Objective Proficiency Unit 8: Urbanisation; boon or bane?

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 5

   Urbanisation; boon or bane?

Objective Proficiency Unit 8

Objectives:        Speaking/writing:   discussing city life and urban sprawl

                                Listening:    video on Urban Sprawl

                                Grammar:    inversion

                                Reading and use of English:  Parts 2, 4 and 7

                                                                       

           The pros of city life

What do you think draws people to the city?

Fill in the question on the next slide.

Why be a city dweller?

8 Things That are Great about Living in a City

1. Public Transportation

2. Dining Options are Endless

3. The Commute is Short

4. The Skyline is Stunning

5. Social Clubs are Everywhere

6. Entertainment Comes in a Lot of Forms

7. They're Diverse

8. They're Energetic                                                               (www.forbes.com)

The cons of city life

When talking about urbanisation we talk about the push and pull of cities. We've discussed the pull part, but what are the disadvantages of city life? What's the pull of rural life? Answer the questions on the following slides.

What are the disadvantages of city life?

Have you ever heard about Urban Sprawl? And what does it mean according to you?

https:

Cities of the future

You're going to watch a TEDTalk on how to build better cities for present en future generations. It is important that you take notes while you watch (type these down in the following slide -11-). The link to the TEDTalk can be found on slide 12 ). You will need your notes for a group discussion of this subject later on.

Write down your notes below, while listening to the TEDTalk.

1. Why is urban sprawl a hazard to the well-being of urban population? (tip: Perhaps you should start by defining well-being)

2. What is the antidote to the implications of urban sprawl?

3. Can you mention the 7 principles of Peter Calthorne that are imperative for building good cities?

4. Which of these 7 principles do you think are most important? Choose 3 and sustain your answer.

5. Can you imagine yourself living in a city with 30 million inhabitants? What impact would that have on you?

Choose one of two following articles on this subject. Read it and make a vocabulary list of unfamiliar words below and (later copy, paste and add this list to your VEF):

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2019/jul/10/should-we-build-cities-from-scratch or

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/may/24/will-covid-19-show-us-how-to-design-better-cities.