Ukrainian traditions

    The Ukrainians, like any other people, have their own customs and traditions: many of these are very old, some appear nowadays. Most of the customs are connected with the religious festivals or with Ukrainian dwelling. The most popular holidays are Christmas, Easter, New Year and a lot of others.

   Christmas is the most favourite holiday in the Christian world. No wonder that every country has its own traditions of celebration. In the most countries it is kept on the 25^th of December. But in our country it is marked on January the 7^th. We have many interesting traditions to celebrate Christ’s birth, and most of them come from the ancient times. In Ukraine this holiday symbolizes the reunion of the whole family. This holiday brings a fairy tale to our lives and wakes a very special feeling of the family and tradition.

   As for me, Christmas is my favourite holiday. It is very special. We celebrate it only in the family circle. The evening before Christmas is called Holy Eve, and mother cooks Holy Supper. The supper consists of twelve traditional dishes, and after the prayer we taste each of them. In the corner of the room father puts “didukh”(sheaves of wheat), which represents all our late relatives. It symbolizes the reunion of the whole family. That’s why Christmas is not only my favourite holiday; it’s much respected by all Ukrainian people.

   On the Christmas Evening the religious people go to church; some of them spend the whole night there – they pray and listen to Christmas religious songs which glorify Christ’s birthday. Another religious festival in winter is Twelfth-day or the Jordanian Holiday which is celebrated on memory of Jesus Christ’s christening on the 19^th of January. In the morning of the Jordanian Holiday the festival procession goes from a church to a river or to a pond where christening of water takes place. After that the priest consecrates the peoples’ homes and things.

   The last winter holiday is Pancake day or Maslyanitsa which dates back to the ancient Slavic tradition of saying farewell to winter and welcoming spring by singing, dancing, burning the straw effigy of Maslyanitsa and eating pancakes. On this day people dance, sing songs and play folk games.

  There are many other interesting customs and traditions in Ukraine, too. We must respect our traditions and continue them because it is our history.

Webinar " Creative writing"

On Monday, March 26 our group was participants of webinar about creative  writing. We did various tasks  improving our writing skills and building up our vocabulary. Also it was very useful to know the ways we can apply innovative technology to the lesson in the classroom. We understood that technology capabilities are potentially useful for foreign language learning and other subjects. In my opinion this work is creative. It develops different sides of human personality, reveals his abilities.

I am so glad that I took part in this webinar. Thank you very much!

The advantages and disadvantages of mass media

    Mass media play a very important role in our everyday life. They serve to inform people of different events that take place or may happen. Also they entertain people or even help to make their life better. But the most important thing that newspapers, radio or TV bring to people is information. The process of sharing information in the modern world is extremely intense. In all countries is becoming more complex social cultural phenomenon that applies to various activities and is inseparable from the study of languages​​, political and social, economic, scientific, educational and technological development. That is why a significant and constant amount of information students receive through the media.                                                                                                

   Print media has traditionally been one of the main means in the system of mass media. The print media includes newspapers, magazines, brochures, newsletters, books and even leaflets and pamphlets. Visual media like photography can also be mentioned under this sub-head, since photography is an important mass media, which communicates via visual representations. Although, it is said that the electronic or new media have replaced the print media, there exists a majority of audiences who prefer the print media for various communication purposes.  

       Newspapers are a valuable source of educational material such as learning a foreign language.   They offer an interesting, topical and various information. Students can actively use newspaper in addition to the textbook and as an additional source for reading and writing. Reading the documentary essays, various articles, advertisements, etc. to help students apply grammar and quantitative skills, understand the importance to keep abreast of current events. Also students can discuss what they have read the next day in the class.  Some researches have found that the benefits of working with the newspaper's material is much higher than just getting actual information from the textbook. However, print media also has its own disadvantages. Here, we shall take a quick look at the advantages and disadvantages of print media.

    The advantages of print media:

·        Print mass media focus public attention on the most urgent problems of the society. Those may be problems in health care, education, transportation or even corruption in government.

·        Complete and accurate information is very important to get nowadays.

·        It is useful that print media provide people in small towns and villages with the information of what takes place in society, and are also means of entertainment.

    The disadvantages of print media:

·        This medium may not always give you a wide reach. Internet, on the other hand, can target a global audience.

·        There is a limitation in terms of the kind of people who may actually read your message. The particular newspaper may not actually be accessible every time to your target group, which means, your message may be missed! The Internet on the other hand, can be accessed from anywhere.

       Thus, we can see, there are certain pros and cons of print media. With proper planning, you can opt for the right form to gain maximum coverage and make the best of this medium!

Television in the USA

     Television is one of the major mass media of the United States. Ninety-nine percent of American households have at least one television and majority of households have more than one.
     There are a lot of commercial and non-commercial stations. Most commercial stations are affiliated with one of the national commercial networks: ABC (American Broadcasting Company), NBC (National Broadcasting Company), CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System), or Fox Broadcasting Company. These networks are not television stations or channels or programs. They are not licensed to broadcast. Networks are essentially program distribution companies. They buy programs from independent television production companies and sell these programs to individual television stations. The network is paid by advertisers to insert commercial announcements on the program the network buys.
     On the average, American viewers watch TV four hours a day, usually tuned to one of the national commercial networks: ABC, NBC, CBS, or Fox Broadcasting Company. These stations attract about 98 percent of TV audiences. During a sixty-minute TV program, you can expect to see about twelve minutes of commercials.       

     The commercial networks broadcast a variety of shows: news, drama, soap operas, comedy, sports, music, movies, children`s programs, game shows, and talk shows. There is a lot of competition for viewers, especially during prime time, from 7 to 11 p.m. Ratings, published in the newspapers, measure the audience for the top ten programs.
     PBS (Public Broadcasting Service), supported by government and private funding, is the only noncommercial network. It broadcasts more serious drama, performing arts, science, public-affairs documentaries, and educational children`s programs. Sesame Street, the most popular children`s show on PBS, appears on TV stations all over the world. All five networks broadcast twenty-four hours a day.
     Some viewers pay to receive a wider selection of programs on cable television. There are up to 500 cable stations. Two well-known ones are HBO (Home Box Office), which shows movies, and CNN (Cable News Network), which specializes in news.
     All of the networks have nationwide news programs. All have regularly scheduled news series. Among the most popular are CBS`s Sixty Minutes and PBS`s The MacNeil\Lehrer Newshour. The world`s the most durable TV show is NBC`s Meet the Press. In this show, important political figures and leaders are interviewed by journalists.
     All television stations in the US, public or private, must be licensed to broadcast by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), an independent federal agency. Each license is given for a few years only.
     There are no fees, charges, taxes or licenses in the USA foe owning television receivers or receiving anything that is broadcast through the air. There is no government censorship or `reviewing` of programs and content. But `family viewing time` from 7 to 9 o`clock in the evening has been introduced. During these hours programs containing violence and sexual suggestiveness are kept to a minimum.

Print mass media

    

 The media play an important role in the life of society. The press, the radio and TV inform, educate and entertain people. They also influence the way people look at the world and make them change their views.

        The print media includes newspapers, magazines, brochures, newsletters, books and even leaflets and pamphlets. Millions of people in their spare-time read newspapers. It is impossible to imagine our life without newspapers. Millions of copies of them appear every day. Many people subscribe to two or more newspapers, others buy newspapers on the newsstands.There are a large variety of newspapers and magazines. One can find newspapers of all kinds: national and local, official and private, special newspapres for children, teenagers, for all kinds of fans - sport fans, music fans,etc.    
       Most of the popular papers are tabloids - that is the papers with small-size pages. They place a lot of pictures, big headlines and short articles. "Quality" papers give more reading material about politics and foreign affairs: their articles are bigger in size and have much news. All types of newspapers publish a lot of adsvertisements.
        Another way to get the necessary information is to read the press online. Every morning you can look through the headlines of the famous periodicals in the net.
        Visual media like photography can also be mentioned under this sub-head, since photography is an important mass media, which communicates via visual representations. Although, it is said that the electronic or new media have replaced the print media, there exists a majority of audiences who prefer the print media for various communication purposes. Public speaking and event organizing can also be considered as a form of mass media. The print media is considered to be one of the most flourishing industries today. This medium is also particularly very popular to reach the target audience for advertisers. The different types of print mass media give a plethora of options for people to reach a varied bracket of users. So, be it newspapers or magazines, every medium has its particular advantages, a thing which should be considered to be of utmost importance by all advertisers and clients. However, print media also has its own disadvantages. Here, we shall take a quick look at the advantages and disadvantages of print media.

Advantages of Print Media:

·         Different types of print media (newspapers and magazines) have a loyal readership. This can be very useful for advertisers as compared to advertising on the Internet.

·         If you are targeting a particular geographical area, you can do so with ease through print media. For example, a local newspaper would be a best medium to advertise about a new shopping complex.

·         You can choose the size of the advertisement space. This will help you to plan the budget of the expenses to be incurred while advertising.

·         Certain forms of print media have a very loyal fans following in terms of readers. This would guarantee you added readership.

·         Magazines and newspapers are always in the eye amongst public. Magazines are read for a period of a month, which brings more attention to an advertisement.

·         You can even advertise through brochures or leaflets depending upon your target audience. If the information is in detail, a brochure can prove to be an apt option. A leaflet in that case, would be useful for a brief message.

Disadvantages of Print Media:

·         The cost incurred can sometimes be expensive considering the medium you choose.

·         The shelf life of any particular print medium is limited. Newspapers for example, are amongst the public eye only for a day.

·         This medium may not always give you a wide reach. Internet, on the other hand, can target a global audience.

·         There is a limitation in terms of the kind of people who may actually read your message. The particular newspaper may not actually be accessible every time to your target group, which means, your message may be missed! The Internet on the other hand, can be accessed from anywhere.

·         You may have to plan months in advance to advertise in print media. It does not offer you flexibility when you are faced with a tight deadline.

·         Advertisements may get lost in all the clutter of editorial and ads by competitors.

        Thus, we can see, there are certain pros and cons of print media. All in all, mass media help us to form our opinion on different events, provide us with the bimformation of what takes place in society, and are also means of entertainment.