Category: Class

Illegal Job Interview Questions

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Job Interview – B2 – Upper intermediate

Finding a job is hard. But perhaps harder is passing a job interview, especially if competition is tough. Always let a job interview show the best of you and avoid being pressed for unnecessary information about yourself that could lead to discrimination.

Here are some questions that employers may ask applicants that are actually stepping on their boundaries.

Five Illegal Job Interview Questions in the US

Discuss:

1. Share your job interview experiences. What kind of questions were you asked?
2. Has an employer ever made you uncomfortable answering their questions?
3. What was the most outrageous question that you were asked in a job interview?
4. Aside from the questions mentioned above, what questions during job interviews do you think shouldn’t be asked?

Is a College Education Worth the Price?

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Attending college or university to complete a four- year course costs a lot of money. Is it really worth the price? Considering the high cost of education and the job market that remains weak.

http://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/is-a-college-education-worth-the-price/2469390.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Would you say that college or university education is affordable in your country?
  2. What degrees are top earners in your country?
  3. How’s the job market in your country these days?
  4. What alternatives does your country have if a person cannot afford to attend university?

Blood Test May Predict Suicide Risk

B2 – Upper Intermediate

A recent study found a simple blood test that can help identify a person’s risk of committing suicide. It is through examining levels of a particular chemical that gets expressed in a single human gene in elevated levels, in response to stress.

Read the article below to know more about a study on the mutation of gene SKA2.

 http://www.medicaldaily.com/blood-test-may-predict-suicide-risk-studying-levels-gene-mutation-ska2-295606 

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. Explain “epigenetic mutation“. “They also found that in certain subjects, this common mutation had undergone an epigenetic modification that altered the way the SKA2 gene functioned without changing the gene’s underlying DNA sequence.” Use it in a sentence.
  2. What does “precog” mean? “Not with the help of a “precog,” but by a simple blood test that examines levels of a particular chemical that gets expressed in a single human gene in elevated levels, in response to stress.” Use it in a sentence.
  3. What does “stymie” mean? “Suicide is a major preventable public health problem, but we have been stymied in our prevention efforts because we have no consistent way to predict those who are at increased risk of killing themselves.” Use it in a sentence.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do you think this kind of test could be useful in your country? How so?
  2. How else can the results of this study be useful?
  3. What psychological disorders do you know of? Please briefly discuss them.
  4. Do you think more studies should focus on psychological disorders? Why or why not?

Prison Bank

B1 – Intermediate

Banks are where we keep our savings. We always ensure our money is kept in good hands. What if the bank you choose as your partner is run by inmates and the manager himself is a convict? Find out more about this one of a kind “Prison bank”.

Discussion Questions:

1. What are the things you consider in choosing a bank?
2. Can a convict trust a fellow convict?
3. Will you entrust your savings to a criminal?
4. What is the advantage of giving responsibilities to inmates?
5. In your country, do the prisons have programs for inmates?

Young and Free: Prerequisite for Success

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Starting a career or a business when you are young is nothing but easy. Perhaps all of us went through struggles as that newbie in the company. But for some others, they used being young and free to their advantage and stopped at nothing to succeed.

Read the article below about being successful at a young age and be ready to discuss the different idiomatic expressions used in the article.

http://esl.about.com/od/businessreading/a/Young-And-Free-Prerequisite-For-Success.htm

Discussion Questions:

  1. How was your work life like the first years you joined the workforce? How has it changed over time?
  2. Describe a situation at work when you had to start from scratch.
  3. Are you the type of person who takes the bull by the horns? Talk about a time in your career when you had to make a bold move.
  4. Are you interested in working on your own startup? Why or why not?
  5. Do you agree that it’s a dog eat dog world out there? Elaborate on your thoughts.

Foodini Food Printer

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Lazy old days won’t be the same once you have a 3D printer that will just give you what you are craving for. ‘Foodini’ is an innovative machine that will print real food without taking your time preparing it. It was introduced by Natural Machines.

https://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/06/tech/innovation/foodini-machine-print-food/index.html

Discussion Questions:

1. Would you like to taste food straight from your printer? Why or why not?
2. Do you think food items processed by ‘Foodini’ are healthy? Explain your thoughts.
3. Will this machine be a helpful one? Is it worth buying, especially when it costs top dollar? Explain.
4. If you could invent something related to food, what would it be?
5. What are some of the food inventions that you truly enjoy and/or would like to try?

Beef Production Damages Environment

C1 – Advanced

We are what we eat. But do the food we eat harm our planet?

Read the article to know more about the scientific relationship of the food we eat and the environment.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-28409704

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you like meat and dairy products?
2. What meat or dairy product do you like the most?
3. Do you believe that food production has real significant effect on the environment? Explain.
4. How do you think you can reduce the environmental impact of the food you eat?

A Kingdom For Your Birthday

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B2 – Upper intermediate

What was the best birthday present you’ve ever received? Read the article below to learn about a father’s unusual birthday present to her young daughter.

https://metro.co.uk/2014/07/14/american-man-claims-african-kingdom-for-his-daughter-so-she-can-be-an-actual-princess-4797666/

Discussion Questions:

1. What can you say about the father?
2. Would you do the same thing if you were the parent?
3. What was the most extreme thing you’ve done/given for a birthday gift?
4. How do you think the father’s actions will affect the child? Describe your idea of good parenting.

Self-Building Robot

B1 – Intermediate

Scientists have created a robot that can build and fold by itself in just 4 minutes. A researcher suggested that the self-building robot could be applied to a variety of different problems.

http://www.newsinlevels.com/products/self-building-robot-level-3/

Discussion Questions:

1. How do you think this robot can be useful in space explorations?
2. What do you think of robots in general?
3. How else can this robot be useful?

Nigeria Declared Car Horn-Free Day

B2 – Upper intermediate

Nigeria’s largest city  declared  a car “Horn-Free Day”  to raise awareness of noise pollution. Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola told reporters that the extent of the noise from car horns was enough to be a danger to people’s hearing. However, it seems not everyone is on board.

Nigeria declared car horn-free day

Discuss:

1. How do you feel about Governor Fashola’s opinion that the drivers in Europe don’t really use their horns that much?
2. Would you say that your city has this kind of noise problem?
3. How would you describe traffic in your city? What would you do to make it better?
4. What do you think are the different types of pollution in your country?