Royal English Club message board

[Alexandra]

Topic 1: School Reunions
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/china/learningenglish/takeawayenglish/tae/2006/01/060118_friends_reunited.shtml

Friends Reunited
Read the text below and do the activity that follows.

Have you ever wondered what your old school-mates are doing now? Well plenty of people in Britain do. One of the most successful internet ventures in Britain has shown how popular, and how lucrative, nostalgia can be.

The website Friends Reunited was started for fun in 1999 by a couple who were interested to know what their old school friends were doing. The project snowballed and by 2005, the site had 12 million members. One extraordinary fact is that Friends Reunited has never advertised,its success is entirely due to word-of-mouth.

You can search for a school, college or university and find a list of the members who were there in any year. You can also post a personal profile showing what you are doing now, and read other people’s details.

Steve Pankhurst, one of the founders of the site, thinks that one of the reasons for its success is that some people like to be anonymous. On Friends Reunited, you can snoop on other people’s lives without giving away anything about yourself if you don’t want to. It’s also an opportunity to bolster your self-esteem by showing off to everyone just how successful and happy you are now, even if you weren’t while you were at school.

Friends Reunited has also led to many successful school reunions, and people meeting up with each other after many years. In particular, many people use the site to look up their childhood sweethearts and many couples have actually rekindled relationships after contacting each other through the site.

There have even been Friends Reunited weddings and babies, and Friends Reunited now has a new site called Friends Reunited Dating especially for people who are looking for love. The company has also launched other sites,such as Genes Reunited, which helps people to find long-lost relatives and build their family trees online.

So, whether you want to be nosy, contact old friends, organise a school reunion, find your first love, or simply show off your success, Friends Reunited is the site to visit.

Vocabulary
1.school-mates 同學
2.ventures 商業冒險
3.lucrative 有利可圖的,賺錢的
4.nostalgia 懷舊之情
5.snowballed 滾雪球般地增長
6.word-of-mouth 口頭推荐
7.search for 尋找,查詢
8.post (在網路上)發表
9.profile 簡介,概況
10.anonymous 匿名的;無名的
11.snoop 探聽,窺視
12.giving away 洩露
13.to bolster your self-esteem 提高你的自尊
14.showing off 顯示,炫耀
15.school reunions 校友聚會
16.childhood sweethearts 青梅竹馬
17.rekindled 復燃,破鏡重圓
18.genes 基因
19.long-lost 失去(聯系)的....
20.family trees 家譜

***Reading Quiz***
Are these sentences true or false? Circle the correct answer.
1. You can only see your own details on the Friends Reunited website. True / False
2. There are 12 million schools listed on the site. True / False
3. Some couples have got married after reuniting via the website. True / False
4. When Friends Reunited first began the founders wanted to create a lucrative business.
True / False
5. There are colleges and universities on Friends Reunited as well as schools. True / False




Topic 2: Universities in the UK---Study in Britain
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/china/learningenglish/takeawayenglish/tae/2007/03/070314_universities_in_the_uk.shtml

Universities in Britain are a magnet for overseas students. There are currently over 200 000 from outside Britain studying at British universities. The largest single group is Chinese students. There are currently 50 000 in the UK.

The British government expects the total number of overseas students to be around 900 000 by 2020, and also thinks that a quarter of these will be Chinese.

But why is the UK such a popular destination for university students?
Well, the quality of your course is guaranteed. All courses are assessed by an independent system, so you can be assured that your course is officially approved and has wide international recognition.

The British education system is very flexible in order to provide for the needs of a modern, complex society. It is also cost-effective. Degree courses are usually 3 years long, which is shorter and more intensive than in other countries. There are lots of scholarships available.

You normally need 3 A-levels, which are the exams taken by people leaving school at 18, in order to enter an undergraduate degree course. You also need an IELTS score of at least 5.5, but many universities offer foundation or access courses to prepare students for their studies.

British universities offer a personalised but independent approach. The emphasis is on creative and independent thought, which helps develop the skills you will need to compete in the global job market. Tutors not only teach but also provide support and guidance. As a result, international students have a very low drop out rate and very high pass rates.

It is very simple to become an international student in the UK. The British Council offers a free and impartial service to anyone who is interested in studying in the UK, and an organisation called UCAS assists you in finding a course and making an effective application.

The UK is a dynamic and cosmopolitan place. The countryside is beautiful, and the theatres, museums, architecture and rich history make it a fascinating place to live and study. Why not give it a go?

Vocabulary:
1. magnet 磁鐵
2. overseas 海外
3. guaranteed 確保的
4. assessed (得到)評定；鑑定
5. recognition 承認
6. cost-effective 划算的
7. degree 學位
8. scholarships 獎學金
9. undergraduate degree 學士學位
10. foundation course (大學一年級的)基礎課
11. personalised 個人化的
12. emphasis 重點；強調
13. global job market 全球就業市場
14. guidance 引導
15. drop out 輟學
16. pass rates 及格率；通過率
17. impartial 公正的；不帶偏見的
18. dynamic 充滿活力的
19. cosmopolitan 大都市（的）
20. fascinating 具有魅力的

Reading Quiz
Are these sentences true or false? Circle the correct answer.
1. Chinese students make up the largest group of international students in the UK. True/False
2. The number of overseas students will rise over the next 15 years. True/False
3. By 2020, 50 % of overseas students will be Chinese. True/False
4. British degrees are not recognised outside of the UK. True/False
5. You can get a scholarship to study in the UK. True/False
_________________
C'est la vie!!!
All money back me home!!!
Shoot for the stars!!!
☆╱╲☆ ╱╲☆　
　╱╲ ▲ ╱╲ ☆　
╱ ☆ ◢◣+ ╲ ☆　　
╱ +◢█◣ ☆ ☆　 ☆
☆ ◢██◣ ☆
___▂█▂▂__ Happy 2009!! ^^

[Catherine1015]

Thank you for posting weekly topics earlier this time. I like to read them much earlier from the day we discuss them.
_________________
A' HA'

[brian]

Yes!! that's important.
Especially for who English is soooooo vegetables just like me.
I need spend a lot time to preview it.

Whatevery . we need thanks a lot to sherry!!!!!!!
If no she workhard for Royal!! we can't keep going very well!!

[charlie]

ONE MILLION THANKS TO SHERRY , YOU ARE NO.1 , WITHOUT YOUR HELP I SHALL RUN A WAY FROM ROYAL , HA HA .

[Jennifer Kao]

This is what I want.
You are so great!
What a amazing girl you are.

[charlie]

Dear All ,

Who want to be the host for next Thursday , it's fun and it's a good practice for learning English , I feel guilty to be the host again .