I grew up in a small town and then moved to a big city, so I have experienced the good and bad sides of both. I never thought th

Some people would like to live in a small town; others would rather live in a big city. What is your preference—living in a small town or a big city? Include details and examples to support your answer.
You may begin to prepare your response after the beep. Please begin your response after the beep.
Please Listen Carefully.
Open University is planning to increase an enormous variety of higher education coursework through information technology internally and externally. Read the announcement about the increase from the president of the Open University. You will have 45 seconds to read the announcement. Begin reading now.
Now listen to two students as they discuss the announcement.
Jack Terrific! We’ll have opportunities to actually learn something practical next semester.
Mary Yeah, it’s great! You know, there is really a lot we have to learn in order to keep pace with the rapid development of society, especially in science and technology. After our career plans, we have to specialize in certain subjects and get further training. So we should take more courses now. The increase in courses will help us gain expertise.
Jack Really, you’re right. More courses will provide us with detailed knowledge and thus broaden our horizons.
Mary And the other thing is, well, the increased competition among graduates always worries me as to my chances for finding a job after graduation. You know, learning only from books is not sufficient.
Jack Indeed, I think every one of us has this kind of anxiety.
Mary Training courses can broaden our skills. All that we should learn and practice, I think, will be obtained through our own efforts. The increase in available coursework next semester will be a great opportunity.