NEB Grade-11 (English) Unit:20 Science & Technology - "Taking my Son to College..."- by Christina Baker Kline
NEB Grade-11 (English) Unit:20 Science & Technology - "Taking my Son to College..."- by Christina Baker Kline
Before you read…
a. What modern gadgets do you have?
Modern gadgets I have are: Digital camera, MP3 player, Headphones, Router, Computer, Laptop, Pendrive (USB drive) etc.
b. Do they make your school life easier and better? How?
Ofcourse, they make our school life easier and better as they help us to do our school as well as daily work in easier way with low efforts and in less time and they are portable as well.
c. In what ways does the use of technology affect our education system?
The use of technology affect our education both positively and negatively. It is both boon as well as curse for its users. It helps us to conduct our research work, daily work so on but it also teaches us vulgar or western culture, as well as criminal activities.
•
Christina Baker
Kline’s, “Taking My Son To College, Where Technology Has Replaced Serendipity”,
is an essay about the contrast between her son’s college experience and her
own. Not only she reflects her college
experience, in comparison to her sons college experience, she also includes
some common things between her and her son.
•
Kline and her son
both attended Yale University, however their experiences greatly contrast each
other. Kline exposes these contrasts, as well as speaks on the positives and
negatives that were involved in each of their college experiences.
•
Advancements of
technology in some ways, hinder the
experiences students receive in school, and block them from gaining some of
life’s most memorable moments.
•
Kline’s personal
experiences are shared in her essay and are used to inform the reader on what
she believes contribute to her idea of serendipity including things such as
building lifelong relationships, memories, and experiences, that will lead and
teach you through various moments.
•
It reflects
Kline’s past and how it relates to the future, while sharing her unique moments
in college. The essay was officially published in the year 2013, a time period
when the use of technology was increased, and more people became aware of its
efficiency.
•
Such advancements
lead to the idea of integrating technology into school systems. Computers as
well as cell phones became more prominent over society, which contributed to
the use of them into different schools. The World Wide Web became enhanced and
further lead to greater use of technology that was eventually brought to
schools as well.
•
Kline’s essay is
written just after schools began to organize and develop more technology into
their curriculum. Kline’s ideas about technology reflect the difference in time
periods between her, and her sons time in college. Kline’s understanding of
technology is based off the era in which she was in school, and when technology
wasn’t as popular.
•
Christina Baker
Kline’s, “Taking My Son To College, Where Technology Has Replaced Serendipity”,
is a reflection of her college experience, in comparison to her sons college
experience where she argues that dependency on technology limits the excitement
and joy of learning life’s most unexpected blessings.
Ways with words
A. Match the words with their correct definitions.
a.
freshman -iv. a
first-year student at a university, college, or high school
b.
naive -v. having a
lack of experience or knowledge
c.
Obliviously -viii.
without conscious awareness
d.
brag -i. say
something in a boastful manner
e.
Disposal -ii. action
of throwing away something
f.
dorm -vii.
dormitory, student residence hall or building
g.
Suitemate -vi. someone
who shares your bathroom/living room/kitchen in college
h. Incalculable -iii. not able to be calculated or estimated
B.
Replace the
bold words in (a–h) selecting synonyms from the box/brackets.
(delight
incredible potential unanticipated fragmented scrutinizing navigate
indecipherable)
a.
Her story is unbelievable
in the literal sense of the word.
-incredible
b.
We often read the novels of the reputed
writers in the world. -potential
c.
The Facebook
users are scattered but connected to each other through the
Internet. -fragmented
d.
Sometimes unexpected
events happen in our life. -unanticipated
e.
He paused, examining
the faces of Anjana and Manju with his glittering eyes. –scrutinizing
f.
I am sorry to say
your handwriting is unreadable.
-indecipherable
g.
He is matured. He
can direct his own journey to make his career better. -navigate
h.
Gita's heart
swelled with pleasure, translating her confidence into power. -delight
C.
Complete the
sentences by choosing the correct word given in brackets.
a.
Does television
…… children? (affect/effect) -affect
b.
Does television
have an …… on children? (affect/effect) -effect
c.
Could you …… me
your book, please? (borrow/lend) -lend
d.
Can I …… your
pen? (borrow/lend) -borrow
e.
Prices seem to ……
every year. (raise/rise) -rise
f.
You can …… your
hand if you want to ask a question. (raise/rise) -raise
g.
What did he …… to
you? (say/tell) -say
h.
I can't …… Hindi.
(speak/talk) -speak
i. I will …… to you on the phone. (speak/talk) -talk
j. I think that's a very …… idea. (sensible/sensitive) -sensible
k.
My teeth are very
…… to cold. (sensible/sensitive) -sensitive
l.
Our …… is a
popular person. (principal/principle) -principal
m. I couldn't understand the …… of gravity. (principal/
principle) -principle
n.
All friends, ……
Nabina, came to the party. (accept/except)
-except
o.
Will you …… my
request? (accept/except) -accept
p.
They were making
too much …… . (noise/sound) -noise
q.
All she could
hear was the …… of the waves. (noise/sound)
-sound
r.
Did you give him
any…… for his career? (advice/advise) -advice
s.
My parents …… me
to be a teacher. (advice/advise) -advised
Comprehension
Answer these
questions.
a. Why did the author feel that she was lucky to be so naïve of her freshman year at college?
The author felt that she was lucky to be so naïve of her freshman year at college because her ignorance of social currencies being exchanged around her helped her perceive markers of wealth and status.
b. Why did she say that she went to college in the Stone Age?
She said that she went to college in the Stone Age. By this, she means it was the age when many modern students were familiar with many modern devices and advanced applications in the cell phones but she was living in the same old and stone age.
c. What kinds of technological tools can Hayden use at his college life unlike at his mother’s time?
Hayden uses modern technologies like his mobile phone with Yale apps, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube and many more unlike his mother’s time.
d. How has the internet and social sites affected the lifestyle of the youths? The internet and social sites has affected the lifestyles of the youths a lot in the sense it has made them dependent in almost everything whether it is small or big. It has made their works and projects easier and less expensive through search engine. But it has hampered in their creativity and critical thoughts as well.
e. What things about college life will Hayden really miss unlike his mother ?Hayden will really miss so many things like the creative and critical thinking ability and delight of discovering real world and factual experiences from the first hand experiences unlike his mother.
f.
The writer
says, "I worry that students today are more connected and more
fragmented". Isn't this paradoxical? How?
The writer says, "I worry that students today are more connected and more fragmented". it is really paradoxical. A paradoxical statement is illogical in surface level but it has philosophical meaning at underlying level. So is the case in this modern era in the sense people are connected virtually to one another through different social media but infact they are far away in real life and furthermore, they are fragmented or far away to each other.
Critical thinking
a. Do you think that advancements of technology can hinder the exposure students receive in school, and block them from gaining some of life’s most memorable moments? Give reasons in supports for your answer.
Advancement of technology, like many things in our world, can both help us and hinder us, and the same goes for school students. It blocks them from gaining some of life’s most memorable moments as well if they completely depend on it forgetting their creativity and real world.
Ø Some technology is right for students in a learning
and social environment, and some technology is not.
Ø Video game playing in students resulted killing their
valuable time unnecessarily and it misleads them in non-creative way.
Ø Violent
programmes in television can increase violent behavior in children and
excessive watching can increase childhood obesity and decrease learning and
academic performance. It displaces “physical activity, hands-on exploration,
and face-to-face social interaction in the real world, which is critical to
learning.”
Ø Children learn by copying whatever they find in internet for their demonstration and project works which reduces their creativity and critical thinking and it leads them away from the real world.
To wrap up, Parents and teachers are ultimately the gatekeepers of information, and have been since education began. Technology is just a tool that can be used for positive reasons and negative ones -- our job is to teach our children or students the difference.
b. Kline’s essay focuses on the contrast between her son’s freshman college experience and her own, but she also establishes what they have in common. Explain.
Christina Baker Kline’s, “Taking My Son To College, Where Technology Has Replaced Serendipity”, is an essay about the contrast between her son’s college experience and her own Not only she reflects her college experience, in comparison to her sons college experience, she also includes some common things between her and her son.
Kline and her son both attended Yale University, however their experiences greatly contrast each other. Kline exposes these contrasts such as integration of technology in classroom teachings with several new apps in the mobile phones and world wide web, as well as speaks on the positives and negatives that were involved in each of their college experiences.
Kline’s ideas about technology reflect the difference in time periods between her, and her sons time in college. Kline’s understanding of technology is based off the era in which she was in school, and when technology wasn’t as popular.
c. Has internet aided to broadening or narrowing the critical thinking capacity of youths or readers? How?
No. The internet is having no discernible impact like broadening or narrowing on the critical thinking abilities of most of the world’s population. It is the users’ aspects how they use it for and how they take it.
Ø Most people use the internet for confirmation of what
they already think they know and believe in.
Ø Critical thinking is the most important skill that can
now be taught in schools, and make the
students leaders of it.
Ø The Internet just makes the already absent or diminished
ability of people to think much more visible as they believe whatever is posted
that supports their preconceived notions, and disbelieve anything that
contradict them.
Ø "No one medium is good for everything," Greenfield said. "If we want to develop a variety of skills, we need a balanced media diet.”
Thus, Technology has tremendous potential to make students smarter, but in most schools we are crippling the technology in ways that hold students back. Technology is a tool, not a solution. It should be properly utilized.
What is Line Graph?
•
A line graph
is a type of chart used to show information that changes over time. We plot
line graphs using several points connected by straight lines.
We also call it a line chart. The line graph comprises of two axes known as ‘x’
axis and ‘y’ axis.
•
The horizontal axis
is known as the x-axis.
•
The vertical axis
is known as the y-axis.
Parts of a line graph: The given image describes the parts of a line graph.
Ø Title: tells
about the data for each line graph is plotted.
Ø x-axis:
tells about labels on x-axis, which is generally time.
Ø y-axis:
tells about labels on y-axis which is generally a quantity in numbers
Ø Trend: We
join the points to draw the graph.
# The graph below
gives information about changes in the birth and death rates in New Zealand
between 1901 and 2101.
Model answer
•
The graph shows
changes in the birth and death rates in New Zealand since 1901, and forecasts
trends tip until 2101.
•
Between 1901 and
the present day, the birth rate has been consistently higher than the death
rate. It stood at 20,000 at the start of this period and increased to a peak of
66,000 in 1961. Since then the rate has fluctuated between 65 and 50 thousand
and it is expected to decline slowly to around 45,000 births by the end of the century.
•
In contrast, the
death rate started below 10,000 and has increased steadily until the present
time. This increase is expected to be more rapid between 2021 and 2051 when the
rate will probably level off at around 60,000, before dropping slightly in
2101.
• Overall, these opposing trends mean that the death rate will probably overtake the birth rate in around 2041 and the large gap between the two levels will be reversed in the later part of this century.
(Source: https://www.ielts-exam.net/academic_writing_samples_task_1/1047/)
What is a Bar Chart?
•
A bar
chart is a graph with rectangular bars. The graph usually compares
different categories. Although the graphs can be plotted vertically (bars
standing up) or horizontally (bars laying flat from left to right), the most
usual type of bar graph is vertical.
•
The horizontal
(x) axis represents the categories; The vertical (y) axis represents a value
for those categories.
The three major attributes of bar graphs are:
•
The bar graph
helps to compare the different sets of data among different groups easily.
•
It shows the
relationship using two axes, in which the categories on one axis and the
discrete values on the other axis.
•
The graph shows
the major changes in data over time
# The bar chart below shows shares of expenditures for
five major categories in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and
Japan in the year 2009.
Model Answer
§ The bar chart compares how consumers
in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan allocated different
shares of total spending to categories such as food, housing, and
transportation in 2009.
§ We can see that the United States had the highest housing
expenditure share, 26% of total expenditures in 2009. The United Kingdom and
Japan followed, with 24% and 22%, respectively. Canada had the lowest housing
share at 21%. Housing was the largest expenditure component in
all countries except Japan.
§ By contrast,
Canada had the largest transportation share of all four countries at 20%. The
United States and the United Kingdom had the next-highest transportation
shares, 17% and 15%, respectively. Japan had the lowest, at 10%.
§ However, in
Japan, consumers spent 23% of their total expenditures on food in 2009. The
United Kingdom had the second-highest share at 20%. Canada, with 15%, and the
United States, with 14% had the lowest food expenditure shares among the
countries studied.
§ Overall, the
data indicates that housing and health care shares of total
expenditures were higher in the United States than in Canada,
the United Kingdom, and Japan in 2009, whereas Americans had
the lowest clothing share. Canada had the highest clothing and transportation
shares, and Japan had the highest food share, among the
countries compared.
(Source: https://www.ielts-exam.net/academic_writing_samples_task_1/781)
Grammar : Article
A. Fill in the
gaps with suitable articles where necessary.
a.
Is he working as
…… university professor? -a
b.
My younger sister
watches …… television a lot. -X
c.
A: What did you
get for your birthday?
B:
I got …… lot of good presents. -a
d.
I'm going to ……
Dominican Republic for my winter vacation.
-the
e.
I have to go to
…… bank today to deposit some money. -the
f.
Durga was injured
in the accident and was taken to …… nearest hospital. -the
g.
Every parent
should visit …… school to meet the teachers.
-X
h.
Who is …… woman
in this photograph? -the
i.
There is …… piano
in the corner of the room. -a
j.
A: Do you think
he is lying?
B:
No, he's the kind of …… guy that always tells the truth. -a
B. Put a/an or
the in the spaces.
BOB
COLLINS: A PROFILE
Bob
Collins has recently become …a… minister in the new government,
being appointed Minister for Industry. Mr. Collins has had a varied career. He
was ..the… professional footballer in the 1960s, some people considering
him to be …the… most skillful player of his generation. After a serious
injury, he became …the… manager of …an… oldest pub in Edinburgh.
Five years later, he was offered the position of …an… executive director
of Arcon, one of …the… biggest supermarket chains in the country. He
became …the… Member of Parliament in 1990.
Making Request
Format:
§ Could you +v1…….?
§ Could you + v1……, please?
§ Could you possibly =v1……?
§ Would you mind +v4………,please?
§ I wonder if you could ……………
§ Would it be possible to +v1……….?
§ You wouldn’t +v1 ………………………., would you?
§ I would be grateful if you could +v1………..
Accepting: Yes,
sure. –Yes, of course. –Certainly yes.
-With pleasure.
Denying: Oh sorry, I can’t.
-I am sorry. - No, Certainly
not.
Offering
Format:
§ Can I + help……?
§ Shall I bring……..?
§ I’ll +v1 …….. If you like.
§ How about +v4 ……..?
§ Do you want me to +v1…………….for you?
§ Let me help you?
§ I’d be happy to take you to the airport.
Accepting Offers:
-Yes, please. I’d like to. -Yes please, I’d love to.. -Thank you, that would be great.
Rejecting
Offers:
-No thanks. -Don’t
worry. I can do it. -It’s OK. I can
do it myself.
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