LEND Bologna 18 marzo 2009
Patrizia Calanchini Monti – Elena Dal Pozzo
MODULO CLIL INGLESE – ECONOMIA POLITICA
Perché The Great Crash 1929?
 Lettura e analisi di estratti da un saggio di economia
opera di un insigne economista nella versione
originale
 Crisi del 1929: argomento chiave nella storia
economica
 Interessanti analogie con la situazione economica
attuale: l’economia va oltre il libro di testo
Patrizia Calanchini Monti – Elena Dal Pozzo
MODULO CLIL INGLESE – ECONOMIA POLITICA
The Great Crash 1929
l’economia va oltre il libro di testo
DOCUMENTO AUTENTICO
Saggio di economia opera di un insigne economista nella versione originale
RILEVANZA STORICA
Crisi del 1929: argomento chiave nella storia economica
RILEVANZA TECNICA
Analogie con la situazione economica attuale
Patrizia Calanchini Monti – Elena Dal Pozzo
MODULO CLIL INGLESE – ECONOMIA POLITICA
J.K. Galbraith, The Great Crash 1929
Lettura di una breve sequenza per volta seguita da:
 Skimming questions = risposta a domande di comprensione del senso
generale del segmento letto(in inglese)
 Word matching = lista di parole ‘difficili’ dal brano e lista di sinonimi o quasi
sinonimi che gli studenti devono abbinare, inducendo il significato delle parole
nuove dal contesto (in inglese)
 Dealing with economic terms = estrapolazione dei termini economici e
spiegazione o ripasso dei concetti corrispondenti (in italiano)
 Defining = Creazione guidata di una definizione in inglese dei termini tecnici
economici appena spiegati o ripassati.
 Scanning questions = domande di comprensione più mirate (in inglese)
 Rephrasing = fornire agli studenti una riscrittura di alcune parti del brano con
parole più semplici, ma con gaps da riempire (in inglese)
 Guided summarizing = fornire un riassunto del brano con le frasi in ordine
sparso che gli studenti devono riordinare per ricostruire il riassunto (in inglese)
UNIT 1
Skimming questions
Page 28-29
a) What is the main aim of this book?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………….
b) How can a reflection on 1929 events be useful to us?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………………………………………………………………………………….
c) Is such a reflection a guarantee of preventing new problems?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
UNIT 1
Word matching
Match the following words form the texts with the corresponding synonym or definition:
a. foregoing
b. chronicle
c. safeguard
d. recurrence
e. to enact
f. to restrain
g. feature
h. to occur
i. outburst
j. bemused
k. to deem
l. sane
m. mood
n. frenzy
o. to spare
1. state of mind
2. to save
3. previously mentioned
4. to happen
5. mentally sound
6. to consider
7. repetition
8. guarantee
9. characteristic
10. to adopt/to approve
11. puzzled/ confused
12. to control
13. story
14. craziness
15. blast / outbreak
Key: a3; b13; c8; d7; e10; f12; g9; h4; i15; j11; k6; l5; m1; n14; o2;
UNIT 1
Dealing with economic terms
Speculation
Boom
Depression
Inflation
Deflation
Investment trust
UNIT 1 Dealing with economic terms
 Speculation = making investments or business operations which
involves risk of loss. ( In economics the word does not have a negative
connotation.)
 Boom = period of economic prosperity (opposite of depression)
 Depression = slump / economic drop (opposite of boom)
 Inflation = general increase in prices and fall in purchasing value of
money; increase in available currency
 Deflation = general drop of prices and rise in purchasing value of
money; decrease in available currency.
 Investment trust = society which buys and sells shares in selected
companies to make profit for its members
UNIT 1 Dealing with economic terms
Durante l’analisi dei termini economici l’insegnante di economia politica
fornisce spiegazioni più approfondite ed esempi dei fenomeni economici
descritti dai termini stessi (in italiano). Si chiede poi agli studenti di
esprimere quanto hanno compreso in lingua inglese.
Deflation
A period of deflation is not a positive one even though prices go
down.
When there is deflation, the demand drops, companies do not
make new investments and as a result many people lose their jobs.
UNIT 1 Rephrasing
Rephrasing:
Rephrase the following sentence from the text expressing the same concepts in
your own words:
‘sanity exposed one to ridicule, condemnation for spoiling the game, or the
threat of severe political retribution’
‘if a person was ……………………………..., he ran the risk of ………………………………
…..………………………, ………………………………………………………………………………………
and ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
‘if a person was sane /not involved in the frenzy of speculation, he ran the risk
of being laughed at /mocked, of being accused of ruining a moment of
general luck and of being politically discriminated.
UNIT 1 Rephrasing
‘The wonder, indeed, is that since 1929 we have been spared so long. One reason,
without doubt, is that the experience of 1929 burned itself so deeply into the
national consciousness. It is worth hoping that a history such as this will keep
bright that immunizing memory for a little longer.’
‘What is strange is that since 1929 ……………………………………………………………………. That is
probably because ……………………………………………………………………… ………… …………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………… We sincerely hope that
……………………………………………………………………… …………… …………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………..’
‘What is strange is that since 1929 we haven’t experienced any other serious economic
crisis. That is probably because the memory of the 1929 crisis has been so long-lasting
/durable in the mind of all Americans . We sincerely hope that such a negative
experience will continue to prevent other big disasters in the near future.’
UNIT 1 Rephrasing
Testo originale:
There seems little question that in 1929, modifying a famous cliché, the
economy was fundamentally unsound. This is a circumstance of first-rate
importance. Many things were wrong, but five weaknesses seem to have
had an especially intimate bearing on the ensuing disaster.
Rephrasing (fill in the gaps):
Differently from what people traditionally (1) ………………, there is no(2) ………………..
that the economy in 1929 was not in a(3) ………………….. condition. It is(4) ……………
to understand that many things were going(5) ……………………., in particular there
(6)……………………… five aspects of economy which were closely (7)…………………… with
the coming economic (8)……………………………..
Key: 1. think / 2.doubt / 3.good / 4.important/ 5.badly / 6.were / 7.connected /
8.crisis
UNIT 2 Pre-reading questions
Page 51 – 52
Something should be done?
Is the title a question or not?
………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………
What is, in your opinion, the reason for this title?
………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………….
UNIT 2 Word matching
Match the following words form the texts with the corresponding synonym or
definition
a)inimical
1. finished
b) overdue
2. finished
c) due
3. finished
d) roaring boom
4. accused
e) in progress
5. hidden /not recognizable
f) out
6. unfriendly
g) rising
7.caused / arranged
h) exhausted
8. trust
i) to level out
9. late, /outstanding /long expected
j) puzzles
10. pin
k) baffling
11. expected to happen
l) to deserve
12. deflate slowly
m) intimation
13. happening
n) came to an end
14. great economic prosperity
UNIT 2 Word matching
o) dimly
p) wild
q) raised
r) needle
s) confidence
t) to subside
u) engineered
v) blamed
w) deflated
x) eventual
y) framed
z)stark
aa)disguised
bb)evaded
cc)haunted
15. final
16. increasing / going up
17. problems /issues
18. to merit
19. pictured
20. premonition
21. confusing / problematic
22. frenetic /crazy
23. not clearly
24. posed
25. avoided
26. obsessed / worried
27. to stabilize /to find a balance
28. reduced / stopped
29. difficult / contrasting
UNIT 2 Skimming questions
a) At the beginning of 1929 were economists expecting a
crisis?
………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………
b)Why didn’t people who had the power try to make the
boom subside slowly ?
………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………
UNIT 2 Dealing with economic terms
Boom
buying for an increase
ownership on margin
UNIT 2 Rephrasing
Rephrasing:
Rephrase the following sentence from the text expressing the same concepts in
your own words:
When prices stopped rising - when the supply of people who were buying
for an increase was exhausted – then ownership on margin would
become meaningless and everyone would want to sell. The market
wouldn’t level out; it would fall precipitatelyWhen prices ………………………………, when there were no
…………………………………………………………………………….., then it would be
………………………………………………………………………………….. and everyone would
want to sell.
The market would not ………………………………………………………….., but there would be
……………………………………
UNIT 2 Rephrasing
One may doubt if at any time in early 1929 the problem was ever framed in
terms of such stark alternatives But however disguised or evaded, these
were the choices which haunted every serious conference on what to do
about the market.
It is not sure that …………………………………………………………. , experts saw
…………………………………………………….
But even if ……………………………………………………………………….., those who discussed
about……........................
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
LEND Bologna 25 ottobre 2010