📘 Part 3: School, jobs and young people

This episode's vocabulary

Relocation (noun) - the act of moving or moving something or someone from one place to another, or an example of this.

Savoury (adj.) - if you say that something is not savoury, you mean that it is not pleasant or socially acceptable.

Bullying (noun) - the behaviour of a person who hurts or frightens someone smaller or less powerful, often forcing that person to do something they do not want to do.

Conducive (adj.) - providing the right conditions for something good to happen or exist.

To nurture (verb) - to feed and care for a child, or to help someone or something develop by encouraging that person or thing.

Curricula (plural noun) - the subjects studied in a school, college, etc. and what each subject includes.

Setback (noun) - something that happens that delays or prevents a process from developing.

Grief (noun) - very great sadness, especially at the death of someone.

Extracurricular activity (noun) - an extracurricular activity or subject is not part of the usual school or college course.

Circumstance (noun) - a fact or event that makes a situation the way it is.

Earning potential (noun) - the amount of money that it is possible for you to make in your work.

Student loan (noun) - an agreement by which a student at a college or university borrows money from a bank to pay for their education and then pays the money back after they finish studying and start working.

Concomitant (adj.) - happening and connected with another thing.

Vocational training/school (noun) - a school where students learn skills that involve working with their hands

Apprenticeship (noun) - a period of time working as an apprentice.

Apprentice (noun) - someone who has agreed to work for a skilled person for a particular period of time and often for low payment, in order to learn that person's skills.

Entrepreneurship (noun) - skill in starting new businesses, especially when this involves seeing new opportunities.

Democratisation (noun) - the process of making countries or organizations use democratic ways of making decisions.

Obsolete (adj.) - not in use any more, having been replaced by something newer and better or more fashionable.

Rigid (adj.) - stiff or fixed; not able to be bent or moved.

To be smooth sailing (idiom) - to be easy and without problems.

Emotional intelligence (noun) - the ability to understand the way people feel and react and to use this skill to make good judgments and to avoid or solve problems.

Cognitively (adverb) - in a way that is connected with thinking, or conscious mental processes.

Critical thinking (noun) - the process of thinking carefully about a subject or idea, without allowing feelings or opinions to affect you.

Tolerance (noun) - willingness to accept behaviour and beliefs that are different from your own, although you might not agree with or approve of them.

Networking (noun) - the activity of meeting people who might be useful to know, especially in your job.

Decision-making (noun) - the process of making choices, esp. important choices.

To compartmentalize (verb) - to separate something into parts and not allow those parts to mix together.

Tight-knit (adj.) - closely connected

Intimate (adj.) - having, or being likely to cause, a very close friendship or personal or sexual relationship.

Agile (adj.) - able to move your body quickly and easily.

Bed of roses (idiom) - an easy and happy existence.

Position (noun) - a job.

Seniority (noun) - the advantage that you get by working for a company for a long time.

To daunt (verb) - to make someone feel slightly frightened or worried about their ability to achieve something.

Attitudinal (adj.) - relating to people's attitude towards something.

Work-lifebalance (adj.) - the amount of time you spend doing your job compared with the amount of time you spend with your family and doing things you enjoy.

Ossification (noun) - the process of habits or ideas becoming fixed and unable to change.

To jump ship (idiom) - to leave a company or organization in order to work for another, especially in order to get a higher salary or better working conditions.

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Questions and Answers

M: Why might some children change schools?

R: Well, generally speaking, events like family relocation or access to better opportunities if a different school provides more challenging curriculum or specialised programs might be good reasons. There are less savoury things like bullying or health conditions that would be better addressed at a different school, maybe with a more conducive or nurturing environment. And of course, the old school could just have closed. Not everything has to be dramatic.

M: How does changing school affect children?

R: Well, in general, there are things like social and academic adjustment to new classmates or curricula and teaching styles. I suppose, they may also experience some academic setbacks as they adapt to the new material. There's also the emotional impact as well, especially if they're leaving behind friends and familiar surroundings. And children may experience grief, sadness or anxiety during these transitions. However, there are opportunities for growth as children may have the chance to try new extracurricular activities and develop new interests and meet new people. It certainly worked for me.

M: Some people think it's essential that people go to university, but what do you think?

R: Well, broadly speaking, ultimately that depends on individual circumstances and goals. While university education can be valuable for some, it may not be the best fit for everybody. There's a higher earning potential, since on average university graduates earn more than non-graduates. Well, that's over the course of their careers, I mean. On the subject of which, they have more career opportunities and opportunities to advance in general through their academic achievement and networking. By contrast, however, university costs a lot, leading to student loan debt, and it's a massive time sink with concomitant academic pressure. And there are dozens of alternative paths to university, such as vocational training or apprenticeships or entrepreneurship. Also, with the democratisation of information and training, universities may soon become obsolete. So that's something to bear in mind too.

M: Some people say that school was more difficult at the past. Would you agree?

R: As a general rule, yes. While schools have evolved over time to match the challenges of their contexts, in the past a combination of a lack of technology, less individualised instruction and more rigid curricula could make school feel less engaging or relevant and less adapted to children's or students' lives. Since we've addressed those issues now, you could say that school is easier, but something being more difficult doesn't always mean it has more value. You could learn all the moves in karate, but a single pull of a trigger would stop the most experienced master in their tracks. And it's not like it's all smooth sailing nowadays either. There are issues such as increased pressure to perform academically and socially and the constant presence of technology and social media distractions. Ultimately, the difficulty of school probably depends on a variety of factors, including individual strengths and challenges, as well as the school itself.

M: And is socialisation important for children?

R: Well, yes, overall. Socialisation is like a crucial aspect of a child's development and helps prepare them for success in their, well, professional and personal lives. It's the process by which children learn to interact with other people. And it helps them develop their emotional intelligence, that involves like understanding and managing their own emotions and empathising with other people. And they can also develop linguistically and cognitively through their self-expression or critical thinking skills. And they gain knowledge about their environment and the world around them. I suppose there's also an aspect of cultural awareness, as children learn about their own culture and those of others. And that promotes acceptance and tolerance of diversity. So, this is all extremely important for individual people and the globalising world.

M: Is it better to work in a big or small company?

R: All in all, on balance, it's probably better to work for a small company. I mean, while big companies typically have more resources, networking opportunities and recognition, they also tend to have more layers of bureaucracy which can make decision-making processes slower and less flexible. That leads to less autonomy in decision-making power as tasks and responsibilities are more specialised and compartmentalised. Meanwhile, employees in small companies often have more autonomy and decision-making power, because their tasks and responsibilities are varied and flexible. And that's aided by a more, well, a hopefully more tight-knit community. That's more intimate and fosters a more collaborative work environment. They're probably more agile too, which is extremely useful in a fast-paced economy like that of today.

M: And what are the advantages and disadvantages of changing jobs?

R: As a rule of thumb, changing jobs can provide a fresh start and the opportunity to work in a new environment that's a better fit. You can also broaden your experiences through work in different industries and sectors. It's not all a bed of roses, though. I mean, there can be a lot of uncertainty and risk, especially if someone is leaving a stable job for a new position. There may be uncertainty around job security and company culture. And of course, the future career opportunities would be radically different if you moved to a different sector. It might mean giving up certain benefits as well, like a retirement plan or health insurance. And that can be a financial burden. Starting over from the bottom of the corporate ladder with less seniority than you had at previous job would also be quite a daunting challenge to overcome.

M: Why do many young adults keep changing jobs?

R: I suppose, at the present moment there are some huge social, economic and attitudinal shifts underway. Young people are seeking better job opportunities, including higher salaries and more challenging responsibilities and the ability to learn new skills. They also lack the job satisfaction and want to find a job that they enjoy and are passionate about. And that ties in with people seeking a better work-life balance with more flexible hours and remote work options. Speaking of which, young people are a little bit more sensitive to, well, I suppose you would call it institutional ossification. And they might get easily frustrated with cultures that are inflexible and unresponsive. So all of this contributes to them just jumping ship for a new one.

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Discussion

M: So children change schools. Why? Due to events like family relocation. So when family, families relocate to some other place, so they move from one place to another and they have to change schools. And then if another school provides a more challenging curriculum. Also, children could change schools. What does a school curriculum mean?

R: Oh, God. Well, that's a very hotly debated topic. But the gist of it is a curriculum is everything that the students are required to learn.

M: Yeah, it's just like a school program, right? So according to school curriculum, children should learn what? Mathematics, literature, biology. And if another school has specialised programs. For example, your child is good at sciences, so is good at maths and a school has specialised programs focusing only on maths. So, yeah, this could be the reason of changing schools. There are less savoury things Rory said. So less savoury things is like what?

R: Less savoury just means distasteful or unfortunate things. So being ill or being bullied at school is not a great thing. So that would be less savoury.

M: Yeah. And if a child is bullied at school, so bullied like is beaten up or other children pick on this child. So this could be the reason of changing schools. And when a child changes schools what effect does it have on a child? Rory mentioned social and academic adjustment to new classmates or curricula. Remember, we've just discussed. Curriculum is one. School curriculum, one, singular. So school program, school curriculum. Many programs - school curricula, okay? So the child has to adjust to new classmates. The child has to adjust to new teaching styles. So these like social and academic adjustments that children have to make. We make adjustments, right?

R: Yeah, Make changes.

M: Children may also experience some academic setbacks. Setbacks, what do you mean? Academic setbacks.

R: Just... They might not progress as much or they might even actually go backwards or backslide, because they have to adjust to all of these things at the same time.

M: Yeah, as they adapt to new material, they may experience some academic setbacks. Also, there is this emotional impact, yeah? Because a child leaves behind his friends. Right? So leave behind. And the child has to leave behind familiar surroundings. And then you can name the emotions. So children may experience what? Grief. Like this feeling of deep sadness. Sadness, anxiety during their transition. So this transition from one school to the other. But there are opportunities for growth, opportunities for growth, for something. As, because or since children may have the chance to try new extracurricular activities. Right? So these are activities that we usually do after school, right?

R: Yeah, like, well, it's usually sport clubs, but there's lots of other after-school things.

M: An interesting question about university. Well, some people think it's essential to go to universities, others say "no, we don't need education, we don't need universities". Rory told us that it depends on individual circumstances and that's your answer to any question, dear listener. It depends on individual circumstances or goals. So circumstances like the things, individual things we have. But then, Rory gave us a more specific answer. So Rory is comparing, contrasting, contrasting, like while university education can be valuable for some people, like although university education could be valuable for some people, it may not be the best fit for everybody. So to be the best fit for everyone. What did you mean?

R: Well, it might not work for everybody. They might have different preferences, so they need something else.

M: So university education may not be the best fit for everyone. Fit like keep fit. Yeah? When you go to the gym to work out. And then university graduates. So people who graduated from universities, graduate from universities. We finish school or we leave school. But we graduate from university. And what do you call these people, who graduate from university? University graduates, graduates. So university graduates versus non-graduates, yeah? And on average, university graduates earn, make more money than non-graduates. Kind of usually, not always. Yeah, you can say that university graduates may have more career opportunities. Like you can talk about academic achievement. So what they achieved at university. But then, by contrast, university costs a lot. We can talk about student loans, so students may have to take out a loan to pay for their education. And if people don't go to university, what can they do? They could choose vocational training, apprenticeships or entrepreneurship. Rory, what is vocational training?

R: It's usually things like trades. For example, being a plumber or an electrician. That's vocational training.

M: Apprenticeships.

R: Apprenticeships are actually quite similar. They're just... That's like training on the job.

M: Entrepreneurship.

R: It's when you set up a business and run it yourself.

M: School was more difficult in the past. Hmm. An interesting question. And then you can say, as a general rule, yes or no. Schools have evolved over time. Okay? So schools have changed. So school's curriculum, programme has changed over time to match the challenges of our life, yeah? And then Rory gave us specific examples. In the past there was a lack of technology, less individualised instruction. Instruction is a synonym for education. So education was like for groups, so it was like less individual. And now we have more individual attention, usually, not always, for specific children. What did you mean by more rigid curricula?

R: Yeah, they don't adapt to the needs of the pupil. They just stay the same all the time.

M: You can say that school used to be less engaging. So it was like more boring. And now school seems to be easier, but certain things are still more difficult. And Rory, you said that it's not like it's all smooth sailing.

R: Which is another idiom. Have you noticed the theme? I do love a good idiom. Yes, but smooth sailing just means it's not all easy. There are some difficult parts.

M: And the issues include increased pressure to perform academically and socially. So children are under pressure to perform well. So to do well at school, to get good grades. And also, socially. The constant presence of technology could also add to this pressure and social media distractions at school, right? Socialisation, or communication, or interaction, if you prefer this word, is a crucial aspect of a child's development, okay? So crucial, important or essential. And a good sentence is that, it's the process by which children learn to interact with each other, right? So socialisation is the process by which children do something. And they develop different skills. So they develop social skills, they develop attitudes and they develop values. What's emotional intelligence? You said that socialisation helps children to develop their emotional intelligence.

R: Yeah, that's to do with managing their emotions and relating to other people's emotions, which is quite important.

M: Children develop linguistically, in terms of language and they develop cognitively.

R: In terms of thinking. Yes.

M: And how do they develop? They develop through self-expression and critical thinking skills.

R: Yep. So they express themselves. And then questions could be about jobs and companies, right? So we change schools, also we change jobs and where is it better to work for? For a big, small company? So be ready for kind of like work, job-related questions. Rory thinks that it's much better to work for a small company. So after working in a state school, Rory goes for a small company, right?

R: Yes, because, well, I'm a bit biased, because I work for a small company. My own, ours, Success with IELTS.

M: Hey! And it's a good idea to contrast big companies to small companies using "while". So how do you do this? Like while big companies blah, blah, blah, small companies...

R: Also blah, blah, blah.

M: And Rory told us that big companies have more resources, networking opportunities. Networking? When people socialise, they chit-chat together, they get to know each other. So while big companies have something good for their employees, they also tend to have more layers of bureaucracy, paperwork, you know, all this. You have to fill in all the papers before you can do something, yeah?

R: Not a fan.

M: And this could lead to less autonomy. So employees become less autonomous. They depend on their bosses, so their bosses tell them what to do and they do it, yeah? So their employees could become less independent. What did you mean when you said this word compartmentalised?

R: Compartmentalised just means things are taken away in sections and it's difficult to access them. So, if it's not compartmentalised, then it's easy to access things.

M: Oh, we need another example with this word. It's crazy.

R: To survive trauma, some people compartmentalise their emotions, so they just partition off certain feelings and don't engage with them.

M: Or his life was carefully compartmentalised. With his work in one city and his social life in another. Wow. Crazy word. Tight-knit community. We talked about communities before, so tight-knit community.

R: We have a tight-knit community.

M: So if a community is tight-knit, it's what? It's small, it's close, everybody's friendly. Hey! Kind of closely connected, yeah? Also, you can use it with tight-knit family. Yeah? Like closely connected. And if you work for a small company, it's more intimate, yeah? More intimate and it fosters, it promotes, encourages a collaborative work environment. So everybody kind of works together in a kind of intimate kind of way. As a rule of thumb, that's a nice one. What does it mean?

R: That just means, generally speaking and then what the... What you can say about something generally speaking, what is commonly applicable in these situations.

M: Changing jobs can provide a fresh start, right? And this is a nice construction. So doing something provides this. So changing jobs can provide a fresh start. It can also broaden your experience. So kind of widen your experience and then you go "it's not all a bed of roses".

R: That just means... Well, it's similar to smooth sailing, really, isn't it? It just means that not everything in a situation is good, it's not always comfortable or relaxed.

M: So changing jobs is not all a bed of roses because, well, it could involve uncertainty, risk. Right? So a person could leave a stable job for a new position. So we say a new position when you change jobs. And then there may be uncertainty around job security, company culture, future career opportunities, yeah? So when you change jobs, you are not sure of these things, yeah? And also, you can speak about a retirement plan. So when a person retires, they become a pensioner. So what's going on? What are the conditions in this company? Health insurance, right? Could be a financial burden. So if it's not covered by a company. And these days some adults keep changing jobs. So why? And Rory, you said that what? They are seeking better job opportunities. So higher salaries, more challenging responsibilities and the ability to learn new skills. So these are like, typical answers, I think. And you said that they don't have this job satisfaction, yeah? And that's why they change jobs.

R: They're not happy at their jobs.

M: Some people seek or look for or want to find a better work-life balance. More flexible hours or maybe remote work options. So remote, you meant, when people work from home, yeah?

R: Yeah, well, or they work from a place of their choosing.

M: And then Rory used another crazy word...

R: What?

M: I can't even pronounce it. You said... Ossification.

R: Ossification, yes. Institutional ossification. That's just when companies, they're so used to doing things one way that there's no flexibility and no opportunity to change. And it's like that just because, there is no reason behind it and it's really difficult to deal with.

M: Wow. So the process of habits or ideas becoming fixed, unable to change. So if something becomes fixed, it's not changed. Is this ossification? For example, the ossification of his thought processes as he grew older. So he kind of, his thoughts became fixed, unable to change. Rory, could you give us another example in terms of this, you know, changing jobs and... Yeah.

R: Yeah, so, well, I mean, if I talk about myself, I changed jobs because of institutional ossification, because I got tired of working with processes that weren't flexible.

M: Hey! And then you finished it off with a nice idiom. Because of these reasons, many young adults jump ship for a new one. They jump ship.

R: To jump ship is just like to abandon a company, to leave a company and then go for a new one or go to a new one.

M: Yeah, so when you leave a company or organisation and you go to work somewhere else, so just like, you jump ship. Yeah, some companies pay certain bonuses for the staff, so employees don't jump ship, so they don't leave this company, they stay loyal. Thank you so much, dear listener. You can read the script now, because the answers are super rich in phrases, topic-specific vocabulary. So please enjoy everything. Grammar and vocabulary. Hugs, love and joy. Bye!

R: Bye!

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