Vocabulary
Academic Word List
- ideology
- irrelevant
- liberal
- voluntarily
Other Vocabulary
- bracket
- combat
- Conservative
- equalize
- infusion
- mandatory
- obligated
- pegged
- pension
- Social Democratic
- stemming
- tendencies
Exercise
Please click the Exercise link to continue and do exercises 1 and 2.
Pre-Listening
Use the questions to begin a discussion. Try to be sure everyone in your group gives their opinion and explains why they hold that opinion before moving on to the next question.
- How much responsibility should someone have to prevent from becoming poor? What should the average person do to make sure they don't fall into poverty?
- Of children, workers, and the elderly, who do you think should get the most help when it comes to reducing poverty? Rank all three from most to least important and discuss why you chose that order.
Exercise
Please click the Exercise link to continue and do Exercise 3.
Listening
Exercise
Listen to first paragraph of a larger Listening, which is only an Introduction to the topic. In your group, discuss how this relates to the Reading you've just done and predict what you believe the rest of the Listening will be about and some of the topics that might be discussed. Try to find the General Statement and Thesis Statement in the Introduction and write your summary of them in Exercise 4. Try to rephrase vocabulary as much as possible.
Transcript
Poverty is a problem throughout the world, and it's no stranger here in Canada as well. We don't usually see it in the same way that we can in other places, especially in less developed countries, but it exists and can not, should not, be ignored. You've read about how poverty is determined using various systems of measurement, namely the low-income cutoffs, the low-income measure, and the market basket measure, and how they all approach the problem in slightly different ways. Of interest in this lecture is what the government of Canada is doing officially to help those with less. Canada has no official policy to directly combat poverty, but there are certain social programs that have been around for quite some time, and the key aspect of those which help families with children, workers, and seniors. These are programs that aim more to prevent poverty from occurring, and we'll talk another day about policies that assist those who become poor.
Now listen to the complete Listening passage and take notes on it. When it is finished, talk to your group about the main ideas that are discussed in the Listening. Re-write the Thesis Statement you made above by adding some more information from the Listening in Exercise 5.
References
Canada's Economic Action Plan. (n.d.). National child benefit supplement and Canada child tax benefit. Retrieved from http://actionplan.gc.ca/en/initiative/national-child-benefit-supplement-and-canada-child
Canada Revenue Agency. (2014, May 29). Canada child tax benefit (CCTB). Retrieved from http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/bnfts/cctb/menu-eng.html
Canada Revenue Agency. (2014, May 29). Universal child care benefit (UCCB). Retrieved from http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/bnfts/uccb-puge/menu-eng.html
Canada Revenue Agency. (2014, May 29). Working income tax benefit (WITB). Retrieved from http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/bnfts/wtb/menu-eng.html
Heinisch, R. (n.d.). How to conceptualize the welfare state. University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved from http://www.pitt.edu/~heinisch/concept.html
Post-Listening
Exercise
Please click the Exercise link to continue and do Exercise 6.
