ENGLISH IN THE MODERN WORLD

Topic 1. Unit 1. Reading Rules.

1. Read and translate the text:

ENGLISH IN THE MODERN WORLD

The modern world is becoming smaller and smaller, due to the development of transport distances between different countries seem to be less. People widely communicate with each other. For this reason it's becoming more and more important to know foreign languages, especially English. One and a half billion people speak English today, another billion study it. Today English is the third language by the number of speakers, Chinese is in the first place, Spanish – in the second. The largest number of English-speaking people live in the United States (215 million), Great Britain (58 million), Canada (18.2 million), Australia (15.5 million), Ireland (3.8 million), South Africa (3.7 million), New Zealand (3.5 million). As a second language English is spoken in more than 60 countries. English is the first official language in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Australia and New Zealand. It is one of the official languages in Canada, the Irish Republic and the Republic of South Africa.

English is the language of international communication, it is also the language of diplomacy and media, medicine and aviation, politics and diplomacy, science and technology, business and trade, sport and pop music.

80% of all information in the world's computers is in English. More than 60% of all scientific journals are written in English. Young people communicate in social networks and messengers in English. Today knowledge of English is one of the most important requirements for getting a good job.

Learning a foreign language is not easy. It is a long and difficult process that takes a lot of time and patience. But it's worth it. English is taught throughout the world and a lot of people speak it well. In our country English is very popular: it is studied at schools, colleges and universities. We all need to understand each other.

2. Answer the questions:

1. Why is the modern world becoming smaller and smaller?

2. Why is it becoming more and more important to know foreign languages?

3. How many people speak English today?

4. How many people speak English as their first language?

5. In what countries is English the first language?

6. What is the status of English in Canada, the Irish Republic and the Republic of South Africa?

7. Is English spoken as a second language in more than 50 countries?

8. Why is it very important to study English?