Cambridge Life Competencies: Developing life competencies with Empower by Cambridge English

The Cambridge Life Competencies Framework

Empower

A practical guide to developing life competencies through Empower

More than ever before, it is vitally important that we teach learners a broad skillset alongside their academic study, in order to prepare them for the world beyond the classroom.

This booklet will introduce you to the Cambridge Life Competencies Framework. We will demonstrate how we have used the research behind the framework to ensure the continued development of core life skills as part of Empower, our general English course for adult and young adult learners.

Why teach Life Competencies? Our world is changing fast and we need to prepare our students with the skills and experiences that go beyond learning an additional language. We see the growing need to work together with people from around the world, to think creatively and solve problems, to analyse sources more critically, to communicate our views effectively, and to maintain a positive mindset in an increasingly complex world. The Cambridge Life Competencies Framework supports teachers in this challenging area. We understand that the engaging and collaborative nature of the language classroom is the perfect place to develop and embed these key qualities, and so our framework provides guidance on how this can be achieved.

What do we mean by ‘Life Competencies’? Often referred to as ‘21st century skills’, life competencies include the knowledge, skills and attitudes we need to participate effectively in the world around us, and to fulfil our potential – in our education, our careers and our lives in general. We require the ability to be able to work well with other people, even when they are in other parts of the world. We need to be good at communicating our ideas and opinions, whether that’s speaking up in small meetings or writing posts to millions of readers. We need the creativity to generate new ideas and the imagination to find solutions to problems. It’s also important that we can separate facts from opinion and evaluate the reliability of information we hear, and from there construct persuasive arguments. We need to be experts at learning – we will be challenged to learn new skills throughout our lives. We must be able to better understand how our actions impact on others, in our society and in the world around us. And, we need to strengthen our ability to manage our emotions, persevere in the face of adversity and believe in our own ability to succeed.

Why integrate Life Competencies into English language teaching? Life Competencies can be integrated into any subject, but they are particularly suitable for teaching English. Learning an additional language already involves many of the skills we’re talking about such as communication, collaboration and critical thinking. This means there is lots of scope to develop these skills further, in an integrated way, through the teaching of English.

Nasser, Student, Saudi Arabia

How does the Cambridge Life Competencies Framework help? The Cambridge Life Competencies Framework is a way of making sense of the different skills we want our students to develop, in addition to learning English. There are so many different views on which skills are important, and how to develop them, that it can become overwhelming and difficult to understand what they mean for teachers. By providing a map of some of the most important life skills, the framework allows you to gain a deeper

understanding of what each of the competencies involve. It allows you to integrate them more systematically into your teaching, by thinking more carefully about which specific skills you are developing, and what you want your students to be able to do. We group all of these skills into six main competencies, with three foundational layers that weave through all of these skills.

Key features of the Cambridge Life Competencies Framework The framework has six Competencies that describe how these essential skills develop and vary across different stages of education, as learners grow and change. CREATIVE THINKING

Learners actively participate in creative activities, generate new ideas and use them to solve problems.

CRITICAL THINKING

Learners identify patterns and relationships, evaluate ideas and use these skills to solve problems.

LEARNING TO LEARN

Learners develop practical skills to support and take control of their learning and reflect on their own progress.

COMMUNICATION

Learners choose the most appropriate language to use in different situations, manage conversations effectively and express themselves clearly and confidently.

COLLABORATION

Learners work well together in groups through actively taking part in group activities, listening to others, sharing tasks and finding solutions to problems.

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Learners recognise and describe different roles and responsibilities in a variety of groups and understand cultural and global issues.

How can you truly understand what each competency really means? The framework breaks down each competency into more detail, so that you can see much more clearly which skills your students need to develop to be good at that particular competency. Each competency is divided into Core Areas – these are the broad skills and behaviours that make up each competency. These core areas are then divided into Component skills – these give more clarity to exactly what is meant by each core area, as shown in this example from Creative Thinking: COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

CREATIVE THINKING

Preparing for creativity

Participating in a range of creative activities Exploring issues and concepts Considering multiple perspectives Finding connections

Generating ideas

Generating multiple ideas Elaborating on and combining ideas Imagining alternatives and possibilities

Implementing ideas and solving problems

Experimenting with and refining ideas Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

Along with this, the framework also lists Can Do Statements – these describe the observable behaviours that could be suitable targets or objectives for learners at each stage of their learning. To help English language teachers, we also provide Example Language – suggestions for phrases and language that your students might find helpful, when developing each of the Life Competencies. 5

Introduction to Empower Content you’ll love. Assessment you can trust. Empower is a general English course for adult and young adult learners which combines course content from Cambridge University Press with validated assessment from the experts at Cambridge Assessment English. Empower’s unique mix of engaging classroom materials and reliable assessment, with personalised online practice, enables learners to make consistent and measurable progress. From January 2022 two versions of Empower will be available, American Empower and Empower 2nd Edition.

6 levels – Starter to Advanced (CEFR A1–C1)

80 hours per level, extendable to 120

Additional English for Academic Purposes lessons available for every unit of every level.

… a complete package for tertiary.

Value of validated assessment Empower combines classroom methodology with an assessment package from the world-leading experts in English language testing, placing assessment at the centre of students’ learning.

Learner engagement and personal response Images, videos and texts set in real-world situations to intrigue learners and get them talking, with frequent opportunities for personal response.

Syllabus integrity Empower is informed by English Profile, corpus research and the CEFR so students are learning the most relevant and useful language and encounter new language at the right point in their learning.

Components For Students

For Teachers

Student’s Book with eBook

Teacher’s Book with Digital Pack

Student’s Book with Digital Pack

Presentation Plus

Workbook with Answers

Class Audio

Workbook without Answers

Video Program

Life Competencies in Empower Cambridge Life Competencies are embedded throughout the course. Here are just a few examples of how our content is influenced by the framework.

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

LEARNING TO LEARN

Taking initiative to improve own learning

UNIT 5 d Work on your own. Answer the questions and take notes.

• Are there any environments near you that are considered fragile? What kind of environments are they? • What different human inventions have a negative ecological impact? • What kinds of things could you do to reduce your carbon footprint?

e 3 a

a Look at these future verb forms from the conversation in 3a and match them to the uses a–c below.

1 … this time next week I’ll be settling into my accommodation. 2 … I think I’ll be doing similar things every day. 3 … by the time I arrive the penguins will already have found mates. a talk about an action that will be in progress at a specific time in the future b talk about an action that will be completed before a specific time in the future c talk about planned actions in the future

LISTENING 05.08 Martha’s going to Antarctica to do research on penguins. She talks to her friend Joe about her work. Listen and answer the questions.

Now go to Grammar Focus 5B on p. 142.

c Work on your own. Take notes about the questions. • Where do you think you’ll be living this time next year? • What do you think you’ll have achieved five years from now?

Tell each other your answers to 4c and ask follow-up questions.

05.08 Listen again. Number the actions in the correct order from 1 to 5.

The eggs are laid. Tags are put on the penguins. Penguins find mates. Martha arrives in Antarctica. Penguin chicks are born.

GRAMMAR

Future perfect and future continuous

Discuss your answers.

1 How well does Joe understand Martha’s research? 2 Are his questions serious or light-hearted? 3 What do we learn about the personality of the penguins? 4 Why is the research important?

SPEAKING

a Read the job advertisement. Would you like this job?

Communications Officer in Antarctica

Responsibilities: interview researchers and collect information about their projects

update our blog regularly assist all staff with IT requests

You need a friendly personality and excellent people skills. This job is from October to March.

b Prepare a job interview role play for the job in 5a. Student A: You want to apply for the job. Imagine you have the skills and experience that make you a suitable job applicant. Think of questions you can ask the interviewer. Student B: You are the interviewer. Think of questions you can ask the applicant. Think of any useful information you can tell the applicant.

Work in pairs. Do the role play. Student A: Do you still want the job? Student B: Do you think Student A is suitable for the job? Why / Why not?

Empower Upper Intermediate – B2 level, Unit 5, page 61

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Recognising personal impact on global issues

COMMUNICATION

Using appropriate language and register for context

11C

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COLLABORATION

Engaging and supporting others

EVERYDAY ENGLISH

P Consonant clusters

What do you think?

W An email to a friend

LISTENING

Learn to write an email with travel advice to talk about opinions W LearnParagraph writing

Ask and answer the questions.

Leah

Carter

1 What’s your favorite restaurant in your town or city? 2 What food do you usually eat there?

Look at pictures a–c. What do you think happens in the story, idea 1 or 2? 1 Leah and Carter are brother and sister. They’re at a restaurant. Their mom calls and invites them for dinner. They leave the restaurant and go to her house. 2 Carter and Leah are brother and sister. They’re at a restaurant. They talk about what restaurants their mom would like. They can’t decide what restaurant to take her to.

c d

11.17

11.17 Listen again. Read the sentences. Write Leah (L), Carter (C), or both (B). Who … ?

1 2 3 4 5 6

Listen. Check your answer in 1b.

loves Indian food talked to their mom on the phone wants to visit their mom next weekend wants to take their mom to an Indian restaurant doesn’t think an Italian restaurant is a good idea for their mom is hungry

Are there any interesting places to visit in/near your town or city?

USEFUL LANGUAGE Talking about opinions c

a Look at the expressions. Do we use them to ... ?

1 Me, too. 2 What’s good here?

a b c d

ask for an opinion give an opinion have the same opinion have a different opinion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Where’s a good place to take Mom? No, that’s not my favorite. Maybe you’re right. I don’t think the Italian place is a good idea. It looks good. How about that new restaurant near here? I think you’re right. What do you think? 11.18

visit her / we can go / next weekend . you think / what do / new restaurant / of the ? you’re / I think / right . so / think / I don’t . idea / good / that’s / a .

e Complete the conversation with your ideas. A YOU A YOU A YOU A YOU

Listen and check your

11.18 Pronunciation Listen to sentences 1–8 in 2a again. Underline the words with the most stress. Listen again and repeat.

f 92

3 What about the Italian restaurant near you? 4 I’m not so sure.

11.20 Put the words in the correct order to make expressions. Listen and check.

1 2 3 4 5

answers.

11.19 Look at expressions 1–4. Are they in group a, b, c, or d in 2a? Listen and check.

What do you think of English? Yes, maybe you’re right. What about the grammar? Really? I don’t think so. I think your language is very hard. Well, all languages are a little hard.

Practice the conversation in 2e with a partner. Take turns being A.

Empower Starter – A1 level, Unit 11, page 92

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMMUNICATION

Using language appropriate for the situation COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

CREATIVE THINKING

Considering multiple perspectives

STARTER A1 HE: Higher education W: Work

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER STARTER A1 PAGE

EXERCISE

What questions do you want to ask him?

Considering multiple perspectives

11C

Talking about opinions

Finding connections

Speaking: use the conversation map

Use the ideas below to make a conversation.

Participating in a range of creative activities

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

Exploring issues and concepts

Generating ideas

Generating multiple ideas Elaborating on and combining ideas

Imagining alternatives and possibilities

CRITICAL THINKING

Implementing ideas and solving problems

Experimenting with and refining ideas

Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

Identifying and classifying information

Read the stories below. Write the story titles next to the sentences.

Recognising patterns and relationships

10A

Match the words in the box with the pictures.

Match the words in the box with the places in pictures.

12B

Compare your line with other students. Who has clear plans for the future?

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Do you think Resolute Bay and Stovepipe Wells are nice places to live?… Why/Why not?

Evaluating arguments as a whole

What are the good things and bad things about using the Internet to speak to people?

Evaluating options and recommendations to come to a decision

12A

Read the people’s ideas for after the TV show. Which is the best idea? Tell a partner.

Justifying decisions and solutions

11A

Read They Were the First! again. Choose one thing about each person you think is interesting and say why.

53 & 160

Writing

Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

Identifying and understanding problems Identifying, gathering and organising relevant information

Evaluating the effectiveness of implemented solutions

because and also

COMPETENCY LEARNING TO LEARN

CORE AREA Developing skills and strategies for learning

COMPONENT

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Engaging in directed activities

69 & 161

Writing

Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information

110

Communication Plus

129

Grammar Focus, d.

Unit Review

Practise the conversations in 1b.

Listen to Part 1. Answer the questions.

Listen again. Are the sentences true or false?

10B

Review your progress

Using language appropriate for the situation

11C

Talking about opinions

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Simple present: Wh questions

Emphasising what you say 1

Emphasising what you say 2

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

12 to 13

3&4

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

53 & 160

Writing

because and also

77 & 162

Writing

Making the order clear

12C

101 & 163

Writing

Paragraphs

Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

Taking control of own learning

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER STARTER A1

Setting goals and planning for learning

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Short emails, notes and texts

Look at picture 1. Write notes about their clothes. Complete the sentences about you or your friends. Unit Review

Before you speak on the phone, write notes.

Can Do Objectives

Review your progress

Taking initiative to improve own learning Managing the learning environment Managing attitudes and emotions

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

Keeping track of progress

Evaluating learning and progress Using feedback to improve learning

COMMUNICATION

Using appropriate language and register for context

Facilitating interactions

Meeting new people

Asking for and giving personal information

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

HE W

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

Actively contributing to a task

Encouraging effective group interaction

Listening and responding respectfully

Taking on different roles

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER STARTER A1 DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

4a & b

11C

4&5

Ask your partner

10B

Before you speak on the phone, write notes.

11B

Listening: Job Alert

Listening and Vocabulary: Jobs

Vocabulary: Nationalities

Reading: An international Family

Reading: Jobs International

Switch roles and repeat the conversation.

Establishing ways of working together Engaging and supporting others

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Agreeing what needs to be done

Working towards task completion

Ensuring progress towards a goal

Talking about opinions Making and responding to requests

Managing the distribution of tasks

Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding responsibilities within a social group Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group Understanding aspects of own culture Understanding aspects of other cultures

Interacting with others across cultures

Understanding global issues

Discussing a range of global issues Recognising personal impact on global issues

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Identifying and understanding emotions

Recognising and describing emotions

137

Vocabulary

1f.3

Common adjectives Does Logan feel happy or sad at the end of the conversation? Why?

How do they feel? Why?

Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions

1a.1

Regulating emotions

Reading: A good night’s sleep

10B

Reading: How much do you use your phone?

12A

Talk about everyday objects and activities that are important to you.

12C

100

Making and accepting invitations

12C

100

You invite friends to your house. Which of these things do you do? Write Yes, No, or Sometimes.

52 to 53

2&3

Making and accepting offers

4&5

Making and responding to requests

Understanding emotions

Managing own emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

On the first day at work/school after the weekend, how do you feel?

Showing empathy for the feelings of others Supporting others

ELEMENTARY A2

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

COMPONENT Participating in a range of creative activities

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ELEMENTARY A2 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Imagine you went on a trip around your country last year. Take notes:

What do you think happened next?

11C

114

Asking for and expressing opinions

Use the dialogue map to leave a message.

Think about someone in your family. Draw a timeline like George’s and add notes. Write a life story from your notes.

10A

101

Talk about the two things. Ask each other questions.

What are the good things about Nora’s work life?

What do you think is good and bad about the Internet?

43 & 131

…read about food that is healthy to eat every day. Look at your partner’s answers and decide if your partner eats in a healthy way.

Would you like Gabby’s job? Why/Why not?

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Exploring issues and concepts Considering multiple perspectives

Finding connections

Generating ideas

Generating multiple ideas Elaborating on and combining ideas Imagining alternatives and possibilities

CRITICAL THINKING

Implementing ideas and solving problems

Experimenting with and refining ideas

Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

Identifying and classifying information

Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

Recognising patterns and relationships Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Evaluating arguments as a whole Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

Identifying and understanding problems Identifying, gathering and organising relevant information Evaluating options and recommendations to come to a decision Justifying decisions and solutions Evaluating the effectiveness of implemented solutions

COMPETENCY LEARNING TO LEARN

CORE AREA Developing skills and strategies for learning

COMPONENT Engaging in directed activities Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information

Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information

Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

Taking control of own learning

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ELEMENTARY A2 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Welcome

2a & c

Review and extension

Practise the conversation in 2d with a partner and use your own personal information.

4b & c

Listen to your partner’s sentences and try to remember the information.

4b & c

Listen to Tom and Milly’s conversation and answer the questions. Listen again. Check (✓) the food…

Classroom instructions

Vocabulary: studying

Listen again and complete the notes about Hannah and Charlie. Review and extension

5a & b

4&5

Managing the learning environment

2a & c

Vocabulary: studying

Managing attitudes and emotions

Reading: Exam stress

Keeping track of progress

Review your progress

Setting goals and planning for learning

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Listen and answer the questions Think of… Take notes. Talk about… Look at the conversation in 4e to help you. Thinking about what you want to say Think about someone in your family. Draw a timeline like George’s and add notes. Write a life story from your notes. Can Do Objectives

Taking initiative to improve own learning

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

Evaluating learning and progress Using feedback to improve learning

COMPETENCY COMMUNICATION

CORE AREA Using appropriate language and register for context

COMPONENT

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

11C

114

Asking for and expressing opinions

11C

115

Responding to an opinion

10D

107

Writing and Speaking: A post about something that annoys you

Leaving a voicemail message

Asking for someone on the phone

Asking someone to wait

Showing interest

Emphasising what we say

10B

102

Superlative adjectives

12C

124

Showing surprise

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

Writing formal and informal emails

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

Asking for and giving information

Changing what you say

Saying Excuse me and I’m sorry

Checking understanding

Checking what other people say

10C

104

Asking for help

10C

105

Checking instructions

Writing skills

Making the order clear

Writing

International College Competition Entry Form

5a & b

Think of… Take notes. Talk about… Look at the conversation in 4e to help you.

4&5

12D

127

Writing skills

Paragraph Writing

11D

116

Writing skills

Structuring a review

Writing skills

Linking ideas with however; adverbs of manner (and Writing an Article)

Writing

Using language appropriate for the situation

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Facilitating interactions

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ELEMENTARY A2

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK? HE

Then ask some of the questions from 5a to find out more.

Thinking about what you want to say

HE W

An online profile

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ELEMENTARY A2 PAGE

EXERCISE

11C

115

Responding to an opinion

11C

114

Asking for and expressing opinions

5a & b

21 & 163

2c, 4

Reading: A regular office job – or not?

Understanding aspects of own culture

Vocabulary: Countries and Nationalities

Understanding aspects of other cultures

Reading: World Markets

Reading: Unusual towns

Reading: Fast City Transportation… Around the World

Reading: Friends abroad

How do they feel? Here are some ideas:

Writing and Speaking: Inviting and replying

Who can or could do the same things? Who would like to do the same things?

Saying something nice

Reacting to news

Saying Excuse me and I’m sorry

Expressing sympathy

Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

Actively contributing to a task

Encouraging effective group interaction

Listening and responding respectfully

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

Taking on different roles

Establishing ways of working together Engaging and supporting others

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Agreeing what needs to be done

Working towards task completion

Ensuring progress towards a goal

Managing the distribution of tasks Think of… Take notes. Talk about… Look at the conversation in 4e to help you.

Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding responsibilities within a social group

Vocabulary and Speaking: Jobs

Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group

Interacting with others across cultures

Understanding global issues

Discussing a range of global issues Recognising personal impact on global issues

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Identifying and understanding emotions Managing own emotions

Recognising and describing emotions Understanding emotions Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions Regulating emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

Showing empathy for the feelings of others

Supporting others

PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

COMPONENT

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Participating in a range of creative activities

127 & 129

a to c

Listen to their questions and describe some of your products.

Exploring issues and concepts

Speaking: Find someone who…

Considering multiple perspectives

12A

118

Reading: …What do you think happened next?

78 & 79

Reading: Six of the best, biggest and most popular

12A

119

Work in pairs. Look at the pictures. Put them in order to make a story.

94 & 95

Make a list of good and bad points for studying in class with a teacher and studying online.

Apologies and excuses: Use ideas from the boxes or your own ideas.

10A

Think of two different ideas to complete each sentence.

Speaking: Planning a day out

12D

125

Writing: A story …Read your story to the other students and answer any questions.

5&6

Future real conditionals and speaking

10A

Present and future unreal conditionals

Imagine you are making plans to go on a work trip to another country for six months. Ask and answer the questions.

4f & g

Work in small groups. Tell the group about your trip. Who in your group has had the worst experience on...?

Finding connections

Generating ideas

Generating multiple ideas

Elaborating on and combining ideas

Imagining alternatives and possibilities

CRITICAL THINKING

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1

Implementing ideas and solving problems

Experimenting with and refining ideas

Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

Identifying and classifying information Recognising patterns and relationships

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Evaluating arguments as a whole

Do you believe the woman’s story? Why?/ Why not?

11D

115

Writing skills: Giving opinions; expressing results and reasons

Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Choose five of the jobs from the list. Think of three advantages and three disadvantages for each job.

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1 UNIT

LEARNING TO LEARN

Developing skills and strategies for learning

EXERCISE

Engaging in directed activities

DESCRIPTION

Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

General: following instructions throughout

Setting goals and planning for learning

Review and extension

11B

131

Communication Plus: a

Use your dictionary to check new words. You may have to explain words to your partner.

Read the advice on studying vocabulary for a test.

Listen to conversations 1–3. What do the people talk about? Write the numbers of the conversations.

94 & 95

Review your progress

Review and extension

Managing the learning environment

Can Do Objectives

Managing attitudes and emotions Keeping track of progress

Evaluating learning and progress Using feedback to improve learning

Listen to Part 1 again. Answer the questions.

Taking initiative to improve own learning

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information

Taking control of own learning

PAGE

Make a list of good and bad points for studying in class with a teacher and studying online. Reading: How to deal with life’s little problems

COMPETENCY COMMUNICATION

CORE AREA Using appropriate language and register for context

COMPONENT Using language appropriate for the situation

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

Facilitating interactions

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

11D

115

Writing skills: Giving opinions; expressing results and reasons

10D

105

Writing: An informal email of apology

10C

102

Returning goods and making complaints

10C

103

5&6

Sounding polite

8&9

3&5

Reading and Speaking: Small Talk

10 & 11

1&4

Reading, Listening and Speaking: How do you communicate?

92 & 93

2, 4, 5, 7

Conversation skills: Showing interest

Conversation skills: Changing your mind

Grammar: Comparatives and superlatives

Pronunciation: Tones for continuing or finishing

10D

105

Writing skills: Formal and informal language

Greeting people

Writing: A job application

Ending conversations

Conversation skills: Asking for more information

Apologies and excuses

Speaking: Take turns saying the sentences from 5a to your partner. Apologise and give an excuse.

Conversation skills: Making time to think

11C

112

Conversation skills: Checking information

Writing skills: Linking: Ordering ideas and giving examples

Writing skills: Linking words

Writing skills: Paragraphing

Speaking: Write notes on these questions. Work in small groups. Discuss the questions.

Writing skills: Organising an email

Writing skills: Avoiding repetition

Speaking: Planning a day out

REFERS TO HE OR WORK? HE

Learn to make telephone calls

HE W

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

COMPONENT Actively contributing to a task

Taking on different roles

Encouraging effective group interaction

Listening and responding respectfully

Establishing ways of working together

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1 DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

4f & g

Speaking: Planning a day out

10C

103

Switch roles. Choose a different thing to complain about and deal with the complaint.

Speaking: Problems/sympathy/advice (role play)

12C

112 & 113

2&4

11D

115

Writing: Read another student’s post and respond to it. You can: agree or disagree and say why; add another idea.

Speaking: Planning an event

10A

98 & 99

1, 4 & 5

Discussing moral dilemmas

Listening and Speaking – when is it necessary to apologise…

Reading: The coolest jobs

Are these situations connected to work or school?

Reading: UNESCO support email

Reading: Get Happy- Give your Money Away

70 & 71

Reading: 1970s and today

Reading: UNESCO support email

Work in small groups. Tell the group about your trip. Who in your group has had the worst experience on...?

Agreeing and disagreeing

Engaging and supporting others

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Agreeing what needs to be done

Working towards task completion

Ensuring progress towards a goal

Managing the distribution of tasks

Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group

Understanding responsibilities within a social group

Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group

Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding aspects of own culture Understanding aspects of other cultures Interacting with others across cultures

Understanding global issues

Discussing a range of global issues

Recognising personal impact on global issues

COMPETENCY EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

CORE AREA Identifying and understanding emotions

COMPONENT

PAGE

60 & 138

Write down three words or phrases to describe his feelings before, during, and after this experience.

Which of these situations do you find easy? Which do you feel shy in?

Speaking: Choose five topics from the list below. Think of an idea for each one.

Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions

Speaking: Match the worries 1–3 with the situations in the pictures. Have you ever had any of the worries in 1b? Tell a partner.

Regulating emotions

Reading: How to deal with life’s little problems

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

3&4

Writing skills: Inviting and replying

Which ideas do you agree with?

Showing empathy for the feelings of others

Conversation skills: Showing sympathy

Speaking: Problems/sympathy/advice (role play)

Conversation skills: Showing concern and relief

Offers and suggestions

Conversation skills: reassurance

Asking for and giving advice

Recognising and describing emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

Supporting others

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

Understanding emotions

Managing own emotions

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1

ed and ing adjectives

INTERMEDIATE B1+

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

Generating ideas

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Writing skills: The language of ads

Writing: An informal online ad

Exploring issues and concepts

Speaking: talk about your experiences

Considering multiple perspectives

10B

119

Can you guess what the three stories might be about?

Finding connections

Verbs and prepositions

1a.3

Speaking: Use the topics below or your own ideas.

What else do you think might be in this building? Would you like to work in a place like this? Why/Why not? What would your ideal workplace be like?

Imagine you are the person in the photo. How do you feel? What would you do next?

Present and future real conditionals

10A

117

Present and future unreal conditionals

10B

121

Past unreal conditionals

Think of five reasons why cities are better places to live than small towns. Tell a partner.

Participating in a range of creative activities

Generating multiple ideas

DESCRIPTION

What is the connection between the things in the two photos?

Elaborating on and combining ideas Imagining alternatives and possibilities

Implementing ideas and solving problems

Experimenting with and refining ideas Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

REFERS TO HE OR WORK? W

COMPETENCY CRITICAL THINKING

CORE AREA Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Identifying and classifying information

101

Writing skills: Summarising information

Recognising patterns and relationships

113

Writing skills: Contrasting ideas; the structure of an article

Verb patterns

1a.3

What is the connection between the things in the two photos?

4a.2

What are the advantages and disadvantages of this change in friendship?

Quiz: Twin Facts

Modals of deduction

Do you agree with these statements?

Work in small groups and discuss the opinions.

Speaking and Reading: The restaurant that wasn’t there

62 & 63

2&6

Identifying, gathering and organising relevant information

Use your questionnaire to interview different people in the class.

Evaluating options and recommendations to come to a decision

Asking for and giving recommendations

110

Recommending and responding

Think of five reasons why cities are better places to live than small towns. Tell a partner.

What solutions can you think of for these problems? Write notes.

Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Evaluating arguments as a whole

Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

Reasons, results and examples

Identifying and understanding problems

Justifying decisions and solutions

Evaluating the effectiveness of implemented solutions

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ UNIT

LEARNING TO LEARN

Developing skills and strategies for learning

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

General: following instructions throughout

107

Review and extension

Then choose an ending or add your own idea to make it true for you.

Listen again and complete the information in the chart.

47 & 128

Listen to the two people. What number do you think they are on the scale on p128?

Speaking: Talk about learning a foreign language

Taking initiative to improve own learning

Speaking: Learning a language & different ways (using an app)

Managing the learning environment

Speaking: Learning a language & different ways (using an app)

Managing attitudes and emotions

Choose one idea below and continue using because. Write your idea. Learning a new language is like...

Keeping track of progress

Review your progress

Evaluating learning and progress

16 & 17

1&2

Setting goals and planning for learning

Using feedback to improve learning

DESCRIPTION

Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information

Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

EXERCISE

Engaging in directed activities

Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information

Taking control of own learning

PAGE

Use a dictionary to check the words in bold.

Review and extension

Reading: Can you really learn a language in 22 hours?

Can Do Objectives

Speaking, Listening and Reading: What kind of learner are you? Key study techniques and “learning styles”. Think about ways in which you have succeeded… Which of the things from 4a helped you to be successful?

COMPETENCY COMMUNICATION

CORE AREA Using appropriate language and register for context

COMPONENT

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Giving and responding to opinions

Writing: An informal email

Writing: An informal online ad

Pronunciation: Sounding polite

111

Conversation skills: Asking someone to wait

2&3

Writing skills: Positive and negative language; adverbs

13 & 134

Vocabulary: Gradable and extreme adjectives.

4&6

Conversation skills: Expressing surprise

Generalising

Conversation skills: Being vague

106

The Passive

111

Pronunciation: Showing contrast

10C

122

Pronunciation: Sounding sure and unsure

8 & 133

Speaking and Vocabulary: Friendship and communication

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

Speaking and Vocabulary: Friendship and communication

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

38 & 39

2&6

Pronunciation: Sounding interested

10C

123

Conversation skills: Changing the subject

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Conversation skills: Giving yourself time to think

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

Writing skills: Organising an essay: Signposting language

113

Writing skills: Contrasting ideas; the structure of an article

Speaking: talk about your experiences

Using language appropriate for the situation

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Facilitating interactions

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ DESCRIPTION

Conversation skills: Question Tags and Intonation

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Telling a story

Conversation skills: Reacting to what people say

HE W

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

Encouraging effective group interaction

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Actively contributing to a task

Work in groups of three. Have each group member read one part of the article on p57 and answer the questions below.

Taking on different roles

Role play

Listening and responding respectfully

Giving and responding to opinions

Establishing ways of working together

Writing skills: Offering choices

Offers, requests and asking for permission

Speaking and Vocabulary: Sharing information

What are the main responsibilities of the job?

Think of five reasons why an employer might not offer a candidate a job.

Application email

Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group

Speaking and Vocabulary: Friendship and communication

Understanding aspects of own culture

Do people in your culture think that being quiet is a good thing? Why/Why not?

How is this similar to or different from the same job in your culture?

Have you met people from different cultures?…

Speaking and Reading: Culture shock?…

Speaking: Cultural differences

Is protecting the environment and endangered animals important to you? If so, what kinds of things are you doing about it?…

56 & 57

Reading: The Whitley Fund for Nature

56 & 135

Vocabulary: Environmental Issues

Reading: Keeping our water clean

Writing: An essay on an environmental issue

10D

124

Speaking and Reading: Volunteering. Adventure. Experience.

Engaging and supporting others

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Agreeing what needs to be done

Working towards task completion

Ensuring progress towards a goal

Now change roles and have a second conversation.

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Managing the distribution of tasks

Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group

Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding responsibilities within a social group

Understanding aspects of other cultures

Interacting with others across cultures

Understanding global issues

Discussing a range of global issues

Recognising personal impact on global issues

COMPETENCY EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

CORE AREA Identifying and understanding emotions Managing own emotions

COMPONENT Recognising and describing emotions

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER INTERMEDIATE B1+ UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Speaking and Reading: Are you an introvert?

Speaking and Vocabulary: Friendship and communication

Conversation skills: Using me too/me neither

Writing skills: Positive and negative language; adverbs

Writing skills: Offering choices

Conversation skills: Sounding sympathetic or pleased

Conversation skills: Imagining how people feel

10C

112

Talking about possible problems and reassuring someone

10D

125

Writing skills: Advising a course of action

26 & 27

2&6

Offering and asking for help

Offers, requests and asking for permission

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Understanding emotions Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions Regulating emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

Showing empathy for the feelings of others

Supporting others

Making suggestions

UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

Generating ideas

Implementing ideas and solving problems

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

10D

125

Writing skills: Making a story interesting

Speaking: Imagine you are a TV producer for a new home renovation show.

130 & 132

Draw a rough plan of the room to show what you would do.

Exploring issues and concepts

Speaking: Interview your partner about his/ her challenges.

Considering multiple perspectives

Speaking and Listening: What do you think happened next?

a3 & a4

What could the woman be thinking? Imagine you’re on the beach below. What would you be thinking?

Reading: Imagine you saw a job advertised with the following conditions:

Finding connections

Read the article again. What connection does the writer make between...?

Generating multiple ideas

Speaking: Work alone and think of ideas for the party.

Speaking: Imagine you are a TV producer for a new home renovation show.

Elaborating on and combining ideas

Writing: Take notes. Discuss your notes. Write an article

Imagining alternatives and possibilities

Grammar: Future time clauses and conditionals

Grammar: Future real and present/future unreal conditionals

Grammar: Past unreal conditional; should have + past participle

10D

125

Writing: • any problems/obstacles you encountered • the outcome

Participating in a range of creative activities

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Useful language: Imagining how things could be.

Speaking: Imagine a third photo of city life. What might it show? Discuss your ideas.

Experimenting with and refining ideas Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

COMPETENCY CRITICAL THINKING

CORE AREA Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

COMPONENT Identifying and classifying information

Recognising patterns and relationships

Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Evaluating arguments as a whole

Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

Identifying and understanding problems

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Check (✓) the main point that Alison makes.

Reading: Which of these sentences best summarises the essay?

Reading and Listening: Listen to the interview. What are the two main ideas of a “smart city?”

112

Reading: Which sentence best summarises her argument?

Think about how you can structure the main part of the article. You can use a sequence of events or you could compare and contrast ideas.

Read the article again. What connection does the writer make between...?

Vocabulary: Describing change

What is the writer’s aim?

Reading and Listening: Read the tourist comments. Which are positive and which are negative?

Useful language: Discussing advantages and disadvantages

10A

117

113

Writing skills: Presenting a series of arguments

Which points in 5c do you agree with? Are there any you disagree with? Why?

10A

118

Discuss these three opinions about the blog. Which do you agree with the most? Why?

113

Writing: Think about: • what arguments you will present and what examples you will give to support them • what conclusion you will give

10D

124

10A

117

Grammar: Past modals of deduction

What was the problem in each case?

What environmental problems are shown in photos a–d? What environmental problems exist in your country or region? Which do you think are the most serious?

When has technology created a problem for you? When has technology helped you solve a problem of some kind?

10B

121

Vocabulary: Verbs of effort

Choose the five things in the box you think are the most important.

132 & 133

a&b

Reading and Speaking Communication task

Writing skills: Arguing for and against an idea

113

Writing skills: Presenting a series of arguments

The adverb Inevitably shows the writer’s attitude. Find five other comment adverbs in the article.

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Writing skills: describing data

What evidence is there for the opinions below?

What do you think Rosa should do? Give reasons for your answer.

Identifying, gathering and organising relevant information Evaluating options and recommendations to come to a decision

Justifying decisions and solutions

Evaluating the effectiveness of implemented solutions

How effective was the response of the emergency services?

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2 UNIT

LEARNING TO LEARN

Developing skills and strategies for learning

EXERCISE

Engaging in directed activities

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

General: following instructions throughout

Review and extension

10A

163

Use a dictionary to help you.

Complete the sentences with your own ideas.

32 to 33

1&2

Which of the pictures is being described?

Listen again. Number events a–h in the order that they happened.

Vocabulary: Find words in the text that have a similar meaning

Can Do Objectives

32 to 33

1&2

Speaking and Listening: The 30 day challenge

Managing attitudes and emotions

Vocabulary: Trying and succeeding

Keeping track of progress

Review your progress

Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information

Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information

Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

Taking control of own learning

PAGE

Setting goals and planning for learning

Taking initiative to improve own learning

Discuss the topic you chose and take notes on possible arguments for and against.

Review and extension

Listening and Reading: LEARNING TO LEARN

You need to agree on an English language study plan and organise what to study, how much to study, when, etc. Listening and Reading: LEARNING TO LEARN

Managing the learning environment

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

Evaluating learning and progress Using feedback to improve learning

Writing: Switch leaflets with another student. Does the leaflet include headings and different imperative forms? Is the information clear and direct? What improvements could be made?

COMPETENCY COMMUNICATION

CORE AREA Using appropriate language and register for context

COMPONENT Using language appropriate for the situation

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

Facilitating interactions

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Speaking: Discuss the statements in 5a with other students. Explain your opinions. Do you all agree?

Conversation skills: Responding to an idea

110

Useful language: Expressing uncertainty

Conversation skills: Agreeing and using question tags

Conversation skills: Cutting a conversation short

Conversation skills: Using vague language

Pronunciation: Intonation in question tags

Writing skills: Giving a positive impression

10D

125

Writing skills: Making a story interesting

Writing skills: Using formal language

1&2

Speaking and Listening; Reading

10C

123

Conversation skills: Interrupting and announcing news

Conversation skills: Keeping to the topic of the conversation

Pronunciation: Contrastive stress

Useful language: Explaining and checking understanding

111

Conversation skills: Clarifying a misunderstanding

Writing skills: Organising an article

113

Writing: Alicia uses linking words and phrases to show how her ideas are connected.

Speaking: explain the process to your partner

109

Speaking: Think about how you will describe what happened and take brief notes. Try to include reported speech and verbs from 4a.

Speaking: Job interview role play

Present an opinion on one of the topics to the rest of the class

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

COMPONENT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Conversation skills: Responding to an idea: Work in groups. Take turns suggesting and responding to each other’s ideas.

Compare your ideas. Do you agree?

Speaking: Imagine a third photo of city life. What might it show? Discuss your ideas.

Speaking: Job interview role play

Work in pairs. Student A, talk about your country. Student B, you are the visitor. Ask Student A questions. Then change roles.

Conversation skills: Responding to an idea

Writing: Switch leaflets with another student. Does the leaflet include headings and different imperative forms? Is the information clear and direct? What improvements could be made?

Establishing ways of working together

Conversation skills: Introducing requests

Engaging and supporting others

Conversation skills: Showing you have things in common

Useful language: Giving compliments and responding

You need to agree on an English language study plan and organise what to study, how much to study, when, etc.

Speaking: Make sure everyone keeps to the topic of the conversation

Actively contributing to a task

Listening and responding respectfully

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Agreeing what needs to be done

Working towards task completion

Ensuring progress towards a goal

Managing the distribution of tasks

Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

Taking on different roles

Encouraging effective group interaction

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2

Conversation skills: Expressing careful disagreement

COMPETENCY SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

CORE AREA Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group

Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding global issues

COMPONENT

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Speaking: Think of a time when you had to do some training and follow rules

What role do you think famous people play in society? Should they be good role models? Should they inspire other people?

96 to 97

3&5

1 Is it important to help children prepare for what might happen to them later in life? Why? 2 Which of your childhood experiences have had an impact on your adult life? 3 In general, how much do you think experiences in childhood influence the choices you make in your life?

Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group

Grammar: Obligation and Permission

Understanding aspects of own culture

1a2

Think of three things which have increased or decreased in your country recently. Then compare with a partner.

Think about languages in your country and discuss the questions.

Understanding aspects of other cultures

71 to 72

1&3

Languages of the World; Danger! Dying languages

Interacting with others across cultures

1&2

Speaking and Listening; Reading

Speaking: A visitor is coming to stay in your country.

Reading: How can we help protect the environment?

71 to 72

1&3

Reading

10C

123

Useful language: Describing how you felt

Speaking: Talking about hopes and worries

Understanding emotions

What kind of stress is caused by crowds? How do you think the people in the two photos feel?

Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions

56 & 57

1, 2 & 3

10B

120

Regulating emotions

1&2

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

Understanding responsibilities within a social group

Discussing a range of global issues

Recognising personal impact on global issues

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Identifying and understanding emotions

Managing own emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER UPPER INTERMEDIATE B2

Recognising and describing emotions

Showing empathy for the feelings of others

Supporting others

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Speaking: The honesty experiment Speaking: Moral dilemmas

What do you think are the most popular sports in your country to participate in? Why do you think they are popular?

Languages of the World; Danger! Dying languages Working in Antarctica Reading: How can we help protect the environment? What kinds of things could you do to reduce your carbon footprint? W

Speaking and Reading: Are you an optimist or a pessimist?; Why we think we’re going to have a long and happy life; Vocabulary: Adjectives describing attitude Wishes and Regrets: Think of something you did in the past with mixed results (some parts were good, but others weren’t). What would you do differently now? Take notes. Speaking and Reading: Rules for slowing down

Useful language: Showing you are grateful

Useful language: Being encouraging

Writing skills: Giving a positive impression

Conversation skills: Expressing careful disagreement

Useful language: Making careful suggestions

Useful language: Being encouraging

ADVANCED C1

COMPETENCY CREATIVE THINKING

CORE AREA Preparing for creativity

COMPONENT Participating in a range of creative activities

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Writing skills: Descriptive language

68 & 163

Vocabulary: Adjectives: describing images

Speaking: Presentation of ideas

Think about the volunteer project you talked about in 4a. What questions would you like to ask Daniela about doing this kind of work?

You have to choose a sports activity for a student club. Which of the activities in the photos would you choose? Think about: • appeal of the activity • skills required • student safety • cost • chances to socialise.

Imagine you want to give your child a bilingual upbringing. What would you have to do? How easy or difficult would it be? Write notes and compare with your partner.

Imagine you ran a small business. What kind of business would it be? What benefits would you offer your employees? Why?

10B

119

Look at the words and phrases in bold in 1b. Which are connected with...? • luck and magic • customs

3d.5

What’s the writer’s suggestion about the relationship between social media and the absence of heat?

5d & e

Elaborating on and combining ideas

101

Think of a concept for a restaurant. You could either invent one or base it on a place you know. Write down ideas for a promotional text on a website. Consider…

Imagining alternatives and possibilities

Speaking and Writing: Alternative endings: Read each other’s stories aloud and try to guess what the outcome was.

Grammar: Conditionals

106

5d & e

106

Speaking: Making cities smarter (choose and evaluate ideas)

109

Speaking: Read the scenario, talk about your ideas, and come up with a proposal and a reason for it.

Writing: Plan a report that talks about these problems and suggests solutions.

Finding connections

Generating multiple ideas

Experimenting with and refining ideas

Implementing, presenting and explaining ideas and solutions

PAGE

Considering multiple perspectives

Implementing ideas and solving problems

UNIT

6C Exploring issues and concepts

Generating ideas

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

Generate ideas for advice. Compare and prioritise.

Work in small groups. What can you do to improve your memory? Make a list of ideas.

Listening: improving life in cities (listen and discuss the ideas)

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

CRITICAL THINKING

Understanding and analysing ideas and arguments

Identifying and classifying information

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Useful language: Paraphrasing and summarising

Writing tip: Write down key points as you listen to help organise your ideas.

109

Vocabulary: Describing changes

What differences are there between friendships that are mostly face to face and those that are mostly online?

Listening: What is Mike’s attitude toward the robot project?

10A

116

Speaking and Vocabulary: What does each quote tell you about the person’s attitude toward giving speeches?

Do you think these ideas are true or false? Why?

Writing skills: Essays; Linking, addition and reinforcement

10D

125

3d.5

Writing: Organise your notes into opinions in favour of this idea and against it.

Reading: Which of these are reasonable conclusions to draw from the article, and which aren’t?

113

Writing skills: Discussion essays; Linking: reason and result

Writing: You are on a committee that has to organise a three-day tourist itinerary for a group of foreign students. Imagine problems previous groups might have had.

Identifying, gathering and organising relevant information

10A

117

Reading: Don’t be boring!

Speaking: Is there any further information you would need to make a judgment?

Evaluating options and recommendations to come to a decision

Speaking: Choose one of the social situations below. What further problems might you have? How could you deal with them? Make a list of problems and suggestions.

100

1a.2

Justifying decisions and solutions

106

Evaluating the effectiveness of implemented solutions

3d.2

Recognising patterns and relationships

Interpreting and drawing inferences from arguments and data

Evaluating ideas and arguments

Evaluating specific information or points in an argument

Evaluating arguments as a whole

Drawing appropriate conclusions

Solving problems and making decisions

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1

Identifying and understanding problems

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK? W

Listening: Who is for and against them? Who mentions the following points...

Reading and Writing: Which reviewer mentions strengths or weaknesses in the following areas?

Reading: Do you agree with the five pieces of advice in the article? Are there any you disagree with? Why?

Listening: What is Emma’s problem? Why exactly is Max annoying her?

Listening and Speaking: Choose the five most important things from this list. Speaking: (present ideas with benefits, potential problems and solutions) Compare your sentences with the ones in the text. Are they similar? Which are more effective?

COMPETENCY

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1 UNIT

LEARNING TO LEARN

Developing skills and strategies for learning

Reflecting on and evaluating own learning

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

General: Following instructions throughout 2D

Writing skills: Reports; Linking: contrast and concession

Writing: Plan a report that talks about these problems and suggests solutions.

Using effective systems for finding, keeping and retrieving information

Review and extension

Using effective strategies for learning and retaining information

Vocabulary: What do the highlighted words in the article mean? Which two words are very similar? How are they different? Use a dictionary to help you.

8&9

Reading: LEARNING LANGUAGE

2f.2

Learning tip: When you make a note of a new word, it’s a good idea to write down the collocation(s) as well. You can also look in dictionaries for other collocations to add to your notes.

Listening: Listen to the first part of Lena’s story. Why did she decide to stop talking?

Listen to Part 2 again. What does Lena say about these people?

Learning tip: Guessing words from context

Setting goals and planning for learning

Can Do Objectives

Taking initiative to improve own learning

8&9

Reading: LEARNING LANGUAGE

Managing the learning environment

128

Suggestions for managing noise

Managing attitudes and emotions

8&9

Reading: LEARNING LANGUAGE

Keeping track of progress

Review your progress

Listen again. Take notes on these topics.

Review and extension

Evaluating learning and progress Using feedback to improve learning

EXERCISE

Engaging in directed activities

Using effective strategies for comprehension and production tasks

Taking control of own learning

PAGE

Writing: Read another student’s proposal. Will you accept it? Why/Why not?

COMPETENCY COMMUNICATION

CORE AREA Using appropriate language and register for context

COMPONENT

PAGE

EXERCISE

Writing skills: Expressing opinions

Writing: Discussion forum

Useful language: Paraphrasing and summarising

Useful language: Apologising and admitting fault

101

Writing skills: Promotional material; Using persuasive language

Useful language: Expressing yourself in an inexact way

Writing skills: Descriptive language; writing briefly

Language in context: Irony and understatement

Language in context: Exaggerating

Useful language: Being tactful in formal discussions

Writing skills: Formal letters; Giving a positive impression

Useful language: Negotiating

10C

122

Useful language: Turn taking

Read the ideas about communication. Give an example for each statement you think is true.

Using strategies for overcoming language gaps and communication breakdowns

Useful language: Paraphrasing and summarising

Structuring spoken and written texts effectively

Useful language: Organising a presentation

Writing skills: Reports; Linking: contrast and concession

Writing skills: Organising information; showing time relationships

Writing skills: Essays; Linking, addition and reinforcement

Writing skills: Proposals; Linking, highlighting and giving examples

113

Writing skills: Discussion essays; Linking: reason and result

10D

125

Writing skills: Movie reviews; Concise description

10A

117 & 118

2&5

Using language appropriate for the situation

Adapting language use according to different cultures and social groups

Participating with appropriate confidence and clarity

Using communication strategies to facilitate conversations

Using appropriate language and presentation styles with confidence and fluency

DESCRIPTION

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

Using a variety of language and communication strategies to achieve a desired effect

Facilitating interactions

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1

Reading and Speaking: Giving a presentation or speech

Useful language: Organising a presentation

COMPETENCY COLLABORATION

CORE AREA Taking personal responsibility for own contribution to a group task

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Speaking and Vocabulary: Work in pairs. Compare your ideas in 5d and prioritise four suggestions that are useful for all language learners.

Speaking: Work in small groups. Think of an invention or a new idea.

135 & 137

a&b

129

a&b

Listening and responding respectfully

10C

122

Useful language: Turn taking

Establishing ways of working together

Useful language: Negotiating

Listening and Speaking: improving cooperation

Useful language: Giving advice

Language in context: Showing strong agreement

Reading and Speaking: Work in groups of four. Read about one different sport each. Find answers to these questions where possible and report back to the group.

Vocabulary: Work in groups. Take turns thinking of a compound adjective. Don’t tell the other students. Instruct the student whose turn it is to do things in a way that demonstrates the adjective.

110

Useful language: Dealing with conflict

131

Communication: Now listen to your partner’s problem carefully and talk about some solutions to it. Make three suggestions using the language for giving advice on p27.

Speaking: Take a class vote on who agrees and disagrees with each statement.

Actively contributing to a task

Taking on different roles

Conversation Work in pairs. Plan the telephone conversation between Mike and Seth. Use the expressions in 4b. Role-play your conversation for the class. HE

Encouraging effective group interaction

Engaging and supporting others

Managing the sharing of tasks in a group activity

Working towards task completion

Agreeing what needs to be done Managing the distribution of tasks

Ensuring progress towards a goal Identifying issues and challenges Resolving issues

Communication: Student A: Use the yellow speech bubbles. Start conversation 1 with Student B. Student B: Use the grey bubbles. Have conversations 1 to 4. Then switch roles.

COMPETENCY SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER ADVANCED C1 UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

DESCRIPTION

Understanding personal responsibilities as part of a social group

Understanding responsibilities within a social group Fulfilling responsibilities within a social group

Grammar: Willingness, obligation and necessity

Showing intercultural awareness

Understanding aspects of own culture

Language in context: Irony and understatement: Why do you think Sara and Alex don’t say exactly what they mean? Do people do the same in your culture?

1b.2

10B

119

Do you know of other things that traditionally bring good luck or ward off evil (in either your own country or another country you know)?

Reading and Speaking: How languages are special: What do you think each fact tells us about the speakers’ culture or environment? Or the way they think about the world?

16 & 17

1&2

Vocabulary: Wealth and poverty

Listening: Issues with the modern world

108 & 109

Reading: Jeanne Gang

104

Reading: The day of the pedestrian

112

Reading: Urban migration

Recognising personal impact on global issues

32 & 33

Reading and Speaking: Volunteering abroad

Recognising and describing emotions

Vocabulary: Emotions

Word power: Idioms: Feelings

44 & 161

Vocabulary: Instinct and reason

Understanding emotions

44 & 131

Speaking: Do you have a sixth sense?

Monitoring and reflecting on own emotions

10A

118

Speaking: Plan a one-minute speech with the title “Learning from My Mistakes”.

Grammar: Comparison (How did you feel? Did your feelings change the longer you stayed there?)

44 & 131

Speaking: Do you have a sixth sense?

Reading: Learn to trust your gut

Speaking and Reading: Top tips to help you sleep

Reading: The myth of the eight hour sleep

Useful language: Being tactful in formal discussions

Useful language: Apologising and admitting fault

Vocabulary: Social interaction

Showing empathy for the feelings of others

Useful language: Being tactful in formal discussions

Supporting others

Useful language: Giving advice

Understanding aspects of other cultures

REFERS TO HE OR WORK?

How do you/people in your country feel about adopted English words?

Listening and Reading: (English as a dominant language and impact on other cultures)

Interacting with others across cultures

Understanding global issues

EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Identifying and understanding emotions

Managing own emotions

Discussing a range of global issues

Regulating emotions

Empathy and relationship skills

Establishing and maintaining positive relationships

How to make use of the framework in your Empower classes The Cambridge Life Competencies Framework has been mapped to all levels of Empower. This will help you easily identify exactly where the competencies appear in the course. You can use the tables in this guide to look for specific competencies or core areas you wish to teach.

Select the appropriate table by the level of Empower you are teaching.

Look at the table for the competency, core area or component you want to teach your students.

Read across to the ‘Example activity’ section which provides the page number, example and description, helping you to locate where to find this content in the Student’s Book.

Look up the example activity and plan a lesson around it. You could use the material on the rest of the page to support you.

Example 1.

Your students are using Empower Pre-intermediate – B1 level, so refer to pages 17 to 21 in this guide.

You may want to use the table to inspire you to find a relevant topic to teach in your next class. In the table you notice some content on ‘managing the learning environment’. Looking at the description and notes you think this is a great topic to discuss with your students.

Look at the page number to find this content in the coursebook.

COMPETENCY LEARNING TO LEARN

CORE AREA

COMPONENT

Taking control of own learning

EXAMPLE ACTIVITY: EMPOWER PRE-INTERMEDIATE B1

Setting goals and planning for learning

UNIT

PAGE

EXERCISE

94 & 95

DESCRIPTION

Can Do Objectives

REFERS TO HE OR WORK? W

Taking initiative to improve own learning Managing the learning environment

Make a list of good and bad points for studying in class with a teacher and studying online. Reading: How to deal with life’s little problems

Managing attitudes and emotions

6A READING

1 a

Look at the problems in the pictures. Does anyone you know have any of these problems? How would you handle them? Tell a partner. problems in the pictures is it for? Complete headings 1–4.

Verbs with dependent prepositions

V Verbs with dependent prepositions

a Complete the sentences with the correct prepositions from the box.

I don’t have enough money.

at 1 2 3 4 5 6

I’m always late.

You don’t have any money, you never finish anything you start, your house is dirty, you can’t find a good job, and your whole life is terrible. Well, maybe it’s not that bad! If you’d like to improve things, we can help. Here are our top ways to deal with some of life’s little problems.

1 • music • 15 minutes

I feel tired all the time.

2 • rules • a pile I’m addicted to my phone.

I can’t concentrate on my work.

4 • screens • milk

Cover the article. Use your notes. Try to remember the advice in the article.

My home is a mess.

Do you think the advice in each paragraph is useful? Why / Why not? I don’t sleep well.

Learn to enjoy cleaning and straightening up. People who enjoy this usually have clean homes. Turn on the TV or listen to music while you clean. Start by cleaning every day, but only for 15 minutes. When the 15 minutes are finished, you should stop. Don’t worry if things aren’t perfectly clean. Do a little bit of cleaning every day, and in a week your place will look great.

It’s important to give yourself rules. When you go out with friends, decide how many times you will look at your phone – maybe only two or three times in an evening. Ask your friends about how they feel. If they have the same problem as you, put all of your phones together in a pile out of the way. That way, no one can look at their phones, and you can all enjoy each other’s company.

3 GRAMMAR Imperative; should

a Complete the sentences with the correct verbs. Check your answers in the article.

1 2 3 4

Turn on the TV or to music while you clean. You should to drink less coffee and eat less junk food, too. You shouldn’t for hours without a break. Don’t devices with bright screens before you go to sleep.

b Match the sentences in 2a with the rules. To give advice, we use: base form don’t + base form subject + should + base form subject + shouldn’t + base form

c 58

Now go to Grammar Focus 6A on p. 154.

Work in pairs. Ask and answer the questions in 3a. two problems.

the advice about these things? Write notes.

about (x2) with

every day? What is a problem you have to deal Do you listen music while you clean? How often do you look your phone? What stops you from concentrating your work? Do you think your work or school on weekends? Who can you talk to problems at school or work?

c Match the sentence halves to make advice for

c Read the advice again. What is

3 • breaks • rewards

VOCABULARY

G Imperative; should

HOW TO DEAL WITH LIFE’S LITTLE PROBLEMS

b Read the advice. Which four

UNIT 6

I have too much work to do.

Learn to give advice for common problems

YOU SHOULD TAKE A BREAK

06.03 Pronunciation Listen to the sentence. Is the vowel sound /u / or /ʊ/ in the words shouldn’t and use?

You shouldn’t use your cell phone before you go to sleep.

06.04 Listen to the sentences. Do the letters in bold have the long vowel sound /u / or the short vowel sound /ʊ/?

1 2 3 4 5

You shouldn’t use your computer all day. Look for new ways of doing exercise. Find a good time of day to study. Choose the healthiest food. Read a book before you go to sleep.

f Practice saying the sentences in 2e.

Only spend money

Don’t pay

You should wait

You should ask

Talk

You should think

Eat a good breakfast, so you arrive

a for a sale to buy expensive things. b for friends’ meals when you go out. c on things you really need. d from friends because it creates problems. e of ways to save energy. f for a few days off. g at work or school full of energy. h to a doctor about how you feel.

06.05 Listen and check your answers in 3c. Which two problems is the advice for?

the advice.

SPEAKING

Communication 6A Student A: Go to p. 129. Student B: Go to p. 130. Work in pairs. Choose one of the problems and write some advice. • • • • •

First, think about your body. Exercising regularly will help you to fall asleep more easily. You should try to drink less coffee, and eat less junk food, too. These bad habits keep you awake. Don’t use devices with bright screens (for example, your cell phone) before you go to sleep. They make your brain think that it is daytime instead of night time. Read a book and drink a cup of warm milk or herbal tea in the evening. Then you’ll feel ready for sleep.

Don’t borrow money

e Cover half of the sentences in 3c. Try to remember

The machine we use so much for work – our computer – is the same machine we often use to have fun. So control how you use your computer. If your problem is that you check your email every five minutes, you can get apps that stop the Internet from working for a period of time you choose. Use this time to focus on your work. But you shouldn’t work for hours without a break. Work for half an hour and then take a five-minute break. Rewards are really important, too. Have a snack or get some fresh air every hour or so.

1 2

I feel really stressed before exams. I’m not creative enough at work. I don’t laugh very often. I never finish anything I start. I always lose important things.

Work in small groups. Present the problems and your advice. Whose advice is the most useful for you?

Empower Pre-intermediate – B1 level, pages 58–59 41

Let’s get you started! General tips for teaching life competencies • Familiarise yourself and your learners with the competencies, core areas and components you are focusing on in class. Allow time for questions, discussion and reflection both prior to, during, and after tasks. • Include aims related to life competency development when lesson planning, in order to clearly focus activities on developing specific skills, and share these aims with your learners. • Ensure that life competency tasks are designed at the appropriate level of challenge for the learners so that they do not become demotivated. • Praise learners’ attempts at using life competencies. Provide specific feedback on what the learner has done well and how they might improve. • Integrate self- and peer-assessment tasks, encouraging learners to reflect on and evaluate their development of specific components, celebrate their achievements, and set goals for improvement. • Keep records of teacher feedback, as well as self- and peer-assessment. Use these records to plan future lessons to further develop learners’ skills in each of the life competencies.

Teaching Creative Thinking • Tweak familiar tasks by adding constraints such as time or word limits to make tasks more creative and integrate a greater degree of problem solving. • Use group speaking tasks which require learners to collaborate and solve problems to help develop a creative thinking mindset. • Make a habit of asking learners questions and encourage them to ask questions too. This prompts learners to consider different perspectives. • Celebrate originality by giving learners praise for demonstrating creativity, and reward outside-the-box thinking. Encourage learners to be playful in their creative thinking – no answers are wrong answers; diversity and even absurdity should be celebrated. • Nurture a safe and supportive classroom environment in which learners respect and value each other’s contributions without fear of judgement.

Teaching Critical Thinking • Select material, or encourage learners to source material, which provides rich, diverse, multi-faceted input – not just from one perspective but from multiple perspectives. • Exploit writing and presentation tasks by encouraging learners to examine different sides of an argument, and use class debates as opportunities for learners to analyse, evaluate and present ideas and arguments. • Use information gap activities to get students to practise asking questions of others to find out appropriate information. • Use graphic organisers to help learners analyse and evaluate ideas more effectively. • Encourage learners to continually question the information they receive and the conclusions they come to by encouraging them to consider how they arrived at answer, using questions such as: – Why is that your answer? – How did you come to that answer? – Do you think there could be another answer?

Teaching Learning to Learn • Introduce students to a range of learning strategies to help them to make the most out of their learning and for them to draw upon when working independently. • Provide scaffolding and multiple opportunities for learners to use, train and develop learning to learn skills, reducing the amount of scaffolding you give as learners become more familiar with particular skills and strategies. • Provide handouts or prompts to help guide students in using different strategies. For example, provide checklists with assessment criteria for writing tasks, and gradually encourage learners to create their own checklists as they become more confident. • Introduce students to the range of resources that are available to them as language learners and encourage them to explore these and reflect on when and how they could be of most use to them. • Support students in building effective study habits and skills by fostering a safe environment of experimentation in the classroom. If a particular strategy doesn’t work for a learner, encourage them to reflect on the reasons for this, and how to adapt it or choose a different strategy.

Teaching Communication • Teach phrases and language structures that learners need to manage conversations effectively by first modelling, then practising and displaying phrases so they can be referred to during activities. • Use communicative speaking and writing tasks to raise awareness of both good and bad models of a range of communicative strategies, and maximise opportunities for extensive practice and feedback. • Encourage learners to notice effective and ineffective communication strategies in reading, listening and viewing tasks, by asking questions about what works well when checking comprehension. • Draw on the communication skills and strategies that learners have developed in their first language to compare with those in English. • Explicitly teach repair strategies to enable learners to continue communicating despite gaps in their knowledge.

Teaching Collaboration • Ensure that tasks have clear goals and steps and that learners understand the aim of tasks, how their own contributions fit into the whole task, and that the success of the task is the responsibility of each member of the group. • Encourage learners to make decisions about the objectives of a task, size and composition of groups, roles assigned to each group member and the materials needed when working collaboratively. • Include collaborative tasks which allow learners to work to their strengths (for example, a learner who is good at drawing does the illustrating), or to practise and develop new skills. Encourage learners with strengths in one particular area to support others and help them develop. • Use collaborative online platforms such as Padlet or Bulb for learners to share research, problems, ideas, etc. in order to support each other’s learning, prepare for lessons and carry out homework tasks. • Explicitly teach active listening skills such as making eye contact, showing empathy and understanding, and summarising what the speaker has said, and teach phrases and expressions for turntaking.

Teaching Social Responsibilities • Include topics related to social responsibilities as a basis for stimulating and meaningful language practice. Try using case studies, film and video clips, drama/role play and research tasks to explore causes, effects and potential solutions to global issues. • Encourage learners to personally identify with topics and examine how they can take responsibility for their own actions in relation to that topic. • Handle discussions in a fair and balanced way, encouraging learners to respect diversity of opinions and allowing them to form their own opinions. • Create opportunities for learners to appraise their own culture and explore values and attitudes shared by other cultures without discrimination or prejudice. • Include awareness-raising tasks that sensitise learners to issues around human rights, the protection and sharing of natural resources, the importance of international cooperation and solutions to global problems.

Teaching Emotional Development • Provide learners with the language and communication skills they need to express their emotions, and create opportunities for learners to talk about their emotions with their peers and the teacher. • Support learners in understanding how to regulate their emotions by altering their perspective or taking practical steps to change their situation. • Support learners in recognising the physical symptoms of emotions (such as the heart racing when we feel anxious) and help develop coping strategies, for example by demonstrating mindfulness techniques and integrating these into lessons. • Acknowledge that all learners experience emotions in different ways and that different learners will require different strategies for managing their emotions. • Create environments that help to reduce anxiety, by reducing competition between learners, building positive self-belief, and fostering positive relationships within the group.

You can find more information about the competencies in the Cambridge Life Competencies Framework at cambridge.org/clcf

✓ Creative Thinking ✓ Critical Thinking ✓ Learning to Learn ✓ Communication ✓ Collaboration ✓ Social Responsibilities ✓ Emotional Development