NAME:

Date:
Read the text and answer the questions that follow.

The Future Is Here

I It looks like an ordinary classroom – children sit at their desks as the teacher gives them instructions about what
they have to do. Except this is a class with a difference. The students are not being taught by an ordinary teacher.
Instead, their instructor is the Engkey – a small, penguin-shaped plastic robot.
II The Engkey was developed in South Korea as part of an innovative plan to incorporate robots into the country’s
classrooms. In particular, the government is hoping that robots like Engkey will help to teach Korean children
English. Over the years, Korea has imported thousands of Americans, Canadians, South Africans and others to
help supplement local teachers of English. However, in addition to being very expensive, officials say it is
becoming increasingly difficult to find native English speakers who are willing to live in remote areas and on the
islands. Educators and engineers alike are hoping that the Engkey will help solve the problem.
III The Engkey is controlled by a human teacher outside the classroom whose face appears on the screen of the robot.
Because the human teacher can be located anywhere in the world, students have access to highly skilled and
qualified English-speaking teachers that would otherwise be unavailable to them. What is more, some teachers
believe that many students are too shy to speak English to a real person because they are afraid of making
mistakes. They claim that these students might find it easier to talk to a robot.
IV Another version of the Engkey, which doesn’t connect students to a human, uses voice recognition technology to
help students practise their English pronunciation and dialogue. This robot can help teachers when simple and
repetitive training is required. So, for example, the robot can say a particular sentence or grammatical structure
which the student has to repeat. If the student does not repeat what the robot has said correctly, he or she will be
corrected and asked to try again.
V Supporters of teaching robots claim that the robots will help to prepare children for a robotic future. They also say
that they will help to motivate students and to improve their concentration in the classroom. Finally, they note that
robots are an inexpensive way to make sure that teachers get the help they need.
VI However, these robots have a long way to go if they are really going to be helpful. One of the main difficulties
with the existing robots is that they are only able to help students practise very specific conversations. If a student
says something that has not been programmed into the robot, the robot doesn’t understand and cannot reply.
Programmers are aware of the problems and are working hard to solve them.
VII Yet even if robotic technology does improve significantly, it seems highly unlikely that robots will ever
completely replace human teachers. Computers simply process information and have no real understanding. To be
a successful teacher, you have to understand the person you are teaching and it is not probable that computers will
ever be able to develop this level of understanding. It would appear that human teachers are here to stay.

1 Choose the correct answer.

1. The Engkey … .
a was developed in an English-speaking country
b. has replaced teachers in South Korea
c. is used to teach English
d. can be located anywhere in the world
2. The writer of the article believes that robots … .
a. can’t be improved
b. will eventually take the place of teachers
c. don’t process enough information
d. will never have the understanding of humans

1
 3 Unit Test

2 Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false (F). Find evidence in the text to justify your answers.

 1. All of the robots are linked to human teachers.

....................................................................................................................................................
 2. Robots are cheaper than human teaching assistants.
....................................................................................................................................................
 3. The robots can have real conversations with students.
....................................................................................................................................................

3 Complete the sentences.

1. The Engkey may be helpful for shy students who..............................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................... .
2. Using voice recognition technology, robots .......................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................... .

4 Find words or expressions in the text that mean:

1. original (paragraph II) ……………………
2. situated (paragraph III) ……………………
3. needed (paragraph IV) ……………………
4. likely (paragraph VII) ……………………
Write a composition: advantages and disadvantages about new technologies. (120-150)