană surdă, pronunţată ca un „s“
cu limba ţinută între dinţi
bath [ba:θ]
ð consoană sonoră pronunţată ca un „z“
cu limba ţinută între dinţi
with [wið]
∫ simbol fonetic similar cu “ş“
românesc
shut [∫Λ t]
t∫ t îmbinat cu ş ca în românescul “ci“ touch [tΛt∫]
12
RULES OF CORRECT READING
a [ei] în silabe deschise plate, lake, name
a [æ] în silabe închise has, man
a [∂] în forme slabe a, at
ai [ei] nail, tail
al [o:l] ball, all, call, talk
an [∂n] înaintea
consoanelor
answer, can‟t
ar [a:] are, car, far
ath [a: θ] bath
ay [ei] day, may (fac excepţie zilele
săptămânii)
e [i], [i:] în silabe
deschise
he, she
e [e] în silabe închise,
accentuate
men, red, end
ea [i:] tea, sea
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ee [i:] see, feet, bee
ee [i] coffee
er [∂] la sfârşitul
cuvintelor
father, sister, brother, teacher
i [i] în silabe închise six, it, his
i [ai] în silabe deschise fine, time, nine
igh [ai] night, bright, fight
ir [∂:] în silabe
accentuate
girl, first
ng [η] sing, England
nk [ηk] drink
o [ou] în silabe deschise rose, nose
oo [u] înainte de k şi d book, good
oo [o:] door, floor
oo [Λ] blood, flood
u [Λ] în silabe închise nut, up, sun (dar put [put])
c [k] can, clean, music
c [s] înainte de e şi i cetrain, city, ice
c [∫] ocean, ancient, special
14
ch [t∫] child, each
ch [∫] machine, moustache
ch [k] character, stomach, echo
gh [f] laugh, draught
gh mut right, might, night
ph [f] philosophy, nephew
s[s] house, sand, basis
s [z] his, is, music, please
s [∫] sugar, sure
s[З] measure
ss [s] lesson, glass
ss [z] dissolve, possess, dessert
ss[ ∫ ] mission, passion
sch [sk] school, scheme
sh [ ∫ ] sheep, ship, fashion
th [θ] thing, month, mouth, method
th [ð ] they, father, with
w [w] well, twelve
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THE ENGLISH ALPHABET
A [ei] F [ ef ] K [kei] P [pi:] V [vi:]
B [bi:] G [dзi:] L [el ] Q [kju:] W [dΛblju:]
C [si:] H [eit∫] M [em] R [a:] X [eks]
D
[di:]
I [ ai] N [en] S [es] Y [wai]
E [ i:] J [dзei] O [ou] T [ti:] Z [zed]
16
UNIT 2. BEING A STUDENT
DISCUSSION POINTS
Before reading the text of this learning unit let’s answer
a few questions connected to the topic:
Do you remember which your favorite subject in school
was? What about the subject you liked the least?
What would you appreciate at a teacher? What attitudes/
behavior of the teacher might prevent you from learning?
Why did you apply for the faculty where you are now a
student? What do you know about Spiru Haret University?
What useful things do you expect to learn in the next
three years?
Why is it important for you to learn English / a foreign
language in general?
READING
Studying in the UK
When we think about studying in the UK, the names of
two famous universities, Cambridge and Oxford, definitely
come to our mind. However, these two, although among the
best known in the world, are not the only ones which make the
pride of an old, tradition based educational system.
Speaking about the British education in general, one of
the first things to be noticed is that there is no unitary system of
education, but two systems: one covering England, Wales and
Northern Ireland and one covering Scotland, but the core
organizational principles and the main examinations are the
same all over the country.
If you decide to study in the UK you have to know that
17
higher education is divided into two sectors: further education
and higher education proper. Further education is offered by
schools or colleges to both young people between the ages of
sixteen and eighteen and adults; it teaches skills valuable in the
work market such as Communication and Technological skills
or sometimes they prepare people for University admittance.
Students who choose this type of education receive a
Vocational Diploma and Universities such as London
Metropolitan University cooperate with employers from all the
spectrum of the marketplace in order to teach useful skills.
Higher Education is offered by Universities. There are
about ninety universities in England, the most notable being
Oxford and Cambridge known collectively as Oxbridge. These
two institutions were established in the thirteenth century, and
have a rich and distinguished history. They are currently
ranked in the top ten best universities according to Times
Magazine and they receive the best students from all over the
world. Anyone may apply for a place at these universities and
should they be considered suitable by the admissions
committee they will receive both a place and in some cases
financial help. The tuition fees of students from
underprivileged backgrounds are paid entirely by the state.
Higher education includes both the teaching and the
research activities of universities, and as far as teaching is
concerned, it includes both the undergraduate level and the
graduate levels.
Undergraduate degrees take three years to complete in
England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while at Scottish
universities they last four years. At the graduate level, a
master's degree is normally obtained in a single year, a research
18
master's degree takes two years and a doctoral degree is often
completed in three years.
Professional courses, such as medicine, veterinary
medicine, law and teaching, usually are undertaken as five-year
undergraduate degrees.
UK universities are popular all over the world and about
270,000 foreign students come to study in England every year.
One of the features which makes UK Universities so popular
with people from all countries, backgrounds and cultures it‟s
the fact that high diversity and cultural exchanges are
traditionally encouraged among the student body.
Degrees and Graduation
There is a three-level hierarchy of degrees (Bachelor,
Master, Doctor ) currently used in the United Kingdom. A
graduate student is an individual who has completed a
bachelor's degree (B.A.
B.S./B.Sc., or another similar programme) and is pursuing
further higher education, with the goal of achieving a master's
degree (M.A., M.S./M.Sc., M.Ed., etc.) or doctorate (Ph.D.,
Ed.D., D.A., D.Sc., D M A . , Th.D., etc.)
Reading Comprehension
1. What are the two types of higher education you can
attend in the UK?
2. What degrees can you get at the end of each higher
education cycle in the UK?
3. Why are foreign students attracted by British
universites?
19
Translation Practice (English^Romanian)
A. Education is an important part of British life. There
are hundreds of schools, colleges and universities, including
some of the most famous in the world.
Education is free and compulsory for all children
between the ages of 5 - 16. Some children are educated at
home rather than in school.
Children's education in England is normally divided into
two separate stages. They begin with primary education at the
age of five and this usually lasts until they are eleven. Then
they move to secondary school, there they stay until they reach
sixteen, seventeen or eighteen years of age. Find out what year
(grade) you would be in England.
Teachers in primary schools (4-11 year olds) are always
addressed by their surname by parents and pupils alike, always
Mr, Mrs. or Miss Smith... In secondary schools (11-16 years),
teachers are usually addressed as Miss or Sir.
Education is important in England, as it is Wales and
Scotland too. British children are required by law to have an
education until they are 16 years old. Education is compulsory,
but school is not, children are not required to attend school.
They could be educated at home.
1996 Education Act of the UK . Section 7 of the 1996
Education Act states: "The parent of every child of compulsory
school age shall cause him to receive efficient full-time
education suitable-
fa) to his age, ability and aptitude, and
(b) to any special educational needs he may have, either
by regular attendance at school or otherwise."
British children are required to attend school until they
20
are 16 years old. In England, compulsory schooling currently
ends on the last Friday in June during the academic year in
which a pupil attains the age of 16. Current government
proposals are to raise the age until which students must
continue to receive some form of education or training to 18.
This is expected to be phased in by 2015.
At the age of 16, students in England, Wales and
Northern Ireland take an examination called the GCSE
(General Certificate of Secondary Education). Study of GSCE
subjects begins at the start of Year 10 (age 14-15), and final
examinations are then taken at the end of Year 11 (age 15-16).
In state schools English, Mathematics, Science, Religious
Education and Physical Education are studied during Key
Stage 4 (the GCSE years of school); in England, some form of
ICT and citizenship must be studied and, in Wales, Welsh must
be studied. Other subjects, chosen by the individual pupil, are
also studied.
In Scotland, the equivalent of the GCSE is the Standard
Grade.
After completing the GCSE, some students leave school,
others go onto technical college, whilst others continue at high
school for two more years and take a further set of standardized
exams, known as A levels, in three or four subjects. These
exams determine whether a student is eligible for university.
B. “Spiru Haret” University-21st Century University-
Established in 1991, today “Spiru Haret” University comprises
23 accredited faculties with over 43 specializations.
“Spiru Haret” University has a complex structure which
reflects a diversity of specializations- from law, public
administration and economic studies to architecture and
21
veterinary medicine, from philosophy, journalism, sociology
and psychology to history and international relations, from
mathematics and informatics to drama, music and physical
education. But the most important aspect is the fact that in
terms of the content of studies, teaching methodology, the
Faculties of “Spiru Haret” University have reached European
standards .Students working for their first degree at our
university are called undergraduates. When they take their
degree we say that they graduate and then they are called
graduates. If they continue studying at “Spiru Haret”
University, after they have graduated, they are called Post-
graduates.
“Spiru Haret” has a highly-educated staff - the teaching
quality at “Spiru Haret” relies, first of all, on the activity of highly
dedicated professors with excellent methodological skills.
Moreover, many of them are personalities well known nationally
and internationally. Another aspect, just as important as the one
mentioned above, is the fact that “Spiru Haret” has a permanent
staff of professors, which ensures the continuity of teaching.
A national, cultural and academic television station that
broadcasts live and recorded lectures, debates, syntheses and
seminars, TH2O represents a major advantage that “Spiru Haret”
University has in promoting distance learning, a form of
attendance that has come up to a standard of EU countries... .To
the young people who choose to attend one of our faculties and
specializations we only wish them good luck with the exams, as
“Spiru Haret” University is a guarantee for their success in life.
The long, medium and short term objectives set by “Spiru Haret”
University and Romania‟s Tomorrow Foundations are meant to
add new dimensions to our academic community. They regard the
22
fulfillment of high quality cultural tasks and the improvement of a
kind of educational system whose essential attributes should be
modernity and competitiveness, dynamism and flexibility, so as to
adequately and efficiently meet the requirements raised by the
integration of Romanian higher education into the European
higher education and research area.
(Adapted from „Monitorul Oficial” - Official Bulletin, July
2002)
C. There are forty-seven universities in Britain and thirty
polytechnics, plus 350 colleges and institutes of higher education.
Undergraduate courses normally take three years of full-time
study, although a number of subjects take longer, including
medicine, architecture and foreign languages (where courses
include a year abroad). They lead in most cases to a Bachelor‟s
degree in Arts or Science (BA or BSc). Students of law,
architecture and some other professions can take qualifications
that are awarded by their own professional bodies instead of
degrees. There are various postgraduate degrees, including Master
of Arts or Philosophy (MA or MPhil) and Doctor of Philosophy
(PhD). Universities accept students mainly on the basis of their
“A” levels, although they may interview them as well. At present,
students who have been accepted by Universities or other
institutions of higher education receive a grant from their local
authority, which covers the cost of the course, and may cover
living expenses, books travel, although parents with higher
incomes are expected to make a contribution. Before 1990 the
grant was paid back, but since then a system of loans has been
introduced.
(Adapted from Britain Explored, Longman, 1998)
23
UNIT 3. COMMUNICATION
DISCUSSION POINTS
1. How is communication different now from what it was
a) 20 years ago; b) 50 years ago; c) 150 years ago; d) 1000
years ago?
2. What new communication devices do you think will be
invented in the next 25 years?
3. The Internet is among the most important inventions of
the 20th
century. What are its main uses? What do you, as a
student, use it for?
4. Are you a member of social networ sites? How have
they changed the way we conceive communication? What do
you use them for mainly? What are their other possible uses?
READING
Social Network Sites
Since their introduction, social network (or networking)
sites have attracted millions of users, who have integrated them
into their daily routines. As statistics say, most of SNS-s users
are young and very young people who become members of
such sites for socializing, keeping in touch with friends and
making new friends. But private issues are not the only ones
discussed on SNS-s. Public ones (such as politics, social
problems) are of interest for SNS-s members.
Regarding a possible definition of a social networking
service, it is an online service, platform, or site that focuses on
building and reflecting of social networks or social relations
among people, who, for example, share interests and/or
activities. A social network service essentially consists of a
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representation of each user (often a profile), his/her social
links, and a variety of additional services. Social networking
sites allow users to share ideas, activities, events, and interests
within their individual networks.
The main types of social networking services are those
which contain category places (such as former school year or
classmates), means to connect with friends (usually with self-
description pages) and a recommendation system linked to
trust. Popular methods now combine many of these, with
Facebook and Twitter widely used worldwide, Nexopia
(mostly in Canada); Bebo, VKontakte, Hi5, Hyves (mostly in
The Netherlands), Draugiem.lv (mostly in Latvia), StudiVZ
(mostly in Germany), iWiW (mostly in Hungary), Tuenti
(mostly in Spain), Nasza-Klasa (mostly in Poland), Nyx.cz
(mostly in Czech Republic), Decayenne, Tagged, XING,
Badoo and Skyrock in parts of Europe;] Orkut and Hi5 in South
America and Central America; and Friendster, Mixi, Multiply,
Orkut, Wretch, renren and Cyworld in Asia and the Pacific
Islands and Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Orkut are very
popular in India.
Social networks or social communities such as Facebook,
Hi5.com, YouTube, MySpace, Xing or Friendster are currently
the most popular ways of meeting people. These networks meet
the young people‟s needs of communication, help them
develop / find their identity, (re) present themselves, practice
peer-group experiences, offer them spaces of freedom,
experimentation and crossing any boundaries. The popularity
of these communities could be explained by children and
young people‟s needs to be noticed, recognized and to become
popular. They want to be seen and, in the same time, to see
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how appreciated and sympathized they are - or how they seem
to be.
Reading comprehension:
1. How would you define a social network site?
2. What are its main functions?
3. What needs ane expectations of young people (and not
only) do they satisfy?
Language in use
Telephoning. Making and changing arrangements.
1. Complete the following conversations with phrases
from the list below:
Dialogue 1:
A:____________________
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B: Good morning! Could I speak to Ms. Reynolds, please?
Dialogue 2:
A: I need Mr. Stevens‟ number, please.
B: __________________________
Dialogue 3:
A: __________________________
B: Yes, hold the line one moment and I‟ll put you through.
Dialogue 4:
A: I‟m afraid he‟s in a meeting at the moment.
B: __________________________
Dialogue 5:
A: ________________________
B: Mihai Ionescu from Flamingo electronics.
Phrases:
a) OK. I‟ll call back later. Thank you.
b) Hello, RB Advertising. Can I help you?
c) Just a moment, sir. I‟ll look it up for you.
d) Hello. Extension 4521, please.
e) Who‟s calling, please?
2. Unscramble the sentences below so as to obtain three coherent telephone conversations:
Dialogue 1:
___ A: Oh, good morning, Miss Smith!
___ B: Mr. Hartley? Good morning!
___ A: Good. See you the. Good bye.
___ B: I‟m ringing to remind you about the meeting tomorrow. 10 a.m., at your office as
arranged?
A: 10a.m., that‟s right.
DIALOGUE 2:
___ A: Right. I‟m looking forward to seeing you. goodbye.
___ B: Oh, hello, Mr. Williams, nice to hear from you!
___ B: I‟m afraid I can‟t today. What about tomorrow?
___ A: Hello! Ms. Lester? This is Tom Williams speaking, from RB Advertising.
___ A: I called to see if we can discuss a business proposition that our company wishes to
make.
___ B: Yes, 1 p..m. is OK. See you tomorrow.
___ A: Actually I hoped we could meet and talk about it. How about me coming to your
office
later today?
___ B: I see. Could you be more specific?
___ A: Tomorrow will be fine. Let‟s say 1 p.m., if it‟s suitable for you, too.
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Dialogue 3:
___ A: Would it be possible for you to meet us on Tuesday afternoon instead?
___ B: Hello, John Andrews speaking, from Durham Building.
___ A: Hello, Mr. Andrews.
___ A: I‟m calling on behalf of my boss. He is very sorry he won‟t be able to meet you this
afternoon.
___ B: OK, I‟ll be waiting for your call. Good bye, then.
___ B: Let me check my diary... I‟m afraid I can‟t. What about Wednesday morning?
B: Oh, I see.
___ A: Wednesday morning is all right. However I‟ll call you back later on to confirm.
___ A: Thank you. Goodbye.
Together with your desk mate imagine a few short telephone conversations in which: a)
you ask for an extension; b) you want to speak to someone but the line is busy / the person is not
in the office; c) you make an arrangement to meet someone tomorrow at 4 p.m.; d) you try to
change an arrangement already made.
Translation practice (English ^Romanian)
Who can turn around your day with a kind word or a smile?
At my local coffee shop, there is a barista who always makes my day. She greets me with a
big smile, always has a compliment at the ready and is sincerely interested in my life. I love
getting coffee from her. If I am having a crap time, she makes it a bit brighter. She does this for
all of her customers. She knows their names, their orders, and their lives. My barista is a shiny
beacon of positivity and joy.
There is push-pull effect in all communication. The way you communicate can pull people
toward you like a magnet or repel people away like a deadly scorpion hiding in the rug. Every
time you open your mouth, the question needs to be asked: “is what I am about to say going to
pull people in or push them out of my life?”
Luckily, there are 11 inspired minds (and one fictional rabbit) who can guide us to have
improved communication and better relationships in these 12 brilliant quotes:
1. “You never know when a moment and a few sincere words can have an impact on a
life” ~ Zig Ziglar
A well-timed positive word or compliment can change the course of someone‟s day.
2. “Who you are is speaking so loudly that I can‟t hear what you‟re saying” ~ Ralph Waldo
Emerson
Being authentic to who you are speaks volumes. People are drawn to authenticity and
vulnerability. Coming off like a slimy, fake used-car dealer (or Kardashian) pushes people away.
3. “If you don‟t have something nice to say, don‟t say anything at all” ~ Thumper from
Bambi
Negative words traumatize and leave an impression that can last for days. If the
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communication
is going to do harm, take Thumper‟s advice.
4. “You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than
you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you” ~ Dale Carnegie
“You” is the most important word in any conversation. Minimize the “I” and the “Me” and
focus on the “you.”
5. “What will they think of me? Must be put aside for bliss” ~ Joseph Campbell
Put aside your worries about what other‟s will think of you and just serve others with your
message.
6. “I speak to everyone in the same way, whether he is the garbage man or the president of
the university” ~ Albert Einstein
Treat everyone with respect no matter their status.
7. “Don‟t be embarrassed by your failures. Learn from them and start again” ~ Sir Richard
Branson
Miscommunications and misunderstandings happen! You learn much about how you
communicate through your mistakes and you learn a lot about the person you are talking to as
well!
8. “The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn‟t said” ~ Peter
Drucker
The ability to read the emotions and nonverbal communication of another person increases
understanding and elevates relationships.
9. “Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say
something” ~ Plato
Speak with a purpose, not just to fill-up a silence. Remember: silence is a gift that allows
selfreflection.
10. “Be sincere; be brief; be seated” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
Amen!
11. “The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference
between lightning and a lightning bug” ~ Mark Twain
Words are powerful! When you chose just the right word, you increase understanding ten-
fold.
12. “The way we communicate with others and with ourselves ultimately determines the
quality of our lives” ~ Anthony Robbins
If you are positive and communicate positivity, you will attract more of that into your life.
Here‟s your challenge: go out today and make a positive impact on someone‟s day. Listen. Be
sincere. Smile generously. Be generous in praise and compliments. Communication has power to
make a difference and change lives, or at the very least make someone‟s day more luminous.
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UNIT 4. EDUCATION. CAREER
DISCUSSION POINTS
How do you feel about working and being a student at the same time?
What kind of job would you like to have as a student?
Have you ever been to an interview? Why do you think you were / were not successful?
When applying for a job, the first step is usually to send an Application Letter (or Covering
Letter) and a Curriculum Vitae. What are the role and function of each?
READING
When you have decided to find a job, the first step is to read the ads for vacancies in
different newspapers, magazines, on specialised internet sites or to contact a recruitment agency.
Then, after you have selected some position that might suit your wishes and experience you need
to write an Application Letter and a Curriculum Vitae.
Read the following model of application letter and decide what its main communicative
functions are. The letter is written by a student of marketing who graduated an economic college
and also worked for eight months as a market research trainee for a company in Bucharest.
Advertisement: BEST FASHION Ltd, a multinational company providing expertise, human
resources and equipment for the clothing industry requires Assistant Manager (Ref. 095MK) for
its Marketing Department. Applications are accepted from students and recent graduates of
marketing and / or related fields. Applicants should be reliable and enthusiastic, willing to work
in teams and able to meet deadlines. Fluent English is a must while knowledge of French or
German would be a plus. E-mail or fax your covering letter and CV to Mr. Paul Densfield,
Human Resources Manager, tel./fax 021 3113030, e-mail [email protected]. Only