Midterm Exam Review

The midterm exam will be on 11/4. There will be four main sections: 1) vocabulary, 2) reading comprehension, 3) reading skills, and 4) language for writing. Please review the following pages:

Vocabulary:
Unit 5 - p. 96 and p. 103
Unit 6 - p. 118 and p. 125
Unit 7 - p. 142 and p. 150

Reading Comprehension:
Unit 5, Lesson A - "The New Face of Tourism"(pp. 97-100)
Unit 5, Lesson B - "Geotourism in Action: Three Success Stories" (pp. 104-108)
Unit 6, Lesson A - "The Poet of the Outback" (pp. 119-122)
Unit 6, Lesson B - "Retracing the Mother Road" (pp. 126-131)
Unit 7, Lesson A - "Straining Our Resources" (pp. 143-147)
Unit 7, Lesson B - "Eight Steps toward a Sustainable Future" (pp. 151-156)

Reading Skills:
Unit 1 - Identifying main and supporting ideas (p. 9)
Unit 2 - Identifying a sequence of events (p. 31)
Unit 3 - Identifying reasons (p. 56)
Unit 4 - Organizing your notes (p. 77)
Unit 5 - Analyzing causes and effects (p. 101)
Unit 6 - Understanding referencing and cohesion (p. 123)
Unit 7 - Interpreting visual information (p. 148)

Language for Writing:
Unit 1 - Making comparisons (pp. 17-18 and p. 22)
Unit 2 - Review of modals of obligation and possibility (pp. 41-42 and p. 46)
Unit 3 - Using the simple past and used to (p. 64 and p. 68)
Unit 4 - Using parallel structure (pp. 87-88 and p. 92)
Unit 5 - Using If..., (then)... (p. 109 and p. 114)
Unit 6 - Adding information with appositive phrases (pp. 132-133 and p. 138)
Unit 7 - Using adjective clauses to add information (p. 157 and p. 162)

Please let me know if you have any questions. Good luck!

Formal Essay #1

Formal essays should be typed on Microsoft Word and emailed to me before class on 10/28. Please see the files in the Dropbox folder for more details about the formatting requirements. Choose ONE of the following topics:

Comparative essay

Choose two cities, or two popular travel destinations, and write about the similarities and/or differences between these places.

Choose two characters from a film or novel, and write about the similarities and/or differences between them.

Cause-effect essay

Imagine Korean universities decided to stop using the Suneung exam for university admissions. Write a cause-effect essay discussing the possible effects of this decision.

Write about the possible effects of a current issue you have read about in the news recently. For example, what are the causes (reasons for creating) and the possible effects of (changes that will result from) the Kim Young-ran Act? Or why has Donald Trump become a popular candidate for the U.S. Presidency, and what might be some of the possible effects of a Trump Presidency? You can choose any current issue, as long as you focus on the causes and possible effects.

Explanatory essay

Choose a piece of art, such as a painting, sculpture, song, film, or work of literature, and explain the meaning behind the work.

Think of some aspect of Korean culture that you think might be confusing to foreigners. Explain some of the historical, social, traditional, religious, etc. reasons for why this cultural tradition is important to Koreans.

E-journal post #2 - Unit 6 (Importance of place in a book or movie)

For this e-journal post, you will revise the essay you worked on in class today (10/7). You should write about a movie or book in which the setting/place is very important. The essay should include details and examples to explain why the place is such an important part of the movie or book, or why the story could not have occurred in any other place. You can see the example essay about Midnight in Paris on page 136 of the textbook. Use the suggestions made by your partner to improve your essay and then post the final version on your e-journal. Posts should be made before midnight on Monday 10/24.

E-journal post #1 - Unit 5 (Geotourism)

For this post, see textbook pages 109-114. You will write a short cause-effect essay focused on the possible effects of geotourism for a particular tourist destination. You can choose to focus on a destination in Korea, or any other part of the world. Think about what ways geotourism might change this destination. These changes can be positive and/or negative. Try to include some of the language for writing about cause-effect relationships (If..., (then)...). If you prefer, you can also focus on the effects of traditional tourism instead of geotourism. Think creatively, and as always, let me know if you have any questions. Please post the final version before class on 10/7. Good luck!

Units 1-4: Language Skills

Pathways 3: Reading, Writing, and Critical Thinking – Units 1-4

In order to avoid rushing through the textbook and to allow us to spend two weeks on each unit (one week for reading and one week for writing), we will be skipping Units 1-4 and beginning the class in Unit 5. However, there are some important skills covered in Units 1-4, which we will briefly discuss during Week 2. This outline provides an overview of the skills covered in the first four units.

Unit 1 – Social Relationships

Reading and Critical Thinking Skills

       Evaluating supporting arguments (p. 8)

       Identifying main and supporting ideas (p. 9)

Writing Skills

       Making comparisons (pp. 17-18 and 22)

       Reviewing paragraph writing (p. 19)

Unit 2 – Science and Detection

Reading and Critical Thinking Skills

       Distinguishing fact from speculation (p. 30)

       Identifying a sequence of events (p. 31)

Writing Skills
       Review of modals of obligation and possibly (pp. 41-42 and 46)

       Writing an opinion paragraph (p. 42)

Unit 3 – City Solutions

Reading and Critical Thinking Skills

        Evaluating sources (p. 55)

        Identifying reasons (p. 56)

Writing Skills

        Using the simple past and used to (pp. 64 and 68)

        Writing a thesis statement (p. 65)

Unit 4 – Danger Zones

Reading and Critical Thinking Skills

        Analyzing and evaluating evidence (p. 76)

        Organizing your notes (p. 77)

Writing Skills

        Using parallel structure (pp. 87-88 and 92)

        Writing an introductory paragraph (p. 88)

Dropbox link

Here is a link to a folder on Dropbox where I will upload various course materials throughout the semester. You will be able to find audio files for the reading passages, the course syllabus, grading rubrics, and other useful materials.

Welcome to IERW!

Welcome to the class! I hope you find this blog to be useful. Please save the link and check back for additional materials and more details about assignments. I will be making posts throughout the semester. You will also find links to your classmates' e-journals, so check those and read your each other's writing, too.

For the first entry in your e-journal, you should write a short self-introduction. You will find my self-introduction below:

My full name is Kyle Andrew Brebner, but you can just call me Kyle. I grew up in Woodbridge, Virginia, which is near Washington, DC. I went to a small school called Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina where I studied History, Peace & Conflict Studies, and African American Studies. Then I got a master’s degree in International Peace Studies from the United Nations University for Peace in Costa Rica. At that time, I was hoping to work for an NGO, the UN, or some international development organization, but it didn’t work out. Instead, I came to South Korea and started teaching English. I first came here in 2007 and I only expected to stay for one year, but I’m still here! I quickly realized that I really like teaching English, so I have continued to study more about it. I graduated from Indiana University with a Master of Education degree in Literacy, Culture, and Language Education, with a specific focus on ESL/EFL Instruction. My wife, Soyoun, and I got married in 2013, and our first daughter, Ellie Minseo Brebner, was born in 2014. Our second daughter, Laina Eunseo Brebner, was just born a few days ago (August 29, 2016). Regarding my interests and hobbies, I really like traveling and learning about different cultures. I have been fortunate enough to travel around the U.S., Latin America, Europe, and Asia. There are so many more places I hope to go! I'm also really into sports, especially ice hockey, baseball, and American football. Finally, I like reading, listening to music and podcasts, and watching TV. I look forward to getting to know you all in this class!