Self-assessment of online listening to podcasts

I have listened two podcasts:
Ø ABC World News Podcast http://a.media.abcnews.com/podcasts/071107wn_webcasta.mp3)

Ø Exclusiva English Podcast http://a.media.abcnews.com/podcasts/071025exclusiva_eng.mp3

These online listening podcasts are upper-intermediate level and it was not easy to perform this task. Vocabulary was quite difficult, there were many unknown words. I had to listen podcasts 4 times for the complete understanding. Unfortunately, there was not written text (transcript), so I could not looked up the meaning of unknown words.

It is good that speakers’ accents were American, because it is easier to understand than British, although American accent has faster rate of speaking.

Listening task is not my forte. I have not enough experience. In order to have it more and improve my English skills I have to listen to podcasts as often as possible, watch English films. Also it is very useful to travel and work abroad.

After doing this task I persuaded that I am not well prepared for my exam listening paper and I have to work harder to pass it.

Education policy in UK

Education is principally identified with schooling, though in theory it extends far beyond this, being concerned with intellectual and social development. The main emphasis within this is on children, though there is clearly scope for education for all and "lifelong learning". Education has been particularly significant as an instrument of social policy, in the sense not only of policies for welfare but also as policies intended to deal with the structure of society. The aims of education include:

• Liberal education: the development of each individual intellectually and socially to that person's fullest potential.
• Socialisation: education is a method of transmission of social norms and values. This is also sometimes seen as a form of social control.
• Education as 'handmaiden': the education system serves the industrial process and the economy by producing a trained workforce, and by providing child minding services.
• Social change (or 'social engineering'). The education system has been seen as a means of bringing about social change.

Free elementary education was introduced in England in 1870; secondary schools were fee-paying until 1944. 80% of children left after elementary education, which after 1918 finished at 14. The 1944 Education Act introduced free secondary education. The dominant principle was the pursuit of equality. The system was based on a 'tripartite' structure, distinguishing grammar, technical and secondary modern. Within these schools there was to be "parity of esteem". In practice, there were few technical schools, which meant the system was more "bipartite" than "tripartite". Since grammar schools were selective, and secondary moderns took the rest, there was never "parity of esteem".

Non-selective or "comprehensive" schools were introduced gradually, but comprehensive education became government policy in the 1960s. The arguments for and against comprehensive education have been confused with other arguments about educational methods and the purposes of education. The main arguments for comprehensives are they reduce the likelihood of discrimination or disadvantage on the basis of class , and that they improve the prospects of children of middling ability. The main argument against is that the selective system may be more consistent with the idea of equality of opportunity. Working class children who went to grammar schools did better than those who go now to comprehensive schools. In conclusion, it must be said that education of all the people, not only young children and youth but also adults, should be each nation’s highest priority.

Homosexuality

Homosexuality can refer to both attraction or sexual behavior between people of the same sex, or to sexual orientation. When describing the latter, it refers to enduring sexual and romantic attraction towards those of the same sex, but not necessarily to sexual behavior.
In many cultures gay and lesbian people are frequently subject to prejudice, they are also subject to stereotyping. Gay men are seen as effeminate and fashionable, often identified with a lisp or a female-like tone and lilt. They are stereotyped as being promiscuous and unsuccessful in developming enduring romantic relationships. Gay men are also often alleged as having pedophiliac tendencies and more likely to commit child sexual abuse than the heterosexual male population. Lesbians are seen as butch, "man-hatters" or radical feminists.
In some cultures homosexual acts are considered "unnatural" and are outlawed. In some Muslim nations (such as Iran) and Africam countries it remains a capital crime.
when we talk about sexual orientation and the law, it is necessarily to talk about employment and housing discrimination. Employment discrimination refers to discriminatory employment practices such as bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, and compensation, and various types of harassment. In the U.S. there is "very little statutory, common law, and case law establishing employment discrimination based upon sexual orientation as a legal wrong". Housing discrimination refers to discrimination against potential or current tenants by landlords. In the U.S. there is no federal law against such discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
Another important thing talking about homosexuality is same-sex marriages. Government recognition of same-sex marriage is presently available in 6 countries and 2 U.S. states. The Netherlands was the first country to authorize same-sex marriage in 2001 and they are now also recognized in Belgium, Canada, South Africa, Spain and U.S. states of Massachusetts and Iowa. Israel's High Court of Justice ruled to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other countries, although it is still illegal to perform them within the country. Other countries, including the majority of European nations, have enacted laws allowing civil unions, designed to give gay couples similar rights as married couples concernig legal issues such as inheritance and immigration.
What is the situation in parenting? Many openly LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual ant transgender) people are parents, often by a way of adoption, donor insemination, foster parenting, or surrogacy. In the 2000 U.S. Census, 33% of female same-sex couple households and 22% of male same-sex couple households reported at least one child under the age of 18 living in the home.
Homosexuality is a complex problem with many definitions and variations. If someone tells you, “I am a homosexual,” he has really told you very little about himself. It takes a deeper look into his life to determine the degree to which homosexuality has become a part of his identity. Homosexuality can be a difficult problem to overcome.