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. Visit any British town or city that attracts tourists from late spring to the end of the summer, and you're pretty much guaranteed to be mown down by a group of excitable foreign students over here to learn English. Language schools run courses all year round, but the summer months are traditionally their busiest. All those students have to live somewhere, of course, and a placement with a local family is the best way for them to develop their language skills.
2. "The children gain a lot from the experience", says Mandy Winder of Brighton. She and her husband Michael have taken students from the local educational institutes for the past 12 years. "I have bought my children a globe, and the first thing Emily, 10, and Megan, 7, do when a new student arrives is to find out where he or she comes from."
3. The practical side of taking in a student is simple. Basics required are a reasonably sized furnished room with a desk and chair and use of a bathroom. Mandy certainly tries to make her guests feel part of her family. "We all eat together -that's when most of the talking gets done- and I try to make them feel at home. I ask them to tell me what foods they like and don't like." In return for their hospitality, the host family receives about £70 to £80 per week.
4. Introducing a stranger into family life can cause a few problems. There are a few complaints. Mandy said that a few years ago she was watching a television programme when the foreign student picked up the remote control and switched over without asking. She remembers Japanese girls who came with strict guidelines not to talk to men. "They would chat to me, but hardly talk to my husband". Another drawback of taking in students comes when they leave. "If they've been with us for a long time, the children can find it hard when they go", says Mandy.
5. So, is playing the host a worthwhile experience ? In general, yes, especially if you have a big house with rooms to escape to. You have to be relaxed to do it —there are a lot of people who wouldn't want someone else in their home. Mandy Winder agrees : "The children have benefited from it enormously. They've learnt how to live with other people and they're very aware that we're not the only people in the world. Educationally, their geography has improved and they've had a bit of a head start by hearing other languages being spoken."
Source : TELEGRAPH WEEKEND Saturday, August 11, 2001 (adapted)
I.Comprehension
:
A.The text is about :
a)A British family who takes in foreign students
b) studying English in Britain
c)Foreign students who are taken in by British families
d)Foreign students who live in Briatin
B. Which paragraph is about?
a) Students learning English in Britain
b) Introducing the Winders’ family
c). Conditions of hosting foreign students by British family
d) Problems encountered when a British family host a foreign student
e) A general judgement on the experience of taking in foreign students learning English in Britain;
C.Say if the folowing statements are true or false ;justify your answer
1. British families take in foreign students for free.
2. Some of the foreign students are impolite according to Mandy.
D..Choose the correct answer to complete the sentences given
1. The writer concludes that taking in foreign students by a British family……………
a) is not a worthwhile experience
b) is a rewarding experience
c) is an experience free of problems
2.The Japanese girls didn’t talk to Mandy’s husband because…………………
a) they didn’t like to talk to men
b) they were told not to talk to men by their families
c) they were forbidden to talk to men by British culture
E.Find in the text words or expressions meaning the same as :
1.became better
2.disadvantages
F.What do the bold coloured words in the text refer to ?
1.them 2.he or she
