An Activity
sent by José Carlos González Martín
GETTING AHEAD - OR GOING UNDER
Anne Suckermann, who has
been teaching languages at a secondary school for seven years, is currently
on extended sick leave, suffering from clinical depression. 'The pressure got
so intense,' she says. 'Fifty-hour weeks were standard. During lessons I found
myself spending more time trying to motivate and discipline the children than
actually teaching them.'
The pressure on Anne never relented. During many half-term breaks she was expected
to chaperone her students on trips overseas. She constantly faced a mountain
of administrative paperwork and she felt that her role was being diminished
by menial responsibilities. 'I felt used up by the end of the day,' she says.
'I started relying on "busy work" for the kids so I didn't have to
stand up and teach. I was on such a short fuse that I snapped at several students
- totally unprofessional. Sometimes I couldn't go in at all and spent the day
in bed. I felt I was stealing my salary and yet I attached so much of my self-esteem
to being good at my job.'
For many months Anne complained to her superiors, asking for help, but her headmaster,
colleagues and the school administrators all turned a deaf ear to her requests.
Strangely, they ignored her mounting absenteeism, as well. Ultimately, Anne
was hospitalised. Today she's slowly recovering but not sure if she'll ever
return to teaching.
(A) COMPREHENSION (4 points)
a) ANSWER QUESTIONS 1-2
ACCORDING TO THE INFORMATION GIVEN IN THE TEXT. USE YOUR OWN WORDS. (1 point
per answer)
1) Why is Anne on extended sick leave?
2) Who's responsible for Anne's hospitalization?
b) ARE THESE STATEMENTS
TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT. (0.5
points per answer)
3) She was stressed because her job was more and more intellectually demanding.
4) She got so stressed that she sometimes lost her temper with the students.
5) She was lucky as she got a lot of help and support from senior colleagues.
6) Ann has left her job completely
(B) USE OF ENGLISH (3 points)
7) Find in the text the
word which has the following definition (0.25 points)
"to accompany and supervise"
8) Find in the text one synonym for INCREASING (adjective) (0.25 points)
9) Join the following sentences using a relative pronoun.
Make changes if necessary (0.5 points)
We had dinner with a man. The man's wife was a film star.
10) Complete the following sentence: (0.5 points)
Ann wouldn't have been hospitalised if…
11) Turn the following sentence into reported speech: (0.5 points)
Jenny said: "We must arrive on time tomorrow"
12) Turn the following sentence into the active voice: (0.5 points)
I felt I was being ignored by my headmaster.
13) Join the following sentences using an appropriate linker (0.5 points)
(do not use AND or BUT). Make changes if necessary.
Ann was an excelent teacher. She attacked some of her students verbally.
(C) PRODUCTION (3 points)
14) WRITE A COMPOSITION
(80-100 WORDS). CHOOSE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING OPTIONS. SPECIFY YOUR OPTION.
a) Is the idea of becoming a teacher appealing to you?
b) New technologies and language learning.
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