Part One: Warm Up
Discuss the following questions with your partner(s).
- What are some common things that people need to do when they are looking for a new job?
- What are the most common ways that people find out about job vacancies in your country?
- Are recruiters common in your country?
- How has technology changed the way people search for jobs?
Part Two: Getting Ready to Speak
In this lesson, you are going to research a job recruiting site and then give instructions to your partner(s) on how they can use the site to find a job.
Giving Instructions
We need to use specific language when giving instructions. There are a few different ways to explain how to do something, but this lesson will focus on imperative verbs and sequence adverbs.
Imperative verbs
Imperative verbs are used to give commands. That is, they tell someone what to do. Almost any verb can be used in the imperative form. Here are some sentences with the verbs highlighted:
- Research the company that you will be interviewed by, so you have information about the company.
- Look over your resume to prepare for the interviewer’s questions.
- Dress in a professional manner and don’t smoke or eat strongly flavoured food right before the interview.
- Arrive early and give yourself time to relax.
As you can see, a sentence with an imperative verb doesn’t need a subject. The action or command is the most important part, and that’s what makes this form so useful for giving instructions.
Sequence Adverbs
We can make the order of the steps in our instructions easier to understand with sequence adverbs. Here are some of the most common sequence adverbs:
- first, second, third, etc.
- next
- then
- after that
- before that
- at the same time
- finally
- lastly
Notice how adding the sequence adverbs to the imperative sentences above makes the order extremely clear:
- First, research the company that you will be interviewed by, so you have information about the company.
- Next, look over your resume to prepare for the interviewer’s questions.
- Then, dress in a professional manner and don’t smoke or eat strongly flavoured food right before the interview.
- Finally, arrive early and give yourself time to relax.
Now, open the exercise and follow the instructions.
Exercise
Clarifying and Confirming
When you explain how to do something, a successful understanding of the instructions depends on both the speaker and the listener. The speaker needs to make sure that the steps and details are clear and the listener understands what they have said. At the same time, the listener needs to check that they have understood the speaker. Here are some expressions that can be used to clarify and confirm:
Person giving the instructions (speaker)
Checking understanding
- First, research the company that you will be interviewed by, so you have information about the company. Is that clear? / (Do) You see (what I mean)?
Confirming someone’s understanding of the information is correct
- That’s right!
- That’s it!
- Uh huh.
Correcting someone’s understanding of the information
- Close / Not exactly. It really depends on the job and company that you’re applying to. But, you might need to wear a suit, yes.
Person receiving the instructions (listener)
Asking for confirmation
- I need to know something about the company before the interview, is that right? / is that correct?/ right?
Asking for clarification/repetition
- Pardon? / Excuse me? / I didn’t catch the last part. Without what?
- What do you mean by ‘relax’? It’s a job interview, I can’t relax!
Expressing understanding
- I see.
- Sure.
- Uh huh.
A successful conversation using the expressions above could look like this:
First, research the company that you will be interviewed by, so you have information about the company. Is that clear?
I think so. I need to know something about the company before the interview, right?
Yes, that’s it! Next, look over your resume to prepare for the interviewer’s questions.
Sure.
Then, dress professionally and don’t smoke or eat strongly flavoured food soon before the interview.
OK. I have to wear a suit and tie, is that right?
Not exactly. It really depends on the job and company that you’re applying to. If it’s a casual job and a casual company, maybe not. But, you might need to wear a suit, yes. Finally, arrive early to give yourself time to relax.
What do you mean by ‘relax’? It’s a job interview, I can’t relax!
I mean give yourself a lot of time to get to the interview location so you won’t have to hurry. Schedule your trip accordingly so that you don’t arrive late or without a few minutes to destress.
Sorry, I didn’t catch the last part. Without what?
Without a few minutes to calm down.
I see.
Now, open the exercise and follow the instructions.
Exercise
Part Three: Your Turn
Open the exercise and follow the instructions.
Exercise
Part Four: Further Discussion
Discuss the following questions with your partner(s).
- Which website looks the most useful or easiest to use? Why?
- Are any of these companies used in your country? If so, which ones? If not, what are some common recruitment websites in your country?