Much has been said about how anti-social the Internet and mobile phones are. The truth is however, according to new research, communication technology is bringing people closer together. A study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project found family members were keeping in regular contact today more than ever before. And this is all down to e-mail, chat, our cellphones and SMS messaging. It makes sense. Years ago, it took a long time to write a letter, then find an envelope and go to the post office to buy a stamp and post it. Today we write mails while we wait for our change in the convenience store and they’re sent in an instant. Having free Internet telephone calls also helps us to stay in touch more often and for longer. Everyone’s at it, from five-year-olds to tech-savvy grandparents.
According to the Pew survey, technology has a very positive effect on communication within families. Researchers asked 2,252 adults whether new technologies had increased the quality of communication with their family. Fifty-three percent said it increased communication with family members they did not live with, two per cent said technology decreased this. Numbers were similar for those living in the same house as their family. The project director Lee Rainey said: "There's a new kind of connectedness being built inside of families with these technologies”. Survey co-author Barry Wellman agreed: "It used to be [that] husbands went off to work, wives went off to a different job or else stayed home…and the kids went off to school…and not until 5:30, 6 o'clock did they ever connect," he said.
CONNECTED?: Are you connected? Are you in regular contact with people? Complete the table below. Share what you wrote with your partner(s).
| Who? | How often? | How? | Why? |
| Best friend | | | |
| Parents | | | |
| Siblings | | | |
| Partner | | | |
| Teacher | | | |
| Anyone else ____ | | | |
COULDN’T DO WITHOUT IT: Which of these things are most important to you? Rank them in order. Talk about your rankings with your partner(s).
| _____ envelopes and stamps _____ fax _____ SMS _____ chat | _____ mobile phone _____ e-mail _____ telephone answering machine _____ web cam |
1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):
| a. | Communication technology is reuniting people separated at birth. | T / F |
| b. | Family members are in more regular contact today than ever before. | T / F |
| c. | You often needed a stamp to keep in contact years ago. | T / F |
| d. | Many of our parents’ parents now keep up with technology. | T / F |
| e. | Technology has had a very negative effect on family communication. | T / F |
| f. | 2% of a survey said technology worsened family communication. | T / F |
| g. | Families are building network connections inside their homes. | T / F |
| h. | A researcher said families only used to communicate in the evenings. | T / F |
2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
| 1. | much | a. | quickly |
| 2 | according to | b. | writer |
| 3. | down to | c. | inside |
| 4. | in an instant | d. | almost identical |
| 5. | savvy | e. | as stated by |
| 6. | within | f. | linking |
| 7. | decreased | g. | a lot |
| 8. | similar | h. | know-how |
| 9. | connectedness | i. | lowered |
| 10. | author | j. | because of |
3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one. combination is possible):
| 1. | technology is bringing people | a. | sense |
| 2 | keeping in | b. | being built |
| 3. | It makes | c. | instant |
| 4. | sent in an | d. | the Pew survey |
| 5. | Everyone’s at | e. | families |
| 6. | According to | f. | closer together |
| 7. | communication within | g. | they ever connect |
| 8. | family members they | h. | it |
| 9. | There's a new kind of connectedness | i. | regular contact |
| 10. | not until 5:30, 6 o'clock did | j. | did not live with |
GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.
| Much has been __________ about how anti-social the Internet and mobile phones are. The truth is however, according to new research, communication technology is bringing people __________ together. A study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project found family members were keeping in __________ contact today more than ever before. And this is all __________ to e-mail, chat, our cellphones and SMS messaging. It makes __________. Years ago, it took a long time to write a letter, then find an envelope and go to the post office to buy a stamp and post it. Today we write mails while we wait for our __________ in the convenience store and they’re sent in an instant. Having free Internet telephone calls also __________ us to stay in touch more often and for longer. Everyone’s __________ it, from five-year-olds to tech-savvy grandparents. | | change
regular
at
down
said
helps
sense
closer
|
| According to the Pew survey, technology has a very positive __________ on communication within families. Researchers asked 2,252 adults whether new technologies had increased the __________ of communication with their family. Fifty-three __________ said it increased communication with family members they did not live with, two per cent said technology __________ this. Numbers were __________ for those living in the same house as their family. The project director Lee Rainey said: "There's a new __________ of connectedness being built inside of families with these technologies”. Survey co-author Barry Wellman agreed: "It used to be [that] husbands went __________ to work, wives went off to a different job or else stayed home…and the kids went off to school…and not until 5:30, 6 o'clock did they ever __________," he said.
| | decreased
connect
quality
kind
similar
effect
off
percent |
1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘anti’ and ‘social’.
- Share your findings with your partners.
- Make questions using the words you found.
- Ask your partner / group your questions.
2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
- Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
- Ask your partner / group your questions.
3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?
4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.
5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:
- truth
- closer
- regular
- stamp
- change
- savvy
| - positive
- increased
- 2%
- similar
- built
- kids
|
STUDENT FAMILY SURVEY
Write five GOOD questions about family in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.
When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.
| | STUDENT 1 _____________ | STUDENT 2 _____________ | STUDENT 3 _____________ |
| Q.1. | | | |
| Q.2. | | | |
| Q.3. | | | |
| Q.4. | | | |
| Q.5. | | | |
- Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
- Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.
DISCUSSION
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
| a) | What did you think when you read the headline? |
| b) | What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘technology’? |
| c) | Do you think communication technology is making us more anti-social? |
| d) | How does the Internet bring you closer to people? |
| e) | How would your life change without the Internet and mobile phones? |
| f) | Do you like the idea of writing letters with a pen and then mailing them? |
| g) | How many mails or SMS messages do you write a day? |
| h) | The article says “Everyone’s at it”. Do you know anyone who doesn’t use the latest technology to communicate? |
| i) | Are your grandparents tech-savvy? |
| j) | Are you good at keeping in touch? |
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STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
| a) | Did you like reading this article? |
| b) | Who is the biggest user of technology in your family? |
| c) | Do you think technology has increased the quality of communication in your family? |
| d) | How might technology decrease the quality of communication? |
| e) | How could families become even more connected? |
| f) | Do you sometimes wish you weren’t so connected? |
| g) | What will be the next big thing that will connect us all? |
| h) | Would you like a permanent, open connection to anyone you choose? |
| i) | Is your family good at staying in touch? |
| j) | What questions would you like to ask project director Lee Rainey? |
LANGUAGE
(1) ____ has been said about how anti-social the Internet and mobile phones are. The (2) ____ is however, according to new research, communication technology is bringing people closer together. A study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project found family members were keeping in (3) ____ contact today more than ever before. And this is all down to e-mail, chat, our cellphones and SMS messaging. It makes (4) ____. Years ago, it took a long time to write a letter, then find an envelope and go to the post office to buy a stamp and post it. Today we write mails while we wait for our (5) ____ in the convenience store and they’re sent in an instant. Having free Internet telephone calls also helps us to stay in touch more often and for longer. Everyone’s at (6) ____, from five-year-olds to tech-savvy grandparents.
According to the Pew survey, technology has a very positive (7) ____ on communication within families. Researchers asked 2,252 adults whether new technologies had (8) ____ the quality of communication with their family. Fifty-three percent said it increased communication with family members they did not live with, two per cent said technology decreased this. Numbers were similar for (9) ____ living in the same house as their family. The project director Lee Rainey said: "There's a new kind of connectedness being (10) ____ inside of families with these technologies”. Survey co-author Barry Wellman agreed: "It used to (11) ____ [that] husbands went off to work, wives went off to a different job or else stayed home…and the kids went off to school…and not (12) ____ 5:30, 6 o'clock did they ever connect," he said.
Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.
| 1. | (a) | Most | (b) | Many | (c) | Lot | (d) | Much |
| 2. | (a) | true | (b) | truth | (c) | truly | (d) | truthful |
| 3. | (a) | regular | (b) | regularly | (c) | regulation | (d) | regulations |
| 4. | (a) | sensation | (b) | senses | (c) | sense | (d) | senseless |
| 5. | (a) | changed | (b) | changing | (c) | change | (d) | changes |
| 6. | (a) | them | (b) | it | (c) | that | (d) | these |
| 7. | (a) | effect | (b) | affect | (c) | affection | (d) | ill effect |
| 8. | (a) | increases | (b) | increasing | (c) | increase | (d) | increased |
| 9. | (a) | them | (b) | those | (c) | ones | (d) | these |
| 10. | (a) | building | (b) | builder | (c) | build | (d) | built |
| 11. | (a) | been | (b) | being | (c) | be | (d) | was |
| 12. | (a) | until | (b) | yet | (c) | since | (d) | as |
