News-based English language activities from the global newspaper

February 2010
Level ≥ Lower intermediate
Style ≥ Lesson plan
Welcome to the Guardian Weekly’s special news-based materials to support learners and teachers of English.
Each month, the Guardian Weekly newspaper selects topical news articles that can be used to practise English
language skills. The materials are graded for two levels: advanced and lower intermediate. These worksheets
can be downloaded free from guardianweekly.co.uk/learningenglish/. You can also find more advice for
teachers and learners from the Guardian Weekly’s Learning English section on the site.

Top job in 2030? Making spare body parts

Materials prepared by Janet Hardy-Gould

Instructions
Lesson focus: reading, discussion
Materials sheet: copies of the article, dictionaries
Time: 60 minutes

1 Tell students they are going to read an article about jobs
of the future. The text begins with a line from a British
nursery rhyme: “The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-
maker”. Elicit/explain the meaning of these traditional
jobs. Encourage them to explain the words in English
with the phrase: A _____ is person who makes/sells …
5 mins
2 Tell students that the text is about a research company
that has written a new report. This report predicts
important future jobs and careers. Explain words in
italics.
Write the following jobs on the board and establish the
meaning. Ask students which ones will be important in
the future. In pairs students choose three. 7 mins
a government researcher
b body-part maker
c science and technology writer
d space pilot
e space farmer
f climate change specialist
3 Give out the article. Students read and find the three jobs
from the list that the study thinks will be important in the
future. Feedback. Were their answers the same? 8 mins
Answers: a body-part maker b space pilot c climate
change specialist
4 Write up these questions and go through them. Students
read again. Feedback. 10 mins
a Who paid for the report?
b How many jobs were on the list?
c Where will the most exciting changes be?
d What will extra limbs be important in?
e How many jobs might people have in their lifetime?
f What subjects should children study?
Answers: a The UK government b 20 c In medicine
d Sport e eight to 10 f Scientific subjects (and technology)
5 Put students into groups with bilingual dictionaries.
Explain they are going to discuss jobs of the past,
present and future. Go through the questions below and
example answers. Give students time to prepare their
ideas. Then ask them to conduct their discussions in
groups. One student takes notes.
a What jobs did your grandparents do that people don’t
do now?
b What new jobs do people do nowadays? eg: A lot of
people work with computers. For example, my brother is
a website designer.
c What jobs will people do in 2030? eg: Some people
will work in space. They’ll be space pilots. 20 mins
6 The note taker from each group reports to the class.
10 mins
News-based English language activities from the global newspaper
Materials sheet
Injured? Bring on a new leg Gareth Copley/PA
Student tasks
1 Read the article then find three jobs from the list below
that the study thinks will be important in the future.
a government researcher
b body-part maker
c science and technology writer
d space pilot
e space farmer
f climate change specialist
2 Answer these questions.
a Who paid for the report?
b How many jobs were on the list?
c Where will the most exciting changes be?
d What will extra limbs be important in?
e How many jobs might people have in their lifetime?
f What subjects should children study?
3 Discuss the following questions in your group.
a What jobs did your grandparents do that people don’t
do now?
b What new jobs do people do nowadays? eg: A lot of
people work with computers. For example, my brother is
a website designer.
c What jobs will people do in 2030? eg: Some people
will work in space. They’ll be space pilots
February 2010
Article: Top job in 2030?
Making spare body parts
1 Forget the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker:
in 20 years some of the most popular jobs could include
space pilot and body-part maker, according to a report.
2 The report, The Shape of Jobs to Come, predicts advances
in science and technology that could change many of
today’s careers.
3 The UK government wanted to encourage understanding
of science so they employed a research company to
compile a list of future jobs.
4 The company asked a number of “futurists and
future thinkers” to predict science and technology
developments before suggesting specific jobs. The result
was a list of 20 jobs for the study.
5 Roles in medicine and farming are expected to rely much
more on the use of computers, and careers in social work
are predicted to expand.
6 Some of the most exciting changes will come in medicine.
The study predicts that the creation of new limbs will
become a reality and body-part makers will be in demand.
7 Rohit Talwar, chief executive of the research company,
predicts that generating extra limbs will be important in
sport. “If you’re spending $100m on a footballer and for
$3m you can have a couple of spare legs, then you’re going
to do it,” he said.
8 Climate change and the rise of space tourism were some
of the trends considered by the researchers. These could
lead to jobs as climate change specialists or space pilots.
9 However, the study says that the career for life will
become a thing of the past. “Students coming out of
university now could easily have eight to 10 jobs in their
lifetime, across five different careers,” said Talwar.
10 Talwar said schools should concentrate on scientific
subjects and improving all-round skills. “If I was a parent
today the key thing I would want to make sure is that my
kids were well versed in science and technology and were
learning things like problem solving.”
Original article by Adam Gabbatt, rewritten by
Janet Hardy-Gould