Licence LLCER Anglais 2023-2024 S6 N.
Mandon-Hunter
Mineure Approfondissement Langue
Matière 11110525 - TD Langue orale
This booklet contains :
5 TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION
1) EDUCATION
2) TECHNOLOGY
3) SCIENCE
4) ENVIRONMENT
5) SOCIETY
Choose at least 3 elements or questions relating to each topic and prepare
to share your ideas in class, focusing mainly on the realities of the English-
speaking world where possible as well as those of home.
Spend some time researching the facts. There are no correct or incorrect
ideas but your argumentation should be rooted in relevant, accurate,
empirical data : aim to provide real-life examples of what you put forward.
Topics that are current and/or relevant to you and your community will
be more engaging. However, avoid topics that are likely to be too personal
for you or for other students in your class. Prepare to have your ideas
countered and criticized without feeling personally attacked.
You can work in pairs or groups to prepare.
25 INSPIRATIONAL QUOTATIONS
PAGE 6 gives a series of inspirational quotations. You must be able to
present at least one of these at any given time.
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1) EDUCATION
MEDIA ATTENTION HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS :
FURTHER EDUCATION
• the student loan debt crisis and rising tuition and/or accomodation fees are leading young
people away from further education
• dropout rates are the symptom of a system in which young people engage in courses which do
not correspond to their initial ambitions
• the mental health of university students has never been so poor
• standardized testing : a thing of the past?
ELEMENTARY & SECONDARY EDUCATION
• Concerns about security with some schools hiring security guards
• impact of technology on children's learning,
• teacher salaries
• revisions in the curriculum
GENERAL QUESTIONS
Further Education
• Does having a degree enable young people to get a better job?
• Is a degree worth accumulating student loan debt?
• Should there be free further education?
• Would higher fees lead to fewer dropouts?
• Should the government invest more in apprenticeships and less in further education?
• Are universities causing anxiety and mental problems for students?
• Are standardized tests effective in measuring a student’s abilities?
• Is streaming the most effective system to allow all pupils to progress?
• The French university system could be improved with the following measures : …
Elementary & Secondary Education
• Is home-schooling more effective for some students ? Advantages?
• Should schools make a second language compulsory?
• Should students be allowed to grade their teachers?
• Should schools make uniforms mandatory?
• Do schools need armed security guards?
• Should drug-testing be carried out in schools?
• Should there be performance-based funding policies?
• Is detention effective in disciplining pupils?
• Should schools provide cash incentives or prizes for good test scores?
• Is it necessary to impose a standard healthy school lunch?
• Are private schools better than public schools?
• Does homework help pupils learn?
• Would raising the dropout age be beneficial to pupils and teachers?
• Should schools ban the use of mobile phones in school?
• Should schools focus more on life skills and less on traditional subjects?
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2) TECHNOLOGY
MEDIA ATTENTION HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS :
• Ethical issues surrounding artificial intelligence and machine learning
• Effects of social media on human communication and relationships
• Benefits and harmful effects of video games
• Cybersecurity and privacy
QUESTIONS
• Is technology improving our quality of life?
• Is artificial intelligence dangerous?
• Should potential employers consider an applicant’s social media during a job application?
• Are cameras effective in maintaining security in public spaces or are they a violation of
privacy?
• Have texting and email improved communication?
• Do video games make us smarter or are their cognitive benefits overrated?
• Is technology making people less productive?
• Should schools use computer games for classroom instruction?
• Is technology making us more distant than connected to people?
• Should all cars be electric?
• Is technology helping people become smarter or is it making them dumber?
• Has social media improved people’s relationships?
• Is online learning an acceptable alternative to traditional education?
• Is it ok to allow companies to collect information about us?
• Does classroom technology enhance learning?
• Can the legal system keep up with advancements in technology?
• Android or Apple?
• Do we still have control over technology or is it already controlling us?
3) SCIENCE
QUESTIONS
• Should science try to revive extinct creatures?
• Is the world better off with or without genetically modified food?
• Should animal testing be allowed?
• Do we need to make immunization mandatory?
• Should human cloning be legalized?
• Should gene editing be allowed for the purpose of guaranteeing health?
• Is it necessary and acceptable to increase lifespans?
• Is behaviour determined by our genes?
• Should marijuana be considered medicine?
• Is there life on other planets?
• Should we blame fast-food restaurants for obesity?
• Is it necessary to include nutrition classes in elementary and high school lessons?
• Are humans causing animal and plant extinctions or it is a process of evolution?
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4) ENVIRONMENT
MEDIA ATTENTION HAS ESPECIALLY BEEN GIVEN TO THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS :
• Organic farming
• Plastic packaging
• GMOs
• energy-saving schemes and appliances
QUESTIONS
• Who is to blame for global warming?
• Would it be preferable to ban genetically modified organisms?
• Should the export of live animals be banned?
• Is overpopulation a threat to the environment?
• Are governments investing wisely and sufficiently in alternative sources of energy?
• Can a vegan diet fight global warming?
• Is the Paris Agreement (2015) still relevant?
• Can we still reverse climate change?
• Should countries dedicate more land to conservation areas and national parks?
• Can alternative sources of energy be effective substitutes for fossil fuels?
• Are zoos doing more harm than good?
• Should fracking be banned?
• Can organic farming be a sustainable method of food production for the future?
• Should we put a stop to the sale of fur?
• Can tourism be beneficial to an environment?
• Should the government impose more tax on carbon emission to companies?
• Are investments in reducing carbon emission worth the money?
• Energy-saving and environmentally friendly measures and devices : gimmicks or game-
changers?
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5) SOCIETY
MEDIA ATTENTION HAS RECENTLY BEEN GIVEN TO THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS :
• privacy laws
• euthanasia
• freedom of speech
• media impartiality
QUESTIONS
• Is censorship justified?
• Should we legalize euthanasia?
• Will electronic databases totally replace traditional libraries?
• Can censorship sometimes be warranted?
• Should drug use be considered a mental health problem or a criminal offense?
• Can peer pressure be a good thing?
• Should marijuana be legalized?
• Can graffiti be regarded as art ?
• Is the #MeToo movement out of control?
• Should sex work be legalized?
• Are people too reliant on their smartphones and computers?
• Should feminism focus more on men’s rights?
• Should health insurance provide coverage for cosmetic procedures?
• Should smoking be banned in all outdoor public spaces?
• Should the government provide free healthcare and/or free birth control?
• Are photoshopped images producing unrealistic and harmful standards for beauty?
• Which is more important? Hard work or talent?
• Should parents be allowed to use corporal punishment?
• Should the government raise taxes on food products with high sugar content?
• Are beauty pageants and beauty contests doing more harm than good when it comes to gender
equality?
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INSPIRATIONAL, MOTIVATIONAL QUOTATIONS : CHOOSE AND EXPLAIN
Which is your favourite quotation and why?
Imagine a context in which the quotation would be relevant. Who might be likely to use the
quotation and with whom might it be shared ?
What do you know about the author and the circumstances which inspired the original
statement ?
“Learn from yesterday. Live for today. Hope for tomorrow” —Albert Einstein
“That which we call a rose/By any other name would smell as sweet”. —William Shakespeare
“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do”. —John Wooden
“The man who does not read books has no advantage over the one who cannot read them”.
—Mark Twain
“Procrastination makes easy things hard and hard things harder”. —Mason Cooley
“I think it’s possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary”. —Elon Musk
“In a world where you can be anything, be kind”. —Jennifer Dukes Lee
“None of us is as smart as all of us”. —Ken Blanchard
“To err is human; to forgive divine” —Alexander Pope
“He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool
forever”. —Chinese proverb
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today”.
—Malcolm X
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world” —Mahatma Gandhi
“Teachers can open the door, but you must enter it yourself” —Chinese proverb
“Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely”. — John Dalberg-Acton
“A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new" —Albert Einstein
“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great” —Zig Ziglar
“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going” —Beverly Stills
“I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have” —Thomas Jefferson
“The best way to predict your future is to create it” —Abraham Lincoln
“You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think.” —A.A. Milne
“You have to be odd to be No.1” —Dr. Seuss
“If you are going through hell, keep going”. —Winston Churchill
“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth”.
—Oscar Wilde
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged
by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character”. —Martin Luther King
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent” —Eleanor Roosevelt
Add your own quotation by a prominent or even lesser-known figure and justify your choice :