lunes, 30 de abril de 2012

1st May, INTERNATIONAL WORKERS´ DAY

International Workers' Day (also known as May Day) is a celebration of the international labour movement and left-wing movements. It commonly sees organized street demonstrations and marches by working people and their labour unions throughout most of the world. May 1 is a national holiday in more than 80 countries. It is also celebrated unofficially in many other countries.
This year, due to the current unemployment situation affecting our country, it is thought that the amount of demostrators will increase.

The number of people in Spain without work grew by 365,900 or 6,9 percent during the first quarter of the year, with 5,640 million Spaniards now out of work, according to figures released on Friday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).
There are now 1,72 million households in which all its members are without work.
(Source: El País)
These figures of unemployed people, Spanish recession and the hard labour reform implemented by the Government, are good reasons for worrying and showing our disagreement with public spending cuts on such a day.
But "THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE!"...
so "GET DOWN TO BUSINESS" and make some work-related exercises.
Tasks:
1.
 2. Choose the person who is being explained:

domingo, 29 de abril de 2012

THE GLOBAL CRISIS



Talking about the Financial Crisis is difficult for you, but it will be easier if you watch the Credit Crunch video.   
  


These pictures are worth than a thousand words.
So, just have a look them, they are clear enough to understand what they mean.  
Source:Presseurop.

Now, Let´s see some opinions about the current crisis:
Schadenfreude, mon amour

Schadenfreude, mon amour
The financial crisis is at Spain’s doorstep, and all the other European countries can do is rejoice that this fate has not befallen them. This sentiment, so well expressed by the German word Schadenfreude, puts Europe itself at risk, warns the Spanish political scientist Fernando  Vallespín
How do you say basta” in German?
Notwithstanding its social and political consequences, the Bundesbank and Angela Merkel's government are still advocating the austerity, which has been in force in Europe for the last two years. It is high time we stopped the damage, argues Spanish political analyst José Ignacio Torreblanca

Tasks:
Learn  some vocabulary related to the topic and make the exercises, by linking the URLs below:
3. Financial Glossary CNN:
4. Bank services, Listening exercise:  http://www.esl-lab.com/vocab/v-bank.htm
5. Financial Crisis, Listening exercises:                             
6. Who is to blame for the financial crisis? Video
7. What about Money in England?:

Finally, watch the video of a 12-year-old Canadian girl and see how she understands the present crisis at an early age. You will be able to appreciate how clear she explains and communicates about such a controversial matter.

How much are you worth!

One of the most difficult questions to answer is how much a job is worth. We naturally expect that a doctor´s salary will be higher than a bus driver´s. But the question becomes much more difficult to answer when we compare, say, a miner and an engineer, or an unskilled man working on an oil rig in the North Sea with a teacher in a secondary school. What the doctor, the engineer and the teacher have in common is that they have devoted several years of their lives to studying in order to obtain the necessary qualifications for their professions. We feel instinctively that these skills and years when they were studying instead or earning money should be rewarded. At the same time, we recognise that the work of the miner and the oil rig labourer is both hard and dangerous, and they must be highly paid for the risks they take.

However, you can argue that a man who does a job which brings him personal satisfaction is already receiving part of the reward in the form of the so called "psychic wage", and that it is the man with the boring, repetitive job who needs more money to make up for the soul destroying monotony of his work. It is significant that those jobs which are draditionally regarded as "vocations"- nursing, teaching and the Church, for example, -continue to be poorly paid, while others, such as those in the world of sport or entertainment, carry financial rewards out of all proportion to their social worth.

Questions
A. True or False. Quote the evidence from the text.
1. Working on an oil rig requires high qualifications and a special training. T/F
2. The argument of the "psychic wage" is used to explain why people who do socially important work are not always well paid. T/F
3. Some jobs are overpaid. T/F

B. Answer the questions according to the text, in your own words.
1. Why doctors, teachers and engineers should be rewarded?
2. What does "psychic wage"mean?

C. Find a synonym in the text for each of these words or expressions.
1. value (noun)
2. bonus, compensation(noun) 
3. boredom (noun)
4. dedicate verb)

D. Rewrite the sentences without changing the meaning.
1. You should work harder, otherwise you´ll be fired.
You´d ...........................................

2. "Why don´t you get up earlier? Then you won´t miss the bus" Mary asked Tom.
Mary suggested that........................

3. I haven´t attended a conference for two months.
It´s ................................................

4. The boss gave him the sack last week.
He.................................................

E. Write a composition (80-120 words) one of these tittles:
Add your personal opinion.
1. Difficulties in finding a job nowadays.
2. What would you look for in a prospective job?

 

sábado, 28 de abril de 2012

28th April, World Day for Safety and Health at Work

Is workplace as safe as it should be?
What are the hazards at work? These and other similar questions are the worry of people involved in workers´safety. 
    

Why is health and safety at work important?
People spend a lot of time at work. Health, safety and welfare sldbe a hig io  everyone in kceb should not have a neive effect on your health or safety. However, many accidents, illnesses and deaths occur in the workplace every year. many of these can be prevented.
It is important that employees and employers work safely to protect their own health and the health of their fellow employees.
There are many good reasons to look after health and safety at work.

Moral reasons

Employers and emplyees have a moral duty to look after health, safety and welfare at work. It is right to promote good health and safe work practices.
Nobody should suffer pain or harship when it is preventable.

Legal reasons
Both employers and employees have responsibilities under workplace health and safety legislation. The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) inspects workplaces to make sure that all companies keep to the law. Companies face penalties for ignoring health and safety laws.

Economic reasons
Accidents and ill health can cost a business a lot of money. Companies that look after health and safety can be more productive because fewer employees are absent through illness and injury. Employees will feel better about their work whethey know that their employer cares about their safety and welfare. This also contributes to productivity.

 Source: Look after health safety and welfare at work Guide


Tasks:
A. Are these sentences True or False? Only one is True
1.  
a. Health and safety should be a high priority for everyone at work.
b. health and safety should be a high priority for employers only.
2.
a. "Moral" means something is good and right.
b. "Moral" means something is preventable.
3.
a. There is no penalty for companies who break health and safety laws.
b. If a company breaks health and safety laws, it faces penalties.
4.
a. Looking after health and safety is good for business.
b. Looking after health and safety costs too much money.

Hazards, risks and controls
A hazard is something that can potentially harm, damage or injure people, property or the environment. For example, a hole in the carpet is a hazard because you could trip on it and be injured. The hole is a high risk if a lot of people walk up and down that piece of carpet everyday. However, if the hole is in a part of the building that nobody uses anymore, then it presents a low risk or maybe even risk at all. Controls are measures that should be put in place to remove or mimimize the risk.

 Controlling hazards
1. Identify the hazard: a hole in the carpet
2. Assess what kind of risk it poses: high- it is in a busy part of the shop.
3. Control the hazard: tape carefully over the hole or fit a new carpet.


B. Explain these terms in your own words.  
1. hazard
2. risk
3. control
4. identify
5. assess

Slips, trips and falls are the most common cause of accidents at work. Here are some occupational hazards: lifting and carrying things, slippery floors, working alone at night, machinery, working at height, wood dust, chemicals, high noise level...

C. Sort the words in the chart into the hazard category:



acid
current
ear
glue
loud
RCD
strain
bending
deaf
earplug
heavy
noisy
scaffold
switch
carry
decibel
frayed
hoist
poison
shock
tag
chemical
depth
fuel
ladder
power
slip
trip
climb
electrocution
gas
lift
roof
solvents
trolley
Manual  Handling       
Noise
Electricity
Hazardous substances/ Dangerous Goods
Falls
D. Hunt the Hazards to understand better the risks at work and try to avoid them:   http://www.safework.sa.gov.au/show_page.jsp?id=6421#Hunt


Virtual Hotel:

viernes, 27 de abril de 2012

Creative cooking – a recipe

Recipes typically contain specific lexic, e.g. verbs like sprinkle, stir, linkers like first of all, the, next, finally and nouns and quantifiers such as a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of sugar, and so on.

Nowadays creative cooking is on fashion and creative cooks become more and more famous and their fame  spreads wideworld.
Spanish cooks are awarded and Spanish cuisine is internationally appreciated. So today I suggest that we make a ry creative recipe.

Think of four qualities of a good teacher, e.g. patience, a nice smile, enthusiasm, colourful clothes, knowledge of subject...
Then writea "metaphorical" recipe and let your imagination run free.
Start by reading this one as example:
Ingredients:
3 teaspoons of patience
1-3 tablespoons of humour
100g of knowledge
½ litre of kindness
4 fresh eggs
30 g of butter
5 coloured board pens
1 whiteboard
Salt and pepper to taste.
Instructions:
Mix the first six ingredients on the list in a large mixing bowl. Stir for at least 2 minutes, until the mixture is white and creamy. Add the pens and whiteboard and finally, season with salt and pepper. Pour it all into a large dish and place in the oven at gas mark 5 (190C). Bake for 25 minutes until golden brown. Serve with students

Pay attention to the "real and "imagined" ingredients and the "recipe language". Now create your own recipe. Choose one of the following recipes:

a. How to make a great party.
b. The perfect class.
c. The perfect student.

Enjoy the task!

jueves, 26 de abril de 2012

75 Anniversary of the Bombing of Guernica

The Bombing of Gernika
Let´s see what do you know about it?
1. Put true (T) or false (F) next to these statements and correct those that are false.
   
1.
Gernika was bombed on a Tuesday because it was market day.

2.
The airplanes that bombed Gernika were German and Italian but accepting the orders of Franco.

3.
Five hundred (500) bombs were thrown during the bombing.

4.
Two types of bombs were used: destructive and incendiary.

5.
90% of the town was completely devastated.

6.
After the bombing, the buildings that were left intact were: the pelota court (fronton), the Casa de Juntas and the buildings in the industrial area.

7.
Ten days after the bombing, the national troops occupied Gernika.

8.
The first airplanes reached Gernika at 9:00 in the morning.

9.
Gernika was bombed on 26th April 1937.

10.
There were no bomb shelters in Gernika.

11.
The troops that occupied Gernika were made up of soldiers of different nationalities: Spanish, German, Italian and Moors.

12.
Nearly 4,000 people died in the bombing.



2. Refuse to forget, refuse to take revenge. What does this
sentence mean?

3. Which of these words would you use in a real reconciliation
process?



RECONCILIATION PROCESS
YES/NO
Acknowledge

Collaborate

Be jealous

Listen

Curse or damn others

Silence things

Rebuild

Respect



In any conflict we can distinguish between visible effects and
invisible effects of violence.
4. What are they? Fill in the following chart.


Visible effects
Invisible effects








Guernica, the painting created in response to the Bombing of Guernica, shows the tragedies of war and the suffering it inflicts upon individuals, especially innocent civilians. This work is a reminder of the tragedies of war, an anti-war symbol, and an embodiment of peace, you can visit it at Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid.




Do the following quiz.
1. Are the statements true (T) or false (F)? If they are false correct them.

1.
 Picasso painted the Guernica..

2.
 Picasso supported the Republic by means of this painting.

3.
 This painting was aknowlegded and well considered as soon as it was presented.

4.
The Guernica was finished in 1939.


2. What is the image or part of the Guernica painting that is stronger or more impressing to you?

3. Match the words to the details of the picture.

Why should we respect Human Rights?
Which are the three basic Human Rights?

Source: Gernika Peace Museum Foundation.
Compulsary Education Work Booklet


You can also be interested in:
The Bombing of Gernika history:
http://www.museodelapaz.org/en/docu_bombing.php
Photos of "Guernica"by Picasso:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/guernica/clusters/picasso-madrid-spain
and Pictures of Guernica and Bizkaia: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/guernica/clusters/gernika-bizkaia-vizcaya/