1. Conversation:
Talk about the following questions with your partner for about 5 minutes. The
pictures are there to help you.
1.
Does
religion play a powerful role in
certain societies? What do you think about it?
2.
Are
you part of a family-centred culture?
Does your social life revolve around
your extended family? Or is your family spread out all over the place and family get-togethers are few
and far between? What are the
benefits and drawbacks of either situation?
3.
How
important do you think it is to maintain
traditions? Why? Have younger generations lost touch with their traditions? Have they adopted foreign
traditions? Why do you think this is so? Do you think this is a good thing?
4.
Should
immigrants adopt the culture and traditions of the new country? Should they also
maintain their own? Should native inhabitants of a country take part in foreign
cultural events taking place in their community? Have immigrants successfully assimilated into your local culture? Has it been a seamless transition for them? Is your
local community very accommodating
to foreigners? Has your country been hospitable
to refugees? Have you come across
obliging people when travelling overseas? Can you tell us about a place
you have been to where the locals were extremely welcoming? Do you know anyone
who married someone from a different culture? Did this pose any challenges? Did they rise
to them? What challenges would you face
if you moved abroad? Have you ever taken
up similar challenges? What has
been the most daunting challenge you
have had to overcome?
2.
Below there are some issues related to the topic. You must talk about at least
two of them for 3 minutes approx. you may be asked further questions about the
topic when you have finished.
Partner A:
·
Is
life tough for some sections of our
society? What are some of the major problems people face? How do people cope when they go through a rough patch? Do people generally have a positive outlook? Can certain problems take a heavy toll on people? Do people
easily visit a psychiatrist or get counselling when they go through a sticky patch?
·
Are
there pockets in our society that
you find quite male-dominated? Do
you think there's still a lot of gender discrimination?
Is there widespread inequality for
the LGBTQ community? Should
governments encourage changes in
attitudes to women and LGBTQ people? What could be done to tackle these inequalities?
·
Do we
live in a fairly liberal society? Do
people interfere in others' personal
lives? or is it more "live and let
live"? Can people always make
their own decisions? Are there any meddlers
or busybodies in the place where
you work or study? How do you deal with people who meddle in your affairs?
Partner B:
·
Is
class a big thing? Is social mobility
easy? How? Do young people leave home and get
on the property ladder as their parents did when they were young?
·
Have
there been protest marches in your
country recently? Why? Have you ever taken
part in a peaceful demonstration? Did it turn violent? What kind of issues provoke public outcries in your country?
·
What's
your opinion about the following overgeneralizations: "men are no good at listening,"
"women are terrible drivers," "young people these days are slackers and disrespectful", "people who are on benefits are just lazy- they don't want to work",
"immigrants come here to use our services and get handouts without contributing to our country's coffers." What other stereotypes can you think of? Are any of
these stereotypes positive? How fair do you think they are?
1. Pictures
traditional/folk
/fəʊk/ dance takes place in the streets throughout the year and
everybody joins in.
a multicultural
classroom
has a number of advantages for students.
slaughter: /ˈslɔːtə(r)/ the killing of animals for
their meat. E.g. The festival of the slaughter of pigs is an important event in the
winter calendar in rural Mallorca, and families get together on the day of
the slaughter. Pig slaughtering. Pig slaughter.
The Pilgrims' Road to Santiago de Compostela was to become a channel for
transmitting culture and art.
The Pamplona Running
of the Bulls is the most famous one in
the whole world. But in the last few years the festival has also been at the
centre of multiple controversies /ˈkɒntrəvɜːsiz/.
Ernest
Hemingway visited Pamplona during the San Fermin
festival
for the first time. He immediately was fascinated by bullfighting.
On Bonfire night the town council in
Calvià organise a big bonfire for all tourists and locals alike. There is food and drink, entertainment, a chocolate fountain, children's
attractions, stalls, a large
firework display and, of course, a bonfire.
A chocolate fountain is a device for
serving chocolate fondue. It has tiers over a basin at the bottom. The basin is
heated to keep the chocolate in a liquid state so it can be pulled into a
centre cylinder then vertically transported to the top of the fountain. From
there it flows over the tiers creating a chocolate "waterfall" in
which food items like strawberries or marshmallows can be dipped.
stall: a table or small shop with an open front
that people sell things from, especially at a market.
1. Questions
extended family /ɪkˌstendɪd ˈfæməli/ a family group with a close
relationship among the members that includes not only parents and children but
also uncles, aunts, grandparents, etc. E.g. She grew up surrounded by a large extended
family.
nuclear family: /ˌnjuːkliə
ˈfæməli/ a family that
consists of father, mother and children, when it is thought of as a unit in
society. E.g. Not everybody
nowadays lives in the conventional
nuclear family.
few and far between: not frequent; not happening often. E.g. Apartments
that are both comfortable and reasonably priced are few and far between.
assimilate: /əˈsɪməleɪt/ to become, or allow somebody to
become, a part of a country or community rather than remaining in a separate
group. E.g. assimilate (into/to something) New
arrivals find it hard to assimilate. Many new immigrants have not yet assimilated fully into the new
culture. assimilate somebody (into/to something) Immigrants have been successfully assimilated into the community.
seamless: /ˈsiːmləs/ happening without any sudden changes, interruption, or
difficulty. E.g. The intention is to achieve a seamless transition with a continuity of management. A seamless flow of talk.
accommodating: /əˈkɒmədeɪtɪŋ/ willing to help and do things for other
people. Obliging. E.g. They are very accommodating to
foreign visitors. David was gentle, generous and accommodating to a fault. They are very accommodating to people with
special needs.
hospitable: /hɒˈspɪtəbl/ /ˈhɒspɪtəbl/ hospitable
(to/towards somebody) (of a person) pleased to welcome guests; generous and
friendly to visitors. Welcoming.
E.g. The
local people are very hospitable to strangers. He thanked Patricia for being such a
hospitable hostess.
obliging: /əˈblaɪdʒɪŋ/ very willing to help. E.g. They were very obliging and
offered to wait for us.
welcoming: (of a person) friendly towards somebody who is visiting or
arriving. E.g. She gave everyone a welcoming smile.
challenge: collocations: The gallery has risen to the challenge of exhibiting the works of young artists. It's going
to be a difficult job but I'm sure she'll rise
to the challenge. He has taken on
some exciting new challenges with this job. Finding a solution to this
problem is one of the greatest
challenges faced by scientists today.
daunting: /dɔːntɪŋ/. If something is daunting, it
makes you worried because it is difficult or frightening. Intimidating. E.g. a daunting
challenge/task.
2. A/B questions:
patch: a period of time of the type mentioned,
usually a difficult or unhappy one. E.g. to go through a bad/
difficult/ sticky (difficult or unpleasant) patch.
take a heavy toll (on somebody/something), take its
toll (on somebody/something):
to have a bad effect on somebody/ something;
to cause a lot of damage, deaths, suffering, etc. E.g. Illness had taken a
heavy toll on her. The recession is taking its toll on the housing markets.
pocket: /ˈpɒkɪt/ a group,
area, or mass of something that is separate and different from what surrounds
it. E.g. Among the staff there are some pockets of resistance to the planned
changes (= some small groups of them are opposed).The pilot said that we were
going to encounter a pocket of turbulence (= an area of violently moving air). There are some pockets in our society, however, where hope is much more fragile.
meddler: a person who tries to get involved in
something that does not concern them.
busybody: a person who is too interested in what
other people are doing. E.g. He's an interfering old busybody!
meddle: meddle (in/with something) to become involved in
something that does not concern you. Interfere. E.g. He had no right to meddle in
her affairs. He’s
just a meddling old fool!
the property ladder: a series of stages in owning
houses in which you buy a small house or apartment first and then buy a bigger
or more expensive house when you have enough money. E.g. House prices are so
high now it is hard for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder (= buy
their first house).
outcry
(at/over/against something) a reaction of anger or strong protest shown by people
in public. E.g. an
outcry over the proposed change The new tax provoked a public
outcry. There was outcry at the
judge's statement.
slacker: /ˈslækə(r)/ a person who is lazy and
avoids work. E.g. Those slackers have gone home early again.
benefits: money provided by the government to people
who need financial help because they are unemployed, ill/sick, etc. E.g. The aim is to help people who
are on benefits(= receiving benefits) to find jobs. You may be eligible /ˈelɪdʒəbl/ to receive benefits.
handouts: food, money or clothes that are given to a
person who is poor. E.g. to be dependent on handouts. I'm not interested in
government handouts - all I want is a job.
coffers: a way of referring to the money that a
government, an organization, etc. has available to spend. E.g. The nation's coffers are
empty.
