CD2 Track 38
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chemistry
geography
history
languages
literature
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physics
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CD2 Track 48

H = Host C = College OU = Open University MM = MicroMatters U3A = University of the Third Age



H: Good afternoon. Welcome to Live to Learn. People today often want to continue learning throughout their lives, but what are their choices? First, let's talk to Aileen Murphy, head of Bexley Green Language and Business College.

C: Good afternoon. Well, at Bexley Green College, we offer a range of languages and business topics, so it's a good place to get more skills.

H: Which languages do you teach at the college?

C: Well, English, of course – we have a lot of students from overseas, all over the world really, who take English and perhaps a business course too – we have very well-qualified business tutors. But we also offer French, Spanish, German, Russian and Chinese for English speakers. A lot of our students are business people who want to learn another language.

H: How much do the courses cost?

C: It depends. Our most popular course is a ten-week part-time language course of about ten hours a week, and that costs about £800.

H: And your classes are all at your college?

C: No, most of our classes are at the college, but we have evening classes at the local university buildings, too.

H: Thank you, Aileen. Now we have Graham Knight, from the Open University.

OU: Well, the Open University is a distance learning university – that is, you study at home, using books, CD-ROMs, the Internet. There are a few classes during the year, and there are often summer schools. Our students have to study for about twelve hours a week.

H: And what subjects do you offer?

OU: Almost everything! You can study academic subjects like Art History or Maths, or subjects like Computing or Nursing.

H: Thank you, Graham. Oh, what about cost?

OU: Most of our courses are about £600 a year, at the moment.

H: Thanks. Now, Beth Anderson works for a professional training company, MicroMatters Ltd.

MM: Right. We offer training courses in computer skills for people who are actually working with computers.

H: Do you offer courses to people who aren't working?

MM: Oh, yes. Most of our courses last two or three days, for people in work, but we also have full-time courses for a week or two weeks, and evening courses.

H: And the cost?

MM: A week's course costs about £900. Of course, we provide everything – the trainers, the training room at our centre, the computers – the trainees don't have to pay for any extras, so we aren't cheap.

H: Thank you. Now, finally, James Beecham, to tell us about the University of the Third Age.

U3A: Good afternoon. The University of the Third Age is for retired people, so it's mostly older people. We have groups across the country, and each group organises its own courses. Usually, the group uses a hall in its town, or a local school, and lecturers come to speak to the group on weekday afternoons. We try to make our type of learning very cheap. The membership cost is different in different groups, but most are around £20 a year – so it's very cheap.

H: Yes, I see. And what kind of courses or subjects do you offer?

U3A: Well, the speakers talk about their special subjects or their interests, so we have a lot of different topics, but it's not usually very academic.

H: Right. Thank you, everyone, for coming. Now, let's move on to …