The Population

Pre-listening

Warm-up Questions

What’s your idea of the makeup of the U.S. population?

If you were a photographer, how would you reflect the racial diversity of the country accurately?

Pre-listeningWarm-up Questions

Do you think there are more old people or young people in the population of U.S.? Why? What about the case in China?

Do you think more people live in the East or in the West of the country? Why? How about the case in China?

Pre-listening

Vocabulary and Key Concepts

Read through the sentences and figure out what words would fit in the blanks. Then check your answers by listening to a dictation of the full sentences.

Pre-listening

Vocabulary and Key Concepts Most countries take a census every ten years or so

in order to count the people and know where they are living.

A country with a growing population is a country that is becoming more populous.

A person’s race is partly determined by skin color and type of hair as well as other physical characteristics.

The majority of the U.S. population is of European origin.

Pre-listening

Vocabulary and Key Concepts The geographical distribution of a country’s populati

on gives information about where the people are living.

The total population of the United States is made up of many different kinds of people.

In other words, the population comprises people of different races and ages.

The average age of the U.S. population, which is a relatively large one, has been getting progressively higher recently.

Pre-listening

Vocabulary and Key Concepts Metropolitan areas are more densely populated tha

n rural areas. That is, they have more people per square mile.

The use of antibiotics has greatly decreased the death rate through out much of the world.

A country whose birth rate is higher than its death rate will have an increasing population.

On the average, women have a higher life expectancy than men do.

Pre-listening

Predictions.

Using the pictures in your textbook and the vocabulary exercises as a starting point, write 3 questions that you think you can get answers in the lecture.

Pre-listening

Note-taking Preparation Number Notation

whole number (37 mill.) percentage (28%) fraction (3/4) ratio (1:6)

Pre-listening

Note-taking Preparation Rhetorical Cues A rhetorical cue is a word or even a sentence that lets us kn

ow that some important information is coming or that a new subtopic or point is being introduced. Order the following rhetorical cues. Decide in which order you will hear them in

today’s lecture.

Pre-listening

Note-taking PreparationRhetorical Cues

First of all, let’s take a look …

Another way of looking at the population…

Today we’re going to talk about population…

Before we finish today…

Now, to finish up…

(2-3-1-5-4)

Listening

First Listening

Listen for general ideas:

After a brief introduction, the lecturer lists his 3 subtopics. He then goes on to discuss each one individually. As you listen, write down the 3 major subtopics.

ST1: population by race and origin

ST2: population by geographical distribution

ST3: population in terms of age and sex

Listening

Further Listening Write down necessary relevant details b

elow the main subtopics to which they belong. Remember to use proper number notation to save time.

Listening

Post-listening Listen to the lecture once more. Then you will hear 10

questions. Write short answer to these questions. Which two countries have a larger population than the United

States? (People’s Republic of China, India)

What was the population of the United States in the latest census?

(281 mill.) Which group is bigger, blacks or Hispanics?

(Hispanics, 12.5%)

Listening

Post-listening Which state is more populous, Florida or Texas?

(Texas) In what two regions of the country do most America

ns live? (the South and the West)

What percentage of the population lives in rural areas?

(20%) How many more women than men are there in the

U.S. population? (by more than 5 mill.)

Listening

Post-listening About how many years longer do women live than

men in the United States? (about 6 years)

What was the increase in the average age from 1990 to 2000?

(2.2 years) What two factors account for the increase of the av

erage age? (a decreasing birth rate and an increase life ex

pectancy)

Oral Activities

Rehearsal of the Lecture With the help of the above questions a

nd your notes, retell the contents of the lecture to your classmate who might miss the lecture.

Oral Activities

Group Discussion Discuss with your classmates the following question

s and decide what information to include. Write the answers in complete sentences in paragraph form in about 125 words.

What’s the purpose of census? Why are there women than men in the United States? Why is there a progressive higher death rate for males as the

y get older? (life expectancy; dangerous work; more pressure; bad habits; wars)

Is it a good thing or a bad thing for much more people living in urban areas than in rural areas?

What do you think will be the questionnaire in a community survey?

The end