Hey,

today during the first hour of class, we talked about the advantages and drawbacks of uniforms. Here is what we said about the subject:

There are positive and negative points about uniforms at school. Advantages / Drawbacks

On the one hand, students don't like uniforms because they think they all look the same and they're not free.

On the other hand, wearing a uniform can be an advantage for both students and their school. It can tone down social inequalities (students can't show off with their expensive clothes) and it makes the school look prestigious. The students are more elegant and attractive in shirts, skirts, classical trousers and polished shoes / high-heels than in baggy jeans.

 

Then we continued with some oral evaluation about the presentation of the text. You did a rather good job.

Then, during the 2nd hour of class, you were able to watch a part of the movie "Gattaca" corresponding to the text we had studied. You had to spot out the differences and similarities. Here is what you said:

The movie is rather faithful to the text even if there are some differences:
- the cues are exactly the same.
- like in the text, the parents look anxious.
- the geneticist is reassuring.

Differences:
- the commercial part with the different options is absent.
- Vincent (the toddler) is on the floor and not on his mother's lap / knees.
- They look less worried.

You can watch the scene again below:

Finally we started to see some techniques about how to translate and we corrected the first part of the translation. Here is what we decided to say in French:

You've already specified blue eyes, dark hair and fair skin ->

Vous avez déjà spécifié les yeux bleus, les cheveux bruns et la peau blanche.

HW: for next time, you need to finish the translation of the text from line 15 to line 24.

Hey,

today you were only 4 in class but we made do with it... and we continued the lesson.

First we talked about the pension reform as a warm up:

There is a student protest against the pension reform of the government. The government intends to increase / raise the retirement age and people don't agree with the bill / law. They claim it's too long.
This morning, there was the police at the highschool because some students had blocked the entrance with shopping carts.

As for Alexis, he thinks the protest has been lasting too much and he
stopped protesting; he thinks it's more important to graduate after his senior year than to demonstrate.

(to) demonstrate -> a demonstrator
(to) strike -> a striker
(to) protest -> a protester

Then we continued speaking about the text "Human Possibilities" and we answered Arafat's jeopardy game. Here is what we said:

What does the geneticist want do decide first?
First, he wants to choose the gender of the future child.

What have the couple already specified?
They have already specified blue eyes, dark hair and fair skin.

Why do Antonio and Maria want to have a second child?
They want to have a second child to play with his future brother Vincent.

What does the future baby represent for the geneticist?
The future baby represents the best of the couple.

Finally we focused our attention on how to build a correct question and the different rules to respect:

Former une question:
(Pronom interrogatif) + Auxiliaire + Sujet + Verbe ...?

-> Auxiliaire et verbe conjugués au bon temps

Seule exception le verbe BE
Si le sujet de la phrase est le pronom intérogatif alors on a:

Pronom interrogatif + Auxiliaire + Verbe ...?

HW: for next class, i.e. after the break, here is what you need to do:

- Make another set of 5 questions about details from the text
- Answer this question: "would like to live in Gattaca's society? why or why not?" (150 words)
- Analyse the evolution of both Maria and Antonio's feelings in the text. Then choose to which graph (a - b - c - d) this evolution corresponds best.

Hey,

today we corrected the test that you took last time. Here is a copy of the correction I gave you:

As a whole, you did quite a good job. Of course, it'll need improvement by the end of the year.

Take care,

Mr Hattais.

Hey,

today we first finished our comment on the oral document featuring Ruth Simmons. Here is what we said about her:

Ruth Simmons was motivated by her parents to hit the books, that's to say to become someone important.
She earned a scholarship and she graduated at the top of her class.

When she was growing up, people told her she would be a sheer secretary because she was black and she was a woman.

Despite these remarks, Ruth Simmons began her career as a teacher of English litterature. Then she became the dean of Princeton. And finally she made history by becoming the President of Brown university, an ivy
league college; she was the first Afro-American woman to have this status. She was successful thanks to her parents, her background, and her education.

Society changes / evolves. Prejudices against black people and woman are less and less important.

 

Then we continued the lesson with the start of our new sequence about science and genetics. We particularly focused our attention on the study of an opinion poll about cloning. You had to comment and debate about this issue. Here is what we said about it:

The document is the results of an opinion poll / survey carried out in the USA. It deals with cloning. The major part of people are against cloning. But they make a difference between animals and people.
It seems more ethical to clone a sheep than a human being.
Many people are against cloning because of their religious beliefs.
They believe creating life thanks to science is unnatural. Human beings are not gods.
However, there are reason why cloning could be positive such as organ transplant; the organs would not be rejected and it would not be difficult to find a donor. Presently, there is lack / shortage of donors.

Additional vocabulary:

D.N.A: ADN
Blood type
Blood cell
stem cell
(to) undergo surgery (a surgeon)

HW: continue thinking about the issue and get prepare to give your arguments for or against cloning.

Files: download the opinion poll again here.

INFO IMPORTANTE:

Merci de faire passer le message aux Term L/ES (groupe ES)

Je n'assurerai pas mon cours de l'après-midi avec vous en raison d'une réunion de dernière minute. Je vous vois donc la prochaine fois ce Jeudi 23/09/10 de 14h à 15h en salle 320 (selon le nouvel emploi du temps effectif à partir de cette date). 

Hey,

today we first warmed up about your other languages and I learned that some of you were of Indian origins like Amit! How awesome this is!!

Then we continued working on the text and we particularly commented on the negation and the tenses used in the text. Here is what we said:

=> There are many occurences of the negation "no" (or without). It conveys the impression that Amit is lost. He has lost his friends (he is new at the highschool) and he has lost his parents (he is at a boarding school)
=> Amit bears a grudge against his parents.

=> The past perfect tense evokes Amit's memories. His memories explain why he still bears a grudge against his parents.

Then we continued translating the last part of the text you needed to translate. Here is what we said: 

...dans une chambre triste / désolée qui lui était réservée. Il n'aimait jamais se rendre à Delhi, son Bengali rudimentaire / hésitant ne lui servait à rien dans cette ville.

  __________________________________________________

Des explications supplémentaires sur le past perfect et des exercices ici.

HW: learn your vocabulary from the text and from the lesson as there will be a voc. test.

Hey,

today we first warmed up about what your projects for the future were and we reviewed the American school system. Here is what we said:

Grades / Sections:

- We are seniors in highschool (nous sommes des étudiants en dernière année du lycée = en terminale)
- I'm a freshman in College (je suis en 1ère année de fac)

- sophomore year (2éme année)

- junior year (avant dernière année)

School system:

- Kinder garten.
- Elementary school.
- Middle school.
- High school.
- College.

Then we continued to study the text about Amit. Here is what we said about him and his personal situation:

Amit's Lifeline:
- was born in the USA
- spent his freshman year in highschool in Winchester Massachussetts.

- changed highschool to go to Langford (a boarding school)

- probably went to an Ivy League college

His Parents' Lifeline:
- were probably born in Calcutta (India).
- moved to Winchester in Massachusetts.
- went back to Delhi where his father had a position as an eye surgeon.

=> Amit's parents are very rich but not as rich as Amit's classmates.
At Winchester Highschool, the level of the students is not as high as at Langford. Amit needs to work hard / doggedly / like the devil to have good grades (US) / marks (UK). He needs to toil along.

Voc:
An eye surgeon is a specialist who operates on people's eyes.

A youth hostel
A boarding school

A grant / a scholarship
wealthy = rich = upper-class = filthy rich**.
laughable = risible.
 

HW1: for next time, you need to learn your lesson and find out how much it costs to enter a prestigious American college from the Ivy League such as Harvard, Stanford, or Yale (= what are the tuition fees for an academic year?) 

You may find information here:

- Yale

- Harvard

- Stanford

HW2: Answer this question -> If my parents send me at boarding school, how would I feel? Why?

Do you you know what the "Ivy League is"? You will find some information here.