Six étudiants de différents pays se rencontrent. Qu’ont-ils ont en commun ? Ils sont tous venus passer un semestre dans une université américaine. Pendant ce séjour, ils vont améliorer leur niveau d’anglais, découvrir un peu plus la culture américaine et approfondir leurs connaissances dans leur domaine d’étude. Cette série de conversations en anglais est consacrée à ces six étudiants et à leur quotidien pendant ces quelques mois aux États-Unis. Elle a été conçue pour les apprenants ayant un niveau d’anglais intermédiaire ou supérieur.
Cliquez sur le lien audio et écoutez la conversation tout en la lisant ci-dessous. Les mots importants sont expliqués à la fin, en anglais, de façon à vous immerger totalement dans la langue.Et si vous voulez suivre la leçon tout en anglais, de l’introduction à la conclusion, cliquez ici.
Dans cette conversation, six étudiants (Lucía, Peter, Ajay, Lee, Akinyi et Jana) parlent des différentes filières universitaires qu’ils vont suivre.
Lucía: Thanks for meeting up today, guys. I’m happy that I’ve met so many other exchange students already. It’s a big relief.
Peter: Yeah, we’re all in the same boat, so let’s try to support one another throughout the semester.
Ajay: Are we taking any of the same classes?
Lee: I think we all have different majors, so we might not be in any of the same classes.
Akinyi: What’s your major, Lee?
Lee: My major is environmental science. How about you?
Akinyi: Mine is quite different. I’m majoring in business.
Ajay: And my major is journalism. How about you, Jana? What’s your major?
Jana: I’m studying engineering. I’m not exactly sure what type of engineering I’ll eventually major in. Maybe electrical or aeronautical engineering.
Lucía: And I’m an American studies major.
Peter: That’s interesting. What do you study?
Lucía: We study the novels, music, film, politics, economy and history of the United States. I’m excited to be in the U.S. this semester to study as much as I can about the culture. How about you, Peter? What’s your major?
Peter: I’m an education major. I’d like to teach young children. They’re full of energy and curiosity. I guess kind of like us.
Un peu de vocabulaire
To meet up means to meet a person or people in order to do something together.
The word guys is an informal way to refer to two or more people. Although the word “guy” means “man,” the informal guys can refer to men and/or women. Some people in the U.S. use the term guys in this way. However, there are others who do not agree with this usage because “guy” means “man” and does not include “woman” (or both man and woman) in its meaning.
To be in the same boat means to be in the same situation as others. In university and college, each student choices a major.
A major is a chosen field of study, the specialization of the student. “Major” can be used as a noun or a verb.
There are different ways to talk about one’s major. One of these ways is to say, “My major is _____.” For example: “My major is history.”
Another way is to use the word “major” as a verb. When using the word “major” as a verb, use the phrase major in. For example: “I’m majoring in ____.”
A student can also use “major” as a noun to refer to him- or herself. For example: “I’m an American studies major.”
One can also use the verb study to talk about one’s major. For example: “I’m studying biology” and “I study biology” both show the student’s major.
Not exactly sure: The person is not 100 percent certain about something.
Vous voulez approfondir vos connaissances en anglais ? Profitez de nos articles sur ShareAmerica.
Le site American English* propose toute sortes de ressources gratuites pour les profs d’anglais et les apprenants. Sur la page Facebook d’American English*, retrouvez chaque jour du matériel d’apprentissage en anglais.
Les conversations en anglais sont produites par Heidi Howland, des programmes d’anglais du Bureau des affaires éducatives et culturelles du département d’État.
*en anglais
