GT5 CLIL Un 5 Booklet C Ts

Teacher’s guide - C

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TECHNOLOGY AND HUMAN LIFE

1. SUMMARY In this task, you will reflect on how technology has affected human life. You will analyze its positive and negative impacts. You will also think of areas in which technology changed our lives. At the end, you will choose an area such as lifestyle, health, communication, business, youth and human behavior, and investigate how technology changed/improved it.

2. KEY CONTENTS 

How technology has affected human life;

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Positive and negative impacts of technology on society;

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Areas in which technology changed our lives.

Read the first sentence with Ss and ask them to choose the word to complete it.

Ss do the activity and then check it in pairs. After it, go over all of them and carry out a very relevant discussion with Ss as an introduction to the reading.

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Choose the correct word or phrase.

1.

Technology has affected human life because it helped solve / create problems related to everyday life.

2.

Technology has made it easier for economies to grow / to build build, and for companies, to do business / make business business.

3.

Agriculture / Transportation has been improved by the use of mechanization technology which has replaced ancient farming / labor systems.

GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

4.

Telecommunication and transportation systems are the backbone / frontbone of any society.

5.

Trains, buses, cars, airplanes, speed boats, etc. have made it feasible / impossible for people to travel around in much less time.

6.

Email, phone calls, and app messaging allows for people to stay connected in a globalized / disconnected world.

7.

Online gateways and websites have allowed institutions of education to offer educational materials in a new, streamlined / offline manner.

8.

One problem associated with the increasing use of technologies is the depletion / abundance of natural resources.

9.

Despite the invention of contraceptives / receptives, receptives the human global population has exploded due to better technologies that have allowed for longer life.

10. One of the most notable negative impacts of technology is the great increase in pollution due to industrialization / farming. farming

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HOW HAS TECHNOLOGY AFFECTED HUMAN LIFE? Ultimately, technology has positively affected human life from antiquity until now by solving problems associated with everyday life, and making it easier for different tasks to be completed. Technology has made it easier to farm, more feasible to build cities, and more convenient to travel, among many other things, effectively linking together all countries on earth, helping to create globalization, and making it easier for economies to grow and for companies to do business.

Virtually every facet of human life can be carried out in an easier, more effective, and quicker fashion via technological solutions, resulting in less problems in one way, and more problems in another.

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POSITIVE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON SOCIETY While technology has had several less-than-desired impacts on society as a whole, there are potentially more positive impacts on society than negative impacts. Such impacts have made life easier for multitudes, and have gifted many with the resources, education and tools needed to live a better life. Such impacts have greatly affected agriculture, transportation, communication, and the education sectors within societies globally.

MECHANIZATION OF AGRICULTURE Ancient agricultural practices have seen a radical change with the mechanization of agriculture.

Such mechanization simply means that machines and technological systems (including robots) have replaced ancient farming systems such as work animals and manual labor. This has resulted in more automated, highly efficient farm practices, producing far more abundant food resources for more people.

IMPROVEMENT OF TRANSPORTATION While it is still possible to walk to most places on earth, the advent of trains, buses, cars, airplanes, speed boats, etc. has made it feasible for people to travel to and from their required destination in much less time.

Adding to that are ridesharing apps, such as Uber and Grab, which have made it incredibly easy to get to a destination very quickly and inexpensively. The backbone of any society is its infrastructure, which includes both telecommunication and transportation systems, so the evolution of both systems has greatly helped to shape the modern world.

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GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

IMPROVEMENT ON COMMUNICATION Telecommunication systems are a very crucial part of any advanced society. From using bird messages and smoke signals, to the faster, more efficient, more effective, and more global system of email, phone calls, and app messaging allows for people to stay connected in a globalized world. From Skype to VOIP to global telecom carriers, it is highly feasible for people to travel the world and stay connected, and even possible for remote workers or international businesses to utilize video calls and conference calls via the Internet to keep their businesses going without interruption.

IMPROVING THE EDUCATION AND LEARNING PROCESS In the modern world, it is as easy as utilizing a Google search, podcast, or YouTube video to learn virtually any skill that one needs to succeed, whether it be a new language, a programming language, a technical skill, or an obscure part of history. As opposed to having to learn from printed paper books, now e-books and even online seminars allow people to learn in a faster, more efficient fashion, and with the convenience of mobile computer systems/apps. Online gateways and websites have also allowed institutions of education to offer educational materials in an all new, streamlined manner, helping students to master materials using computer systems that they are familiar with, and also allowing them to consolidate their educational materials in a single place.

NEGATIVE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON SOCIETY The depletion of fossil fuels, the need for more rare-earth elements, the use of rare elements such as gold, coltan and tantalum (as is required for modern electronics) which have often helped fuel wars in mineral rich continents and countries - and the burning of fuels potentially impacting Global Warming are all very real issues created by an increasing use of technology.

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DEPLETION OF RESOURCES One of the most troubling issues associated with the increasing use of technologies is the depletion of natural resources, whether that be rare earth elements/minerals, food sources, or fossil fuels. The use of corn to produce fuel in the form of ethanol, for instance, can greatly reduce corn/ food supplies globally. Additionally, the world’s hunger for more and more electronics can greatly or completely deplete the world’s resources of gold, coltan, and other rare minerals, while helping to fuel conflicts around the world where those “blood minerals” are found and often fought over.

POPULATION INCREASE / HEALTH CONCERNS Despite the invention of contraceptives, the human global population has exploded, in part due to better technologies that have allowed for longer life spans, more abundant sustenance availability, and the management of resources that have allowed for more effective reproduction.

Ironically, the presence of more humans is partly related to resources being more depleted, but also resulting in more effective management being implemented. However, the increasing usage of technology has affected some health epidemics that previously were unheard of, including the development of societal sedentary lifestyles (such as constant sitting), excessive exposure to blue light from electronic devices, and constant exposure to EMFs, which can result in chronic illness such as immune system dysfunction.

POLLUTION INCREASE Along with the depletion of resources, one of the most notable negative impacts of technology is the great increase in pollution due to industrialization. This includes fossil fuel emissions, global warming, and cities around the world whose factories emit massive quantities of solid and air pollution/waste, resulting in large increases in cancer and chronic illness incidents. And while climate change is a highly controversial subject, many scientists agree that global warming is very real and is a threat to the human species.

SOURCE: http://bitly.ws/hj3w [Adapted]

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GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

Ss work in pairs.

Have a discussion with the whole class.

This is a very fruitful to raise Ss’s awareness of the positive and negative impacts of technology in society.

If there’s time, complement the discussion with videos that tackle these issues.

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Complete the table with information from the text. Then, discuss the positive and negative impacts of technology on society.

Agriculture

Technology

Positive impact

Mechanization; replaced ancient farming systems by automated farming methods

Producing far more abundant food resources for more people

Transportation

New means of transportation: trains, buses, cars, airplanes, speed boats, etc.

Made it possible for people to travel to and from their required destination in much less time.

Communication

New ways of communication: email, phone calls, app messaging, etc.

Faster, more efficient, more effective, and more globalized.

Education

Online learning platforms, e-books, videos, animations, etc.

Allow people to learn in a faster, more efficient fashion, and with the convenience of mobile computer systems/apps.

Technology

Negative impact

Ethanol (fuel)

The use of corn to produce ethanol can greatly reduce corn/food supplies globally

Transportation

Industry

Health

Electronics

Blue light (from electronic devices) Industrialization

Industry

Depletion the world’s resources of gold, coltan, and other rare minerals.

Excessive exposure to it, and constant exposure to EMFs can result in chronic illness such as immune system dysfunction.

Pollution: fossil fuel emissions; global warming, and cities around the world whose factories emit massive quantities of solid and air pollution/waste, resulting in large increases in cancer and chronic illness incidents.

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Teacher, use this as a pleasant moment to discuss the hurdles of life in the past and how our lives nowadays are much better.

If you have time, carry out a research with Ss (or divide Ss in groups) to find out in more detail how middle-aged people dealt with those everyday situations.

BRAINSTORMING/DISCUSSION

Imagine you are in the middle age, around the year of 1,500 A.D. You would like to do the following: Travel 200 km to visit your uncle By horse, or carriage

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Send a message to your father telling him your daughter was born. Your father lives 300 km away from you Send a letter delivered by a private messenger.

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Cure a headache that’s killing you

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Use a plant or herb remedy.

Eat a delicious meal (breakfast, lunch or dinner)

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What a person ate and drank depended on how rich they were. For peasants, their average diet in Medieval times consisted largely of barley. They used barley to make a variety of different dishes, from coarse, dark breads to pancakes, porridge and soups.

Take a hot shower

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In the Middle Ages, bathing commonly took place in public bathhouses. Rich people bathed at home, most likely in their bedroom, as ‘bath’ rooms were not common. Bathing was done in large, wooden tubs with a linen cloth laid in it to protect the bather from splinters.

a. b. c.

How would you do that?

How is it different from nowadays?

What changed?

Teacher, this activity is a preparation for the reading. Go over the expression with Ss and explain their meanings.

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Complete each sentence with a word or phrase from the box. 

Cryptography

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medical record

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convenient

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chronic illness

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Security breach

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medical assessment

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Inbound marketing

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book



EMFs

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Lifestyle



physician

1.

Lifestyle _________________________ is someone’s way of living; the things that a person or particular group of people usually do.

2.

convenient If something is _________________________, it is suitable for your purposes and needs and causes the least difficulty.

GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

3.

book When you _________________________ something such as a hotel room or a ticket, you arrange to have it or use it at a particular time.

4.

chronic illness A _________________________ or disability lasts for a very long time.

5.

medical assessment A _________________________ is the doctor’s consideration and judgment of someone’s health condition.

6.

medical record A _________________________ is the doctor’s or hospital’s written account or photographs of the patients’ health so that they can be referred to later.

7.

physician A _________________________ is a doctor.

8.

Cryptography _________________________ is the science or study of analyzing and deciphering codes and ciphers.

9.

Security breach _________________________ means when someone manages to get through (enter) and attack an area that is heavily guarded and protected, such as computer systems.

EMFs 10. _________________________, or Electric and Magnetic Fields, are invisible areas of energy, often referred to as radiation, that are associated with the use of electrical power and various forms of natural and man-made lighting.

Inbound marketing 11. _________________________ is the process of helping potential customers find your company by creating brand awareness.

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AREAS IN WHICH TECHNOLOGY CHANGED OUR LIVES From the dawn of civilization, technology has changed - sometimes radically - the way people have lived, how businesses have operated, how youths have grown up, and how people in society, as a whole, have lived day to day. This includes facets of societal behaviors such as communication, travel, learning, business, convenience, and health. Technology has typically had both positive and negative effects on society, regardless of how drastic the effects on human behavior have been.

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LIFESTYLE If the modern lifestyle could be characterized in a single word, it would have to be “convenience.” From shopping online from one’s couch and having goods delivered next-day to the appropriate doorstep, to joining friends for a meetup via a social app without having to leave the house, to booking a flight and hotel across the world for travel the next day, tablet computers, wearable computer systems (I.e. smart watches), and smartphones allow people to perform tasks in a moment, on robust apps via the Internet, that previously would have required going in person. Essentially, technology has helped people to carry out complex tasks in a simpler, quicker manner.

HEALTH Smart bracelets and health apps have allowed a world increasingly plagued by chronic illness to monitor, analyze and alter personal health habits via computational systems. Hospital infrastructures now include computer systems with advanced security as a norm, while advanced apps may allow doctors to wirelessly obtain health info from patients via Wi-Fi-enabled nano-pills, and even the Sci-Fi-like gadgets, such as the medical tricorder, are being developed for quick medical assessments. Additionally, many hospital systems have online gateways that allow patients to obtain their medical records, or communicate with their physician online, nearly instantly.

PRIVACY Technology has had a somewhat marred history with regard to the issue of privacy.

Most people view cameras, intrusive apps, smart devices like smart homes (Alexa), and spy-devices as having helped to increasingly compromise the privacy of multitudes.

However, while this is partly true, technology has also increased the ability for endusers to have encrypted web sessions, and to send encrypted messages to other users.

The evolution of cryptography has helped to somewhat maintain digital privacy in a digital world.

However, we must note that the art of cyber hacking would not have been possible if not for the evolution of computer networks and computer systems. This generation has seen a frightening increase in security breaches, hacks, and malware attacks that have compromised the privacy of millions.

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GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

ATTITUDE OF THE YOUTH The younger generations have typically been most impacted by the rise of technology. While the older generation might have grown up using technology for certain, critical tasks such as email, millennials and generation Z typically use technology for virtually every task, and are often overexposed to EMFs and blue light. This includes using tablets in school, using web gateways to complete homework, and using YouTube to learn a language, for instance, which is a stark contrast to how the previous generation learned. Due to an increasing reliance on technology, the younger generation is more prone to care less about privacy issues associated with technology. At the same time, the younger generations are more likely to have a better understanding of how the Internet and technical systems work, which could fill in the massive gap associated with industries needing technical personnel.

BUSINESS Businesses, both large and small, have been impacted by technology perhaps more than any other sector within modern societies. Virtually every successful technological innovation has helped to increase business opportunities, has shaped business models, and has resulted in the production of new products and services, which also results in the creation of new imports/exports on a national level, and international, globalized business opportunities. Technologies that have changed the way businesses operate include: • • • • • • •

Printing Press Computer Personal Computer Fax Machine Email Social Media Servers

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Networking

• • • • • •

Internet/World Wide Web/TCP-IP Cryptography Business Intelligence Cloud Computing Big Data Artificial Intelligence

•

Data Science

Using the Internet for inbound marketing, and social media for reaching prospects and leads, as well as e-commerce, have all resulted from the World Wide Web, which has also spawned new working roles such as remote working, telemarketing, and the evolution of the digital nomad.

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HUMAN BEHAVIOR Human behavior is as complex as it is mysterious, but as sociologists and anthropologists study human behavior within a societal context, it is clear that technology has helped to mold and evolve human behavior as the human species continues to increasingly depend on technology on a daily basis.

As creatures of comfort, the ease of use, and the convenience that technology provides calls for a steady adoption of smartphones, social media, and Internet-connected devices, while Wi-Fi hotspots become a must in virtually every establishment within the hospitality industry.

People increasingly look to apps to help them with virtually every task possible from learning a language, to finding a place to rent, to finding a date. There are many positives to technology, yet one negative is that human behavior has become so reliant on technology that people have the potential to become lazy, and unable to survive or function without the technology that so many have become accustomed to. Though it is debatable, some believe that convenience typically comes at a price.

SOURCE: http://bitly.ws/hj3w [Adapted]

Teacher, divide the class in 6 groups. Based on the text, each group will discuss one topic (a-f) and share their ideas with the other groups. They have to answer the following question:

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How has technology changed the way people in society have lived their lives in relation to: a.

Lifestyle

b.

Health

c.

Privacy

d.

Young people’s lives

e.

Business

f.

Human behavior

They should brainstorm other ideas besides the ones in the text.

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GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

Teacher, ask Ss if they would like to live longer (or forever) and why. Ask them what they think are the positive and negative implications of living longer.

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Can we live up to be 200 years old? (Optional) One of the areas technology changed our lives is in health care. Today, people have a much longer lifespan compared to a 100 or 200 years ago due to advancements in health science. However, we haven’t yet found a solution for death. In this documentary, the scientist David Sinclair argues that the pace of aging is not inexorable or predetermined, but rather can be slowed and even reversed by a variety of approaches.

Read the following sentences about the documentary you are going to watch and guess the best answer, A, B or C. Then, watch the documentary to check your guesses.

1.

Aging in humans represents the accumulation of physical, psychological and _____ changes.

A. human

2.

C. 200

B. stopped

C. sped up

It has been shown that the level of NAD+ _____ with age.

A. increases

5.

B. 150

Research done by Sinclair and many other scientists have shown that the pace of aging is not predetermined but rather can be _____ by a variety of approaches.

A. slowed or reversed

4.

C. spiritual

A growing number of scientists believe the first person to reach the age of _____ has already been born.

A. 180

3.

B. social

B. declines

C. remains the same

Free radicals are _____ to cells, can _____ DNA and contribute to the aging process.

A. healthy / cure

B. vital / restore

C. toxic /damage

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6.

Senescence (aging) is caused by an accumulation of free radicals produced by the natural deterioration of _____.

A. cells

7.

B. mitochondrial

C. sarcosome

Some scientists believe that the key to slowing the aging process is by targeting _____ cells.

A. senescence

9.

C. molecules

There has been strong evidence that aging-related diseases have a _____ component.

A. organelle

8.

B. tissues

B. nerve

C. muscle

Sinclair has now a _____ therapy in his lab which reprograms cells to be young again.

A. cell

B. tissue

C. gene

10. Controversy about life extension is due to fear of _____.

A. overpopulation

B. famine

C. poverty

Now watch the documentary and check your answers.

http://bitly.ws/jCLc

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Discuss these questions with your group. 

What are the consequences of living longer: for the individuals, for society?



Would you like to have a longer life? Live up to 100 or 110 years? Why? Why not?

Teacher, here you can show Ss some excerpts of the movie “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, which presents the story of a man (boy) who is born old and dies young. Another movie to discuss this issue is “The age of Adaline” about a woman who never ages. Based on these movies, you can discuss all the implications of these situations in a person’s life.

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GT5 | Unit 5 | Teacher’s guide - C

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DEVISING NEW TECHNOLOGY In groups, devise a different technological solution for one of the following areas: a.

Lifestyle

b.

Health

c.

Privacy

d.

Young people’s lives

e.

Business

f.

Human behavior











Use your creativity to think of a different and innovative solution to a problem/need.

Your idea has to be translated into a technological solution, such as a device, a new method or system.

The solution and the new technology don’t necessarily have to be feasible in our current context, but could be something that exploits the imagination, like you sometimes watch in sci-fi movies.

Use a PowerPoint presentation, posters, illustrations, videos, etc. to present your idea.

Create a mock-up of your project if it’s possible.

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