NARRATOR:
You will hear a teacher talking with two students about an English for academic purposes course.
NARRATOR:
First, you have some time to look at questions 21 to 25.
NARRATOR:
Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 25.
TEACHER:
Before we begin, Spiros and Hiroko, thank you for coming to discuss your recent academic experiences and congratulations to both of you on such good results in your first semester examinations.
TEACHER:
I'd like your views on the English for academic purposes course you completed here last year before entering university.
TEACHER:
Spiros, let's start with you.
TEACHER:
Which parts of that programme have been most useful since you began your degree?
SPIROS:
Having to give a seminar presentation helped a great deal.
SPIROS:
A couple of weeks ago, I presented in our marketing course and I felt reasonably confident because I had done it before and knew what was involved.
SPIROS:
I was still nervous, of course, but I had prepared thoroughly and practiced the timing.
SPIROS:
Compared with several people in my group, I think I performed well because my delivery came across as polished and well organised.
SPIROS:
How was it for you, Hiroko?
HIROKO:
That's interesting.
HIROKO:
I was astonished by the way other students in my group presented.
HIROKO:
They simply read their notes aloud.
HIROKO:
They paid very little attention to delivery and barely looked up at the people listening, even though our previous course had placed considerable emphasis on those skills.
TEACHER:
What did you do in your own presentation, Hiroko?
HIROKO:
Honestly, I read from my notes as well.
HIROKO:
It felt easier while I was doing it, but afterwards I had no real feeling of achievement.
HIROKO:
I came away disappointed with how it had gone.
SPIROS:
That's unfortunate.
SPIROS:
Although I was pleased with my presentation, I'm not at all pleased with how I've performed in tutorials.
SPIROS:
I haven't contributed to the discussions at any point this semester.
HIROKO:
Is that because the other students dominate the conversation?
SPIROS:
That's part of it, but the main issue is that I haven't had the confidence to join in.
SPIROS:
Their way of speaking is very different from what we practiced.
SPIROS:
They use a lot of informal expressions, aren't always particularly polite, and the discussion can seem disorganised.
SPIROS:
They've known each other for some time.
SPIROS:
Because they understand each other's habits, they know when to bring someone else into the conversation.
NARRATOR:
Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 26 to 30.
NARRATOR:
Now listen and answer questions 26 to 30.
HIROKO:
I've had the same experience.
HIROKO:
For most of the semester I contributed nothing in tutorials.
HIROKO:
Recently though, I've made myself speak up and simply enter the discussion.
HIROKO:
That has made me feel much more positive because I'm taking a more active part.
HIROKO:
I've also noticed that when the others consider one of my ideas interesting or original, they ask for my opinion the next time.
HIROKO:
After that, joining the discussion becomes much easier.
SPIROS:
That's encouraging.
SPIROS:
I hope I can achieve that next semester.
SPIROS:
I'll need to find some worthwhile points to raise.
SPIROS:
What helped you develop your ideas?
HIROKO:
Reading was important.
HIROKO:
This semester I've had to read extensively just to understand the lectures.
HIROKO:
At first, the lecturer's explanations made little sense to me, so I turned to textbooks and published research papers.
HIROKO:
I spent hours reading each evening, following the reference lists we were given and producing pages of notes.
HIROKO:
I reviewed those notes again over breakfast.
HIROKO:
This routine has helped me follow the lectures and has supplied ideas for tutorials.
SPIROS:
I already do so much reading that I can't imagine adding anything else.
SPIROS:
My reading is still quite slow, although handling unfamiliar vocabulary is easier than it used to be.
TEACHER:
What could we add to the course to address that reading difficulty?
SPIROS:
I'm not sure the course could do more because the problem is mine.
SPIROS:
We were assigned long articles which we disliked at the time, but I now realise they prepared us well for university reading.
SPIROS:
We also completed regular speed reading activities and kept records of our pace, so the teachers did encourage us to improve.
HIROKO:
That's true, but the choice of material could have been different.
HIROKO:
In English classes, I sometimes became frustrated with articles about the environment, health or education.
HIROKO:
I'm studying to become an engineer, yet we read nothing connected with it.
HIROKO:
I felt I was spending time on vocabulary I didn't need.
TEACHER:
Weren't the strategies for dealing with that vocabulary still valuable?
HIROKO:
Yes, but I would have felt more confident if the text had related to what I'm studying.
HIROKO:
What do you think, Spiros?
SPIROS:
Texts related to our degrees would have increased my confidence and motivation too.
SPIROS:
It was helpful though that our research assignments could be based on topics we chose ourselves.
TEACHER:
Alright, let's turn now to writing.
NARRATOR:
That is the end of part three.
NARRATOR:
You now have one minute to check your answers to part three.
