Academic English

Listen to the recording on student excuses and read along with the conversation.

Student: Oh, oh, uh. Oh, Mrs. Smith. Uh, can I take the test now? I just . . . oh.

Mrs. Smith: Excuse me? What do you mean? The test ended 10 minutes ago, and you weren’t there to take it. Sorry.

Student: Oh, Mrs. Smith. Come on. Come on. That’s not fair.

Mrs. Smith: What do you mean it’s not fair? Everyone else was there. Why weren’t you in class?

Student: Uh, my bus didn’t come this morning on time. That’s why.

Mrs. Smith: Um. Are you sure? [Wha . . . Yeah.] Your friend, Tony, made it to class, and he [Oh . . .] said you were still in bed an hour ago.

Student: Uhh, yeah, well, that might be true, but I really need to take the test.

Mrs. Smith: Wait. Don’t you realize you just lied to me?

Student: Uh, we–well, listen. Mrs. Smith. Listen. My alarm didn’t go off this morning, so it’s not my fault I came late.

Mrs. Smith: You’re blaming your alarm clock again? It’s still your responsibility to be here. Wasn’t that your excuse the last two times you missed class?

Student: But Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Smith.

Mrs. Smith: Listen. You know the policy of our program. If you miss a test for an unexcused reason . . . and a lie is definitely unexcused, then you get a zero on the test. [Aww . . .] There are no exceptions.

Student: Mrs. Smith. Why don’t you want to help me? You never help me. I mean, I really need to pass this class.

Mrs. Smith: No, no, no. Listen, listen to yourself. You’re playing what we call the victim. You made some bad choices, and now you have to accept the consequences. Remember: When you point your finger at someone else, like me in this case, three fingers are pointing back at you.

Student: But Mrs. Smith. I’ll lose my scholarship if I do poorly in the class; my parents will be really disappointed in me.

Mrs. Smith: I’m really sorry, but that’s not my problem. [Oh, Mrs. Smith!] I can’t help you with that. Don’t try to shift the blame here. [Mrs. Smith!] You painted yourself into a corner. You need to be accountable for your own actions instead of trying to weasel out of your responsibility. While you aren’t doing well in my class, though, I must say I would almost have to give you an A grade for trying to dodge the outcome of your bad choices.

Student: Mrs. Smith, co . . . Mrs. Smith.

Mrs. Smith: Listen. You are learning one thing.

Student: What?

Mrs. Smith: My name.

Student: Agh.