Welcome

Dear students!
Welcome to this webquest about the Commonwealth which you are about to start! I hope you are all excited and willing to learn new things about the English-speaking countries' world. I have chosen to work on that subject because this is still an important feature in day-to-day international relations, and I hope that you will enjoy what you will learn here.

You are given 3 hours to complete all the tasks and go on the various websites and exercices. Please, try to work in the order which is given for the various tasks. You are free to go back to some tasks if you want to, but please try to do it in the order which is given to you.
The third hour will be dedicated to the final task so try not to waste all your time on it.

Also, these exercices won't be graduated, but you will be asked some questions about the Commonwealth on Nations in your future written exam, so feel free to take notes on important key pieces of information, this might be useful!

Don't hesitate to ask me some questions if you feel the need to do so, but please try to work on your own.

Have fun and enjoy it!

Teacher's Page

The British Commonwealth of Nations, the Common-what?

LEVEL OF ENGLISH

The level of English is the one that should have a pupil who is around 17-18 (Terminale). This corresponds to the B1-B2 levels what is the level of an independent user of English. The pupil who has reached the B1 level supposed to be able to understand written or uttered English as long as it is clear and standard English, on a subject that they have been working on. For those who have already reached the B2 level, it does correspond to pupils who can understand written or uttered English with a relatively complex argumentation and who are able to express their points of view on a subject. First of all, we have chosen this subject as it is still an important notion in nowadays English countries. In fact, it explains why they are so many countries in which English is the official language (or at least, one of the official language) and why English has become such an important widespread language. Then, it is a complex subject but which can be explained and understood in a quite easy manner without requiring strong complex knowledge on the subject. And finally, because it fits quite well one on the four notions they will have to work on in Terminale, what is 'Places and forms of power'. In the Commonwealth's case, we do talk about different places and different forms of power which can be social (with Human Rights), or cultural (English as a common language/Commonwealth Games as a way to gather people and inflence their lifestyle).

SCENARIO

This webquest is about the Commonwealth of Nations and the different aspects that come with this notion. The aim is to make the pupils discover what it means and complete general knowledge about what it is and about the main hystorical, geographical, political and cultural aspects.

The final task will be a pair-work and the aim will be for each pair to work on at least between 6 and 8 reasons why it is important to consider the Young in our world. 'Youth Commonwealth' was the theme of this year and for that purpose, students from all around the world who are students from the Commonwealth are asked at some points to work in this theme and notion, so that's why we have decided to give them a chance to put themselves in the shoes of these pupils. Moreover, they will be asked to create a poster to illustrate their point, with pictures or whatever, and these posters will be hung on the walls of the classroom.

DESCRIPTION OF EACH TASK

1. What is the Commonwealth of Nations : the aim of this task is to set some general knowledge about the main theme of this webquest : the Commonwealth. As it is a webquest designed for Terminale pupils, some of them might have ever heard of the organisation of nations, but we have decided to give a change to any single student to get to know what this really is. To do that, pupils are required to have a closer look at a website on which they will find the pieces of information they need, but also a video. This is not a spoken English record, but we think that all the pictures and key words might also help them to remember the main features especially for the students who have a visual memory.
   After they read some articles on the website and look at the video, they will be required to answer some questions in a multiple choice quiz.
   So, the aim of this task is to work on comprehension reading skill and to work on the microskill of skimming : they need to learn not to get lost when confronted to such a large of pieces of information and to remember the main important features.
2. 53 countries : this task follows the previous one but it is a bit different because here, as the emphasis is not laid on global knowledge but more on specific knowledge. Firstly, we have decided to include some knowledge about economy, with the notion of  GDP which they usually know the equivalent in French, but maybe have never heard of the English translation. Some definition has been include on the article to help them and a link to a website which explains quite simply the notion is also given. This might be useful for students who would like to go on in their studies, and more especially for students who are interested in the Economy and Social fields. This aim is to give them some knowledge about the different countries which are part of the Commonwealth of Nations but also to make them realise that there are a lot of countries which are English-speaking countries and therefore to understand also the reason why English is so widespread. For that purpose, they need to go on website on which they will find many pieces of information about these 53 countries. This task is still about the comprehension reading skill but this time the macroskill is more is more the scanning one as they really need pick out some very procise data in order to answer to the multiple choice quiz at the end.
3. The Commonwealth Day : compare to the other tasks, this one will be more of a cultural interest. In fact, the aim is to make them aware of what is done nowadays to celebrate this organisation of nations. The goal is to make them realise that this is not something fictional but that it is really something which is part of the English-speaking countries' culture. This task will be divided in 2 parts : the first thing they will have to do is to go on the Royal Monarchy website and to have a look at the article about the Commonwealth Day, therefore, they will work on the comprehension reading skill. But this time, the exercice will be about listening comprehension. In fact, we have decided to include an oral record of one of the speech delivered by the Queen on the Commonwealth Day. We considered it to be important because most of the students have been learning English for about 7 years, but not all of them have already heard the Queen's voice. For that reason, it is important for them to hear it at least once in their life as the Queen is one of the main figure of the English-speaking world. The exercice they will have to work on is a gap-fill text which was designed to help them to get the key words of this speech. Moreover, the visual support provided by the exercice may also help the students who have some difficulties at understanding oral English.
4. Commonwealth Games : exactly like the previous one, this task will focus on a cultural aspect of the Commonwealth of Nations. The aim here is to help them to understand that this is not only a kind of political organisation but to help them to get what is meant when the Commonwealth is refered to as being a kind of 'a big family'. Moreover, this is interesting from a lexical point of view because of all the differents sports which are part of these games. For that purpose, the type of exercice for this task is a mix and match exercice. Students will be asked to match some sport names with their definition. It has been designed so that even the hardest labels and names can be understood by everyone, thanks to some further information about complicated sports. The skill aimed at is reading comprehension.
5. Final task : first of all, what is important about this final task is that it is aimed at make students work on the other side of the different skills they have not been working on during these 4 tasks : oral expression and writing expression. We have decided to choose the theme of 2015 Commonwealth Day even if it's almost year 2016 because the theme was something which students can feel concerned with. In fact, they are also young people and therefore, it is important for them to understand and realise what rôle they have to play in this world, especially at an age where it is hard for them to set their goals and really know who they are and what they want to do with their life. Moreover, especially in the US, it is a very widespread feature that students work on the Commonwealth Day's theme so we think that it is also motivating for them to do things as if they were in the shoes of these students. Finally, the fact that they will have to make a poster but won't be allowed to have notes when presenting and explaining their reasons why and be able to explain through arguments and examples why Youth must be considered and taken into account will help them to work on their oral English exam. Actually, being able to speak in front of an audience without any written support it is part of the ability they are expected to get by the end of their 3 years in 'Lycée' for the 'Baccaleuréat'.
   
   Note: we have decided simply not to translate the French words because we aim at being French teacher and the system is rather different from English-speaking countries so not to get confused we thought it was simply the best thing to do to use the appropriate words.

ORGANISATION AND CLASS MANAGEMENT

Pupils will be given three hours, what means three classes to complete this webquest and to go through the different tasks. For that purpose, a computer room will be booked and students will be asked to work on their own. If required, the teacher will still be present to help them to deal with some internet issues or some further explanations about the tasks or some concepts/notions they might not understand at first. Pupils will be required to go through the different tasks in the order in which they are presented, even if they are free to go back to some websites or exercices if they feel the need to do so. They will be asked to go through all the tasks in the given order due to the fact that it has been well-planed in order to go from the most general themes to the less global ones.

Finally, the third hour will be devoted to some additional time to complete all the tasks if necessary, but also to some work in pairs in order to start their researches to complete the final task. Pupils will be asked to finish it on their own at home with their partneer, and will be given 2 more weeks to work on their poster and presentation before the final evaluation.

PRESENTATION IN CLASS

Pupils will be required to present at least 6-8 ideas about why Young are important to be considered nowadays thanks to an oral presentation but also the making of a poster to illustrate their purpose. They will have to be able to share the floor with their partneer and the presentation will have to be about ten-minute long (what means about 5 minutes for both of them). They will strongly be adviced to prepare their explanation properly and to be able to speak correctly and not to recite something they would have learnt by heart. The emphasis will be put on their ability to explain their thoughts and point of view and to get the message across. The other students will have to take notes about what their mates have done and to give them a mark between 0 to 20. The teacher will collect their notes at the end of the class and some feedback about the most common mistakes will be given to pupils. 

Finally, all the posters will be hung on the wall of the classroom in order to reward them but also to motivate them to do the work nicely so that it will help to turn the classroom into a more personal and pleasant place to study in. We all think that this is an important feature as pupils spend all the week in these classrooms and therefore, it is important for them to work efficiently to lower the anxiety and have a nice environment to stay in.

GRADING

Grading issue : We have decided not to graduate the results they will get for the different exercices, not because we do not want you, but because it is pretty hard to collect the grade given to the different tasks, first of all because pupils are about 35 in a classroom and they do not all work at the same pace so it would add anxiety or some pupils might get in trouble and this is not what we want to. But also because we do not want them to do it because of the grade, what students tend to do a lot, but because they enjoy it and are interested in getting some knowledge. Nevertheless, a multipe choice quiz (5 points out of the 20) will be add to their next written exam about some important features they will have worked on while doing this webquest, so they will strongly be advised to take some notes about the main key pieces of information.
Moreover, the emphasis will be more on their oral presentation which will be graduated because it is an exercice they really often stuggle with but which is crucial for the oral English 'Baccaleuréat' final exam.
Final task grading : The oral final presentation will therefore be graduated thanks to a mark out of 20. Here is the way the points will be attributed and subdivided :

4 points on the realisation of the poster (creativity, use of pictures, ability to create a nice poster which is informative enough but not a written version of the oral work)

4 points on the ability to share the floor and to speak for at least about 10 minutes in a fluent way (not too fast, too low, in a clear way of speaking, ability to speak TO their mates and the teacher so that every student in the classroom can here them speaking)

6 points on syntax (grammar, structures, auto-correction)

6 points on the content (their ideas, the ability to explain their point and to illustrate it, to have interesting ideas)

Note : we have decided to put all the tasks online so that students can go back to it if they want to even at home, for example to go back on the websites or to revise some features for the exercice they will have to complete for their next final written exam.

Task 1: Commonwealth of Nations

Commonwealth, commonWHAT?

So, maybe you have ever heard of the Commonwealth of Nations, maybe you have no idea of what it means at all but don't worry! This is not that complicated.
Let's start then with a few notions about the Commonwealth which will help you to have a better understanding of what it is about.

Your very first task for today is to have a look at this video and to go and explore this website. You will find in both key pieces of information about the Commonwealth.

Link to the website about the Commonwealth of Nations

Video about the Commonwealth:

Then, please have a try at the exercice below. Do not hesitate to visit the website again if you are not sure of what the correct answer is.
Keep in mind that your final task will require some knowledge about what the Commonwealth is, so feel free to take notes about what you have learnt!

Link to the quiz you have to work on

Task 2: Member countries

What about these 53 countries?

I hope that now you are more familiar with what the Commonwealth is about!

Well, you might now have an idea of how big is this association of nations. Maybe you have already heard of some of these nations in your Geography classes, but let's learn a few important facts about them!

Nowadays, there are 53 member countries in Commonwealth of Nations but about 195 in the whole world!!! But still, the association represents a quarter of the world's countries. 

Have you ever heard of the GDP of a country? Well, it might not ring a bell but I'm sure you know this notion somehow. So to start with, let's see a few facts about this GDP concept.

Please, go to the following website and carry on the second sub-task when you are sure you get what the concept is about.

Link to the website about GDP

You can also have a look at the table on the Wikipedia website which might help you to figure out the econominal weight of all these 195 countries.

List of countries by GDP

So, did you know what were the most influencial countries from a GDP point of view? :)

Now let's move on  the the second sub-task!

The goal of this task is for you to learn some general knowledge about these 53 countries which are part of the Commonwealth of Nations from an economical and geographical point of view (for example, the number of inhabitants in each country, the capital cities and so on), including the year when the country joined the Commonwealth.

First of all, please have a look at the website and explore the different articles which are written about the 53 countries. Then, take notes on some interesting facts you have found.

Link to the website about the 53 member countries

Finally, try to answer the different questions you will find in the quiz below. For this exercice, you can work both with the website and the exercice if you can't remember the right answer.

Link to the quiz

Task 3: The Commonwealth Day

 What is the Commonwealth Day?

Each year on the second Monday in March, the Commonwealth Day is celebrated in all the Commonwealth Nations and it has been the case since 1977.
On this occasion, the Queen - which is as you have seen in the previous tasks - at the Head of this association, delivers a speech to celebrate this special day for all the 54 countries.
But what is the Commonwealth Day about?

Firstly, go to the website about the Commonwealth Day and read carefully in order to understand the aims of this day. Pay attention to the different themes and try to gather ideas on this subject.

 Link to the section about the Commonwealth Day

Once you have finished reading this introduction on this special day, listen to the following video of the 2014 message from the Queen Elizabeth II. Feel free to take notes (only the key words) and to replay it more than once to make sure you have understood the main ideas.

 

Then, try to fill the blanks in the following text which is the written transcription of the Queen's speech.

Link to the gap-fill text

Task 4: The Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games

Now, let's move on to a new important feature: the Commonwealth Games, also sometimes called 'Friendly Games'.
This entreprise is quite an important one in the Commonwealth of Nations as it is what makes it a not-only political organisation, but also a cultural one which gathers all the countries in this huge Commonwealth family.
The aim of this task is for you to get to know some important key features about these Games which are not really well-known in France but which are as important as the Olympic Games for all these 53 countries.
The following exercice is about the 17 sports which are part of the Commonwealth Games. Before giving a try to the exercice, please go on the websites below and feel free to read the more than you can on the subject and to have a look at the videos, it might be useful.

Note: I just remind you of the exercice which will be about this webquest in your next written exam in class. So please, don't forget to take some notes about what you consider to be important. Don't waste all your time taking notes, the aim is not to know every single detail, but still, try to make the most of it. Moreover, keep in mind that it is not because there was no question about it in the exercices that you won't be asked to answer some questions about it.

Good luck!

Website 1

Website 2

Website 3

Link to the exercice on the sports which are part of the Commonwealth Games

And you, what would you be watching? :)

Final task

So, you've been working quite a lot on the Commonwealth of Nations now, and as we say 'all good things must come to an end' and it's now your turn to show what you know! 

As you have seen thanks to the 3rd task, the Commonwealth Day is something which is celebrated all around the world by all the Commonwealth countries. 

Every year, the chosen theme of this day is a new one, and this year, the theme is 'A Young Commonwealth'. What makes it an important one, is the fact that young people (people under the age of 30) represent about 60% of the entire Commonwealth population. In fact, the aim of such a theme is to put the emphasis on Youth and on 'the capacity, contribution and potention of young people, who play a vital role at the heart of sustainable (= something which can last through time) development and democracy', said Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma.

In many schools, activities are designed for students to make them think about the year theme, and today, I would like you to put yourself in the shoes of a young person who lives in a country which is part of the Commonwealth and to think of at least 6 to 8 reasons why it is important to considered young people in our current society.

For that purpose, you will be asked to work in groups of 2. This will be an oral presentation which must last at least aroung 10 minutes. You should be able to present your work without any written notes and to share the floor with your partner. To help you, I would like you to create a poster with pictures and what you want to put on it, but keep in mind that this is the ILLUSTRATE your purpose, not a written version of your oral presentation. Moreover, these posters will be hung on the walls of the classroom, so don't be afraid to use your imagination and creativity to make it appealing.

You will be given 2 weeks to work on it and the third class on the webquest will be devoted to that work.

The oral presentation will be graduated as follow: 
4 points on the realisation of the poster (creativity, use of pictures BUT not a written version of your oral presentation)

4 points on the ability to share the floor with your partner and to speak about 10 minutes in correct English (not too fast, too low, so that everyone can understand what you say)

6 points on syntax (grammar, auto-correction)

6 points on the content (the choice of your arguments and the ability to explain and illustrate them with relevant features)

A good syntax, grammar, creativity, imagination, a good preparation and the use of relevant pieces of information will be strongly rewarded!!

Good luck to all of you!