Movement of people

– Immigration: how and why it began? Why did people emigrate to the USA, what is the American Dream …..

– Cultural interactions: the movement of people across borders  – Gap year, student exchange programs….

For more information here is another “prezi” to help you find some ideas to illustrate the notion of spaces and exchanges

http://prezi.com/l-0odniubs6n/spaces-exchanges/

Some 214 million people are international migrants, living in a different country from the one in which they were born. There are plenty with high-level skills who end up working for at least part of their careers outside their home country.

Some take work they are overqualified for, because it still pays better than what is available at home. This has led to a brain drain from some developing countries.

Watch the BBC 6-minute English report to learn more about global migration

Exchange of information and communication

– One of the major developments in the most recent years is the internet and the different social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Skype…they are changing the way we live and communicate today. These networks make it easier for us to stay in touch with friends and family abroad, they open up borders and enable us to communicate with people abroad. However there are also disadvantages to this fast development of internet: there is a lot of false information available, people can become addicted and spend less time with friends and family, there are others dangers such as bullying , pornography, identity theft…..

– School and education  – there is more and more social diversity and more knowledge than in the past. Thanks to internet information travels faster than before (but this can sometimes be negative especially when the information is false). We can compare the different educational systems across the world.

Ellis Island

The Voyage to Freedom

Coming to America appealed to many immigrants from the southern and northern parts of Europe as they found a way out of situations of persecution and oppression as well as political and economic difficulties. Once they arrived in America, some passengers were allowed to go on shore without making their way through inspection. This privilege was given to those considered to be first and second class citizens. All the other “lower class” citizens were shipped off to Ellis Island to go through inspection.

To travel to America immigrants had to pay from twelve dollars to sixty dollars per person, which meant that families had to save their money for years before they could travel to America. Even when the money was available, families still had to go through the process of being screened before they could get on board a ship to sail to America. Once they made it to their destination, passengers had to go through a physical inspection by doctors before they were set free into their new life or were detained because of issues that the doctors found. Sometimes, what was supposed to be a happy ending to coming to America ended in disappointment. This happened when a family member was not allowed into America and was sent back to where he came from.

Ellis Island and the Immigrant- Annie Moore

On January 1, 1892, a ship coming in from Ireland, landed at Ellis Island with a load of Irish Immigrants. The first person to step foot on the island was Annie Moore, a 15 year old girl. The teenager was presented with a gold coin; its monetary value was worth ten dollars for being the first person to step foot on the newly constructed Ellis Island. Annie and her brothers had spent 12 days on the ship as they set out to join their parents who were already living comfortably in New York. This girl and her brothers are recognized as the first people to arrive on the renovated island. A statue with the image of Annie and her younger brothers now stands at the Ellis Island Museum.

Learn about Ellis Island in this History Channel report.

An exchange is when we give in return for something received – this can be anything from money, ideas, gifts, medical or financial aid. Trade, emigration, wars and disasters have influenced the world as we know it today. Our modern-day world is changing quickly and seems to be a smaller place due to improvements in communications and transport. Interactions and exchanges across the borders have become easier and faster.  These different cultural, economic, sociological and language interactions have transformed and characterised our modern-day world – sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.

 We can illustrate this notion with the following examples :

Exchange or movement of money:

– international trade is now much easier thanks to modern communication systems and faster transport. Foreign products are easily available in our supermarkets and on internet. Certain brands are known all over the world. We live in a huge global economy – this is otherwise known as globalisation.

What is the American dream?

The American dream is the notion that the American social, economic, and political system makes success possible for every individual. Someone who manages to achieve their version of the American dream is said to be “living the dream”.

Many people criticize the idea of the American dream because they say that it is impossible for everyone to be able to fulfill their dreams – there are still inequalities in class, race, religion and ethnicity preventing people from “living the dream”.

The idea of the American dream is older than the USA itself – it dates back to the 1600s, when people began to have hopes for what was a new and largely unexplored continent to European immigrants. People dreamt of owning land and establishing a prosperous business and hoped that this would make them happier.

Today’s the definition of the American dream is much different. Most people nowadays hope that they will get married, have two children and live in a three-bedroom traditional home. Rather than looking for great wealth or success, people hope to avoid poverty or loneliness.

Improve your listening comprehension!

You can listen to people talking about what the American dream is here

You can watch a political ad talking about the American dream here

You can watch a BBC report about the American dream here

You can listen to different people talking about the American dream on the Academie de Paris website

This notion deals with the geographical and symbolic areas that all societies occupy and the interactions between men and different societies. Our world is built on the exploration and conquest of new spaces. The different cultural, economic, sociological and language interactions have shaped and characterised our modern-day world.

 Examples can be:

– Trade (the basis of all societies)

– Working conditions (telecommuting, internet)

– Globalization (the world has become a small village)

– School and education (social diversity / knowledge)  comparison of the different educational systems

– The Internet / social networks…

– the movement of people: Immigration

– movement across borders (Gap Year)

The idea of progress

Do you consider the invention of smartphones a progress?

You can talk to your friends at any time of the day (or night!), keep in touch with friends and family abroad, read your emails, see your friends’ holiday photos on Facebook, comment on the news on Twitter, download music, play games………….

But how many hours do you actually spend on your phone? Have you ever counted?

Do smartphones bring people closer through modern technology or are they making us more isolated? Technology and smartphones are not bad, but they can take too much time out of our lives. They can be major distractions that hinder our relationships.

Another disadvantage of smartphones is the amount of waste generated: new models are constantly being released, creating a “need” to have the latest model. But what do you do with your old phone? Do you sell it? Exchange it? Recycle it? Put it in a drawer?

What is progress? It is the idea that the world can become increasingly better in terms of science, technology, modernization, liberty, democracy, quality of life…..

What effect does this progress have on our society? Does it have a positive or a negative effect?

Do certain new technologies bring people closer together or do they alienate us?

What effect does this progress have on our culture?

Here are just a few ideas!

1. Scientific Progress

– Medical advances, cures for illnesses, cloning, performance enhancing drugs, genetically modified organisms.

2. Technological Progress:

– New technologies to slow down climate change such as hybrid cars, wind turbines, solar panels, biofuel…..

– advances in communication:  the internet, social media, mobile phones, video games – how they have changed our lives and the dangers of these modern ways of communication

– Robots, automated production

– Nuclear Power – for and against

3. Social Progress:

Changes in the quality of life – how does progress affect our society? Education, employment, equality, family life

Women’s rights, human rights, minority rights ……

The idea of liberty, freedom, democracy

For each subject it is important to discuss what are the advantages and/or disadvantages of this progress. Do you really consider it to be progress? Take the social media for example. Some consider it to be progress enabling families and friends to stay in contact, share news and photos

The idea of progress can be defined as an improvement, a development or a change – a technical, scientific or social advance which contributes to making the world a better place.

 Examples can be:

– Scientific Progress – Medical advances, cures for illnesses, cloning, performance enhancing drugs,   genetically modified organisms.

– Technological Progress-  technologies to slow down climate change such as hybrid cars, wind turbines, solar panels, biofuel…..

advances in communication:  the internet, social media, mobile phones, video games – how      they have changed our lives and the dangers of these modern ways of communication

Robots, automated production

Nuclear Power – for and against

–  Social Progress: changes in the quality of life – how does progress affect our society?

Education, employment, equality, family life

Women’s rights, human rights, minority rights ……

The idea of liberty, freedom, democracy