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Question 5: Essay Writing

Lesson Procedure

1. Students brainstorm as many words as possible related to the topic of exercise: for example: nouns, verbs, adjectives, expressions. Teacher feedback to board.

2. In pairs students think of the advantages and disdavantages of doing exercises. Feedback to whole class.

3. Students read the essay and compare their list of advantages and disadvantages with the essay.

4. Students highlight the useful functional language and linkers in the essay.

5. Students write an essay about a similar topic.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of doing exercise? (120-150 words)

With so much in the news about the importance of exercise in our lives, it is a relevant topic for people of all ages. However, doing regular exercise has both advantages and disadvantages, which I will discuss in this essay.

Firstly, doing exercise clearly improves your physical well-being. Not only does it It help you to lose weight, it aso helps you to keep fit and reduces the risk of several serious illness, such as diabetes and heart disease. In addition, it relaxes you, often burning adrenalineand allowing you to get a better night’s sleep. Another point to add is that regular exercise makes you look better; it tones your muscles and increases your muscle mass. It is also thought to provide a good option to a healthy social life, particularly for teenagers, who spend time and dedication practising team sports, such as hockey and basketball, instead of just hanging out in city centres.

Nevertheless, exercising also has some drawbacks. The most important ones are that it takes up time, young people may spend from 6 -10 hours a week training and taking part in matches. It can also be costly, as you need to pay for classes, expensive equipment ad transport to and from training and matches. Another disadvantage is that young people, in particular, may suffer serious injuries while exercising, which interfere with their daily lives.

To sum up, I would say that exercising clearly has many advantages and is definitely worth doing, because of the health benefits it has. However, it is important to choose what type of exercise you do, so that it does not take up too much of your free time.

from Mary Finbow

KEY

What are the advantages and disadvantages of doing exercise?

With so much in the news about the importance of exercise, it is a topic of importance to people of all ages. However, doing regular exercise has both advantages and disadvantages, which I will discuss in this essay.

Firstly, doing exercise clearly improves your physical well-being. Not only does it It help you to lose weight, it also helps you to keep fit and reduces the risk of several serious illness, such as diabetes and heart disease. In addition, it relaxes you, often burning adrenaline and allowing you to get a better night’s sleep. Another point to add is that regular exercise makes you look better; it tones your muscles and increases your muscle mass. It is also thought to provide a good option to a healthy social life, particularly for teenagers, who spend time and dedication practising team sports, like hockey and basketball, instead of just hanging out in city centres.

Nevertheless, exercising also has some drawbacks. The most important ones are that it takes up time, young people may spend from 6 -10 hours a week training and taking part in matches. It can also be costly, as you need to pay for classes, expensive equipment ad transport to and from training and matches. Another disadvantage is that young people, in particular, may suffer serious injuries while exercising, which interfere with their daily lives.

To sum up, I would say that exercising clearly has many advantages and is definitely worth doing, because of the health benefits it has. However, it is important to choose what type of exercise you do, so that it does not take up too much of your free time.

A for and against essay

Check your writing: gap fill

useful phrases

Fill the gaps in the essay with the correct word or phrase from the box.

Another drawback is

One advantage of

Personally

In addition

On the other hand

There is no doubt

positive aspect of

To conclude

1

__________________________ that the subject of keeping animals in zoos creates a lot of debate. Some people say zoos are traditional family entertainment and good for animals. Others say keeping animals in zoos is cruel and inhumane.

2__________________________ zoos isthat they give people the chance to see and learn about animals. This makes people more likely to want to look after animals and protect their natural habitats. Another3__________________________ zoos is that they help to protect endangered species by offering them a safe place to live.

4

__________________________,zoos help to find mates for endangered species. For example, many pandas would not find a mate to breed with if they were on their own in the wild.

5__________________________,there are many arguments against keeping animals in zoos. Firstly, zoo animals often suffer from stress and boredom when they are not in their natural habitat. Secondly, unwanted animals are sometimes sold to circuses, hunting parks or for meat.

6__________________________ that animals sometimes escape from their enclosures, which is dangerous for humans.

7__________________________,there are strong arguments for and against keeping animals in zoos.8__________________________,I think it is acceptable to keep animals in zoos, aslong as they have enough space and are properly looked after.

KEY

1.There is no doubt

2.One advantage of

3.positive aspect of

4. In addition

5.On the other hand

6.Another drawback is

7. To conclude

8. Personally

Text messages that end in a period seen as less sincere

      If you don't want to send the wrong message, watch how you punctuate your texts. Text messages that end with a period are perceived to be less sincere than messages that do not, according to newly published research from Binghamton University.
      A team of researchers led by Celia Klin, associate professor of psychology and associate dean at Binghamton University's Harpur College, recruited 126 Binghamton undergraduates, who read a series of exchanges that appeared either as text messages or as handwritten notes. In the 16 experimental exchanges, the sender's message contained a statement followed by an invitation phrased as a question (e.g., Dave gave me his extra tickets. Wanna come?). The receiver's response was an affirmative one-word response (Okay, Sure, Yeah, Yup). There were two versions of each experimental exchange: one in which the receiver's response ended with a period and one in which it did not end with any punctuation. Based on the participants' responses, text messages that ended with a period were rated as less sincere than text messages that did not end with a period.

      According to Klin, these results indicate that punctuation influences the perceived meaning of text messages. Even though most of the important social and contextual cues were missing, the sincerity of the short messages was evaluated differently depending on the presence or absence of a period.
      "Texting is lacking many of the social cues used in actual face-to-face conversations. When speaking, people easily convey social and emotional information with eye gaze, facial expressions, tone of voice, pauses, and so on," said Klin. "People obviously can't use these mechanisms when they are texting. Thus, it makes sense that texters rely on what they have available to them- emoticons, deliberate misspellings that mimic speech sounds and, according to our data, punctuation."
      In some very recent follow-up work, Klin's team found that a text response with an exclamation mark is interpreted as more, rather than less, sincere.
      "That's not surprising, but it broadens our claim," said Klin. "Punctuation is used and understood by texters to convey emotions and other social and pragmatic information. Given that people are wonderfully skilled at communicating complex information in conversations, it's not surprising that as texting evolves, people are finding ways to convey the same types of information in their texts."

Question 1: Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer. 

a) People from all ages participated in the study.
b) People on the study were shown different kinds of texts.
c) Language signals vary a lot in personal interactions.
d) People sometimes spell words wrongly to make messages sound real.
e) Texters are not willing to change the way they communicate.

Question 3: Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given. 

a) to evaluate (par.2) 
b) signal (par.3) 
c) to transmit (par.4) 
d) done on purpose (par.4) 
e) to develop (par.6)

Question 5: Write a short essay (about 120-150 words) on the following topic:

We are changing the way we interact. Do you agree?


KEY



Question 1: Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer. 

a) FALSE “ recruited 126 Binghamton undergraduates”
b) TRUE “ a series of exchanges that appeared either as text messages or as handwritten notes”
c) TRUE “When speaking, people easily convey social and emotional information with eye gaze, facial expressions, tone of voice, pauses, and so on”
d) TRUE “ deliberate misspellings that mimic speech sounds”
e) FALSE “ people are finding ways to convey the same types of information in their texts”

Question 3: Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given. 

a) rated / (to) rate b) cue(s) c) (to) convey d) deliberate e) evolves / (to) evolve

Linkers in an essay

Complete the gaps in this essay by means of the linkers provided. There is more than one possibility in some gaps.

Another reason / As a consequence / As a result / as a result / as a result / Because / caused by / Consequently / even / For all these reasons / However / however / In contrast / in order to / On the other hand / Otherwise / result(s) in / so much...that / so...that / The main cause / therefore

            Two 12-year-old girls are standing outside a mini-mart. They are wearing matching tube tops and short skirts like Britney Spears clones. One holds a cigarette, like an adult, where everyone can see her.   She looks around to make sure other girls are noticing her.  When asked why she dresses the way she does, she says that she likes it. 1___________ ,  it seems that the reason for her behavior is more complex.   More specifically, it has more to do with her ambiguous role as a pre-teen in society.  A young girl's wanna-be look is 2____________ personal insecurity and peer pressure.

            3____________ for mimicking teen-idols is personal insecurity.   Pre-teens are in between child and adult stages. They are no longer children and, 4____________ , the ways they behaved in the past are no longer appropriate. 5____________,  they are not yet adults; 6____________, they do not know the ways of the adult world. This conflict can 7____________ feelings of insecurity. 8____________, when they were younger, they could whine and cry to get attention from their parents and other children. 9____________, that kind of behavior would be "uncool" around their teenage peers. Often 10___________ , the preteen does not know how to act his or her age. 11____________ preteens do no know what to do, they often turn to copy-cat behavior as a way to fit in and be more secure.

            A second cause is that preteens feel they need to be popular 12____________ be more secure within their own age group. 13____________, they turn toward models of popularity - teen idols - and start dressing like them. Unfortunately, many of their idols dress and behave in ways that are not age-appropriate. Teens need better role models than Hollywood currently has to offer.  14____________, they interpret "dressing up" as wearing provocative, sexy clothing, rather than clothing that makes them look good and feel comfortable and secure. 15____________ of their need to be popular, young girls start dressing and acting as if they were much older than they really are.

            16____________ for young girls mimicking teen idols is peer pressure. They often see the adults closest to them, their parents and teachers, as "uncool", 17____________ as enemies. 18____________, they turn to peers who pressure each other to look, act, and dress exactly alike. This peer group can exert 19____________ pressure ____________ often preteens do things as a group that they would not normally do. One of these things is spending ridiculous amounts of money on idol clothing-lines.  That's right!  Young Hollywood celebrities are making money off  their twelve-year old "peers" who give in to peer pressure.  The peer pressure here is 20____________ great ____________ most normal girls will succumb. 21____________, we can see that personal insecurity, desire to be popular and peer pressure can cause a young girl to look like a little "tart" standing outside of a mini-mart.

KEY

1 However / 2 caused by  3 The main cause / 4 as a result / 5 On the other hand / 6 therefore / 7 result in /

8 In contrast / 9 However / 10 as a result / 11 Because 12 in order to / 13 Consequently / 14 Otherwise / 15 As a result/consequence 16 Another reason / 17 even / 18 As a consequence/result / 19 so much...that / 20 so...that / 21 For all these reasons

Fake News

Newspaper vocabulary

Complete the sentences by using the following words

Use each word once only.

Caption                   Cartoon                                   Circulation

Comic strip             Crossword                               Editorial

Feature                   Gossip column                        Headline

Horoscope              Obituary                                  Preview

Review                    Supplement                            Tabloid

1. The …………………. At the top of the page said “TALKS FAIL”
2. The newspaper has increased its ………………….. 2,000 copies a day.
3. He was unhappy at some of the comments in the …………..of his latest film.
4. I always turn to the ………….. first. I love reading about the private lives of famous people.
5. I like the ……………they’ve put below this picture.
6. I prefer a …………………newspaper because it’s a more convenient size.
7. They did a full-page special ……………………on poverty in inner city areas.
8. She drew the political……………..on the front page.
9. I must read my ………………to see if I’m going to have a good day.
10. The critics went to a special ……………………….of the musical, which opens next week.
11. In his ………………it sais he died of a heart attack.
12. The guide to the air show came as a free…………….….to the local newspaper.
13. I only need one more word to complete the ……………………….
14. If there’s an exciting ………….., people will keep buying the newspaper to see what happens next.
15. There was a short but effective………….giving the newspaper’s opinion of the new defence policy.

KEY

1. Headline
2. Circulation
3. Review
4. Gossip column
5. Caption
6. Tabloid
7. Feature
8. Cartoon
9. Horoscope
10. Preview
11. Obituary
12. Supplement
13. Crossword
14. Comic strip
15. Editorial

From Build up your vocabulary. LTP.

Facebook’s tips for spotting fake news

Use each of these tips for spotting fake news to complete sentences below

1)    Be sceptical of headlines

2)    Check the dates

3)    Check the evidence

4)    Check the photos

5)    Check the source

6)    Is the story a joke?

7)    Look at other reports

8)    Look closely at the URL

9)    Some stories are intentionally false.

10) Watch for unusual formatting

1)  _______________________ The headlines of fake news stories are often catchy, and contain lots of capital letters and exclamation marks. If claims in the headline sound unbelievable, they may well be.

2)  _______________________  Many false news stories mimic authentic news sources by making small changes to the site address. You can go to the site to compare them to established sources.

3)  _______________________ Ensure the story comes from one with a reputation for accuracy. If the story comes from a site you have not heard of, check their “About” section to learn more.

4)   _______________________ Many false news stories often contain spelling and grammar errors, as well as an awkward looking layout.

5)  _______________________ False news stories often contain manipulated images or videos. Sometimes the y may be authentic, but taken out of context. You can do an internet search of the image to find out where it came from.

6)  _______________________ Fake news stories may contain timelines that make no sense, or event dates which are wrong or have been altered.

7)   _______________________ Check the author’s sources to confirm they are accurate. Lack of confirmation, or a reliance on unnamed experts may indicate false news.

8)   _______________________ If no other news source is reporting the same story, it could indicate that it is false.

9)  _______________________ Sometimes false news stories can be hard to distinguish from humourous articles. Check whether the source is known for parody, and whether the story’s details and tone suggest it may be just for fun.

10)                _______________________ Think critically about the stories that you read, and only share articles which you know to be credible.

KEY

1)    Be sceptical of headlines.

2)    Look closely at the URL.

3)    Check the source.

4)    Watch for unusual formatting.

5)    Check the photos.

6)    Check the dates.

7)    Check the evidence.

8)    Look at other reports.

9)    Is the story a joke?

10) Some stories are intentionally false. 

Fake news: What exactly is it?

            "Fake news" was not a term many people used 18 months ago, but it is now seen as one of the greatest threats to democracy, free debate and the Western order. It has been named the word of the year, raised tensions between nations, and may lead to regulation of social media. And yet, nobody can agree on what it is, how much of a problem it is, and what to do about it.

            Governments and powerful individuals have used information as a weapon for millennia, to boost their support. From a campaign of disinformation to aid victory in the final war of the Roman Republic to the 20th century, different forms of communication have been by governments. Added to that, as populations became more used to mass communication, they could more easily see through it.

            Before the internet, it was much more expensive to distribute information, building up trust took years, and there were much simpler definitions of what constituted news and media, making regulation or self-regulation easier. But the rise of social media has broken down many of the boundaries that prevented fake news from spreading in democracies. In particular it has allowed anyone to create and disseminate information.

            Facebook and Twitter allowed people to exchange information on a much greater scale than ever before, while publishing platforms like WordPress allowed anyone to create a dynamic website with ease. In short, the barriers to creating fake news have been undone.

            After widespread criticism that the companies are failing to deal with fake news, Twitter, Facebook and Google have all announced measures to crack down on misinformation online. Facebook, which has faced the most scrutiny, says it is enlisting fact checkers to flag stories, cutting off advertising to fake news sites, and better reviewing adverts on the site. Twitter says it has become better at dealing with bots, and Google has promised better algorithms to police YouTube.

            However, critics continue to argue that not enough is being done, and that the tech companies are reluctant to take action, for fear of being seen as biased.

            Spotting fake news isn't easy: a Stanford study last year found that students were shockingly bad at distinguishing between different types of material online, whether paid for, fake or legitimate. Facebook has a useful list of ways to spot fake news, which include checking other sources and a site's URL.

Adapted from The Telegraph

Question 1: [2 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

           

            a) There is already a legislation on fake news on social media.

            b) Internet has made the delivery of information cheaper.

            c) It is very easy to create a website thanks to Facebook or Twitter.

            d) Young people are the best at spotting fake news.

Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given.

           

            a) to discern (par.2)

            b) limit (par.3)

            c) extensive (par.5)

            d) close examination (par.5)

            e) influenced (par.6)

           

Question 5: [3 POINTS] Write a short essay (about 120-150 words) on the following topic:

How can the use of social media affect our daily life?

KEY

Question 1: [2 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

           

            a) FALSE “ may lead to regulation of social media”

            b) TRUE “Before the internet, it was much more expensive to distribute information,”

            c) FALSE “ publishing platforms like WordPress allowed anyone to create a dynamic website with ease”

            d) FALSE “ students were shockingly bad at distinguishing between different types of material online, whether paid for, fake or legitimate”

Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and definitions given.

           

            a) see through

            b) boundary/boundaries

            c) widespread

            d) scrutiny

            e) biased

            

Fake News multiple choice

Nope, A Woman Didn't Fake Being Blind For 28 Years To Avoid Social Interactions

         A story about a Spanish woman pretending to be blind for 28 years to avoid social interactions has gone massively viral. Unfortunately, it's not true. The viral hoax started as a joke on a satirical Spanish website.

         The hoax originated with the satirical Spanish website Hay Noticia, the tagline of which translates to "Don't believe everything on the internet."  According to the satirical story, a 57-year-old woman named Carmen Jiménez faked being blind for almost three decades because she didn't like small talk.

         "I was tired of seeing people and stopping to say hello. I've never been very social, and pretending to be blind has avoided many social commitments," the fictitious Jiménez is quoted as saying.

         The hoax, versions of which were published on viral aggregators like Viral Thread and Oddity Central, has got tens of thousands of shares, comments, and reactions on Facebook. The Irish celebrity gossip magazine RSVP even attributed one of Jiménez's quotes to a non-existent Sky News interview.

         The photo accompanying most of the stories, showing a blonde woman with glasses, is a free stock image available from Pixabay.

         An Instagram post with Lowthion's image on the fake story has got almost 250,000 likes since it was uploaded by the popular account FuckJerry, which has more than 12 million followers. Lowthion told an Isle of Wight newspaper she was surprised to see her face associated with a viral hoax, although being a public figure means there are many photos of her online.

         "But 12.2 million followers? And saying I'm a 57-year-old Spanish woman?! I'm not sure that's so much of a compliment," Lowthion told the Isle of Wight County Press.

From Buzzfeed.com

Choose the most suitable answer (a, b, or c) according to the text.

1. The woman pretended to be blind...

a. as if to avoid social interactions.

b. so to avoid social interactions.

c. in order to avoid social interactions.

2. The woman faked being blind...

a. for nearly thirty years.

b. during nearly thirty years.

c. since nearly thirty years.

3. According to magazine RSVP, the woman...

a. interviewed Sky News.

b. was interviewed by Sky News.

c. was interviewed by RSVP.

4. There are many photos of Lowthion online...

a. as a result of being a public figure.

b. although she is a public figure.

c. even though she is a public figure.

KEY

1-c, 2-a, 3-b, 4-a