Television
benefits and side effects
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How often do you watch TV?
How many hours per day?
What kind of TV programs do you like to watch?
Do you ever watch English channels? Which ones?
TV commercials: useful or a waste of time? What do you think?
Is watching TV good or bad for you?
Explain.
Despite the proliferation of new technologies, teenagers still spend a lot of time glued to the box.
Read these teens’ opinions.
Steve, 12
Steve, 12
I love TV. The first thing I do when I wake up is to switch it on. My favourite channel is the Cartoon Network.
I watch TV three to four hours a day. My parents think it is too much and they are always telling me to do something else like studying, reading or doing a sport, but TV is my favourite hobby and I don’t feel like doing anything else. Of course I know that my marks at school would be better if I concentrated more on schoolwork and took more time to do my homework, but I guess I’m addicted to my favourite programmmes. Anyway, I have already promised my parents to watch less TV every day. I guess I’ll have to go earlier to bed
Kate, 13
Kate, 13
I think TV has become a great source of information. I know most teens don’t like watching the news, but I do. I like to know what is happening around our world. I also enjoy documentaries, especially about wildlife. I’m very curious about the way animals live and what is being done to preserve their species. I always have a lot of fun watching TV. Another great thing about TV is that I can listen to my favourite music and watch the video clips at the same time. I also enjoy watching live shows and films, mostly comedy and thrillers, though I also like watching dramas now and then. I watch TV two to three hours a day. Source: Cool Zone 8, Texto Editores (adapted)
Rachel, 17
Rachel, 17
I like TV as everybody else, but since I have done some research work for school I’ve become more selective about the programmes I watch. I like watching the news and some game shows like “Who wants to be a millionaire?”, so I don’t really spend too much time in front of the box, an hour or two a day... I’m more aware now of the good and not so good effects of TV. Some programmes are educational and help us to develop and use our imagination, but many are full of violence. There are also so many soaps and reality shows that make people forget that there is a real world out there to experience.
. Go through the text and say who these statements refer to - Steve, Kate or Rachel.
1) He/She is a selective viewer.
2) He/She refers to the positive and negative effects of TV.cc
3) He/She watches the news.
4) He/She is the one who spends more hours a day watching TV.
5) He/she loves watching her/his favourite singers/bands on TV.
6) He/she could be a better student if he/she watched less TV.
Now reread Steve’s opinion and choose the right option according to the text.
1. Steve ____ watching cartoons.
a) doesn’t mind
b) loves
c) hates
2. Steve’s parents would like him to____.
a) find another hobby besides TV
b) spend some more time with watching educational programmes
c) go to bed earlier
3. He ___ because he can’t miss his favourite programmes.
a) finds it easy to concentrate on schoolwork
b) finds it difficult to concentre on his studies
c) doesn’t want to go to school
4. From now on, Steve ___.
a) won’t watch so much TV
b) will watch even more TV
c) will spend the same number of hours in front of the box
. Reread Kate and Rachel’s opinions and complete these sentences.
1. Kate enjoys ____________________________________ although most teens ___________________________________________________________
2. She also loves watching documentaries on wildlife because ____________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3._________________________________________________________________________________ are Kate’s favourite types of films.
4. The research work Rachel has done for school influenced _____________________________________________________________________
5. Of the three teenagers, Rachel is the one who __________________________________________________________________________________
6. In Rachel’s opinion, one of the benefits of TV is that _________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________; however, it also has disadvantages, as for example, ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Reread Kate’s opinion and find words/expressions in the text that mean the same as these.
1. excellent _____________________________
2. aren’t keen on ________________________
3. be informed about _____________________
4. interested in __________________________
5. crime stories _________________________
6. once in a while ________________________
It's your turn!
It's your turn!
Write a similar text expressing your views on Television.
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