GLOBALISATION – GOOD OR BAD?
8.1
77
READING AND LISTENING
5
Viewpoint
is a weekly current affairs programme.
Read the opinions on the
Viewpoint
message board and
complete the table for messages 1–4.
For or against
globalisation?
Reasons
1
Rashid
2
Cindy
3
Anna
4
David
5
Michel
6
Mike
7
Astrid
8
John
9
Sofia
6
8.1
Now listen to some other views from the
podcast of last week’s show and complete the table.
7
Choose two of the messages and summarise each
person’s view point in one or two sentences.
VOCABULARY
COLLOCATIONS
8
a
Complete the collocations with the words in the box.
change choice greed rights trade
1
consumer
2
climate
3
corporate
4
fair
5
human
child free global multinational natural
6
resources
7
warming
8
companies
9
labour
10
markets
8
b
Now check your answers to Exercise 8a in
Audio script 8.1 on page 177.
8
c
Choose three or four collocations and write
sentences about your own country.
SPEAKING AND WRITING
9
Assessing results and consequences
Work in groups
to discuss the questions.
1
Discuss the impact of globalisation up to now on
your own life and Bahrain.
2
Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the future? Why?
3
Thinking about the issues involved in globalisation,
and having looked at some of the arguments in this
lesson, do you think it is a force for good, for bad or
a mixture of both?
10
Summarise your argument in a short paragraph for
the
Viewpoint
message board.
MEET THE EXPERT
Watch an interview with Richard Cook,
a consultant and coach, about working in
a global workplace.
Turn to page 152–153 for video activities.
Is globalisation a good thing?
MESSAGE BOARDS
> VIEWPOINT
1
Globalisation is definitely about progress. It leads
to better products, which are more cost effective to
produce and therefore cheaper for everyone. It’s about
consumer choice. Globalisation also connects people
by means of communication and offers them new
opportunities for travel, work and education. It means
a faster rate of development for the whole world. Many
poorer countries have benefited from investment as a
result of globalisation.
Rashid, Bahrain
2
The global economy simply means sweatshops
in poor countries so that rich countries can have
cheap goods. There is a lot of inequality involved in
globalisation and the desire for cheaper products.
It also leads to the destruction of natural resources.
Globalisation benefits the rich nations, who control
prices, who influence the economies of poor countries
and cause populations to migrate in order to try and
improve their lives.
Cindy, China
3
Globalisation has been a force for change in somany ways
for somany people. It has given themaccess to information
and improved their lives, and has given global mobility to
skilledworkers. Fair trade has the ability to lift people out of
poverty. It creates a level playing field and allows countries
across theworld to share their best products, goods and
services. Many workers in developing countries nowhave
employment because of globalisation. Globalisation benefits
all nations by increasing competitiveness and efficiency.
Anna, Brazil
4
Globalisation’s only good for those who are
already economically strong. It’s the big multinational
companies who really benefit, and it worries me that
sometimes they seem to have more power and influence
over our lives than elected governments. Some of them
are actually richer than whole countries, which must be
a bad thing.
David, Nigeria
