5.

24

Speaking

#1 Many students like to help others by working for free in volunteer programs in
their community or school. Talk about a type of volunteer work that you are interested
in. Explain why you think it is important. Use details and examples to explain your
answer.

#2 Some people prefer to work in an office setting. Others prefer to work from their
home away from the traditional office or workplace. Which of these two work
arrangements would you prefer and why?

#3 Now listen to two students discussing the article.

1: Didn’t you take that course last year?

2: Yea and I think what they’re doing is terrible.

1: But was the class really small like the article says?

2: Well, sure. There weren’t that many of us, but in fact I think the small size actually
made it more worthwhile, not less.

1: Yea?

2: Yea… I think with this kind of class it really helps if it’s small. You get lots of
attention from the professor. That’s important. You really need the professor’s
feedback and comments with writing.

1: So you’re saying in a bigger class, you wouldn’t learn as much?

2: Right. In this kind of class, you need individualized attention… more time with the
professor; a benefit you don’t get in a large class and also, the state university option?
That’s not going to work.

1: How come?

2: Well because unless you have a car it’s pretty hard to get there. I mean, it takes like
more than an hour on a bus.

1: Oh yea, that’s true. I guess it’s not that close if you’re taking public transportation.

2: No and most students here don’t have cars.

1: So that would be really inconvenient.

2: Exactly. Traveling back and forth all the time? You’d be on the bus a lot.

Using points from the newspaper article, explain the man’s reasons for disagreeing
with the university’s decision.

#4 Now listen to part of a lecture on this topic in a biology class.

Right, so lets talk first about an instinctive feeding behavior. Pick the European toad.
Now, one type of animal that the toads catch and eat regularly is the worm. Worms
are its prey. However, studies have shown these toads will actually attack anything
that is long and thin like a worm and that moves similarly; that is, horizontally. So, for
example if you move, lets say, a pencil from side to side in front of this toad, it’ll
probably attack the pencil just like it would a worm. What’s more, the toad will start
swallowing even if it hasn’t caught anything to eat. It’s as if the toad has been
programed to go through the full process of catching and eating simply by seeing an
object. The object which is similar to the toad’s typical prey because of how it looks
and moves acts as a stimulus and certain geese exhibit an interesting behavior of their
own: their instinctive behavior to protect their eggs. Whenever they see objects that
are spherical, basically roundish like an egg, they automatically use their beaks to try
to roll this object onto their nest. It’s the exact behavior that is needed to rescue an
egg that has rolled away from the nest, only rather than exhibiting the behavior only
with an actual egg, the geese are stimulated to perform this activity simply by the
appearance of any object that’s shaped like an egg.

Using the examples of the toad and the goose, explain what a releaser is.

#5 Listen to a conversation between two students.

1: John, can I get your advice?

2: Sure! What’s up?

1: Well, I’m planning my schedule for next semester.

2: Uh huh…

1: And you know how I was planning to take that economics class with Dr. Thomas?

2: Oh yea, he’s that visiting professor you’ve been talking about.

1: Right! Well, his work is really well known and he’s supposed to be a good teacher
too, so I’m really excited about taking a class with him.

2: So, how can I help?

1: Well, the problem is… I want to take at least four other required courses. You
know, stuff I need to graduate, but I’m afraid that with such a full load I won’t be able
to keep up. What would you do?
2: Well, maybe you could audit the economics class.

1: Audit the class… well, that’s an idea.

2: Yea, if you audit it then you can just sit in on the classes, but you won’t have to do
all the coursework… no tests, no papers, so you wouldn’t have to worry about the
grade.

1: That’s true, but I’m not sure. If I audit, I will get to hear Dr. Thomas lecture, but
since I won’t do the papers and stuff… I’m afraid I won’t learn as much.

2: I see your point. Well, another solution could be… I mean, do you really have to
take all four of those required courses next semester? Couldn’t you wait and take one
of them over the summer instead?

1: You mean so I could sign up for Dr. Thomas’ class next semester?

2: Yea, instead of auditing it.

1: Well, that’s a possibility. It would free up my schedule. The thing is though… I

usually work full time over the summer. If I wait until then to take one of the required
classes, I won’t be able to work as many hours.

Briefly summarize the problem the speakers are discussing then state which solution
you would recommend. Explain the reasons for your recommendation.

#6 Listen to part of a talk in a psychology class.

A person who is in a group will think and behave differently than they would if they
were alone. In particular, if most of the people in a group, the majority, think the same
thing then I, if I’m in the group, will be effected by what the majority thinks. This
effect is called Majority Influence. So, lets talk about two types of majority influence:
informational influence and normative influence. First, there’s informational influence.
Now this happens when what’s important to you is information; getting the right
answer to a question. Say you’re driving a car, taking a group of people to a restaurant.
Now at one point, you’re not sure which way to go. You think you need to turn left,
but when you ask the people in the car, everyone says, ‘Go straight.’ Do you turn left?
No you don’t. Since the majority thinks you should go straight, that’s probably correct.
You change what you think is the correct answer and go straight. This is
informational influence. Then there’s normative influence. Normative influence
occurs when a person wants to be accepted by a group. To gain approval, the person
goes along with the norm, the popular opinion. Say you go to a movie with some
people you’re hoping to become friends with. After the movie, they’re all saying how
great it was, but you thought the movie was awful. Do you say that? No. Instead you
agree with everyone else and say you liked it. Now why? Not because you think the
movie was good, you just want to get along with the group. If you say you thought the
movie was lousy, you might seem like you’re not part of the group, so this is an
instance of normative influence.
Using points and examples from the talk, explain two of the types of majority
influence: informational and normative.