Happy Places

Before reading look up these words and phrases in a dictionary: "to take a toll", "to boast", "work-life balance", now please read the text:

According to a recent report released by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, a Paris-based group of 30 countries with democratic governments that provides economic and social statistics and data, happiness levels are highest in northern European countries.

Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands rated at the top of the list, ranking first, second and third, respectively. Outside Europe, New Zealand and Canada landed at Nos. 8 and 6, respectively.Switzerland placed seventh and Belgium placed tenth.

The report looked at subjective well-being, defined as life satisfaction. Did people feel like their lives were dominated by positive experiences and feelings, or negative ones?

In each country, a representative sample of no more than 1,000 people, age 15 or older, were surveyed. The poll was scored numerically on a scale of 1-100.

Why did the northern European countries come out looking so good? Overall economic health played a powerful role, says Simon Chapple, senior economist from the Social Policy Division of the OECD, which put together the report.

While the global economic crisis has taken a toll on every nation, the countries that scored at the top still boast some of the highest gross domestic product per capita in the world. Denmark, which got the highest score, is not only a wealthy country, it's also highly productive, with a GDP per capita of $68,000, according to the International Monetary Fund. The United States' GDP per capita, by contrast, is $47,335. Though the U.S. got an above-average score of 74, it did not break the top 10.

Wealth alone does not bring the greatest degree of happiness. Norway has the highest GDP per capita on the list - $98,822 - yet it ranked ninth, not first. On the other hand, New Zealand's happiness level is 76.7 out of 100 on the OECD list, but its GDP per capita is just $30,556.

The OECD data shows that another important factor is work-life balance. While Scandinavian countries boast a high GDP per capita, the average working week in that part of the world is no more than 37 hours. In China, which got a low score of just 14.8, the working week is 47 hours and the GDP per capita is just $3,600.

Low unemployment also contributes to happiness. "One thing we know for sure," says the OECD's Chapple, "not having a job makes one substantially less satisfied." Denmark's unemployment rate is just 2 percent, Norway's is just 2.6 percent, The Netherlands: just 4.5 percent. Many economists concur that a 4 percent unemployment rate reflects a stable economy.

Discussion:

Give a short summary of the text.

Do you agree with the report?

Are you happy with your country?
Have you ever been to any of the countries mentioned?

In what order of importance would you put these 5 factors: weather, culture, cuisine, economy and work-life balance?

On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate your country on the 5 factors?

Have you lived abroad?

Could you live abroad?

What would you miss most about your country if you did live abroad?

Stupid Americans

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJuNgBkloFE

Please watch the short video and then prepare answers for these questions:

Do you think this video is funny or disrespectful?
Have you met or worked with any americans?
Do you think that the stereotype of americans as being ignorant of other cultures is fair?
Have you ever been to the U.S.A? If not, would you like to go?
Do you like President Trump and do you think he is doing a good job?
Do you think “Hollywood Culture” (movies, TV and fast food) is a positive influence on your country?

Public Speaking

This is a short video of the infamous opening speech by English comedian Ricky Gervais at the 2011 Golden Globe Awards in Hollywood USA, before you watch the video look up the meanings of these common English expressions:

To jump on the bandwagon
To quash a rumour
To hang out with...(somebody)
To accept bribes.

Now click on the link and watch the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szFoR-yenpo&list=HL1365336565

Vocabulary:

What are the meanings of the 4 expressions in the context of the speech?
Is there anything you didn't understand?

Discussion:

Did you think the speech was funny? Shocking? Rude?
Do you like British humour? Monty Python? Rowan Atkinson?
Do you like speaking in public?
Have you ever given a speech to a large crowd (at a wedding for example)?
Do you have to give presentations at work?
Do you like them? Have you received any training?

Modern Men

Please read the article:

If you want a job doing properly, do it yourself, goes the old adage. 

And for millions of women across the UK, this familiar saying has an unwelcome ring of truth. A new study has revealed that women spend three hours a week redoing chores they consider their partner hasn't done properly.

Doing the laundry, vacuuming and washing up are the main tasks which men fail to complete to their wife or girlfriend's satisfaction.

Not rearranging sofa cushions tidily enough, making the bed incorrectly and wiping down kitchen worktops are also areas where men fall short.

A spokesman for Sainsbury's, which carried out the study among 2,000 women, said: 'Modern day men do more household chores than ever before, and nearly half of all couples now share working and looking after the house together.

‘Although it’s impossible for women to do everything themselves, if jobs aren’t done to the desired standard by their partner, often many feel they could do better themselves.’

The study found nearly half of the women surveyed claimed their partner often washes up, but doesn’t finish the job by wiping down the kitchen sides.

A third said their men leave sofa cushions in a mess while 32 per cent never bother to make the bed.

And 28 per cent said their man would happily cook an evening meal - but then leave the kitchen in a state with food splatters all over the oven.

But despite the findings, two thirds of women admit their partners do genuinely try to get things right, and four in 10 households now share the chores evenly. Men are also more likely to throw mess into drawers rather than sort things out properly, or put things away in the wrong place so they are never found again.

The laundry causes a multitude of problems - as men hang too many clothes together on the rack so they don’t dry, rarely separate the darks from the lights and don’t fold anything before putting away in the wardrobe.

When it comes to washing up, most men prefer to stack dishes in a mountain on the draining board rather than drying up, or if they have a dishwasher, they’ll over-fill it preventing everything from getting clean. Even the vacuuming leaves women angry, as their partner only vacuums the middle of the room and then proceeds to walk around the house with shoes on afterwards.

The Sainsbury’s spokesman added: ‘Two thirds of women admit they find they’re pleased when their partners get involved with the cleaning, and are glad when he has recognised that these things don’t get done by themselves.

‘Perhaps it is the case that men just don’t care as much and don’t realise how much work goes into having a clean and tidy home - and after a long day at work they are more concerned about putting their feet up than plumping pillows.’

And despite spending the equivalent of one whole week every year re-doing housework, over half of women reckon that if their partner could be bothered, they would actually do a better job than them of the chores because they would be more thorough.

Vocabulary:

What is the difference between "doing the washing" and "doing the washing up"?

What does "adage", "splatters", "chores", "to stack" and "plumping pillows" mean?

Discussion:

Please give a short summary of the article.

Are you a modern man / Do you live with a modern man?

Do you / does your partner help with the chores ( washing, cooking, cleaning)?

Do men and women have different priorities in their lives?

Is housework a woman’s job?

Should men be independent and be able to cook and clean?

Do mothers treat boys differently to girls?

Do you believe it is important to teach children about looking after a home?

Climate Change

Please read the article then answer the questions below:

Lord Lawson, the former Conservative chancellor, has been privately accused by the government's chief scientific adviser of making "incorrect" and "misleading" claims in his book on climate change. The charge against Lawson, the country's most prominent global-warming sceptic, was made during an extraordinary and at times fractious exchange of letters between the men following a meeting over coffee at the House of Lords.

Sir John Beddington wrote to Lawson to tell him that his book, An Appeal to Reason: A Cool Look at Global Warming, had made "a number of points related to the science of climate change that are incorrect or presented in a misleading way". An appendix to his letter accused Lawson of making "meaningless" comparisons to prove his thesis. In response, Lawson wrote back to accuse Beddington of attempting to rubbish his arguments without evidence. He also confessed to being confounded by Beddington's criticisms, adding that the government adviser had committed a "gross misuse of language" in claiming that the Earth has warmed "dramatically" in the past 150 years.

Lawson, who is chairman of the sceptical Global Warming Policy Foundation, is the most prominent critic of the government's policies on climate change. While not denying that there is evidence of a change in the climate, he has announced himself unconvinced that it has been caused by greenhouse gases. But Christian Hunt of the website Carbon Brief uncovered the letters, said they showed Lawson did not have a grasp of the science: "It is worrying that a prominent figure like Lord Lawson is seen as a credible commentator on this issue, when his understanding of appears so flawed."

"His think tank, the Global Warming Policy Foundation, claims a charitable aim 'to advance the public understanding of global warming', but they seem to spend most of their time doubting well-established science." To Lawson's claim in his book that there has been no "further global warming since the turn of the century", Beddington wrote: "Short-term temperature trends are meaningless in the context of global warming."

To Lawson's claim that calculating average global temperature is not straightforward and data from the developing world and former Soviet Union were not reliable, Beddington claimed those issues were taken into account and warming could be seen in other ways, such as in the decrease of Arctic sea ice. To Lawson's claims that urbanisation raises near-surface temperatures and might be responsible for the recording of global temperature rises, Beddington said it has been studied and found to have a "negligible effect". (Adapted from The Guardian)

Vocabulary:

What do the words "fractious", "misleading", "flawed" and "think tank" mean?

Discussion:

Give a short summary of the article.

Are you convinced that climate change is caused by carbon gases?

Is it not possible that it is caused by solar fluctuations?

Are you satisfied with your country's actions on climate change?

What more could be done? More wind farms or nuclear power stations?

Are you willing to pay more for fuel to help lower consumption?

Do you take care of your personal carbon footprint? Recycle? Insulate? Switch off?

Considering that China has opened 2 new coal power stations per week in the last 3 years is it worth caring about our carbon footprints?

The Class System

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22007058

Follow the link to the news item, read the article and consider these questions:

What were the traditional 3 classes?  How does this new model differ?

Are these social classes recognisable to you?

What in your opinion defines "class" in your country?

 Could you put your family in any one of these new social classes?  Which one?

Do you think that social class matters in your country?

Why are people interested in social class? Do you think that categorising people in this way is useful to business?  In what way?

Do you remember any previous attempts to define people by their status?

The Glass Ceiling

Please read the article:

The European Union has a long history of promoting equality between women and men, and Europe can be proud of the progress it has made over the past few decades. Under EU laws, women no longer have to face discrimination because of their sex. EU rules also guarantee common minimum rights to maternity and paternity leave; 60% of new university graduates across the EU are female. And in spite of the economic crisis, the employment rate for women is 62%, up from 55% in 1997.However, at the top levels of companies, many women continue to face a glass ceiling obstructing their progression up the career ladder. Currently, company boards are dominated by one gender: 86.3% of board members and 96.8% of the boardroom chairs are men, while women make up 13.7% and 3.2% respectively. In the UK, 16% of board members are women – this is above the EU average of 13.7%.

A new rule will soon be introduced to encourage positive discrimination. The new European 40%-rule will only apply to publicly listed companies while excluding small- and medium-sized businesses with less than 250 employees. It focuses on the non-executive director posts in order to send the right signal to the highest levels of companies. And it will have at its heart a transparent selection process aiming to reach a 40% representation of the under-represented sex by 2020 – based on clear criteria and a comparison of the candidates' skills and qualifications.The time has come to break the glass ceiling that continues to stop female talent from getting to the top. The European commission has been promoting gender equality since 1957. Continuing along this path is not a revolution but a natural evolution. It started 50 years ago with guaranteeing equal pay for equal work and it continues today by guaranteeing equal opportunities in decision-making positions for women and men.

Vocabulary:

What do the phrases "career ladder", "boardroom chairs", "positive discrimination" and "publicly listed companies" mean?

Discussion:

Give a short summary of the article explaining the concept of the glass ceiling. 

Have you or anyone you know suffered due to the glass ceiling?
In your company do men get better paid than women? 

Do you think a glass ceiling will always exist? 

Why do you think there are so few women on company boards? 

Is positive discrimination the only solution? Is positive discrimination fair? 

Is it fair that small companies must give the same maternity rights to pregnant employees as large companies?

Do you prefer women bosses? 

Should women soldiers be allowed to fight in wars? 

Friends

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlCApAgyayI

Please click on the link and watch the short video and then prepare to answer these questions:
Did you like Friends? Who was your favourite “friend”?
Give a short summary of the story in the video.
Do you find American or British English easier to understand?
The phrasal verb “to pick up” was used twice (at minute 0:15 and 1:29) but with a different meaning each time, what are the 2 meanings of this phrasal verb used?
Can you think of other meanings of this phrasal verb?
At minute 1:04 the phrasal verb “to pop by” is used, what does it mean?
At minute 2:11 the phrasal verb “to catch up on” is used, what exactly does that mean?
In the video they refer to “mobiles” what do Americans call them?
What are the American English words for: autumn, public toilet, lorry, trousers, biscuit, rubbish, postcode and holiday?