Unit 11 Scientific achievement

Ⅰ.Brief Statements Based on the Unit

Science and technology are part of productive forces.The modern society has proved it.As we all see now,scientific achievements have changed the whole world and made people break away from ignorance and backwardness.The society has made great progress.This unit is arranged around the central topic-scientific achievement.In Warming up,there are several pictures asking students to talk about the most significant scientific achievements.The Speaking part introduces four different scientists who want to get money to complete their projects which are very helpful to human beings.The reading material-Zhongguancun,which is called China’s Silicon Valley,is the new centre for Chinese science and technology.By studying this unit,students also know that Chinese history is filled with great achievements in science and technology.In particular,since the year 1995 the Chinese government put forward a plan for “rejuvenating the nation by relying on science and education” and this has helped Chinese scientists make many breakthroughs.This unit presents four such results in Integrating Skills.As to Grammar-Word Formation,teacher should let students master some knowledge of forming a word,and know how to use stems and affixes to form a compound.

Ⅱ.Teaching Goals

1.Talk about science and scientific achievement.

2.Practise expressing intentions and wishes.

3.Learn about Word Formation(1).

4.Write a persuasion essay.

Ⅲ.Background Information

1.The Influence of the Computer

About ten years ago,the computer was a strange machine.Not many people understood it.Not many people said yes to it.Today,much of that is changing.The first computer system was introduced for use in business in the mid-1950s.Since then,the number of computer systems used in business,governments,and institutions(公共機構) has grown rapidly.In 1975,about 250 000 systems were in use in the United States.This figure is growing by tens of thousands every year.

The electronic computer is an important factor in our lives.Each year we use computers more and more to help us to collect data and to provide us with information.At one time,people thought computers were only useful for banks,department stores,and governments.But today the rapidly increasing number of computers are used for many other purposes.

Have you ever stopped to think how you are affected by computer?The clothes you wear were probably made with the help of a computer.The newspaper you read could have been edited and typed by a computer.Even radio programs are often prepared by computers.

Computers today are playing important roles in education,transportation and medicine.They are used to predict the weather,to examine the ocean,and to develop defence systems.They are being used by businesses,governments,and institutions.There is no reason to think that their use will decrease(減少).Computers will become a greater part of our lives.

The influence of the computer is great.The list of its uses could go on and on.Although the first computer was only introduced in the mid-1950s,computers now affect millions of people in countless ways every day.

2.The Information Revolution

The information revolution:How does it concern you?Computers Are Changing Your World.

Ten years ago,in 1986,desktop computers were just beginning to make their entrance into the world of business.Now,they are invading(涌入) the family home at a rapid pace.More importantly,however,they are also changing the way we look at the world.The information superhighway is now open to increasing numbers of ordinary people.The superhighway is providing ordinary people with immediate access to a huge amount of information.It is also giving them almost unlimited opportunities of communication with people around the world.Ordinary people now have power to gain knowledge and to link up with so many fellow citizen of the world.This has never happened before in the history of the human race.

Information Superhighway

The global computer network is called the Internet.Large computers(called servers) from all over the world have been link up with satellites.From their home,ordinary people use their computers and their telephone lines to link up to these server computers.They can then access computers overseas and find information on almost any topic they can think of.They can read foreign newspapers,find out about the latest trends in music,films,books and fashion through library catalogues(目錄),and find research data on almost any subject.

Other Activities on the Internet

If the Internet users have a credit card（信用卡）,they can shop for goods and services from the other side of the world.They can also join thousands of newsgroups (called “bulletin boards”,that is electronic message centres kept in computers).In these newsgroups,the Internet users can take part in discussions on many different topics with computers users around the world.

It is also possible to send letters electronically to people overseas through this computer network.This function of the computer is called “e-mail” or “electronic mail”.The letters sent arrive almost instantly at the recipient’s(接受者) server computer on the other side of the world.The cost of sending the e-mail is a fraction(小部分) of the cost of an airmail letter,a fax or a telephone conversation.

Ⅳ.Teaching Time:Four periods

The First Period

Teaching Aims:

1.Learn and master the following.

(1)New words:

engineering,solar,significant,mankind,constitution

(2)Everyday English:

If I got the money,I would…

My plan is to…

I hope that…

I want/wish/hope/intend/plan to…

I’d like to…

I’m thinking of…

2.Train the students’ listening and speaking abilities.

3.Talk about science and scientific achievement,urging the students to further understand the significance of science and scientific achievement and encouraging them to work hard at their lessons.

Teaching Important Points:

1.Finish the task of listening to train the students’ listening ability.

2.Practise expressing intentions and wishes to train the students’ speaking ability.

Teaching Difficult Points:

1.How to help the students talk in English about science and scientific achievement freely.

2.How to help the students finish the tasks of listening and speaking smoothly.

Teaching Methods:

1.Listening and speaking to train the students’ ability to use English.

2.Individual,pair or group work to make every student take an active part in class.

Teaching Aids:

1.the multimedia

2.the blackboard

Teaching Procedures:

Step Ⅰ Greetings and Lead-in

T:Hello,everyone.

Ss:Hello,teacher.

T:Sit down,please.Glad to be here with you again.Did you have a good holiday?

Ss:Yes.

T:Have you gone anywhere to see some of your friends or relatives?

Ss:Yes.

T:Have you found their life happier and richer than before?

Ss:Yes.Much happier and richer than before.Their life is changing year by year.

T:I’m glad to hear that.Now let’s watch some programmes.

(Teacher turns on the multimedia.First,show the students a recorded programme in which the students can see the hard life people lived in the past.Then show them a programme in which people live a happy and modern life.After that,teacher says the following.)

T:Well.Who’d like to describe what you saw in the programmes?Any volunteer?

S:Let me have a try.In the programmes,we found people’s life has been greatly improved.Modern life is quite different from the past life.Years ago,people…,but now,…

T:Yes.People’s life has been changed.What about the world?

Ss:The world has also been changed.

T:What has changed the world?

Ss:Scientific achievement.

T:Yes.With the development of science and technology,the world is changing day by day.Today,we’re going to learn Unit 11 Scientific achievement (Bb:Unit 11 Scientific achievement)First,let’s learn some new words.Please look at the screen.

(Teacher shows the screen and deals with them with the whole class.)

engineering /,ｅｎｄI′nIrI/ n. 工程；工程學；設計；建造

solar /′ｓｌ(r)/ adj. 太陽的；日光的

significant /sIɡ′nIfIknt/ adj. 意義重大的；重要的；有意義的

mankind /,mn′kaInd/ n. 人類

△Neil Armstrong /′ｎｉl′mstr/ 尼爾阿姆斯特朗（美國宇航員）

△Alexander G Bell /,ｌIｇ′ｚｎｄ′ｄｉ′ｂｅｌ/ 亞歷山大貝爾（美國發明家）

△Ray Tomlinson /′reI′tｍｌIｎｓｎ/ 雷湯姆林森（美國計算機工程師）

constitution /ｋｎｓｔI′ｔｊｕｎ/ n. 憲法

△eureka /ｊ′ｒｉｋ/ interj. 我找到了！

Step Ⅱ Warming up

T:Now,please tell us what scientific achievements you think have changed the world?

Ss:Electricity,cars,aeroplanes,telephones,radio and television.

T:Anything else?

Ss:The Theory of Gravity,the Internet,solar energy…

T:Quite right.Besides,some other ones like genetic engineering and cloning are also changing the world.

(Teacher writes all the scientific achievements mentioned above on the blackboard and says the following.)

T:Now,please look at the blackboard and tell which one do you think is the most significant?And why?

S1:I think electricity is the most significant,because it is a basic part of nature and it is one of our most widely used forms of energy.

S2:I think solar energy is the most significant,because it helps us save lots of natural sources of energy like coals,electricity,natural gas and oil.

S3:I think cars and aeroplanes are the most significant.They make the world a smaller place,which makes many things easy to do.

S4:I think the achievement of Genetic Engineering is significant.Not only has it given a glimpse into the extraordinary complexity of the structure of human DNA but it has also demonstrated the huge potential of cooperative scientific endeavour organized on an international basis.It has already produced important medical breakthroughs.

Ss:…

T:Wonderful.You all did a good job.Are there any other scientific achievements that you think are important?What are they?

Ss:The invention of steam engine,the discovery of “uranium” the invention of computer,the invention of telephone…

T:Do these achievements have anything in common?

Ss:Yes.

T:What do they have in common?

Ss:They are all important and useful for the development of mankind and society.

T:That’s right.Next,let’s do some listening about scientific achievement.

Step Ⅲ Listening

T:The listening material contains two parts.You are going to hear some words said by some famous people at the time when they achieved success.Can you follow me?

Ss:Yes.

T:Well,now look at the chart in Exercise 1 at the top of Page 2 quickly.Then I’ll play the first part of the tape for you to complete it.After that,I’ll check your answers.

(After checking the answers to Exercise 1,teacher goes on to deal with Exercise 2)

T:Well done.Now,listen to Part 2 and complete the sentences in Exercise 2.If necessary,I’ll play it twice for you to finish or check your answers.OK?

Ss:OK.

T:I’ll play it.Listen carefully!

(At last,teacher deals with Exercise 3.)

T:OK.So much for the tape.Now imagine you were the first person on Mars,or the first cloned human being or the first person to travel in time,what would you say?Any volunteer?

S1:If I were the first person on Mars,I would say “I’m here from the earth.”…

S2:…

T:Wonderful.If you want to do research about something,besides hard work,what else do you need?

Ss:Modern equipment and money,especially money.You get enough money,and then you get the equipment you need.Funds are essential for doing research.

T:You are right.Now,please look at the Speaking part.

Step Ⅳ Speaking

T:Here are four scientists who want to get money to complete their project.Each scientist will have to introduce his or her project and explain why it is the most important.Now,I’ll put you in groups of five to have a discussion.Four group members represent scientists;one member will listen to all the scientists and ask questions.At the end of the discussion,he or she must decide who will get the money and why.Is everything clear?

Ss:Yes.

T:And following the situation,there are some useful expressions.You can use them to express your intentions and wishes.Let’s go through them together before your discussion.

(Teacher and the students go through the expressions.After that,teacher puts the students in groups of five and gets them to prepare for a few minutes.At the end,teacher asks one or two groups to report their work to the rest of the class.)

A sample dialogue:

Organizer:Now,everybody is here.Who’d like to be the first to make a statement on this project?

Dr Wilson:I and my team are working on a cure for AIDS.As you know,the number of people infected with AIDS is keeping increasing at an astonishing speed.Some of them are facing death.As a result,we have to find a way to solve this problem as soon as possible.But,right now,the lack of money is a big problem.If we got enough money,we would complete the first stage of our project in the near future.

Organizer:I see.Dr Jones,how about you?

Dr Jones:At present,we are also facing the same problem of lacking money.My research project is about cloning and how to use new technology to cure disease.Today,more and more patients are expecting to get organ transplant in order to prolong their lives.I wish what I am doing could help them.

Organizer:I understand.Dr Smith,could you please give me your opinions on your project?

Dr Smith:For humankind on the earth,food is a fundamental factor,and as the population keeps growing,per capitation resourse of people is becoming less and less.My plan is to develop new technology that will make it possible to grow food with very little water. However, currently, the shortage of money prevents my work from further going.I hope you can give me a hand on my project.

Organizer:It sounds a good idea.Dr Winfrey,it’s your turn now.

Dr Winfrey:It’s ceaseless for human beings to explore the universe.That’s why we are urgent to know what the Mars looks like and if there is any life on it.I’m thinking of sending a manned spaceship to Mars.Nevertheless,this huge project will surely cost a large sum of money.And I don’t think we can get to the aim without your support.

Organizer:So,everyone has finished their statements on their own project.Frankly speaking,they all sound tempting to me,but I’m more inclined to the project suggested by Dr Smith.From my point of view,it’s more closely related to the daily life of people and in accord with the actual condition of our country.I’d like to pour money into his project.

Step Ⅴ Summary and Homework

T:In this class,we’ve mainly talked about scientific achievement.Centering on this topic,we did some listening and speaking.This way,we’ve learnt more about science and scientific achievement.Moreover,we’ve learnt some useful expressions to express intentions and wishes,such as “If I got the money,I would…;My plan is to…;…”(Teacher writes them on the blackboard.)After class,try to practise using them and preview the reading part.So much for today.Goodbye,everyone.

Ss:Goodbye,Mr/Ms…

Step Ⅵ The Design of the Writing on the Blackboard

Unit 11 Scientific achievement

The First Period

Ⅰ.Scientific achievement:

electricity,cars,aeroplanes,radio and television,the Internet,cloning,genetic engineering,the Theory of Gravity,nuclear science,solar energy

Ⅱ.How to express intentions and wishes:

If I got the money,I would…

My plan is to…

I hope that…

I want/wish/hope/intend/plan to…

I’d like to…

I’m thinking of…

Step Ⅶ Record after Teaching