A TEACHERS’ GUIDE TO SHIP
FAMILIARISATION
Title of Scenario
Ship Familiarisation
Language and level
English B2
Duration (estimated)
2h
Requirements
Nearly all activities require some internet although printed
alternatives are possible
INTRODUCTION
This activity package provides both sound, pictures, and written text. This means that there is an
abundance of language out of which it is necessary to select the relevant information. This is very much
similar to real life. The English which is spoken is not entirely correctly pronounced, which also is the way
life “out there” is. However, the speakers recorded here have studied English quite long. They make
mistakes in a regular fashion, since they are influenced by their native languages. Therefore it is not that
hard to learn how to understand them – with some basic knowledge of the way words are pronounced in
their languages.
1. BRIDGE EQUIPMENT
TASK
NO. 1
Type of task
Type of input
No. of activities
Duration
Contents
Communicative
functions
Files and links
to use
Matching soundtracks and photographs
Recordings of descriptions of technical equipment and photos
1
30 min.
Recognition of maritime English pronounced by non-native speakers
who are active in navigation
Listening comprehension
Sound files, transcriptions, and images
The concrete work here is to match soundtracks to pictures, task a). When doing that a number of
strategies can be employed. Task b) involves writing a list of a few items, but it is OK if a few items are
left out. Under task c) one or two things is enough, since we are not going to try to be exhaustive. Task
d) is clearly not an English task. But since English is the bridge to many other languages, it is a way of
exploiting a hidden potential of having studied English. Some students are going to find this fascinating.
Task e-f) centres around useful knowledge of Spanish pronunciation and accents. Finally task g) widens
the scope to communication in general across linguistic barriers.
2. A TOUR OF THE BIRKA EXPORTER (RO-RO)
TASK
NO. 1
Type of task
Type of input
No. of activities
Matching soundtracks and photographs
Recordings of descriptions of technical equipment and photos
1
Duration
Contents
Communicative
functions
Files and links
to use
45 min.
Recognition of maritime English pronounced by non-native speakers
who are active in navigation
Listening comprehension
Sound files, transcriptions, and images
This package involved the same type of activities as in the previous one, with the difference that here the
accent is Finnish-Swedish. The writing of lists of equipment and pointing it out to the classmates is
hopefully going to feel useful and can therefore be done quite carefully, thus in a time-consuming way. If
there are different opinions on how to interpret the spoken English and the pictures, this can be seen as a
natural starting point for a qualified and relevant discussion.
There are two sections and they are laid out equally.
3. EQUIPMENT ONBOARD AN LNG TANKER
TASK
NO. 1
Type of task
Type of input
No. of activities
Duration
Contents
Communicative
functions
Files and links
to use
Matching soundtracks and photographs
Recordings of descriptions of technical equipment and photos
1
45 min.
Recognition of maritime English pronounced by non-native speakers
who are active in navigation
Listening comprehension
Sound files, transcriptions, and images
This activity package provides a unique opportunity to compare English and Spanish, both as to
pronunciation and to grammar and spelling, since the complete transcriptions of all the soundtracks are
provided. Since the texts go into great detail of what is there to be seen in the pictures, it is possible to
focus quite a lot of attention at each one of the pictures. It is a good idea to have the students work in
small groups, but it is quite possible to do all this as one large group as well, provided not too many of
the students detach from the work done.
Task b) is interesting precisely because when guessing comes in, a wider palette of strategies is
accessed. A list needs to be drawn up so as to enable students to do tack c) which is creative and also
concerns language correctness issues. Tasks d) and e) are examples of exploiting the hidden potential of
knowledge of the English language and maritime issues. By means of both these branches of knowledge,
students will be able to decode Spanish texts that are both complicated and specialised.