Breaking News English

Date: Mar 3, 2007
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WARM-UPS

1. MEDICINE: Walk around the class and ask other students about their health and the different kinds of medicine they have taken in their lives. Do all students believe the medicine they take will be good for them? Change partners often and share your information.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

The UN / medicine / pharmacies / fake goods / illegal drugs / developing countries / counterfeiters / medicine labels / serious injury / online shopping

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

3. REMEDIES: With your partner(s), talk about your feelings towards these remedies. Which do you trust and which do you not trust?  Rank them in your order of preference. Show your ranking to your partner(s) and talk about it.

prescription medicines over-the-counter medicines herbal medicines aromatherapy

hypnosis acupuncture let nature take its course surgery

4. SENTENCE STARTERS: Complete these sentence starters – they are taken from the article you will read. Show them to your partner(s). What is the story behind them? Change partners and share stories.

1. The UN has sent out a warning that ________________________________.
2. The trade in fake prescription drugs ________________________________.
3. The biggest problem for developing countries is _______________________.
4. Counterfeiters cleverly copy ______________________________________.
5. Fake drugs ____________________________________________________.
6. Discount medicines sold online ____________________________________.

5. COUNTERFEIT: Look at the table. With your partner(s), talk about which things you would buy/use. Change partners often and share your findings.

counterfeit medicine counterfeit money pirated software

fake designer goods pirated CDs counterfeit art

6. MEDICINE: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with medicine. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	Fifty percent of prescription drugs in poor countries may be fake.	T / F
b.	Some medicines are causing floods in some developing countries.	T / F
c.	The world’s police forces are not ready to deal with this problem.	T / F
d.	The sale of prescription drugs over the Internet is not a problem.	T / F
e.	It is very easy to identify the boxes and labels of the fake drugs.	T / F
f.	A UN report said these drugs must not be taken with cocktails.	T / F
g.	The UN report says that the fake drugs can prove to be lethal.	T / F
h.	The recipes for many fake medicines can be found on the Web.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	sent out	useless
b.	fake	lethal
c.	watchdog	not controlled
d.	deadly	counterfeit
e.	flood	exactly the same
f.	identical	weakened
g.	ineffective	issued
h.	undermined	deluge
i.	unchecked	genuine
j.	authentic	monitor

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.	The United Nations has sent	and labelling
b.	the UN drugs	in illegal drugs
c.	fake medicines are flooding	years in international drug control
d.	overtake the trade	result of taking the fake drugs
e.	fight the trade in	into poorer countries
f.	many people will die as a	out a warning
g.	copy the details on the packaging	seem to be authentic
h.	a dangerous cocktail	watchdog
i.	Gains over the past	counterfeit prescription drugs
j.	medicines in stores or online often	of chemicals

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

UN warns of deadly fake medicine
 

The United Nations has sent out a ________ that up to fifty per cent of prescription medicines sold in developing world pharmacies are fake. A report from the International Narcotics Control Board, the UN drugs ________, said fake medicines are flooding into poorer countries. It stated that the consequences of people taking these drugs can be ________. It also warned that the trade in fake prescription drugs may soon ________ the trade in illegal drugs. Many of the resources of the world’s ________ enforcement agencies are focused on ________ drugs like heroin and cocaine. The UN suggests a refocus so that poor nations can fight the trade in counterfeit prescription drugs. The biggest problem for developing countries is that their laws are too old to ________ the ________, especially for sales over the Internet and those delivered by mail.		law overtake watchdog hard warning flood control deadly
The UN warns that many people will die as a ________ of taking the fake drugs. The counterfeiters very ________ copy the details on the packaging and labelling of the medicine and ensure all tablets and pills look ________ to the real thing. However, the fake medicine is often a dangerous cocktail of chemicals that can kill or ________ serious injury. The UN’s report said the fake drugs, “________ patients to serious health risks by providing access to…medicines that are ineffective, substandard and, in some cases, even ________.” The UN’s Philip Emafo said: "Gains over the past years in international drug control may be seriously undermined by this ominous development if it remains unchecked". He warned that many ________ medicines in stores or online often seem to be authentic but turn out to be made from ________ posted on the Web.		expose identical cause result recipes discount cleverly lethal

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

UN warns of deadly fake medicine

The United Nations ___________________ warning that up to fifty per cent of prescription medicines sold in developing world pharmacies are fake. A report from the International Narcotics Control Board, the UN drugs watchdog, said fake medicines ___________________ poorer countries. It stated that the consequences of people ___________________ deadly. It also warned that the trade in fake prescription drugs may soon overtake the trade in illegal drugs. Many of the resources of the world’s law enforcement agencies ___________________ drugs like heroin and cocaine. The UN suggests a refocus so that poor nations can fight the trade in counterfeit prescription drugs. The biggest problem for developing countries is that their ___________________ control the flood, especially for sales over the Internet and those delivered by mail.

The UN warns that many people will ___________________ taking the fake drugs. The counterfeiters ___________________ details on the packaging and labelling of the medicine and ensure all tablets and pills look identical to the real thing. However, the fake medicine is often a dangerous cocktail of chemicals ___________________ serious injury. The UN’s report said the fake drugs, “expose patients to serious health risks by providing access to…medicines that are ineffective, substandard ___________________ lethal.” The UN’s Philip Emafo said: "Gains over the past years in international drug ___________________ undermined by this ominous development if it remains unchecked". He warned that many discount medicines in stores or online ___________________ authentic but turn out to be made from recipes posted on the Web.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘fake’ and ‘drugs’.

• Share your findings with your partners.
• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. STUDENT “MEDICINE” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about medicines and the trade in fake drugs.

• Ask other classmates your questions and note down their answers.
• Go back to your original partner / group and compare your findings.
• Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:

sent out watchdog flooding resources biggest mail

result identical cocktail lethal gains recipes

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

1. What did you think when you read the headline?
2. What do you think of the counterfeiters?
3. Do you ever worry the medicine you take might cause you more harm than good?
4. Do you think the UN’s drugs watchdog is effective?
5. What can people in developing countries do to protect themselves against fake drugs?
6. Do you think law enforcement agencies will ever be able to stop the trade in illegal and fake prescription drugs?
7. What kind of help should rich countries give to poor countries?
8. What kind of punishment do you think the counterfeiters should receive?
9. Would you ever buy medicine over the Internet?
10. Do you think there might be fake drugs in your local pharmacy?

---------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

1. Did you like reading this article?
2. When was the last time you took medicine?
3. What can medicine companies to make it more difficult for counterfeiters to copy their drugs?
4. Will you think twice the next time your doctor gives you a prescription?
5. What can the UN do to fight this problem?
6. What can you do to help fight this problem?
7. Are you surprised that the recipes for many medicines are on the Web?
8. What question would you like to ask a counterfeiter?
9. What do you think the counterfeiter’s answer would be?
10. Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

1. What was the most interesting thing you heard?
2. Was there a question you didn’t like?
3. Was there something you totally disagreed with?
4. What did you like talking about?
5. Which was the most difficult question?

LANGUAGE

CORRECT WORD: Put the correct words from a–d below in the article.

UN warns of deadly fake medicine

The United Nations has (1) ____ out a warning that up to fifty per cent of prescription medicines (2) ____ in developing world pharmacies are fake. A report from the International Narcotics Control Board, the UN drugs
(3) ____, said fake medicines are flooding into poorer countries. It stated that the consequences of people taking these drugs can be deadly. It also warned that the trade in fake prescription drugs may soon (4) ____ the trade in illegal drugs. Many of the resources of the world’s law enforcement agencies are focused on (5) ____ drugs like heroin and cocaine. The UN suggests a refocus so that poor nations can fight the trade in counterfeit prescription drugs. The biggest problem for developing countries is that their laws are too old to control the flood, (6) ____ for sales over the Internet and those delivered by mail.

The UN warns that many people will die as a (7) ____ of taking the fake drugs. The counterfeiters very (8) ____ copy the details on the packaging and labelling of the medicine and ensure all tablets and pills look identical to the real thing. However, the fake medicine is often a dangerous cocktail of chemicals that can kill or cause (9) ____ injury. The UN’s report said the fake drugs, “expose patients to serious health risks by providing access to…medicines that are ineffective, substandard and, in some (10) ____, even lethal.” The UN’s Philip Emafo said: "(11) ____ over the past years in international drug control may be seriously undermined by this ominous development if it remains unchecked". He warned that many discount medicines in stores or online often seem to be authentic but turn out to be made from (12) ____ posted on the Web.

1.	(a)	sending	(b)	sender	(c)	send	(d)	sent
2.	(a)	sold	(b)	sales	(c)	seller	(d)	sell
3.	(a)	doggy	(b)	old dog	(c)	watchdog	(d)	guard dog
4.	(a)	taken	(b)	takeover	(c)	overtake	(d)	undertake
5.	(a)	hardened	(b)	hard	(c)	harden	(d)	hardest
6.	(a)	especially	(b)	special	(c)	speciality	(d)	specialize
7.	(a)	reason	(b)	effect	(c)	cause	(d)	result
8.	(a)	cleverly	(b)	clever	(c)	cleverness	(d)	cleverer
9.	(a)	series	(b)	serious	(c)	seriously	(d)	seriousness
10.	(a)	briefcases	(b)	cases	(c)	case	(d)	suitcases
11.	(a)	Rains	(b)	Pains	(c)	Gains	(d)	Drains
12.	(a)	receptions	(b)	recipes	(c)	receipts	(d)	recipients

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information about the UN’s International Narcotics Control Board. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. DRUGS POSTER: Make a poster showing different kinds of drugs and medicines. Show your poster to your class in the next lesson. Vote on the best one

4. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about the impact fake prescription drugs are having on people in developing countries. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?

5. LETTER: Write a letter to a counterfeiter of fake prescription drugs. Tell him/her what you think of his/her activities. Give him three pieces of advice. Ask him three questions. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. T

b. F

c. T

d. F

e. F

f. F

g. T

h. T

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.	sent out	issued
b.	fake	counterfeit
c.	watchdog	monitor
d.	deadly	lethal
e.	flood	deluge
f.	identical	exactly the same
g.	ineffective	useless
h.	undermined	weakened
i.	unchecked	not controlled
j.	authentic	genuine

PHRASE MATCH:

a.	The United Nations has sent	out a warning
b.	the UN drugs	watchdog
c.	fake medicines are flooding	into poorer countries
d.	overtake the trade	in illegal drugs
e.	fight the trade in	counterfeit prescription drugs
f.	many people will die as a	result of taking the fake drugs
g.	copy the details on the packaging	and labelling
h.	a dangerous cocktail	of chemicals
i.	Gains over the past	years in international drug control
j.	medicines in stores or online often	seem to be authentic

GAP FILL:

UN warns of deadly fake medicine

The United Nations has sent out a warning that up to fifty per cent of prescription medicines sold in developing world pharmacies are fake. A report from the International Narcotics Control Board, the UN drugs watchdog, said fake medicines are flooding into poorer countries. It stated that the consequences of people taking these drugs can be deadly. It also warned that the trade in fake prescription drugs may soon overtake the trade in illegal drugs. Many of the resources of the world’s law enforcement agencies are focused on hard drugs like heroin and cocaine. The UN suggests a refocus so that poor nations can fight the trade in counterfeit prescription drugs. The biggest problem for developing countries is that their laws are too old to control the flood, especially for sales over the Internet and those delivered by mail.

The UN warns that many people will die as a result of taking the fake drugs. The counterfeiters very cleverly copy the details on the packaging and labelling of the medicine and ensure all tablets and pills look identical to the real thing. However, the fake medicine is often a dangerous cocktail of chemicals that can kill or cause serious injury. The UN’s report said the fake drugs, “expose patients to serious health risks by providing access to…medicines that are ineffective, substandard and, in some cases, even lethal.” The UN’s Philip Emafo said: "Gains over the past years in international drug control may be seriously undermined by this ominous development if it remains unchecked". He warned that many discount medicines in stores or online often seem to be authentic but turn out to be made from recipes posted on the Web.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - a

3 - c

4 -c

5 - b

6 -a

7 - d

8 -a

9 -b

10 - b

11 -c

12 - b

 

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