The $100 laptop Vs The World's Cheapest Car

I'm off sick today so I thought I'd write about an idea I've been using in class recently.


The basic idea is which is more likely to help improve people's lives in the developing world; OLPC's laptop or the new Tata Nano.



Lesson Plan

1 Ask students if they have heard anything about either the the world's cheapest car or the $100 dollar laptop. Get students to stand up and circulate so that they can consult anyone in the class.

2 Elicit answers from the class - Write their points on the board.

3 If students have access to the internet get them to research the two choices - strict time limit of 10 minutes should help to concentrate minds. Also to avoid students just mindlessly repeating what Wiki, CNN or the BBC say, make sure they knew that at the end of the 10 minutes they won't be able to look at the computers again so they'll have to take notes.

4 Students get into groups of 2-4 and share what they've found out.

If students do not have access to the net then print out articles from here and here and do the same i.e 10 minutes to take notes then retrieve the photocopies.

5 Divide the class into two groups. Assign each group either the car or the laptop.

6 Each group has to think of as many reasons why their choice would make a greater difference to people in, say India, Nigeria or Bolivia than the other sides choice.

If you feel that this is beyond their realm of experience then use the following prompts to get them started;

How practical is it?

How can you make money with this?

How would it change a family's life?

What about the effects on the environment?

Who is going to use it?

7 Divide the students once again into groups of 2-4 and get them to argue their point.

8 Finally, ask students about their own personal opinion of these two choices.

This exercise could be used as the starting point for a number of activities;

For/Against essay

A speech which could be videoed and put on the class blog/wiki via Youtube.

A Voicethread photoessay (in the style of a Magnum podcast).

A podcast or voice post using Snapvine.

Or they could discuss this issue with others across the world using Kantalk

Thank You For Smoking - A Lesson Plan

I saw Thank you For Smoking over the summer and as a satire it was one of the best I've seen for a long while. So, here is a lesson plan for upper intermediate and advanced students that uses it. You don't need to show the whole film, just short extract(s) - two or three minutes long.



Lesson plan

1 Write, "Thank You For Smoking" on the board. Now ask students what is weird or unusual about this sentence. Of course, usually we are asked not to smoke.

2 Now explain that this is a title of a film. Ask students to write down a couple of ideas about what it may be about. If some of them have already seen it, ask them to form a separate group and write down the main idea of the movie.

3 Students swap ideas.

4 Tell the students that they are going to see a short extract from the film and that they should write down as many points as they can.

5 Now show a short extract (2 mins 30 sec till 5 mins)

6 Students exchange notes in groups of two - four (depending on their language level.

7 If necessary, show again.

8 If some students have seen the movie before they form groups with those who haven't and explain the main idea of the film. Alternatively, get them to explain it to you.

9 Now tell the students that there is going to be a class debate on banning smoking in public places such as bars, clubs etc (see here for the law in England).

10 Divide the class into two. One half will be in favour of the measure, the other against. They think of as many points that support their viewpoint.

11 Students form groups of four to six with people from both "sides"and and discuss the issue.

12 This could be used as the basis for a discursive essay writing lesson. Students could also record their personal opinions on their mobile phones (video or audio) and upload them to their blog. They could then ask other students to comment on them.