A video-based lesson with class III/4
Tag Archives: technology
Environmental Issues in English lessons
English for Environmental Science is an integral part of my lessons in Environmental Protection Technician classes. This year, my 11th graders have mostly dealt with carbon footprint and 3 R’s, i.e. the ways we can reduce our negative impact on the environment. We carried out various activities, aimed not only at developing necessary language skills, but also at raising environmental awareness among others at school, both the students and the staff.
Therefore, our first step was to establish the level of environmental awareness of the target group. Students were put into groups of four and their task was to think of relevant questions which they would include in an online survey. When they completed the task, the representative of each group read their suggestions. The class as a whole agreed on the ones they would put in the survey. Then, three students created two versions, one in English, and the other in Serbian, using Google Forms.
English version: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfddod8YSeGzOn5ooaed6nyguGY8nov1dI3Cqa9bk2ojPrgXg/viewform?usp=sf_link
The link for the version in Serbian was shared with the students and the staff. Most of the respondents were unfamiliar with the term carbon footprint. Otherwise, they showed quite a good knowledge of major environmental issues, at least in theory.
After that, some students chose to make ppt presentations, others opted for classroom posters. We ended up with 2 PowerPoint presentations and 5 posters.
Finally, I had the idea to make a video with some useful tips for a more responsible behaviour everyone could adopt. A few students recorded themselves, but we couldn’t complete it at the time because of the workload – they had to study other subjects. The initial enthusiasm gradually faded away. However, we pulled it through in our two end-of-year lessons. Using my mobile phone, I recorded them in the schoolyard. They didn’t have enough time to rehearse their sentences. The recordings are of no high quality. Putting all that aside, I believe they did it quite well. Besides, their messages are worth listening to.
AN EVER CHANGING WORLD
Have you ever thought about how much life has changed over the past 30 years? Do you know how your parents spent their free time when they were your age? They had neither a PC nor a mobile phone. Hanging out with friends was real, not virtual.
Thirty years ago, Time Magazine named ‘The Computer’ its person of the year. Back then an average person didn’t even know what a computer can do. Below is the photo of the cover of that particular issue.
And here you can see what the first mobile phones looked like back in 1982:
Nowadays life is changing even faster than in previous 30 years. It is not easy to keep up with all new inventions and gadgets that pop up every day.
Watch the video ‘Did you know’ I posted in September and answer these questions:
1. How do you feel about these changes? Do you find them thrilling or frightening?
2. Does the need for continual education and professional development scare you?
3. Do your teachers use new technologies in their teaching practice as much as they should?
4. Do you think school can prepare you for new challenges you are going to face?
5. Can you imagine what your children’s life would be like ? How much will it be different from yours?
By the way, if you want to see a satirical prediction of life without paper books, I suggest you see the film ‘The last bookshop’. Here’s the link http://youtu.be/jPfThpelv48.
And for those who never seem to find the time to watch a video without translation, here’s a cartoon on the same topic.
phs our english nook 