THE EFFECTS of PROSPERITY
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CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Prosperity(n): the state of having money and
everything that is needed for a good life
Word Formation : Prosperous (adj)
Synonyms : wealth
Collocations : prosperity of
Ex: The future prosperity of the country depends on its
imports and exports
Ex: They are a prosperous family with a very high
income.
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Life Expectancy(n): The number of years people
live on average
Ex: The British male now has a life expectancy of
77.6 years
Ex: The life expectancy in this country is very short.
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Literacy(n): the state of being able to read and
write
Word Formation : Literate (adj), Illiterate (adj
Collocations : Literacy rate
Ex: There is a literacy campaign organized for women.
Ex: The literacy rate of the country has increased
significantly.
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Mental(adj): related to the state of mind
Collocations : Mental health
Ex: Stress has an effect on people’s mental health.
Ex: Her mental problems prevent her from having
friends.
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Per capita(adj): for each person
Ex: The per capita income of the country is $2000 for a
month.
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Wealth (n): the amount of money that a country
or a person has
Word Formation : Wealthy (adj)
Ex: The country’s wealth comes from oil.
Ex: He was poor when he was young, but he became
very wealthy later.
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Previewing the Academic Content
 In many countries life seems to be easier now than at any
time in history.
 We have wonderful technology that helps us to do things
that our grandparents could only dream about.
 Most countries have more wealth than ever before.
 Is this all good ?
 Many people argue that there are problems.
 Statistics show that many countries have worse social
problems as they get richer
 Is it really the best of the times ?
 What do you think ?
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1. Look at the statistics in the chart on page 92. Answer
the questions.
Country A
Country B
Population
5,460,000
657,000
GDP per capita
$ 56,427
$ 1,668
Life Expectancy
78
55
Literacy Rate
99%
47%
1.
Which country would you like to live in ? Why ?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
2. What do you think life is like in these two countries ?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Going shopping
Technology
Happiness
Chances to go college
Other ……….
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3. Which factors do you think are important for happiness ?
Choose the most three important to you.







Wealth
Good physical health
Good mental health
Family and/or friends
A good job
Appliance that make life easier such as dishwashers and
cars
Opportunities to buy almost anything you want
4. Do you think your life is better than the life of your
granparents?
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Previewing the Academic Skills Focus
1. Look at the pictures and questions on page 93. Which
question has an answer that can not be questioned
easily ? Which question has an answer about which
people might disagree?
1. has an answer that can’t be questioned easily
2. has an answer about which people might disagree
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Fact and Opinion
Statements can be facts or opinions.
 Facts have evidence that is difficult to question.
 It can be tested or proven.
 People generally agree about facts
 Opinions are a person’s thoughts, beliefs, or feelings
about something.
 Opinions often introduced by phrases such as: I think , I
believe, In my opinion, It seems to me etc.
 Opinions can be questioned easily.
To help you decide between fact or opinion ask yourself:
Can I check whether it is true?
Would other people have a different opinion about it ?
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2. Use the two questions in the skill box on page 94 to
decide if the statements are facts and opinions.
1. Fact
2. Opinion
3. Fact
4. Opinion
5. Fact
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KEY WORDS
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Decrease (v): to become smaller
Synonyms : fall, decline, go/come down
Antonym : increase
Ex: During the summer, rainfall decreases.
Ex: The number of people who smoke has decreased.
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Afford(v): to have enough money to buy or
to pay for something
Word Formation : Affordable (adj)
Ex: We can afford to go to Miami this year.
Ex: It is not an affordable car for us. It is too expensive.
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Double(v): to become twice as much or big
Word Formation : Doubled (adj)
Ex: The prices of the houses has doubled for the last
two years.
Ex: Accidents will be doubled because of the new road.
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Twice(adv): two times
Collocations : twice as much / many
Ex: They have employed 50 people, twice as many last
year.
Ex: The shop earned $ 1000 yesterday, twice as much
the day before.
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Triple(v): to become three times as much or
big
Word Formation : Tripled (adj.)
Ex: At the end of the year, the number of the students
will be tripled.
Ex: They plan to triple their profit next year.
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Halve(v): to reduce something by a half
Ex: They have halved the prices of flights to New York.
Ex: The number of the employees halved last year as
a result of economic crisis.
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Figure(n): a number representing an amount
Ex: The city’s figure of unemployment for the last year
is very surprising.
Ex: Government figure show an increase in tax rates.
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Give up(phr.v.): to stop doing something
Ex: The students of Çankaya University is giving up
smoking with the help of campaign of the Rector.
Ex: She gave up studying for university exams and
started to work with her father.
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Fortunate(adj): happening because of good
luck
Word Formation : Fortunately (adv.)
Collocations : Fortunate to do something
Ex: I was fortunate to find somebody that I know in
this country.
Ex: She felt fortunate because she could walk easily.
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Disease(n): an illness which affect a person,
an animal or a plant.
Ex: She suffers from a rare disease of brain.
Ex: He caught the disease while travelling in Africa.
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Income(n): the money that you earn
Collocations : disposible income
provide income
Ex: Jack has an income of $3000 a month.
Ex: This new strategy provides them extra income.
Ex: Because her husband pay all debts and bills, she
uses her salary as disposable income.
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Before You Listen
1. Read the paragraph (page 94) and answer the questions.
1. What do people in your grandparents’ generation say about
old days ?
2. Which of the points in the paragraph would they agree
with?
3. Was there a golden age in your country ? When was it ?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
2. Make some guesses about the statements on page 95.
Use the key words to complete the sentences.
1. double
2. triple
3. halved
4. fortunate; twice; disposable income
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Global Listening
1. Read the questions in the chart and listen to the lecture.
Answer the questions while listening. (Page 95)
1. Life is more convenient now than in the past.
2. People can buy more now than in the past.
3. People are safer now than in the past.
4. Modern people would find it difficult to live as people did in
1900.
5. A “golden age” did not exist in the past.
6. Now is the best time in the last 100 years.
2. Discuss the questions on page 96.
1. Not all the time. He says so right at the end.
2. Probably, the times he feels less fortunately.
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Focused Listening
1. Listen to the lecture again and write notes about the
details.
1. Main Idea: Life is more convenient
Supporting Details:
These technologies make life more convenient:
• air-conditioning
• computer / e-mail / Internet / databases
• international weather forecasts
• affordable, frequent jet airliners
• cell phones
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2. Main Idea: People can buy more now than in the past.
Supporting Ideas:
average disposable income buys more than twice as
much
• we have more than twice as many cars per person
• we eat out two and a half times as often
• it now takes seven minutes to earn enough to buy half
gallon of milk, compared with 40 minutes 80 years ago
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
3. Main Idea: People are safer now than in the past.
Supporting Details:
Number of deaths from car accidents halved.
4. Main Idea: Modern people would find it difficult to live
as people did in 1900.
Supporting Details:
The (Bowler) family had trouble trying to do this.
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5. Main Idea: 5. A “Golden Age” did not exist in the past.
Supporting Details:
• The (Bowler) family had problems: this suggests life was
harder than we think.
• John Mueller: the past gets better in our memories
• John Templeton and the lecturer both see the present as
better than the past
6. Main Idea: Now is the best time in the last 100 years.
Supporting Details:
both the author and John Templeton both see the
present as being better than the past.
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Identifying and Evaluating Information Presented to Support a
Position
 Ideas and arguments presented to support an opinion can be
strong or weak.
 In academic situations, it is important to see the difference
betwweb strong and weak support.
 Looking for strong supports is an important part of critical
thinking.
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
 Usually strong ideas and arguments:
 are based on facts
 are based on clear logic
 Weak ideas and arguments are often:
 based on opinions
 based on statements that look like facts that have no
supporting evidence or reference
 based on only one example, which might not be usual or
normal.
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3. Discuss the strength of the main ideas you heard in the
lecture and complete the chart on page 97. Overall do
you think the lecturer’s opinions are well supported?
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Main Ideas
How Strong is the Evidence ?
1. Life is more convenient now than
in the past
Strong
2. People can buy more now than in
the past
Strong
3. People are safer now than in the
past.
Weak
Reason
4. Modern people would find it
Middle (possibly strong)
difficult to live as people did in 1900.
5. A “Golden Age” did not exist in
the past.
Weak (possibly middle)
6. Now is the best time in the last
100 years.
Middle (possibly weak)
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Main Ideas
How Strong is Reason
the Evidence ?
1. Life is more convenient
now than in the past
Strong
Based on fact
2. People can buy more
now than in the past
Strong
Based on fact
3. People are safer now
than in the past.
Weak
The only safety issue mentioned is car accidents.
Other types of accidents, and crime, could mean
that we are less safe.
4. Modern people would
find it difficult to live as
people did in 1900.
Middle
(possibly
strong)
It could be argued that the example of only one
family is not strong evidence, and that, since the
family didn’t have a community around them to
support them, the experiment wasn’t realistic
anyway.
5. A “Golden Age” did not
exist in the past.
Weak (possibly All the arguments for this seem to be
middle)
based on opinion.
6. Now is the best time in
the last 100 years.
Middle
(possibly
weak)
The fact that we have modern conveniences, can
buy more with our income etc can't easily be
denied; however, there may be other reasons
(such as better relationships) why the
was “better.”
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AND ELECTIVE
COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Recognizing a Speaker’s Degree of Certainty
 Speakers use various words and expressions to show how
certain they are about their ideas and points.
 If someone says,” People are certainly wealthier now than
their grandparents were” s/he expresses that they are
sure about this point.
 Just because someone show s/he is certain about
something with these words, it does not mean s/he is
talking about a fact.
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4. Work with a partner and place the words from the box
on the scale on page 99.
1. Not at all certain:
2. Somewhat Certain:
maybe
perhaps
might
not sure
Could
probably
Like
3. Certain:
is
Definitely
doubtless
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5. Listen to some statements from the lecture. Write the
number of the statement on the scale.
Not at all certain:
4, 6
Somewhat certain:
3
Certain:
1, 2, 5
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CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Commit suicide(v): to kill oneself
Ex: Unhappy teenagers try to commit suicides more
often than other people
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Crime(n): breaking the law
Word Formation : Criminal (adj.)
Collocations : Commit a crime
Ex: Women commit fewer crime than men.
Ex: The causes of criminal behavior is being discussed
among the experts.
Ex: Britney Spears is in love with a criminal.
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Increase(v): to add more to size or number
Word Formation : Increase (n)
Antonym : decrease (v&n)
Ex: The population increased dramatically in the first
half of the century .
Ex: There is an increase in the number of people who
attempt to commit a crime.
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Violent(adj.): trying to injure or kill
Word Formation : Violence (n)
Ex: Many people were injured during the violent
events throughout the day.
Ex: Governments should prevent the violence against
women.
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Go into(phr. v): to change to a different
movement, state, or condition, usually a
worse one
Ex: Sales went into a decrease last year.
Ex: The countries went into a recession as a result of
the social and economical crises.
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Put together(phr.v.): to form people or things
into a group
Ex: We have put together the sales and marketing
teams.
Ex: They put together the data and created an index.
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Steadily(adv.): continuing or developing
gradually
Word Formation : Steady (adj)
Collocations : grow steadily
decrease steadily
Ex: The company’s exports have grown steadily.
Ex: Our debts are decreasing steadily.
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Civilized(adj.):a civilized country, society etc has
developed an advanced culture and institutions
Word Formation : Civilization (n)
Ex: In civilized societies, people respect to each other’s
rights.
Ex: They are researching the ancient civilizations of
Mesopotamia and Egypt.
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Current(adj.): happening or existing now
Word Formation : currently (adv.)
Ex: The current president of United States is Obama.
Ex: The results of the current political situation will be
seen at least 5 years later.
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Internal(adj. ): within a country
Antonym : External (adj.)
Collocations : internal affairs
internal security
Ex: No other country can interfer with our internal
affairs
Ex: Internal security of the country is provided by the
police.
Ex: We will get information from external sources
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Well-being(n.): a feeling of being comfortable,
happy and healthy
Collocations : well-being of
Ex: As doctors, we are responsible for the well-being of
our patients.
Ex: Well-being of people in a country should be the
first aim of governments.
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Renew(v.): to replace something that old or
damaged
Ex: We need to renew the windows as they are really
old .
Ex: Renewing a society is a very hard thing to do in a
short time.
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Before You Read
1. Look at the bar graph which shows some social trends from
the text you will read. Guess where the words from the box
go on the graph. Write them on the lines. (page 99 )
1. Depression
2. Violent Crime
3. Teenage Suicide
4. Divorce
2. What feeling do you get from the statistics in the graph on
page 99? How does that feeling compare with the lecturer’s
feeling?
3. Think about Turkey. Are these problems increasing or
decreasing, or staying the same ? Use the words for
degrees of certainty.
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Global Reading
• Skim the reading and write the paragraph number next to
each main idea. Discuss what clues helped you to find the
main idea.
___
2 Index of National Civic Health
4 Children and young people
___
5 The forces behind the social changes
___
3 Behind the numbers are real people
___
1 Social problems
___
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Focused Reading
1. Scan the text to find five social trends. Complete the left-
hand column.
Social Trends
How big was the change ?
Divorce
Suicide
Violent Crime
Depression
Number of people in prison
2. Now read the text in detail and complete the right-hand
column.
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Social Trends
How big was the change ?
Divorce
double / twice as many / two times as
many
Suicide
triple / three times as many
Violent Crime
our times as many / up four times
Depression
up to ten times as many
Number of people in prison
five times as many
2. Use the text to answer the questions on page 102.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
B
C
B
C
A
C
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Distinguishing between Facts and Opinions
 People do not always show directly whether a point is fact or
opinion.
 Instead, you have to ask questions based on your
understanding of the whole text.
 Does the author give evidence supporting his/her point?
 Is it possible to check evidence for the point, in other sources
such as books, journals, or very reliable internet sites?
 How likely are other people to have different opinions about it ?
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3. The sentences in the chart are from the reading. For each
point in the chart:
 underline the evidence for the point in the reading
 Complete the second and third column in the chart
 Use the information in the second adn third column to
decide whether the points are fact or opinion and complete
the fourth column.
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Point made in reading
Can You Check the
How Likely Are Other
Fact or
supporting Evidence? Why People to Have Different Opinion?
(not)?
Opinions About It?
Paragraph 1: we … have
… more convenient
transportation.
Yes. It wouldn’t be too
difficult to compare
Journey times in the past
with those now.
Unlikely
Fact
Paragraph 1:
for more than 30 years,
many developed
countries went into a
very deep social
recession
Yes. Various statistics
are given to support this
point, though references
are not always given.
Possible: other
people may choose
different statistics to
investigate social
recession
Fact
(though not
as clearly
so as the
Previous
point )
Paragraph 1:
This recession made the
Economic recessions
look very small in
comparison.
No. None is given.
Quite likely. Some may
feel that money for the
majority is more
important than social
problems that affect a
minority (even if it’s a
growing minority).
Opinion
Point made in reading
Can You Check the
supporting Evidence?
Why (not)?
How Likely Are
Other People to
Have Different
Opinions About It?
Fact or
Opinion?
Paragraph 4:
At the center of the social
recession are children and
young people.
Harder than the
previous one; it
depends on what
the author means by
“center.”
Possibly. The statistics may
indicate that adults
are the “center”: things, such
as divorce, prison, etc. But
these could all
affect children indirectly.
More like
opinion
than the
others
Paragraph 4:
Martin Seligman was struck by
an interesting fact: He said
that every statistic about the
material well-being of young
Americans is getting better,
but that every statistic about
their mental well-being is
getting worse.
Yes. Again, this is
based on statistic,
which at least in
theory should be
findable.
If the use of the word
“every” is accurate,
the point is hard to
argue against.
Fact (as
long as the
statistics
are
correct)
If the statistics are
correct, it’s hard to
disagree.
Fact
Paragraph 5:
Yes. It should be
North Americans are spending possible to find these
more hours at work, fewer
statistics.
hours
sleeping, and fewer hours with
friends and family
4. Work in small groups and discuss the question.
1. Overall how certain is the author of the reading about
his opinions? Can you find any evidence of uncertainity ?
2. Some people say that growing up with just one parent
can be just as goog as having both parents at home? Do
you think the author would agree Why or why not ?
3. What were the most interesting, surprising, or
unpleasant thing you heard in the lecture ?
4. Which opinions do you disagree with ? Why ?
5. Which opinions do you agree with ? Why ?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
5. Write a short paragraph that tells what the lecture and
the reading say about mental and physical health. Follow
the steps.
Step 1: Review the lecture and reading. Take notes about
what each says about mental and physical health.
Step 2: Plan and write your paragraph. Think about the
topic sentence , supporting ideas and concluding
sentences and connectors.
Step 3: Work with a partner. Read your partner’s
paragraph. Underline the facts in one color and opinions
in another color.
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Before You Speak
Discussing Opinions and Supporting Ideas
To give an opinion you can use these expressions:
 I think/ I believe/ I feel (that)…
 It is my opinion (that)…
 In my opinion …
 It seems to me that …
To support an opinion, you can use these expressions:
 ….. because….
 ….. for several reasons….
 ….. for the reasons that ….
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To show agreement with an opinion, you can use these
expressions:
 I think so, too.
 I agree (with you).
 I feel the same way.
 (I think ) you are right.
To show disagreement with an opinion, you can use these
expressions:
 I see what you mean, but…
 I disagree (with you).
 Yes, but…
 Actually,…
 I don’t/ I can’t agree (with you)
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
1. You will hear a discussion between two students about a
documentary. Before you listen, read the short
description of the country they will talk about.
2. Work with a partner. Discuss the questions.
1. What are the advantages of living in Bhutan ?
2. What are the disadvantages of living there ?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
3. Listen to the discussion. Write expressions used by the
speakers in the first row of the chart.
Agreeing with
someone
PartlyAgreeing
Disagreeing
Showing
Understanding
I see what you
mean. That’s a
very good
point.
Expression in
the discussion
Yes, it looks
as though it
is…
Yes, that
could be true.
I can’t
agree.
Interesting
point, but…
Other
expressions
with the same
meaning
I agree. Yes,
just what I was
thinking.
Good point.
Well, I agree
with a part of
what you’re
saying.
I disagree.
No. I don’t
agree. I don’t
see it that way.
I see.
I understand.
4. In the second row in the chart, write other expressions
you know that have the same meaning.
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Focused Speaking
Supporting Opinions
 When you give your opinion in a presentation or an essay, it
is important to support your opinion with evidence.
 Strong support could include:
 Facts , such as research results and statistics
 A clear and logical explanation or reason, based on facts
 Weak support might be :
 Another opinion
 Facts that people can’t check easily
 Make sure your ideas are specific, logical, and clear. In
addition, the words are that show a strong level of
certainty.
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
1.
Listen again to the discussion. After each person gives an opinion, write
what kind of supporting evidence he or she gives. More than one
answer is possible. Then discuss your answers with a partner.
Kind of supporting evidence

Facts, such as research results

An explanation or reason

Another opinion

Facts that can’t be checked easily
Professor: “….. Money does not always buy happiness….”
Student 1: another opinion
Student 2: facts, such as research results; explanation or reason
Student 3: another opinion; facts that can’t be checked easily
Student 2: another opinion; explanation or reason
Students 1: facts, such as research results; explanation or reason
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
2. Work with a partner. Do you think the evidence the studetns
use is strong or weak? Why ?
Student 1: rather weak
Student 2: mostly strong
3. Read the questions and think about your answers. For each
question, decide your opinion and think of a strong support
for you opinion.
 How much would you like to live a Bhutanese lifestyle?
 Do you think Gross National Happiness is a good idea ?
 Is it possible to be happy without modern technology?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
Integrated Speaking Task
 You have listened to a lecture and read a text about
prosperity and prosperity.
 Use your knowledge of the content, vocabulary, degrees
of certainity and facts vs. opinions to have a discussion
with other students to answer the following question.
 Does prosperity lead to happiness ?
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
 In your discussion, use:
 Ideas from the reading, lecture, and news story about
Bhutan.
 Your own opinion with strong evidence
 Expressions for discussions
 Follow the steps on page 109 and prepare for your
discussion.
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT
CANKAYA UNIVERSITY - OFFICE OF BASIC AND ELECTIVE COURSES- ENGLISH UNIT