Category: Homework

Open Banking

B2 – Upper Intermediate

We have been so used to our financial information being kept strictly confidential by our banks. In the UK, a competition watchdog is lobbying for open banking.

Read more on it and be in the know about what it is, how it will work and other relevant information regarding secured financial info sharing among firms.

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-42253051

Discussion Questions:

1. What is Open Banking?
2. How do you feel about this news?
3. In what ways is this a positive change?
4. What things are you worried about?
5. How would people take such change in your country?

Help for People in Debts

B1 – Intermediate

We need money for spending on various thing like house rent or a mortgage, cars, bills, travels, and a lot more. Some people owe huge amounts of money. Many of them can’t get out of the red.

Read more on how the South Korean government would try to assist those under a pile of debts.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/1712/171202-debt.html

Vocabulary Questions:

  1. What does “scheme” mean? ” “The scheme was a big promise of a former South Korean president.”  Use it in a sentence.
  2. What does “debt” mean? “The Korea Times newspaper said the government is, “preventing numerous working families from going bankrupt under a mountain of debt.” Use it in a sentence.
  3. What does the phrase “write off” mean here, “South Korea is going to write off the debts of as many as 1.6 million people.” Make your own sentence using this phrase.

Discussion Questions:

1. What are your thoughts on what the South Korean government is doing?
2. What do you think of how people are spending money in your country?
3. What is your government doing to help people with a lot of debts?
4. What comes to your mind when you hear the word ‘debt’?
5. What advice can you give someone who is in debt?

Online Forever

B1 – Intermediate

Posting our personal activities online has become the norm over the last decade that some companies use this as their way of checking one’s background when one is applying for a job. This can be really critical for some people who post very personal things on social media such as embarrassing photos or perhaps a strongly worded status update. So next time you click post or send, you might want to think twice.

Read the article below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.

The past can return and haunt you. In today’s age of social networking and electronic communication, that statement seems truer than ever. A comment on a forum here or a blog post there, or even photos of some raucous party can all return and undermine education and career prospects.

An increasing number of universities and employers use the Internet to vet possible candidates. After all, institutions and companies spend so much money on lessons, training, and facilities, the more they know about the person, the more accurate their decision. If what pops up on sites and blogs doesn’t pass muster, let’s say lots of photos and comments about drunken weekends and hangovers, then it’s into the circular filing cabinet your application goes.

Source: headsupenglish.com

Discussion Questions:

  1. How often do you post things on social media? What kind of content do you often post?
  2. What do you think about employers and schools using this kind of method for background checks?
  3. After reading this article, will you consider refraining from posting on social media? Why or why not?

Goosebumps with Music, a Sign of Special Brain

B1 – Intermediate

Have you ever listened to a song that sent shivers down your spine?  A research shows that if music gives you the chills or goosebumps, then something in your brain might be unique.

Discover more by reading the article below.

https://www.classicfm.com/music-news/music-gives-goosebumps/

Discussion Questions:

1. What type of music do you like?

2. What is your favorite song? What emotions do you have when you listen to it?

3. What one song makes you emotional? What memory does it remind you of?

4. What gives you goosebumps?

5. How do you deal with your life’s sad moments?

Preventing Favoritism in the Workplace

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Favoritism is a sign of bad management practice, which leads to disfavored employees feeling unmotivated. No law averts favoritism, however, if discrimination, harassment, or retaliation stems from it, then it can be a form of illegal behavior. Read the article to get a deeper understanding of when favoritism goes beyond standards of behavior.

https://www.employmentlawfirms.com/resources/employment/discrimination/laws-preventing-favoritism-in-the-workplace

Discussion questions:

1. Describe favoritism as:
a. illegal discrimination
b. sexual harassment
c. retaliation

2. Do you think favoritism exists in your workplace? How?

3. What are the negative effects of favoritism in the workplace? Can you cite any positive effect of it?

4. Who is your favorite colleague, friend, and family member?

5. Share your experience about you being favored and/or disfavored by your employer.

Performance-Enhancing Drugs in Sports

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Doping means to administer drugs, known as performing-enhancement drugs (PED), to an animal or athlete in order to inhibit or enhance sporting performance. There are numerous reports of the use of PEDs in various sporting events, which led to banning of the condemned players.

Let us take a look at these incidents.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/06/us/performance-enhancing-drugs-in-sports-fast-facts/index.html

Discussion Questions:

1. What are some examples of performance-enhancing drugs (PED) and their effects?

2. What is your opinion about the use of PEDs?

3. Who is your favorite athlete? What would you do if s/he were found and convicted of doping?

4. Should the use of PEDs be allowed to a sick athlete who would need to perform in one sporting event? Why or why not?

‘Whitewashing’ in Hollywood

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Whitewashing refers to casting white actors as characters who are non-white or of indeterminate race. There are a couple of movies and TV shows in Hollywood that have had their casting criticized as whitewashing. Critics of this practice claim that this is a form downplaying other races. What do you think of whitewashing?

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/breakfast-at-tiffany-hellboy-hollywood-whitewashing-a7932581.html

Discussion questions:

1. Cite an example of whitewashing in movies or TV that you have watched.

2. What do you guess could be the possible problems whitewashing can cause?

3. If you were a white actor and were chosen to play a non-white character role, would you take it?

Successful Family Life and Career

B1 – Intermediate

When you are an adult with a family, balance is something hard to find. A balance between your work and family seems impossible to do when you work 40 hours a week not to mention the time you spend on commuting from your house to work and vice versa.

Let’s read the article below and discuss how to have a successful career and a happy family.

Balancing a career and family is a common concern for most individuals. However, it’s important to realize the smallest of changes can produce the strongest of impacts.

I’ve often worked jobs that required evening and weekend hours. The question is: What can we do?

1. Morning Gratitude Moment

When you wake up in the morning, don’t jump out of bed for your workout immediately, or drag yourself to the washroom. Sit up straight, relax, and close your eyes. Say to yourself, “I am grateful for those who support me, believe in me, and are always there for me.” Say this with a deep breath in between each time you say it, and I recommend saying it for a full five minutes. When you open your eyes and look at everything around you—keep that moment of gratitude with you, throughout your day, reminding yourself how you can’t wait to get home to your loving family.

2. Workout Partners

Begin your day by stretching with your family and doing some physical activity together. All you need is 10 minutes. You’ve accomplished a two-for-one: physical activity and family time!

3. Family Playlist

On your shared streaming service, make a playlist of your family’s favorite music. When you take a break at work or feel a negative moment getting the best of you, listen to that music, think about your family, and regain your focus. Music is a powerful voice and has the ability to affect our mindset. Your family playlist will energize you and improve your mood.

4. Daily Phone Call

At least once a day, call or text your significant other or your kids and repeat Stevie Wonder: “I just called to say I love you, I just called to say how much I care.” Let your family know they are always in your thoughts. Even in the face of a big deadline or an important meeting, that moment will relax you and make your family smile!

5. Clarify Your Work Hours & Expectations

Discuss with your boss his/her expectations of you in regards to your time and your position to foster a mutual and clear understanding of your role. Should your role involve evening/weekend hours, and tasks such as answering emails, working from home, or extra time needed for special projects, establish a strategy and discuss with your boss how to meet these expectations so you don’t feel overwhelmed and pulled between your family and your job. If you are a new parent, have family members who require special needs, or have personal circumstances which require attention, bring these up as necessary, so if you have to leave early, there is an understanding of why this is the case.

6. Socializing At Work

It’s common for colleagues to hang out after work. Say yes when your significant other and/or kids are also busy. This will balance things out more. There are times to have beers with colleagues, but there are also times to go home, relax, watch a movie, and simply have fun with your family.

7. Buffer Moment

We all deal with a lot at work and at times might get irritated or annoyed. Remember you are a human being, not a robot, and thus it’s acceptable to have a buffer moment for these feelings. Take a deep breath, zone into your happy place that involves your family, think about how your energy can be used towards something else, and move on.

8. Yoda Philosophy

s Yoda put it, “Do or do not, there is no try.” Don’t try to leave at 6:00 p.m. or 5:30 p.m.; just do it. Allocate the last half-hour of your day to do the following and leave at 5:30/6:00 p.m.:

  • For two minutes, take deep breaths, in and out, looking away from your desk, feeling the moment of gratitude you felt in the morning. Turn back to focus on leaving to see your family at home.
  • Organize your emails based on what is to be reviewed, what requires follow-up, and what needs a response after your breakfast/snack/meal. Your emails are emails, not a to-do list.
  • Write out your to-do list, priorities, goals, and key items for the next day.
  • Double-check that you have a water bottle and healthy desk snacks.
  • Organize your desk so that your to-do list is in front of you, papers for review are next to your list, and keep a pen ready with blank paper to jot down extra notes. Don’t always rely on your computer; rely on yourself and your mind.

9. Phone And TV-Free Dinner

At the dinner table, leave your phone and turn off the TV. Focus on your family, not on work, and use this as a time to bring all your energy, your aura, and your being in the moment with the people who support and believe in what you do, and love you for the ability to do what you do.

10. Your Work Journal

Keep a two-week work diary: try to track every fifteen minutes of your work time. After that, analyze for, and attack, any inefficiencies! This will import balance in your day and yield a well-deserved coffee break, a breath of fresh air, and time to make your daily family phone call!

Does email control you and take you away from your priority list, and thus your work-life balance? Organizational skills are an important factor in how you balance your day, affecting your work-life balance. Get organized and get happy! You’ll find that work-life balance sooner than you think

Discussion Questions:

  1. In your opinion, out of the 10, which tip is the most important?
  2. What are your personal ways to ensure a successful career and family life?
  3. What activities do you enjoy doing with your family?

Bitcoin just passed $8,000

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin provide people around the world new and innovative ways of engaging in legitimate commerce.The price of Bitcoin just passed $8,000 for the first time.

 

Click on the link to read the article and be ready to answer the questions that follow:

https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/20/bitcoin-just-passed-8000/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is Bitcoin? What do you know about it?

2. Have you invested in Bitcoin? What are the advantages and disadvantages of Bitcoin currency?

3. Is Bitcoin the future or is just a gamble?

Competition Is Ruining Childhood

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Competition is considered as an implicit part of education. Many of today’s children have lived their whole life competing with peers. It’s often believed that the more we work on enhancing our job skills, the more successful we will be in the future.

*Right click on the photo and open link in new tab to read the full article.

 

Discussion Questions:

1.What is the role of education in our future?

2.Should education be a form of competition?

3.Do you think we are tricked in the idea that sacrificing our mental health now in school for security in adulthood?

4.How can we make education fair for every child?