UNIT 11 AMERICANS AT WORK

This unit aims to help you review and practice the following strategies:
- recognizing signpost language in a lecture,
- use symbols to stand for words and ideas.

Lesson reflection
Answer the following questions. You can write in the note form.

1. What did you learn from the previous “in-class” listening and note taking session?

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2. What were the difficulties you had during the lesson?

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3. What have you intended to do to overcome these difficulties?

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 Listening strategy practice

In a lecture, you often listen to a variety of signpost language that tells the listener what has
happened, what is going to happen next, a new idea, and the end of one idea. Signpost language
helps the listener easily follow the lecture.
Finishing a section Starting a new section
- That's all I have to say about... - Moving on now to …
- We've looked at... - Turning to...
- We’ve just have a look at …. - Let’s turn now to …
- The next issue/topic/area I’d like to focus on
…
- I’d like to expand/elaborate on …
- Now we'll move on to...
- I'd like now to discuss...
Overview (outline of presentation) Summarizing and concluding
- I’m going to divide this talk into four parts. - To sum up...
- There are a number of points I'd like to - Let's summarize briefly what we've looked
make. at...
- Basically, I have three things to say. - Finally, let me remind you of some of the
- I'd like to begin/start by... issues we've covered...
- Let's begin/start by... - In conclusion...
- First of all, I'll... - In short...
- … And then I’ll go on to … - So, to remind you of what I’ve covered in this
- Then/ Next... talk, …
- Finally/ Lastly ... - I’ll conclude very briefly by saying that…

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Listen to the following extract from a talk and note down the signpost language that the
speaker used. The listening is taken from the book Listening & Notetaking skills by Phillis L.
Lim and William Smalzer, Heinle Cengage Learning, 2014.

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 Listening and note-taking practice
In this section, you will hear a lecture about AMERICANS AT WORK. The listening is taken
from Noteworthy: Listening & note taking skills, 2005. Complete the following tasks.

Task 1: Vocabulary
The following words will appear in the lecture you are going to listen to. Find the synonyms
from the box for the words that follow. You are expected to add more to the list.

a. per person

b. to idealize

c. yield

d. to stop developing

e. view

f. debatable

g. to support

1. to favor:

2. productivity:

3. to stagnate:

4. perspective:

5. per capita:

6. controversial:

7. to romanticize:

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Task 2: Listening

 First listening
Activity 1: Listen to the lecture and take notes using the strategies learned.

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Activity 2: Use your notes to decide if the statements below are true or false. Write T
(true) or F (false). Correct the false statements.

1. While the number of people in the goods producing industries rose, the number of people in

the service industries fell.

2. Whereas wages and salaries increased over the century, the average workweek declined.

3. People often tend to complain about the past and talk about “the good old days”.

4. Longer working hours in the U.S.A is a more popular trend whereas the trend in other

industrialized countries is the opposite.

5. Workers in some European countries actually outproduce than American workers per hour

of work.

6. Workers in some European countries achieve a higher rate of productivity than American

workers because European workers are more stressed than U.S workers.

7. Between 1949 and 1974, increases in productivity were matched by increases in wages.

8. After 1974, productivity rose in manufacturing and services, but real wages stagnated.

9. According to a recent book, the money earned from the increased productivity goes for

salaries to CEOs, to the stock market and to workers.

10. Some people say that labor unions have lost power since the beginning of the 1990s.

 Second listening

Activity 1: Study the following notes. Then listen to the lecture again and fill in the
blanks with the right words.

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 TOPIC: Look at work in USA today (1) ________________________________

- historical look at how things changed for American workers from 1900 to 1999

- (2)

 HISTORIC LOOK AT AMERICAN WORKERS

Changes in type of work

At the beginning of 20th cen. At the end of 20th cen.

o 38% worked in agriculture o (3) 3%
o 31% worked in mining, o (4) ___________________
manufacturing, construction
o (5) ________________ o 78%

Changes in child + women labor

At the beginning of 20th cen. At the end of 20th cen.

o Child labor was not unusual - 1,750,
000 children (10 - 15) worked full
time
o (7)
_________________________
o Child labor laws became
stricter(6)_____________
___
o 60% of women had jobs

Changes in (8)

At the beginning of 20th cen. At the end of 20th cen.

o Average income: $4,200/year o (9) ______________
o More benefits: health
insurance
o (10) ___________________
Changes in (11) ____________________________

At the beginning of 20th cen. At the end of 20th cen.

o Nearly 1,500 were killed in o (12)
coal mining accidents _____________________

o (13) ______________________
o 56

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 LOOK AT HOW U.S. WORKERS ARE DOING TODAY
(14) __________________________________

o U.S. workers are most productive among industrialized nations, but (15) _________
__________________________________________________

o Europeans have 4 to 6 weeks of vacation/year, but American workers have

about 2 weeks

Wages/salaries

o U.S productivity has increased greatly but wages do not rise at the same

rate

- Growing gap /./ rich & poor Americans: 1949 – 1974, rises in productivity

(16) ___________________________________________ in

manufacturing + services but since 1974, productivity increased 68% in

manuf. & 50% in service but (17) ____________________________

o Why? (18) _____________________________ not for pay rise for workers

Reasons for current situation

o Labor unions in USA (19) ______________________________since

beginning of 1980s

o (20)

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Activity 2: Compare the notes given with the notes you made in the first listening. Check
the listening and note-taking strategies that you used when you took notes. Identify things
you can learn to improve your notes for the next time.

Listening and Note-taking strategies

☐ Recognize lecture language that signals topic and plan
☐ Recognize lecture language that signals important information
☐ Recognize the key words
☐ Recognize lecture language for main ideas
☐ Recognize lecture language that signals a definition
☐ Recognize lecture language that signals an explanation
☐ Recognize lecture language that signals a transition
☐ Recognize lecture language that signals an example
☐ Recognize changes in pronunciation that signal when information is important
☐ Note down the key words
☐ Use symbols to take notes
☐ Use abbreviations to present words
☐ Highlight key ideas in the note
☐ Use an informal outline to take notes
☐ Use a visual form in the notes
☐ Organize the ideas in the lecture in a chart

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Follow-up activities

Task 1: Write a short passage in about 100 words summarizing the information you
have obtained from the listening.

Task 2: Make one sentence with one of the words given.

1. to favor: ___________________________________________________________________
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2. productivity ________________________________________________________________
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3. to stagnate __________________________________________________________________
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4. perspective _________________________________________________________________
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5. per capita ___________________________________________________________________
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6. controversial ________________________________________________________________
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7. to romanticize ________________________________________________________________

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