Question

Have you ever been on a student exchange program? How useful was it? We asked three people for their opinions.

Ellen

I spent 8 days in Germany when I was studying for my Level A. I went to school every day, and spent the evenings with a family. It was great because I had to speak German all the time. However, the most useful thing was that I was paying more attention to communicating in the language, instead of speaking perfectly correct German. I was really glad that people could understand what I was saying. I’d certainly introduce it to other students studying languages.

Frank

I went on an exchange with my class for a week in Japan. Before the exchange, I thought my understanding of grammar was pretty good, but I had much trouble listening and speaking. So, what I thought most meaningful was that I had no choice but to use everyday language skills, rather than the language from books. If I had the opportunity, I’d certainly take part in another language exchange.

Alice

I took part in a French exchange. It lasted two weeks and I stayed with my exchange family in a small town just outside Paris. I’m quite a shy person, so in the first few days, I was kind of nervous, but then it was fine. I love French and my French has always been good. But the exchange really helped develop my speaking skills, and made me a much more confident person. It felt great to be able to talk with French people. I also found that everyone who took part in the exchange did a lot better in their end-of-year exams.

1.How long did Frank stay in Japan?

A.A week B.Eight days. C.Two weeks. D.Half a year.

2.What did Alice think about her exchange?

A.It developed her listening skills. B.It made her more confident.

C.It taught her exam skills. D.It took too much of her time.

3.All three people would most likely describe their exchange as .

A.tiring B.exciting C.boring D.helpful

4.Who will be interested in the passage above?

A.Students who are learning a foreign language.

B.Students who want to work as teachers later.

C.Students who are interested in traveling abroad.

D.Students who are not doing well in their studies.

Answer 1