English vs English

[Mr. GOH!]

Over here, 'dire' also has a more informal meaning for something that is dreadful or terrible. Not sure if that's the same in the US.

You say "also." Could you elaborate on the other meaning(s)?

 

I think the DnD/fantasy meaning of "bigger and nastier" is what he's referring to.

 

Yes, dire means the same in the US as in the not-US. You folks over in Albion and Eire just use it more frequently and wantonly.

[TheMightyEthan]

US "pry" = UK "prize"

 

As in "he pried it open"/"he prized it open".

[TheFlyingGerbil]

I'd say we use pry as well, but would spell prise with an s

[deanb]

prised = as in prised open the door

pry = pry into someone's personal life

prize = something you win.

 

Also we use pry too. depends on your mood I guess.

[Mr. GOH!]

prised = as in prised open the door

pry = pry into someone's personal life

prize = something you win.

 

Also we use pry too. depends on your mood I guess.

 

This is true in America as well.

 

It almost drove me nuts not correcting the status update that used 'prized' instead pf 'prised.'

[Mr W Phallus]

prised = as in prised open the door

pry = pry into someone's personal life

prize = something you win.

 

Also we use pry too. depends on your mood I guess.

You forgot prized = highly valued

 

Yay for homophones.

[TheMightyEthan]

I looked it up, "prize" is an accepted "alternate spelling". I looked it up because I too thought it was "prise" for prying.

 

Also, GOH, it's true in America too? I have never heard/seen anyone except Commonwealth people use prise/prize.

[deanb]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_slang - the treasure trove.

 

Also Charlie Brooker demands americans learn the british fascination with this town http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_End and apply it to Donald Trump

[TheMightyEthan]

What's the British fascination with that town?

[Mr. GOH!]

I looked it up, "prize" is an accepted "alternate spelling". I looked it up because I too thought it was "prise" for prying.

 

Also, GOH, it's true in America too? I have never heard/seen anyone except Commonwealth people use prise/prize.

 

Yeah, it's not exactly the most common and most folks here would use pry as an exact synonym, but I've seen and heard prise used (never the z spelling except on the internet and in Merriam-Webster, that ol' anglophobic lexicon).

[Mr W Phallus]

What's the British fascination with that town?

There are funny pictures of it on google images.

 

Honest.

[deanb]

Phallus there's a problem, this is what google images chucks up:

 

 

 

Just pictures of british people fascinated with the town.

[Mr W Phallus]

Oh well in that case just search my name.

[Hot Heart]

You say "also." Could you elaborate on the other meaning(s)?

 

It originally meant something serious or threatening.

 

But I guess its informal meaning is now more widely recognised.

[TheMightyEthan]

Ah, I get the "bell end" thing now. (Didn't google it, Phallus' hint was enough.)

[Yantelope]

made redundant = laid off?

 

I've heard this phrase a lot recently. I don't think anyone says it in the US.

[deanb]

Yeah.

You're no longer needed, but not really done anything bad enough to be fired. So you're redundant instead.

[TheMightyEthan]

I know with layoffs if the company starts hiring again they're often contractually obligated to offer the positions to laid-off employees before they can start bringing in new people. Is it the same over there with people who have been "made redundant"?

[deanb]

Err dunno on that one.

[deanb]

So this one I think is going to require a bit of back n forth before it gets laid down.

 

Education.

 

The ages will be rough estimates given everyone is at different ages, yet the academic year stays the same.

 

Nursery/Pre-school

Age 4. So this isn't really school, and I'm not even sure if it's compulsory. Kids go for half a day.

 

Primary School

This is divided into to Infant school, and Junior school. And in some schools that's an architectural divide too, with the school sort of split in half between the age groups. Main difference is size, lower coat pegs n smaller toilets.

Starts with "Reception", about age 5. Reception is more an introduction to school life, than education proper. Infant school is up to Year 3. At the end of Year 2 you apparently (I don't remember doing them, at that age) do SATs, which test English, Maths n Sciences. You're given a numerical grade (1 is the lowest, up to 8). This is known officially as "Key Stage 1"

Junior school is Year 4 to Year 6. (Year 6 is about 10 years old) At the end of Year 6 you do SATs again (these I remember). By Year 6 you're expected to get a level 4. (the standard test at that age can only give a max of a level 5, so schools have to manually put forward students to take the tests that go up to 6. But that may have changed). This is the end of "Key Stage 2"

Just to reinforce: Primary school is the entire thing, the infant n junior division is in name only.

 

Secondary School

This starts at age 10/11. You start in Year 7. There's a vague divide. In Year 9 you do your final SATs. This is "Key Stage 3". In year 9 you're expected to get a 5/6 on average with the max of 8 being possible. In year 9 you pick which GCSEs you'll be taking in the following 2 years. Depending on how old the person you're talking to depends on what they had for GCSEs. Some might have CSEs, some (i.e most of our parents) have O-Levels.

GCSEs take place during Year 10 and Year 11. That's age 14-16. GCSE's are graded A*-G. Technically all are a pass, but a C is considered the lowest rung by most. Your GCSE's are the grades you stick on your CV.

 

Further Education

This is where it gets messy for a bit. Further Education is entirely optional. There are several routes to take. I'll let others fill in more on what they've done. I personally went to College. An art college. There I took a BTEC National Dilpoma. It's a single certification, and nets you a three part grade that is Passed, Passed with Merit, and Passed with Distinction. Shortened to DDD/ "triple distinction"(what I got). A college is an academic setting that teaches vocational skills on a single area. You do several modules over 2 years, each are graded then it all gets mashed into the single grade at the end. I also took an A-Level which I'll go into more detail in the next paragraph.

An alternative is Sixth Form. This is a more academically focused education, and is more of an extension on secondary school. Some Secondary Schools also have a Sixth Form as part of it. Sixth Form is Years 12 and Years 13. You take 5(someone want to correct that?) AS-levels in first year. These can be on anything you want (Well as long as your GCSE grades allow it). Then in Year 13 you carry some of these AS-levels on to A2-levels. These combine to became an A-level. (at my college the AS was mandatory, if you were good enough n they reckoned you could do it, you could turn it into a full A-level) An A-level uses the same grading system as GCSEs, A to whatever.

Then there's also Modern Apprenticeships. I think this is what my brother is doing. This is pretty much a job, just with certification at the end of it. You get an NVQ with this one. An apprenticeship involves some time spent at work, learning on the job and applying skills, and some time at college(or whatever) doing the academic side of things as well as checking in.

 

When going into Further Education you're eligible for an "EMA", Education Maintenance Allowance. This is a means tested grant of £10/£20/£30 per week. If you hit grading and attendance targets you get termly bonus of £100. I think the Conservatives want to scrap this. (Can't have the poor vermin learning things, they might get ideas). I think EMA is for college n Sixth form only. (since modern apprenticeships gets you a wage, no matter how low)

 

Higher Education

Then you apply for UCAS. UCAS is the University applications. They take whatever certification you have and boil it down to a universal point score out of 360. So taking that extra A-level can really help. Universities will say that a course requires a UCAS score of x points. Mine was a requirement of 275, if you had 300 or more you got a scholarship of £1000 a year.

You also apply for a Student Loan. Everyone is eligible for them. It's done through a semi-government body called the Students Loan Company (inventive name huh) alongside Student Finance. (SLC supply the cash n such, Student Finance deal with the bureaucratic side of things and they're the ones you apply to). You can apply for Tuition Fee loan, Maintenance loan and a maintenance grant. The tuition fee is a flat up about. As it stands it's currently £3,225 (as you may have heard, it soon goes up to £9,000). That covers the cost of your course. Maintenance loan is a a set amount like the tuition fee. This covers the cost of rent, buying books, food etc. It varies depending on if you live in london or nor, or if you'll live at home during uni. The grant is means tested. The poor get more, the rich get jack shit. The grant isn't called a loan, cos you don't pay this back.

You pay this back at a rate of 9% of everything you earn over £15,000 salary. You earn £16K in a year, you pay 9% of £1000, so £90 (you earn less than £15K, you pay nothing). This is taken out of your wage. This goes on until you've paid the loan back, or it's been 25 years since you went to uni, or you turn 65 years old. Completing a 3 year course will mean you owe the gov't around about £16,000 (yep taking a 3 year course will cost you, course fees, rent, living costs: £16K) Oh if you're Scottish you get the whole thing paid for you, don't owe a penny back.

 

University takes place over 3 years as an Undergraduate student. Some courses have a sandwich year between years 2 n 3 where you can go get a job in the field. You get a bachelors degree in whatever field you are doing. I'll have a BA, Bachelor of Arts. There's tons of others. This is graded as 1, 2:1, 2:2 and 3. a first being the highest.

You can then go into work, or take a Post-graduate degree course to get a Masters or a Doctorate. (my course leads on to a Masters)

 

So. Anyone want to explain the US system. Maybe correct anything I have wrong here. Like A-levels.

 

 

[TheMightyEthan]

I'll give a really brief overview of US school system (the public one, a lot of private schools do their own thing, but this is the "standard"):

 

Preschool/Pre-K

Before Kindergarten, so 4 or younger more or less. Basically this is more like educational day care than school proper.

 

Kindergarten

Age 4-5 or so. Often half-day, but I've heard of some full-day.

 

Grade/Elementary School

Grades 1-5 or 1-6, so ages 6 to about 11 or 12.

 

Middle School/Junior High

Grades 6-8, 6-9, 7-8, or 7-9, depending on where you are.

Ages anywhere from 11-15, depending on which grades are in there.

 

High School

Grades 9-12 or 10-12. So ages 14 or 15 to 18. Most places though school is only mandatory until age 16, so some people drop out before finishing high school (then later when you realize you can't get a job without graduating high school you can take a test called the GED which gives you the equivalent of a high school diploma).

 

Post high school graduation it gets more complicated. There are Community Colleges, which tend to offer 2 year degrees. There are Junior Colleges which (I believe) are also usually 2 years, but people normally go to those because either their grades weren't good enough or they couldn't afford to go to a 4 year university right out of high school, so they go to a Junior College first and then transfer to a 4 year university, because it's often easier to get accepted when transferring, and it's also cheaper. There are 4-year universities (colloquially referred to as "college") where you can go to get a 4-year Bachelor's degree, and then they also often have post graduate programs (like Master's/Doctorate programs). 4-year universities are usually made up of "colleges"; so like Kansas State University had the College of Engineering, and the College of Architecture, and the College of Arts and Sciences, etc.

[deanb]

Oh yeah our university is made up of schools. I go to the School of Computing. SCM for short( it used to be "and Maths". I don't know if other uni's are like that though.

http://www.tees.ac.uk/sections/schools/

[SomTervo]

Huh.

 

Scottish system's pretty simple:

 

Nursery- age 4/5. Bit more than half a day, I think, finishes early afternoon. You get some pre-school clubs but they're basically all private.

 

Primary School, P1-P7- from age 4/5/6 (I think) to 11/12. Tests are simply for teacher's guidance to help with problems.

 

Secondary School, S1-S6- from age 11/12 through to 16/17/18. You study under the Primary school grading system in the first two years, you study give/take 8 Standard Grades in 3rd and 4th year. You can leave at 16, after your standard grades if you want, but most stay on for Highers or Advanced Highers in 5th and 6th year: S5 and S6.

 

Further/Higher Education- College or University basically. University is 4 years, unlike in England, unless you go to England, but you have to pay there you can also go up to 5 years, or to 7 for a PhD. At University a Bachelors is 3 years, Masters is 4. Uni is seperated into Colleges (I go to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences), and each Uni College is split into schools (I go to the Language and literatures one). You apply to both college and Uni through UCAS, by the manner Dean explained.

 

Regular polytechnic/ national College lets you do any course you want, really, and they all vary in length from a year to a 3 year Higher National Diploma/Certificate.

 

 

Also, Dean, it varies, but I'm pretty sure for paragraphing you either indent the first line and leave no line break between paragraphs, or you don't indent and leave a line break between paragraphs? More of a nitpick of mine but it always makes posts look neater.

Edited May 9, 2011 by kenshi_ryden

[TheMightyEthan]

You can indent and also have a line break, but if you don't indent you definitely need a line break, and vice-versa.

[Hot Heart]

You should really put those sorts of things in the pet peeves thread. Much easier for Dean to ignore them that way.