menon ou la vertu

CONCOURS GÉNÉRAL SÉNÉGALAIS 1/6 SESSION 2004 04 1 CGS 08 01 Durée : 5 heures Toutes séries réunies CLASSES DE PREMIÈRE ANGLAIS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 In a few months' time, students in Banjul, Dakar, or St Petersburg will be able at the click of a computer mouse to download the content of classes being taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The renowned American University with funding from two private foundations has decided to put some of its courses online for teachers and students all over the world. This is very generous, but an exception, because higher education is moving towards increased rivalry and competition. It has not escaped the demands of globalisation any more than other sectors have. Lecture halls are no longer simply places where courses are taught. Students are now consumers, free to opt for the best materials they can find in the "market" that has become worldwide. This market is promising. So it is no surprise that the World Trade Organisation has turned its attention to this lucrative field. Since 1994 The General Agreement on Trade and Services has included education, especially higher education on a list of services to be privatized. But the opening up of universities to foreigners is nothing new. People have always gone abroad to perfect their knowledge of a new language or complete their training. So, according to UNESCO Assistant Director General, "it isn't much revolution as evolution that's happening now". What has changed, though, is how education is delivered. New technology has revolutionized distance learning. Online courses and CD-ROMs are on the rise. The irony is that while you can educate yourself from home, students can move around more easily than ever before. The obstacles to this new trend are many and they are not just technical and financial ones. Education is not a mere product. The forces of demand and supply can't be the only factors to be taken into account, because education is a right recognized universally. Universities must be open not just to those who can pay but also to those who deserve to go there. Teachers who oppose wholesale privatization of education and point to its defects argue that business people do not always act in the public interest. In the long run, priority may be given to subjects and courses directly linked to the market, to the detriment of less "profitable" subjects such as Philosophy, Psychology or History. The role of universities is not only to train managers, their role is also to turn out enlightened citizens who go on to play leading roles in their countries and beyond. All this makes the commercialization of education a delicate subject involving very complex issues. Developing countries, for instance, are divided over the benefits to be had and often have very heated meetings on the issue. This is why the international community has turned to UNESCO to do some thinking on the subject. The world body is neither against nor for globalization, what's important for it is that people discuss things impartially and that the different parties involved can talk to each other. Teachers, students, and representatives of the private sector and international organizations can discuss how to ensure better international acceptance and recognition of training qualifications and how to promote fair trade in this field. .../... 2 ANGLAIS 04 1 CGS 08 01 2/6 CLASSES DE PREMIÈRE A. READING COMPREHENSION (08 points) I. Refer to the text to reorder the following ideas chronologically : 1. Not a simple product 2. Drive for profit 3. Need for dialogue 4. A promising market (02 points) 1. ........................... 2. ........................... 3. ........................... 4. ........................... II. Say whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE. Justify with quotes from the text (03 points) 5. According to UNESCO Assistant Director General, what is happening now is much more a revolution than an evolution. ....................................................................................................................... 6. The text reveals that Education is one of the few sectors not affected by globalization. ....................................................................................................................... 7. The text points out the reluctance of teachers to the commercialization of Education. ....................................................................................................................... 8. The author defends the democratization of higher education. ......................