Educating Essex: Following a Storyline

1) Watch one of the other episodes of Educating Essex (2-7) and focus on one character or storyline.

Write a short description of what happens (200 words approx - 5 short paragraphs) with at least 5 images from the show taken using screen captures.

Explain:

• What happens in this part of the show
• Who is involved
• What the viewer might think about this part
• The different camera angles used to tell the story
• Whether you think that it's ethical to film or broadcast this part of the show
• Your own personal opinion of this storyline

Camera Angles:

Debating: Preparing for the Summative Speaking Exam

As a summative assessment, you will be conducting a debate based on whether or not you think SFP should allow a similar programme to be filmed in the school.

You will be assessed on how well you put your views across, as well as the quality of your English.

Quizlet List: Debating Verbs

Verbs:

To improve / worsen

To encourage / prevent

To support / object to

To develop

To provide (with)

To implement

To solve

To allow / permit / let

Be Convincing:

Without a shadow of a doubt, …

It is absolutely vital that / crucial that …

There is no question that

Scenarios:

Imagine a school where…

Wouldn’t you prefer …?

Techniques to the involve the audience:

We all know that… (get the listeners on your side)

Think about it: … (use imperatives to attract the audience’s attention)

I’m sure that everyone in the room would agree / recognize / accept … (encourage your listener to agree)

Let’s face it, … (making something seem like a self-evident truth)

Imagine a school where … Does this sound ……….? (scenario)

Would you really ………? (rhetorical question – add detail)

What next? Would you accept …(use exaggeration)

Connnectives

·Although / Even though / Though

·Despite / In spite of

·Therefore / As a result of this / Consequently

·On the other hand / However / Yet / Conversely

·Otherwise / If not

·This may  lead to / This could cause

·Without

·If

·As

·Whereas

·While

·Therefore

·Due to this

·First of all / Firstly / Secondly / Thirdly / Furthermore / Moreover / In addition to this

·In conclusion / In summary / To sum up, …

·…for two main reasons: Firstly…., Secondly, …

·Unfortunately / Undoubtedly / Currently / Unsurprisingly

Lists of 3:

Adjectives (It is expensive, inefficient and unreliable)

Nouns (It would negatively affect students, parents and teachers.)

Verbs (to improve, renovate and develop …)

Points (It would lead to an increase in the profits of the company, a positive impression of the business and a number of new customers)

Knock down the other side of the argument:

While it’s true that …,

Although many people may agree that…

Yes, …. Yes, … and yes, … However, have you seriously considered ….?

Rhetorical questions (and provide a detailed responnse to your own question):

Do you honestly want to implement a system which ….?

Educating Essex: Episode One

1)Watch the first 10 minutes 40 seconds of the clip.

2)Copy and paste the below table and then complete it, explaining what the expression means in the context of the documentary and what it suggests.

Educating Essex: Episode One

Expression	What it means in context of documentary
Clear off scumbags!	A teacher says this in the opening credits to dismiss his class. He is joking because ‘scumbags’ is a derogatory term but the pupils don’t mind. This suggests they have a good relationship.
Their headteacher has grand ambitions.
The mantra that we use is…
That’s easier said than done.
…without a shadow of a doubt.
This little sergeant major character is what he is… who is ‘uber-focused’ on everything…
There is no reason for you to wear       that dead animal.
… I will restrain you!
I give you credit for your ingenuity.
…is often the last resort…
…that’s what does my head in.
A lot of young people struggle with       the concept of boundaries.

Understanding What We've Read

TASK: It is important that we are able to follow an argument... 

Copy and paste the following comprehension questions, and answer openers, into a Word document:

Comprehension questions on: 'What sort of example is this to set our children?'

1) How does this article present the teachers in 'Educating Essex'? You must use your OWN words AND a quotation from the text to prove your answer.

This article presents the teachers in 'Educating Essex' as...

This is highlighted by the following quotation: '...'

2) How are the pupils from this school presented in this article? You must use your OWN words AND a quotation from the text to prove your answer.

The article presents pupils from this school as...

A quotation from the article that supports this is...

3) According to the text, what are the problems with putting cameras in classrooms?

According to the article, the problems with putting cameras in the classroom are...

4) Find an adjective that means 'in a bad/unattractive/uncomplimentary way'.

An adjective that means 'in a bad/unattractive/uncomplimentary way' is '...'

5) Find an adjective that means 'not serious', or 'jokey'.

An adjective that means 'not serious' or 'jokey' is...

6) Find a verb that means 'to mess around/to not take things seriously'.

A verb that means 'to mess around/to not take things seriously' is '...'

Comprehension questions on: 'Is Educating Essex a realistic view of classroom life?'

1) Do the pupils' views differ from the teachers' views about the program? If so, in what way.

No/Yes, the pupils' views don't/do differ from the teachers' views about the program.

(If yes) The differ because...

2) What did Claire Marsh find disappointing? In your own words.

What Claire Marsh found disappointing was...

3) What did James Diggory find disappointing?

What James Diggory found disappointing was...

4) Find an adjective that means 'positive' (used to describe a teacher).

An adjective that means 'positive' is...

5) Find an informal word for 'people who talk a lot and are loud'.

An informal word for 'people who talk a lot and are loud is '...'

*Once you have completed these questions, you should save the file in your 'Educating Essex' folder as 'Lesson 2: Understanding the articles'.

Educating Essex: What's it all about?

We are going to watch and study a British documentary called 'Educating Essex'. Below are links to two news articles about it. For each article:

1. Open Lingro (either via your Symbaloo page or via the link at the top of the blog).
2. Copy and paste the webpage address for the first article (via the below links) into the box next to '1' on the Lingro homepage, and then click the blue arrow to the right of this box to open the article in Lingro.
3. Read the article, clicking on any words that you are unsure of the meaning of to instantly reveal their definitions.
4. Pick at least10 words you don't know from the article and make a note of them.
5. Repeat this process for the second article.
6. Using Quizlet, make your own vocabulary list using your 20 (or more) new words. You should use the English version of each word, as well as write an English definitions that you fully understand.
7. Learn the words using some of the following methods: Flashcards, Learn, Speller and/or Test.
8. Once you are confident that you are familiar with your new words, you can spend some to playing the games (Scatter and/or Gravity).

Article One:

Is Educating Essex a realistic view of classroom life?

Article Two:

What sort of example if this to set our children?

Create a Symbaloo

Go to:
http://www.symbaloo.com/

Create an account

1.                  In the top hand corner put it in 'English (UK)'

2.                  Click on 'Create Free Account'

3.                  Enter your details and click 'Create Account'

Create a tile for your symbaloo

1.                  Click on the '+' symbol in the middle of an empty box

2.                  Click on an empty tile

3.                  Click on 'Create a tile'

4.                  Enter http://www.wordreference.com/ in the box called 'Add the address of the website'

5.                  Click on 'Save'

6.                  Note: In order to make your Symbaloo page more visually appealing, you can add an image that corresponds to your weblink. At the bottom of the ‘Edit tile’ box, you can either select ‘Choose icon’ or ‘Upload an image’. For some weblinks, Symbaloo will have images that you can select. However, you can also upload your own saved image.

Create more tiles for your symbaloo. Use all the following websites to start off with.

• http://www.quizlet.com/
• http://www.lingro.com/
• http://www.linguee.com/
• http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises_list/alle_grammar.htm
• http://www.guardian.co.uk
• http://www.bbc.co.uk
• http://www.studyblue.com/
• http://headmagnet.com/
• http://www.bitstripsforschools.com/
• http://popplet.com/
• http://animoto.com/
• http://goanimate.com/
• http://www.youtube.com
• http://www.listen-to-english.com/index.php
• http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/general/sixminute/
• http://www.podcastsinenglish.com/index.shtml

There will be other weblinks that we will add to your Symbaloo page throughout the year.

Once you have create a number Symbaloo links, you should save Symbaloo as your homepage. You do this by following these steps:

1.    Click on the menu button to the right of the browser

2.    Select ‘Settings’

3.    Underneath the heading ‘On startup’, click ‘Set pages’

4.    In the box to the right  of ‘Add new page’, type http://www.symbaloo.com

5.    Finally, click ‘Ok’

6.    Once you restart your computer, Symbaloo should be saved as your internet homepage

Welcome to the Year 10 English Blog

Welcome to the Year 10 English blog...

Here, you'll find a variety of resources, as well as links to external resources. We will be using the blog regularly throughout the academic year.

You should also check the blog regularly out of class hours, as there may be occasions when important information (regarding upcoming assessments, for example) will be posted.