Universidad Nacional Abierta y a Distancia

Vicerrectoría Académica y de Investigación

Course: English 2
Code: 90021

Activity Guide and Evaluation Rubric – Task 4 (Superstitions Spotlight)

1. Activity Description

Type of activity: Individual

Evaluation moment: Intermediate Unit 2
Highest score of the activity: 90 points
The activity starts on: Thursday, April The activity ends on: Sunday, April 28,
4, 2024 2024
With this activity, you are expected to achieve the following learning
outcomes:

The student will acquire the ability to discuss superstitions fluently, employing
appropriate linking phrases, demonstrating self-confidence, utilizing relevant
vocabulary, and maintaining clear pronunciation in both a video presentation and oral
practice sessions with the tutor and peers.

The activity consists of:

This activity involves selecting and discussing a superstition of your choice in a video
presentation. Additionally, students will participate in oral practice sessions to
enhance their English-speaking skills.

Step 1: E-book Challenge.

Go to the Learning Environment and enter the E-book / Online Content (Contenido en
Linea) to develop the activities of the E-book.

1
After reviewing and understanding the suggested modules, select only one option
and complete the established exercises. Share the screenshots directly on the
forum within the given time frame for the task. Make sure not to choose an
exercise that has already been selected by another classmate.

Option 1 Module 4, exercise 1. Module 5, exercise 2.

Option 2 Module 4, exercise 4. Module 5, exercise 3.

Option 3 Module 4, exercise 12. Module 5, exercise 5.

Option 4 Module 5, exercise 8. Module 6, exercise 9.

Option 5 Module 6, exercise 1. Module 6, exercise 11.

Table 1 - Suggested Exercise Options for This Stage

Step 2: Personal insights on superstitions.

In task #2, you were supposed to choose a superstition in a group and create a story
around it. Now, in this activity, you will create a video project where you will have
the opportunity to explore and talk about a superstition of your choice. You must
choose a superstition, and this will be the central theme of your video
presentation:

2
 El Mal de Ojo Susto (Soul Mirrors at Crossing Paths
(The Evil Eye): Loss): Night: with a Black
Cat:
Belief: If Belief: Traumatic Belief: It is
someone looks at events or shocks considered Belief: Crossing
you with envy or can cause a unlucky to look paths with a
jealousy, they person's soul to into a mirror at black cat is seen
can bring harm become detached night. as a bad omen.
or misfortune from their body, Explanation: Explanation:
upon you. leading to This superstition This superstition
Explanation: To physical and may have roots likely stems from
protect against mental health in the fear of a blend of
the evil eye, issues. encountering European and
people often Explanation: supernatural indigenous beliefs
wear red Traditional entities or seeing associating black
bracelets or healers, known one's own cats with bad
necklaces, which as "curanderos," reflection luck and evil
are believed to are sought to distorted in the spirits.
ward off negative perform rituals dark.
energy. aimed at
restoring the lost
soul.
Table 2 - Suggested Superstition Options for This Stage

What should you include in the video?

1. Personal Introduction: Share your name, your age, what you are studying, your
occupation, etc.
2. Superstition: Explain the superstition you have chosen, its origin, and any beliefs
associated with it.
3. Personal Opinion: Share your thoughts about this superstition by answering the
following questions:
• Have you ever had an experience related to this superstition?
• How do you feel about people practicing this superstition?
• Why do you think people have continued to believe in this superstition
over the years?

It is necessary to create a script to organize your ideas before the video. You can
review an example here: https://view.genial.ly/651aeec5b1f06500111b11a0

3
You should make sure to include the following grammatical structures in your script:

• Present perfect
• Simple past
• Usage of the infinitives and gerunds

You cannot read in the video because we are evaluating your oral skills.

To practice your pronunciation, you can use the following tool:

https://www.naturalreaders.com/online/ If you don't understand how to use this
tool, you can always watch the following video: https://youtu.be/OyVJkVYQvBw

Share the link (Youtube, Loom, Vimeo, Google Drive, Onedrive, etc.) of your video in
the forum. Verify it belongs to a public category (no passwords should be required to
open it) Check that your link works perfectly.

Video conditions:

• Record the video in a luminous place and with good sound.

• Your face must appear in the video all the time.
• You can use photos and support your speech with a presentation.
• Length of the video: At least 2 minutes. Maximum 4 minutes.

Step 3: Talk the talk.

Option A: Student Talking Time (STT)

As a way to help students improve their English level, pronunciation, and speaking
skills, each teacher will develop some practical workshops named Student Talking
Time.
Be attentive to the tutor's invitation to these workshops, which you must attend to
improve and learn English. During these sessions, you will practice your English. The
invitation will be sent by mail. The teacher will share with you the schedule in which
these workshops will be developed.

You will have to attend at least two STT sessions to gain some points for your final
grade. Take a screenshot while in the workshop, register your attendance, and add
this to the final task. In the Student Talking Time, you can share your opinions in
English with the tutor and partners.

4
The evidence must show your name and face; therefore, you must open the camera
during your participation.

Option B: Face-to-face practice.

You can participate in a face-to-face practice with the tutor. The tutor will share a
schedule in a drive document through TEAMS. You must register on the day you are
available. In this face-to-face practice, the teacher will listen to your answers
regarding the following questions about the superstition you have chosen:

• What superstition have you chosen to explore, and can you briefly explain it?
• How did you become interested in this particular superstition?
• Have you ever had an experience related to this superstition?
• How do you feel about people practicing this superstition?
• Why do you think people have continued to believe in this superstition over the
years?

You must listen to each question and give answers to them without reading, like in an
interview.
At the end of this practice, you must take a screenshot and share this on the forum
of this task.

Step 4: Self – Assessment.

This stage is focused on your personal reflection and growth. As part of your
evaluation, please assess your performance on a scale from 1 to 5, where 5
represents excellent and 1 indicates you need to enhance your role in this virtual
module. Consider the relevant criteria for each aspect. Please rate yourself honestly
based on your performance in each stage and general criteria:

1. I selected the appropriate exercise option and completed the exercises

correctly.
2. I chose a superstition and shared my ideas and personal opinions.
3. I recorded the video and my face remained visible throughout the video.
4. I attended the student talking time workshops or the face-to-face practice and
participated actively in it.

5
 Step 5: Consolidation (Final product)

After making the necessary corrections and receiving positive feedback from your
tutor regarding your story, you should consolidate all the stages into a .doc or .PDF
file.

Afterward, please upload the file to the Evaluation Environment. It's important to
submit your final document as text (doc or pdf) rather than images. The latter will
not be assessed.

NOTE: Ensure that your final document is named in the following format: Task
4_student’s name group number. For example, (Task 4_Camilo Rodriguez_255).

For the development of the activity consider that:

In the initial Information Environment, you must check the agenda to verify the
opening and closing of the task.

In the Learning Environment, you must check out and study the online content.
Enter the forum and participate with your audio and video in it. In this environment
you find all the appendixes to use for the final task.

In the Evaluation Environment, you must upload a PDF document with the
organization of all the steps required in the guide.

Evidence of individual work:

The individual evidence to be submitted is:

A document that contains the following information:

Step 1: Development of the E-book exercises.

Step 2: Link to the video.
Step 3: Evidence of participation in STT or face-to-face practice.
Step 4: Evidence of Self-Evaluation.

6
Evidence of collaborative work:
No collaborative evidence is required in this activity.

2. General Guidelines for the Development of Evidence to Submit

For Individual evidence, consider the following:

• Every member of the group must participate with academic contributions in

the activity development.

• Before delivering the requested product, all the requirements indicated in this
activity guide must be checked.

• Each student must develop the steps of the task and post the evidence in the
forum.

• The final product must be sent to the Evaluation Environment.

Please keep in mind that all individual or collaborative written products must comply
with the spelling rules and presentation conditions defined in this activity guide.
Regarding the use of references, consider that the product of this activity must
comply with APA style.

In any case, make sure you comply with the rules and avoid academic plagiarism.
You can review your written products using the Turnitin tool found in the virtual
campus.

Under the Academic Code of Conduct, the actions that infringe the academic order,
among others, are the following: paragraph e) Plagiarism is to present as your own
work all or part of a written report, task or document of invention carried out by
another person. It also implies the use of citations or lack of references, or it
includes citations where there is no match between these and the reference and
paragraph f) To reproduce, or copy for profit, educational resources, or results of

7
research products, which have rights reserved for the University. (Acuerdo 029 - 13
de diciembre de 2013, artículo 99)

The academic penalties students will face are:

a) In case of academic fraud demonstrated in the academic work or evaluation, the
score obtained will be zero (0.0) without any disciplinary measures being derived.
b) In case of proven plagiarism in academic work of any nature, the score obtained
will be zero (0.0), without any disciplinary measures being derived.

3. Evaluation Rubric Template

Type of activity: Individual

Evaluation moment: Intermediate Unit 2
The highest score in this activity is 90 points
First evaluation High level: The student completes all exercises with correct
criterion: answers and shares screenshots within the given time frame.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 7 points
E-book exercises. and 10 points.

This criterion Average level: The student completes most of the exercises
represents 10 with correct answers and shares screenshots within the given
points of the total time.
of 90 points of If your work is at this level, you can get between 4 points
the activity. and 6 points.

Low level: The student completes a few exercises with correct

answers and/or fails to share screenshots within the given time.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 3 points.
Second evaluation
High level: The video proposal is innovative and meets the
criterion:
theme and the criteria described in the guide. The student
recorded a high-quality video with clear visibility of their face
Video recording.
throughout the entire duration, maintaining engagement.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 12 points
This criterion
and 15 points.
represents 15
points of the total

8
of 90 points of Average level: The student recorded and uploaded the video,
the activity. but the proposal is plain and is not innovative. The student
recorded a video with a mostly visible face, although there were
some instances where visibility was compromised.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 7 points
and 11 points.

Low level: The student recorded a video with poor visibility of

their face, making it difficult to engage and assess their
performance or the student does not record the video.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 6 points.
Third evaluation High level: The student consistently uses a wide range of
criterion: appropriate and advanced vocabulary related to superstitions.
The student speaks fluently and confidently, maintaining a
Vocabulary, fluency smooth flow of speech throughout the video presentation and
and pronunciation. oral practice sessions.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 20 points
This criterion and 25 points.
represents 25
points of the total Average level: The student uses a variety of vocabulary related
of 90 points of to superstitions, but there may be some inaccuracies. The
the activity. student speaks with some fluency and occasional hesitations,
but overall maintains a reasonable flow of speech in the video
presentation and oral practice sessions. There may be
inconsistencies in pronunciation that may slightly affect the
clarity and comprehension of the speech.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 15 points
and 19 points.

Low level: The student uses limited vocabulary related to

superstitions, resulting in a lack of clarity. The student speaks
with significant hesitations and disruptions, resulting in a lack of
fluency and coherence in the video presentation and oral practice
sessions. The student consistently demonstrates unclear or
inaccurate pronunciation, making it difficult to comprehend the
speech.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 14 points.

9
Fourth evaluation High level: The student participates actively in at least two
criterion: practical Student Talking Times, and evidence this with the
screenshot and attendance registration in the forum and the final
Participation in task. In the evidence is clear the student´s picture and his/her
Student Talking name.
time STT or Face-to The student participates in face-to-face practice, which gives the
face practice. answer to the questions presented in the guide and sends the
evidence of this, in it is clear the student’s picture and his/her
This criterion name.
represents 30 If your work is at this level, you can get between 25 points
points of the total and 30 points.
of 90 points of
the activity. Average level: The student participates in at least two practical
Student Talking Times or at less than two practical Student
Talking Times. He/she evidences this with the screenshot and
attendance registration in the forum and the final task. In the
evidence is not clear the student´s picture and his/her name.
The student participates in face-to-face practice, with some
mistakes. The ideas are not so clear. He/she sends the evidence
of this, but in it is not clear the student’s picture and his/her
name.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 17 points
and 24 points

Low level: The student enters only one practical Student

Talking Time or is not present in them. He/she doesn’t evidence
this with the screenshot and attendance registration in the forum
and the final task; or the student evidences the attendance but
is not clear the student´s picture and his/her name.
The student doesn’t participate in face-to-face practice, or
he/she presents this but with many mistakes. The ideas are not
so clear. He/she doesn’t send evidence of this.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0 points
and 16 points.

Fifth evaluation High level: The student completes the self-evaluation form,
criterion: providing a clear assessment of their performance.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 7 points
Self-Assessment. and 10 points.

10
This criterion Average level: The student evidences the answer to only some
represents 10 items of the self-evaluation.
points of the total If your work is at this level, you can get between 4 points
of 90 points of and 6 points.
the activity.
Low level: The student doesn’t develop the self-evaluation and
doesn’t answer any items with evidence.
If your work is at this level, you can get between 0
points and 40 points.

11