Category Life in society

1 Look at the chart below that shows the percentages of jobs held by women in various professions in 1975 and in 2000:

2 Discuss the following questions with a partner.

1 In which fields did women make the most gains between 1975 and 2000?

2 What information in the chart particularly suiprises or interests you?

7Ї LISTENING FOR SPECIFIC INFORMATION

1 Read the beginning of a conversation between Jack and Sheila, a manied couple.

They are discussing an article Jack read about gender stereotypes.

Jack: Hey, Sheila, I just finished reading an interesting article about

gender inequality in the workplace. It’s bv Natasha Josefow’itz.

Sheila: What does she say?

Jack: Well, she talks about common situations that happen to

employees who work in offices. Here are some of them:

1 The employee is going to get married.

2 The employee has a family picture on his or her desk.

3 The employee is talking with a coworker.

4 The employee is going to go on a business trip.

Then she says that coworkers react differently depending on w’hether the employee in the situation is a man or a woman.

Sheila: You mean that people react differently if, for example, the person getting manied is a man or a woman? Tell me w’hat the article says.

Jack: OK. Let me see w’hat I can remember. . .

2 Discuss the following question with a partner:

How do you think people react differently to the situations Jack mentions if the employee is a man or a woman? Why?

З і Listen to what Jack remembers about the situations in the article. Take notes on your ora paper.

4 Compare your notes for step 3 with your partner. Did you understand the same things?

О AMERICAN VOICES: Belinda and Farnsworth

In this section you will hear Belinda, a successful American entertainer and filmmaker, describe her feelings about discrimination against women in the workplace. Then you will hear Farnsworth, a social worker who helps people with emotional problems, give his views on gender discrimination at home and in the workplace.

The first step in listening to a lecture and taking notes is to try to distinguish between the lecturer’s main ideas and the supporting details. A supporting detail often consists of:

• an example, such as a story or anecdote

• an academic reference, such as a definition of a term, some statistics, the name of a researcher, or reference to a research study

Speakers may introduce supporting details with the following phrases:

For instance, X can be defined as. . .

For example, According to a recent study, . . .

Let me give you an example… It has been estimated that. . .

Listen to the recording. You will hear a few sentences from the lecture about each of the main ideas listed below. Try to distinguish the supporting details and decide whether they are examples or academic references. Put a check (V) in the appropriate column.

Supporting Details

1

Children learn good behavior through rewards.

2 Another w’av children leam to behave is through punishments.

3 Parents can teach children by modeling appropriate behavior.

4 “Don’t do as I do. Do as I tell you," doesn’t usually work.

5 Parents worry about negative lessons.

2 Compare your answers with a partner.

LECTURE, PART ONE: Rewards and Punishments

GUESSING VOCABULARY FROM CONTEXT

When you heai’ or read words that you do not know, pay attention to the words in the surrounding context. The context can give you clues that will help you understand the new words. Using your knowledge of related words will also help you.

1 The following items contain important vocabulary from Part One of the lecture.

Work with a partner. Using the context and your knowledge of related words, take turns trying to guess the meanings of the words in bold.

1 I’d like to focus on three of the ways that children acquire their behavior.

2 A reward can be defined as a positive reinforcement for good behavior.

3 Most parents use rewards unconsciously.

4 Punishments are the second important way in which a child is socialized.

5 Both rewards and punishments are controversial. Many people think that they are noL effective.

6 Some people argue that this reward is unnecessaty because it is like a bribe.

7 The child should be taught that it’s his duty to help with household chores.

8 Some of us grew up expecting to be spanked if we misbehaved.

9 Our parents may have hit us on the hand if we talked back to them.

10 Some children are subject to really serious physical abuse.

Work with your partner. Match ihe vocabulary terms with their definitions by writing the letter of each definition below in the blank next to the sentence containing the correct term in step 1. Check your answers in a dictionary if necessary.

a hit by someone as a kind of punishment b things that people have different opinions about c taught how to behave with other people d very hard and extreme physical punishment e encouragement f learn, get g without thinking h spoke impolitely to, argued with

і something offered to someone to make the person do something j responsibility

It is critical that you organize your notes in a format that helps you understand and remember the content of a lecture. You do not always have time to do this v. hiie you are listening to the lecture. The notes you take during a lecture are rough notes. But good note takers revise their notes as soon as possible after a lecture. You re ise by putting your notes in an appropriate format and making any changes necessary to clarify the information.

This book will show you several ways to organize vour notes. It is important, however, that you experiment and find ways thaL work best for you. Organizing your notes in columns is one good way to clearly show the difference between main ideas and supporting details.

Look at these notes on Part One of the lecture. Notice that the main ideas are in the left column and the supporting details arc in the column on Lhe right.

Me 5&fh ttiandman: Tamily Lesson?

Fart One: Awards and Punishments

Main Ideas Petalк

1 Type of family (-traditional or nontraditional) is not as important a? lore and Support at home.

2 Three ways children learn Soeial behavior from their families: rewards, punkhme-ntc, modeling.

J Children learn apod behavior through rewards.

finish homework. – then TV

A Another way children learn to behave к through punishments.

5" Kewards and pvnkhme-nt? are controversial.

– if parents are violent, children may become violent

Use your notes to fill in the missing details in the column on the right in step 1.

Compare the notes you took on your own paper and your completed notes for step 1 with a partner.

Good lecturers make it easy to understand and lake notes on their lectures by using organizational phrases. These phrases may appear in the introduction, the body of the lecture, or the conclusion. You need to listen carefully for these phrases because they will show you the way the lecture is organized and when the main ideas are going to be introduced. Here are some examples of typical phrases:

In the introduction Today, I’m going to talk about. . .

First, I will. . .

Then I’m going to. . .

Finally, I will. . .

In the body of So, first, let’s look at. . .

the lecture Now let’s move on to my second topic, which is. . .

Finally, I want you to consider. . .

In the conclusion Let me summarize for you. . .

So, the three main points that we have examined today are. . .

1 The organizational phrases below are from the lecture. Work out the order in which you think they will appear. Write I next to the phrase that you think will come first in the lecture, 2 next to the second phrase, and so on.

___ a Now let’s turn to . . .

b I’m going to focus on three main ideas in this lecture. . . . c Secondly, I will describe. . . d The subject of todays lecture is. . . e To conclude, lets look at. . .

___ f First of all, we will consider. . .

___ g Finally, I’ll mention. . .

___ h First, then, . . .

Compare your answers with a parLner.

Now, listen to these phrases in the order that they actually appear in the lecture and note which comes first, second, third, and so on. Write the letter in the correct blank below.

1_ 2 _ 3 _ 4 _ 5 _ 6 _ 7 8

LECTURE, PART ONE: Reasons for Culture Shock

GUESSING VOCABULARY FROM CONTEXT

1 The following items contain important vocabulary from Part One of the lecture. Work with a partner. Using the context and vour knowledge of related words, take turns trying to guess the meanings of the words in bold.

1 Culture shock can be seen as a manifestation of group pressure in action.

2 Culture shock is a complex phenomenon.

____ 3 Cross-cultural studies have immense practical value for modern society.

4 when you grow up in a particular set of surroundings

5 the rules and guidelines that govern the behavior of the people around you

6 The rules of a social group are not clearly articulated.

7 People often behave irrationally when they are experiencing culture shock.

8 Jt is a highly stressful experience.

Work with your partner. Match the vocabulary terms with their definitions by waiting the letter of each definition below in the blank next to the sentence or phrase containing the correct term in step 1. Check your answers in a dictionary if necessary, a put into words

b not logically; not in a reasonable way c something that is complicated and not easy to understand d an example e place; environment f uncomfortable and difficult g very large h control

.. NOTE TAKING: ORGANIZING YOUR NOTES IN OUTLINE FORM

An oulline is a traditional format for organizing notes in English-speaking countries. In a formal outline, main points are usually indicated as Roman numerals (I, II, III, etc.). Under each main point there are usually supporting points – or details – that arc indicated as capital letters (A, В, C, etc.). Underneath these are Arabic numerals {I, 2, 3, etc.).

Remember that you may not be able to organize your notes in the best w’ay wliile you are listening to a lecture. But you should revise your notes as soon after the lecture as possible. [1]

Сл/lture Shock – — 6лroup FreSSure in Acfov

I definition of culture shock. = _____________________________

II 3 Main ideas

A_______

6

<P Applications of culture-shock research

III KeaSonS for culture shock

A one Set of rules growing, up — noti often articulated

5 other countries — _________________________________

C – can’t use ujour ovrn ________________________________

1 people act _________________________________

2 people feel ________________________________

Now listen to Part One of the lecture. Take notes on your own paper.

Use your notes to complete the outline in step 1.

Compare the notes you took on your own paper and your completed outline for step 1 with a partner.

BUILDING BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE ON THE TOPIC

1 Metaphors are words that give visual pictures of ideas and make the ideas easier to understand. Read the following list of metaphors about the workplace and their definitions. Discuss any words that you don’t understand with other classmates. Check a dictionary if necessary’.

a Glass ceiling: The glass ceiling is the invisible barrier that women often "hit” as they try to get promoted to higher positions within a company.

b Glass escalator: The glass escalator is the invisible machine that seems to promote men to higher positions.

c Sticky floor: The sticky floor is the force that seems to hold women back in less important and lower paid positions.

d Old boys’ club: This refers to the all-male groups that men form and the connections they make with each other to help themselves gain power and success, e Mommy Track: People often think that working women with children are not serious about their jobs. They say that these women are on the “Mommy Track." That is, they are not on the road – or "track” – that leads to higher positions, f Level playing field: The level playing field is like a sports field in which all the players are on the same level and have the same chance to win. Having a level playing field means that no one group has more opportunity to succeed than any other group.

Match each of the following situations with one of the metaphors in step 1. Write the letter of the metaphor next to the situation.

1 A woman talking to her friend about her boss:

"Since my babv was born, my boss looks at me strangely every time I get sick and take a day off. I’m sure he thinks that I just want to stay home with my baby.”

___ 2 A sales manager talking to another sales manager who was just hired:

"Don’t worry, Sam, we’ll help you with your new position. What about getting together with some of the guvs after work tonight?"

3 A company director talking to a personnel manager:

“We need to hire a new’ office assistant. Be sure to tell the people you interview that all employees are encouraged to apply when higher positions become available.”

4 Two employees talking about a third employee:

"He’s gone from sales clerk to assistant manager to manager in eighteen months. That’s a record!”

___ 5 An excerpt from a business report:

"There are about fifty female Executive Vice Presidents in the largest companies, but only two female Chief Executive Officers.”

___ 6 A woman talking to her friend:

“Even though I have good skills, everywhere I go, I seem to get offered the lowest paid positions.”

Discuss the following questions in a small group.

1 Do you think that the metaphors listed in step 1 give an accurate picture of the problems that w’omen face in the workplace?

2 Can you give any examples of these metaphors from your own experience?

GUESSING VOCABULARY FROM CONTEXT

1 The following items contain important vocabulary from Part Two of the lecture.

Work with a partner. Using the context and your knowledge of related words, take

turns trying to guess the meanings of the words in bold.

___ 1 Children’s first role models are their parents.

2 There is an old saying in English: “Don’t do as I do. Do as I tell you.”

. . . But this advice doesn’t work most of the time.

3 If you smoke yourself, it is probably ineffective to tell a child not to smoke.

___ 4 Many people do not even realize the impact that they can have on a child.

5 It is common for babysitters, relatives, and child-care centers to take care of children.

___ 6 The most important thing for children is to grow up in an environment

where there are fair rules that are clearly established and followed consistently by everyone.

Work with your partner. Match the vocabulary terms with their definitions by writing the letter of each definition below in the blank next to the sentence containing the correct term in step 1. Check your answers in a dictionary if necessary, a influence b not going to work c in the same way all the time d opinion about what you should do e people who are an example for them to copy f places where professionals take care of young children

Look at these notes on Part Two of the lecture. Notice that the first main idea is number 6 because the last main idea in Part One was number 5.

Main Ide-aS

(o Mode-l’mg. mcans:

3 “Pon’T do as I do,
doesn’t work.

11 Most important thi n^t

2

I Now listen to Part Two of the lecture. Take notes on your own paper.

3 I Use your notes to fill in the missing main ideas and details in the columns in step 1.

Compare the notes you took on your own paper and your completed notes for step 1 with a partner.