Functional Literacy: Foreign students in English-speaking countries

 👉Communicative area: speaking about foreign students in English-speaking countries

1. Based on the title "The bar chart shows the number of foreign students studying in four English-speaking countries in the years 2004 and 2012," predict which four countries might be included in the chart. List them and give reasons for your choices.

2. Identify and define the following terms that you might encounter in the text:

     - Foreign students

     - Percentage

     - Trend

     - Total student numbers

     - Approximate

3. Why do you think students choose to study abroad?

4. What factors might influence the number of foreign students in a country?

5. Which English-speaking country do you think is the most popular destination for international students, and why?

Quiz created by Veronika Bebekh with GoConqr

1. Which country had the highest number of foreign students in both 2004 and 2012? How many foreign students were there in Canada in 2012?

2. What percentage of total student numbers were foreign students in Australia in 2012? 

3. While discussing the bar chart and the table, summarize the overall trends in foreign student numbers and percentages between the years 2004 and 2012. Which countries showed significant changes?

4. Compare the number and percentage of foreign students in the USA and Australia. How do they differ? What implications might these differences have on the countries’ education systems?

5. Discuss why the percentage of foreign students remained stable in the USA while it increased in the other countries. What factors might contribute to this phenomenon?

Functional Literacy: Gross Domestic Product in the UK and Belarus

 👉Communicative area: speaking about Gross Domestic Product in the UK and Belarus

1. What do you think a bar chart illustrating GDP could show about different industries over time?

2. Based on the title, what do you expect the trends in IT and Service Industry GDP to be? 

3. Look at the word "gross domestic product (GDP)." What do you think this term means? Can you break it down into smaller parts?

4. What do you think is meant by "measured in percentages" in the context of economic data?

5.Why do you think it's important to track the GDP of specific industries, such as IT and Services?

6. How might changes in technology impact the economy and different sectors?

7. Recall what you know about the Growth of IT as an industry compared to the Service Industry. What key factors can contribute to the growth or decline of these industries?

1. According to the essay, how did the GDP from the Service Industry compare to that of the IT sector in 1992?

2. What was the highest percentage of GDP generated from the IT sector by the year 2000?

3. Create a small table summarizing the percentage of GDP from both the IT and Service Industry from 1992 to 2000.

4. Describe the trend in the percentage of GDP generated from IT and the Service Industry in two alternate periods: 1992-1996 and 1996-2000.

5. What might account for the differences in growth patterns between the IT and Service Industry from 1996 to 2000?

6. If IT was almost twice the percentage of GDP as the Service Industry by the end of the period, what implications might this have for the UK economy?

7. Imagine that you are a policy maker in the UK in 2000. Recommend whether to invest more in the IT sector or the Service Industry based on the GDP data presented. Include at least two reasons for your choice.

View Belarus's Belarus BY: Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 1992 to 2023 in the chart:

Compare the information in the bar chart with another data set you are familiar with (for instance, an industry in another country). Discuss any similarities or differences in trends and possible reasons for these.

Functional Literacy: Holiday Activities

 👉Communicative area: speaking about holidays and activities during them.

1. What are some common activities that people enjoy while on holiday? Why do you think these activities vary by country or culture?

2. Based on your knowledge of different cultures, which nationality do you think would likely spend more time at the beach? Which would possibly prefer reading? Why?

3. What do you think are some important factors that could influence how much time tourists spend on different activities while on holiday?

4. If you were to travel to a foreign country, which activity would you prioritize (beach, visiting attractions, reading)? Why?

5. Have you ever seen or analyzed a bar chart before? What do you think makes a bar chart effective for displaying information?

1.  What were the main findings regarding how much time tourists from different countries spent on various activities while on holiday in Greece?

2.  Which group of tourists spent the most time reading, and how did this compare to the time spent by other nationalities on the beach and visiting attractions?

3. Why do you think Chinese tourists spent significantly more time reading books compared to the Turkish and Brazilian tourists?

4. Based on the information provided in the essay, what conclusions can you draw about the holiday preferences of American and Turkish tourists compared to Brazilian and Chinese tourists?

5.  How does this data on tourist activities enhance your understanding of cultural differences in leisure activities? What insights did you gain about the lifestyles and preferences of people from these four countries?