phone english blogB2 – Upper intermediate
Pope Francis has announced that a third world war may soon happen. He has made repeated appeals for an end to the world’s conflicts. He cited the loss of life in WWI to what is happening today.
Be ready to have a speaking activity and to discuss some vocabulary words
Discuss:
1. Do you think that World War III will happen?
2. What is your opinion about war?
3. What do you think we should do to prevent this from happening?
B2 – Upper intermediate
Nowadays, people with college degrees are going through a tough time finding a job they like. Is getting a degree worth it? Or is it becoming to be a waste of time?
Read the article to know the benefits of getting a college education. Prepare to express your thoughts.
Discuss:
1. According to the article, explain the benefits of going to college or university.
2. What is your general opinion of the article?
3. Is your current career related to the degree that you took in college/university?
4. In your country, is it important to get a university education to land a good job?
5. If given the chance, what other fields of education would you study or take up?
B1 – Intermediate
Internet addiction is one very common problem among teenagers these days. In China, one way to combat this addiction is to take children to a boot camp.
Listen to this audio and read the transcript on a boot camp for internet addicts.
http://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/can-boot-camp-cure-internet-addiction/2442322.html
Discussion Questions:
1. How many hours do you usually spend surfing the internet?
2. At work, are you highly dependent on the internet?
3. Would you consider internet addiction as a disease?
4. What are the ways you can prevent internet addiction?
B1 – Intermediate
A report in England states that thousands of patients a year wake up during an
operation. One doctor said it happens one in every 19,000 operations. They are now trying to find areas that could be improved during an operation to prevent this from happening.
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1409/140914-surgery.html
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper intermediate
One in seven American families suffer from food insecurity. Inflation is low but the population’s ability to get healthy food is decreasing. Eating unhealthy food can cause illness such us diabetes and hypertension and food insecurity can lead people to committing crimes such us robbery and stealing.
Discuss:
1. What do you think people can do to address this issue in their own little ways?
2. Can you think of alternative ways to get healthy food in cheaper cost?
3. Has your country experienced such difficulty? Do you see this happening in the future?
4. How secure are the citizens of your country when it comes to their employment?
B1 – Intermediate
There are common health problems which are caused by high temperatures that, in the worst scenario, can lead to death.
Read the article to know more about the dangers of heat and how to be protected from it.
Discuss:
1. Do you love soaking yourself in the summer sun? Are you aware of its danger?
2. Have you experienced health related issues due to high temperature?
3. What activities do you enjoy doing during the summer?
4. How do you keep cool when the weather gets too hot?
B1 – Intermediate
According to a panel of scientists, the ozone layer is starting to repair itself. It’s a good thing that the use of aerosol cans were banned during the 1980s.
Read the lesson about the ozone layer recovering and be ready to answer the questions that follow.
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper Intermediate
Happiness- the quality or state of being happy. We each have our own definition of happiness depending on situations we are in.
Read the article below and know more about the pursuit of happiness.
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/20/opinion/alston-happiness-day/index.html?hpt=hp_t5
Discussion Questions:
1. What makes you happy?
2. What are the components of happiness?
3. Will you consider happiness as a luxury item?
B2 – Upper Intermediate
Being a women and a CEO of one of the world’s top companies might not be a walk in the park for anybody. But we’ve watch a lot of boss ladies successfully conquer both family and work life.
Watch the interview of Indra K. Nooyi and why she said, “Women can’t have it all.”
Discussion Questions:
B2 – Upper intermediate
According to a global study carried out by consultancy firm, Nielsen, 86% of the Spanish claim to have changed their buying habits over the last year in order to save on household expenses.
This percentage is “well above the European average,” which is currently at 65%. The study noted that 18% of the Spanish have no money left at the end of the month after covering their basic needs. Among those who have some money left, 41% is spent on leisure activities/entertainment outside of the home, 37% on savings, 29% on clothes, 25% on holidays, 24% on paying off debts or loans and only 6% is dedicated to pension plans or investments.
The report highlighted that 85% of those questioned believe that now is not a “good time” to buy things they do not want or need. Nielsen pointed out that this “negative” view over buying, is the view held by the majority throughout Europe.
The actions the Spanish are taking in order to save are to spend less on entertainment outside the home (69%); spend less on gas or electricity bills (65%); reduce spending on telephones/communications (58%), buy fewer clothes (56%) and take less holidays (51%).
The consultant noted that a “large part” of those interviewed said that they will maintain these cost-cutting measures even when the economic situation improves, “especially when it comes to reducing their spending on bills.”
Spanish among the most pessimistic
The consumer confidence index in Spain fell four points during the third quarter, reaching 48, “which puts it at the bottom of all the countries of the world.” The European average is currently 74 points, whereas the world average is 92.
El Economista reported that 96% of Spanish consumers believe the country is in recession, and 82% do not foresee an improvement in the next twelve months.
Discussion Questions:
1. What brought about the changes in the Spanish’s spending habit?
2. What do you think about the Spanish spending habit?
3. What is your spending habit like?
4. What changes have you done in your spending habits over the years?