CA3

OVERVIEW
Part I: Oct 30Nov 2 Part II: Nov 2-5

FAMILY MATTERS

-Study the materials in the unit Family Matters. -Choose a topic and tell your group -Write an individual discursive essay and send it to your CA3 Individual Wiki page in the Group Work Space Wiki. -Read and give feedback on each others essays in Group Work Space Wiki. -Revise and rewrite your essay using peer and teacher feedback. -Listen to several LANGblog recordings and respond to one. -Post finished essay in classroom Forum for the class to read. -Comment on finished essays posted to the Forum.

Part III: Nov 5-10

Part IV: Nov 10-13

Please note these dates are recommended deadlines but if it is more convenient for you, you can always send work to the classroom before these dates.

OBJECTIVES
Write a discursive essay. Revise your own writing using peer and teacher feedback. Provide your group mates with feedback on their writing. Respond to someone asking for advice.

EVALUATION
60% Individual essay on CA3 group wiki page in group wiki spaces. Completion of the task (Have you answered the question?) Use of grammar Use of vocabulary and expressions from the unit Organisation of essay into paragraphs and use of linking expressions

20% Contributions to Group work (i.e. Feedback to group mates) Completion of the task (Have you given your group mates feedback?) 20% LANGblog recording Completion of the task (Have you done both tasks?) Effectiveness of the communication (Is your message clear?) Use of vocabulary and expressions from the unit

Note: Group work can only work well if all group members participate actively in tasks and in making decisions, which is why 20% of the marks for this CA are for your contribution to group work.

Part I: Oct 30-Nov 2

Study the materials in the unit CA Unit 3 corresponds to Family Matters, which is about families and European lifestyles. There is a set of exercises related to this unit, which you will find under Recursos in the classroom. These exercises are self-correcting (the answers are provided for you) and you can do them at your own pace. We recommend that you start your work for this CA unit doing these exercises so that you can learn the vocabulary needed, revise grammar and read about the topic.

Part II: Nov 2-5

Choose a topic and write about it in your Group Wiki Initial decisions (in Group Work Space Debate) For this task, you have to write individually about a current topic related to family matters. You will practise revising your writing. First, choose a topic and tell your group mates what it is. Avoid doing the same topics.

Heres a list of suggestions but you may think of another alternative if you prefer: Should abortion be legal? What are the causes of juvenile crime? Do families spend enough time together nowadays? Looking after older relatives: keep them at home or in a home? Should couples stay together for the sake of the kids? Should single women be allowed to have fertility treatment? Should gay couples be allowed to adopt children? Teenage pregnancy whats the solution? Is the nuclear family the best model in the 21st century? Dealing with family conflict is counselling necessary? Should smacking children be illegal? Other ideas? (If you would like to write about a family matter not on this list, please send your proposal to your teacher.)

Essay writing (in Group Work Space Wiki) Create a new page in your Group Work Space Wiki (only your work group and your teacher can see this Wiki). Give your new page a short name - e.g. Jordi_Juvenile_Crime. Write an essay of 150-200 words and copy it to your page in the Group Work Space Wiki. When you write your essay, think about the structure of the finished essay. Start with the introduction to the topic, then in the main body write different points of view (for and against) and then finish with a concluding paragraph that summarizes the points of view and leaves the reader with something to reflect on (see Essay Writing below).

NB: You do not have to share your personal opinions about these topics (but you can if you want). You should write your essay in your own words. You may consult the Internet or other sources for information, but you must not copy and paste the information you find there. (See Plagiarism in the Course Plan) Your teacher will send an example of a complete essay to the classroom to show you how to structure an essay.

Part III: Nov 5-10 GROUP WORK

Essay revision & rewriting (in Group Work Space Wiki) Read the individual essays of your group on their pages in the Wiki and add comments and feedback to help improve the essays. Post comments on the document in the wiki. You can highlight words/expressions or use the button in the Wiki. DO NOT make changes to other students work. Remember to click SAVE when you have finished. Things to comment on: Are different points of view represented in the different essays? Are there two points of view expressed? Is each point of view defended with good reasons? Is the information well-organised in paragraphs? Are there any spelling mistakes or grammatical errors that you can highlight to help your group mate.

Revise and rewrite your essay using the comments from your teacher and your group mates. Use the Essay Revision Checklist to help you as you make your final revision. We suggest you post your corrected essay underneath your original one so that your teacher can easily see the changes you have introduced.

INDIVIDUAL WORK
LANGblog Agony Aunt Radio phone-in For this task go to LANGblog and listen to the Agony Aunt program where several people have phoned in with problems theyre having and have asked for suggestions to solve them. Choose one recording to respond to. Think of some possible suggestions or solutions to the problem and then make a video or audio recording of about 60 seconds with your ideas. You can record a second message giving your opinion about your classmates' suggestions. (e.g. I agree with Raquel that smacking children is not the answer, have you tried).

Prepare what you are going to say but dont read a written text. Listen to your recording before you send it to make sure you are happy with the sound quality.

Part IV: Nov 10-13

Send finished essays to the classroom Forum and comment on other students work Copy and paste your finished essay into a new message in the classroom Forum. Read at least two other essays in the Forum and comment on them, although you may read and comment on more if you like.

Appendix: Essay revision checklist.

Item Spelling errors: Questions -Did you use the spell checker in Word? -Are there any particular spelling mistakes you always make? -Did you use enough connectors in order to convey ideas more clearly? -Did you use connectors appropriately? -Did you use the right prepositions with the connectors (e.g. On the one hand)? -Did you use the right punctuation after the connector (e.g. However, ) -Did you have to look up any words in the dictionary? Are they used correctly? -Suggestions: - Use Google to see how other people use this word. - If you found this word in a Spanish/English dictionary, look it up in an English definitions dictionary. Is it the right word? Should it be followed by a certain preposition? -Did you use specific vocabulary related to the topic? -Check in Google if a certain combination of word+ preposition is right. -Check again the use of of and in. Students often overuse these prepositions. -Did you use the right verb tenses. -Are you consistent in the use of verb tense throughout the essay? -Do all your verbs have a subject? -Do any of the verbs have a double subject? (e.g. this it is good should be either this is good or it is good) -Did you translate any of the sentences from Spanish/Catalan? Does it sound too Spanish/Catalan? Can you express the same idea in a different way? -Are the ideas well organized into paragraphs? (e.g. Introduction, Arguments, Conclusion) Checked?

Connectors

Use of Vocabulary

Use of prepositions

Verb tense

Subject

Literal translation

Paragraphs

Other?