Lesson 1 5 UNIT
6
EDUCATION AND JOBAND JOB EDUCATION
WISHES AND WANTS “A young man without ambition is an old man waiting to be.” Steven Brust – Comment on the quotation above. What is your greatest ambition? – Look at the phrases below and tell which of them you want. – to buy a house – to be happy – to go study abroad – to visit the UK – to live by the sea – to own a car – to start your own business – to become a rock star – to get excellent marks – to write a book and qualifications
READING 1. Are you an ambitious person? Is it a positive personality quality? What is “an ambition”? Read the article to find out. Do you agree with the author? Other than academics, schools also help with the overall development of a person. Teenage years are the time of transition from childhood to adulthood and time to think about your future. In most cases, parents and other elders try to guide teenagers in choosing the career or courses to study at university. However, research show that it is much more important to have your own ambitions to be successful. Ambition is the strong desire to achieve something, whether name, fame, money or status. This desire is strong enough to make an individual increase effort to fulfill goals, to achieve something which is right for you; as, for example, an ambition to rise to the top of your class in school, or a desire to excel in a game among peers; an ambition to improve your character or abilities; an ambition for advancement in your business, or an ambition to serve your country in political life. However, many teenagers fail to succeed in life – even with potential – and some average individuals excel because they are ambitious enough to not only dream but also make the dream reality. Teens must realize the importance of ambition and understand that life is not just about sleeping, eating or waiting for the next Harry Potter movie! Having aims or dreams with no ambition is no good. Every school-leaving student should have a clear picture of what they want to do in life. It is not wise to remain confused for too long and waste valuable time. Try to keep ambitions realistic. If the desired results are achieved, fine. If not, do not feel depressed. Dreams do not come true overnight! So, we decided to ask some young people about their ambitions: Kelsey: I am very ambitious and I have a lot of dreams: I wish I succeeded and had a great life. I also always think about needy people in our world, that’s why I would like to be a doctor and build my own hospital where I could diagnose the sick for free. I am determined to help and relieve pain, to give a refuge where homeless, poor, ill or hard-up would feel in security. Charity work is the only way to support them and give the opportunity to have a normal life. I will not only provide them with material support but also emotional, like love and affection. I choose this humanitarian job because I would be close to people in need. Mike: The most important thing for me is to be up to my family’s and my nation’s expectations, therefore I dream to be a doctor in nuclear physics because I love researches and inventions. I wish I were able to invent something which would bring benefits to the human race one day. Besides, I really hate any kind of inequality. I think that no one has the right to deprive people of living in the world without war. I hope to be able to make a difference, whatever small it is. I finally think that’s very important for teenagers to dream because that encourages them to go on and not to give up.
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