English

Meeting 04
Today’s Lesson

• Structure : Passive Voice

• Reading : The Soldier of Today
• Speaking : Is it Difficult?
• Listening : Track 4 and 5
• Writing : Avoiding Plagiarism
Passive Voice
Structure
Passive Voice

The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or

object that experiences an action rather than the person or
object that performs the action. In other words, the most
important thing or person becomes the subject of the
sentence.
Forms of Passive Voice #1

Present simple: am/is/are + done/cleaned etc.

Active: Somebody cleans this room evey day
Passive: This room is cleaned everyday.
Many accidents are caused by dangerous driving.
I’m not often invited to parties
How many people are injuried in road accident every day?
Past simple: was/were + done/cleaned etc.
Active: Somebody cleand this room yesterday.
Passive: This room was cleaned yesterday
During the night we were all woken up by a loud explosion
When was the castle built?
The house wasn’t damaged in the storm but a tree was blown down.
Present continous am/is/are being + done/cleaned etc.
Active: Somebody is cleaning the room at the moment.
Passive: The room is being cleaned at the moment.
Look at those old houses! They are being knocked down.
Forms of Passive Voice #1

Past continuous : was/were being + done/cleaned etc.

Active: Somebody was cleaning the room when I arrived.
Passive: The room was being cleaned when I arrived.
Suddently I heard footsteps behind me. We are being followed.
Present perfect : have/has been + done/cleaned etc.
Active: The room looks nice. Somebody has cleaned it.
Passive: The room looks nice. It has been cleaned.
Have you heard the news? The president has been shot.
Have you ever bitten by dog?
I’m not going to the party. I haven’t been invited.
Past perfect had been + done/cleaned etc.
Active: The room looked much better. Somebody had cleaned.
Passive: The room looked much better. It had been cleaned .
Jim didn’t know about the change of plans. He hadn’t been told.
Formula

Affirmative Negative Interrogative Negative

interrogative

The house was built in The house wasn't built Was the house built in Wasn't the house built
1899. in 1899. 1899? in 1899?

These houses were built These houses weren't Were these houses built Weren't these houses
in 1899. built in 1899. in 1899? built in 1899?
 Subject + to be (conjugated) + past participle + rest of sentence
Simple present
The house is cleaned every day.
Present continuous
The house is being cleaned at the moment.
Simple past
The house was cleaned yesterday.
Past continuous
The house was being cleaned last week.
Present perfect

Formula
The house has been cleaned since you left.
Past perfect
The house had been cleaned before they arrived.
Future
The house will be cleaned next week.
Future continuous
The house will be being cleaned tomorrow.
Present conditional
The house would be cleaned if they had visitors.
Past conditional
The house would have been cleaned if it had been dirty.
Inifinitive
The house must be cleaned before we arrive.
Practice #1
• He opens the door
• Passive Form : __________________________
• We set the table:
• Passive Form : _________________________
• She pays a lot of money
• Passive Form : _________________________
• We stopped the bus
• Passive Form : ________________________
• A thief stole my car
• Passive Form : ________________________
• She didn’t win the prize
• Passive Form : ______________________
• My father is washing the car.
• Passive Form : ______________________
• I am writing a poem.
• Passive Form : _______________________
• He was playing a guitar
• Passive Form : _________________________
• She was watching a film
• Passive Form : ________________________
Practice #2
• 1.This is a very popular tv programme (every
week it/watch/by millions of people) Every
week it.......................
• 2.What happens to the cars produced in this
factory? ( most of them/export)
• 3.A: Was there any trouble at the
demonstration?
• B: Yes.(about 20 people/arrest)
• 4.A: There is no longer military service in
Britain.
• B: Really? (when/it/abolish?)
• 5.A: Did anybody call an ambulance to the
scene of the accident?
• B:Yes. ( but nobody/injure//so it not/need)
• 6.A: Last night someone broke into our house.
• B : Oh dear, ( anything/take?)
• 7.Mr Kelly can’t use his office at the moment. ( it /
redecorate).
• .......................................................................................
.................
• 8.George didn’t have his car yesterday.( it / service /
at the garage)
• .......................................................................................
....................
• 9.Where’s my bicycle? It’s gone! ( it /
steal!)......................................................................
• 10. The people next door disappeared six months
ago. ( They/ not / see / since then).
• .......................................................................................
........................................
Is it Difficult?
Speaking
Activity

• Interview your partner to find out

how difficult they find using English in
the following situations. Use the
model in the box below.
• 
• Record the response by putting a tick
(√) in the appropriate column.
• 
• Student A: How difficult is it for you
to have a conversation in English?
• Student B: it’s fairly difficult.
The Soldier of Today
Reading
The Soldier of Today #1

Almost everything about the work of an Australian soldier has changed significantly.
Their uniform, weapons and communications equipment function very differently from
how they did in the past. Even the way soldiers go about training is dramatically
different.
The Australian Army’s Soldier Combat System (SCS) is a ten-year project to bring the
foot soldier up-to-date with advanced communications and weapons technology. The
soldier of today is much more effective as an individual combat unit. Similar projects
have been undertaken in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and France.
One of the main reasons behind this technological change in the military is the
revolution in micro electronics. Through micro electronic technology, communications
and navigation equipment can be made small enough to be part of the soldier’s kit.
Another major advance is the development of new materials which can provide better
armored protection with less weight.
The Soldier of Today #2

The SCS involves several changes to the traditional work and equipment of the
Infantryman. Today’s soldier has more effective weapons, better mobility and an improved
ability to know where he is and where the enemy is. That is, today’s soldier is a more
efficient killing machine – he is able to move faster, further and longer.
The soldier wears a new lightweight ‘integrated helmet’ which gives him head – up
displays, similar to fighter pilots. The helmet includes man-to-man communications, and
possibly a satellite navigation display. The helmet is linked to a miniature communication
unit worn on the soldier’s back. This provides a link between an infantry section and a
platoon.
The soldier’s uniform is also very different. A special ‘cooling suit’ keeps the soldier cool
in a hot environment. This is particularly important for operations in the extreme hot and
harsh conditions of Australia’s north. Body armor, made from a lightweight synthetic
material, covers the chest and possibly the arms. On his shoulder strap, he carries a
navigational computer capable of displaying digitized information.
The Soldier of Today #3

The weapon carried by the soldier has special high-tech

features to improve accuracy and fighting efficiency. On the top
of the weapon there is a sight which enables the soldier to see
his target better by both day and night. At the end of the barrel,
there is highly sensitive microphone which is data-linked to
platoon level with video images.
The new technology has also changed army training
procedures. New methods of military training include better
weapons simulations and extends to the use of virtual reality.
Match Theme
 • What is the SCS?
• Is this project unique to Australia?
Further • What new technological
Questions developments have helped make
the SCS project possible?
Inferring Information
Listening
Listening
Practice
Avoiding Plagiarism
Writing
 Writing
Avoiding Plagiarism
Week 4
Why use references?
• There are three principal reasons for providing references
and citations:
1. to show that you have read some of the authorities
on the subject, which will give added weight to your
writing
2. to allow readers to find the source, if they wish to
examine the topic in more detail
3. to avoid plagiarism and show that you understand
the rules of the academic community.
Decide if a) Data you found from your own primary research

you need to b) A graph from an internet article

give a c) A quotation from a book

reference d) An item of common knowledge (e.g. exercise is good for

in the you)

following e) A theory from a journal article

cases. f) An idea of your own based on reading several sources

Decide if a) Data you found from your own primary research NO

you need to b) A graph from an internet article YES

give a c) A quotation from a book YES

reference in d) An item of common knowledge (e.g. exercise is good

the for you) NO

following e) A theory from a journal article YES

cases.
f) An idea of your own based on reading several
sources MAYBE
Citations and references
It is important to refer correctly to the work of other
writers which you have used. You may present these
sources as a summary or paraphrase, as a quotation, or
use both. In each case a citation is included to provide a
link to the list of references at the end of your paper:
References
Smith (2009) argues that the popularity of the Sports Utility
Vehicle (SUV) is irrational, as despite their high cost most are
never driven off-road. In his view ‘they are bad for road safety,
the environment and road congestion’ (Smith, 2009:37).
Smith, M. (2009) Power and the State. Basingstoke: Palgrave
Macmillan
 • Summaries and quotations are usually
introduced by a reference verb:
• Smith (2009) argues that …
• Janovic (1972) claimed that …
• These verbs can be either in the present or the
Reference past tense. Normally the use of the present tense
Verbs suggests that the source is recent and still valid,
while the past indicates that the source is older
and may be out of date, but there are no hard
and fast rules. In some disciplines an older
source may still be relevant.
 1. Harvard, generally used in the UK for Social Sciences and
Business, illustrated in Section 2 on page 56.
2. MLA is similar to Harvard but more common in the US for the Arts
and Humanities. In this, the year of publication is at the end of
the reference.
3. Vancouver is commonly employed in Medicine and Science.
Reference Numbers in brackets are inserted after the citation and these link
to a numbered list of references:

Systems 4. IEEE System, commonly used in Engineering. Numbers in brackets

are used according to the order of their appearance in the text.
5. APA is widely used in the US in the Social Sciences.
6. Footnote/endnote systems, commonly used in the Humanities, in
which sources are listed either at the bottom of the page or at the
end of the paper. The numbers in superscript run consecutively
throughout the paper.
 a) Summary
• Kelman (2016) maintains that the transition from school to university study is particularly
hard in terms of writing essays. She refers to McEwan’s research on the mismatch between
student and teacher expectations and highlights the need to give students time to adapt to
a new academic culture.
b) Quotation (Use Indented Paragraph or Double Quotes)
• Kelman discusses McEwan’s research on the gap between the expectations of staff and

Summary vs students with regard to essay writing at first-year university level:

It often takes time for new students to adjust to the learning culture of HE, and much
depends on their previous academic experience. Teaching staff at degree-level expect

Quotation students to study independently and not to need regular supervision. (Kelman,
2016:45)
c) Summary and quotation
• Kelman (2016) points out that one area of serious concern for first-year university students
is writing essays. She looks at the study done by McEwan on the differences between
teachers’ and students’ perceptions of essay writing, which highlighted one distinct
difficulty: ‘Teaching staff at degree-level expect students to study independently and not to
need regular supervision’ (Kelman, 2016:45).
 In-text citations use the following abbreviations derived
from Latin and printed in italics:
• et al.: used when three or more authors are given.
The full list of names is given in the reference list:
• Many Americans fail to vote (Hobolt et al.,
Abbreviations 2006:137).
• ibid.: taken from the same source (i.e. the same
in citations page) as the previous citation:
• Older Americans are more likely to vote than the
young (ibid.).
• op cit.: taken from the same source as previously,
but a different page.
 • It is quite common to find a reference to an original source in
the text you are reading.
• For instance, in the text by Kelman in Section 6 on page 59 she
says:
A study by McEwan (2015) explored the reasons for
difficulties at this stage by comparing the expectations of
Secondary staff and students towards writing essays.
• You may wish to use this information from the original (i.e.
References McEwan) in your writing, even if you have not read the whole
work. This is known as a secondary reference. If it is not
possible to locate the original, you can refer to it thus:
McEwan (2015), cited in Kelman (2016:45), compared the
expectations of …
• You must ensure that you include the work you have read (i.e.
Kelman) in the list of references.
References Activity
REFERENCES
Bryman, A. (2004). Social Research Methods. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Carroll, J. (2007). A Handbook for Deterring Plagiarism in Higher Education. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development.
Cook, A. and Leckey, J. (1999). ‘Do expectations meet reality? A survey of changes in first-year student opinion.’  Journal of Further and Higher Education, 23(2), pp.
157–171.
Crisp, G., Palmer, E., Turnbull, D., Nettelbeck, T., Ward, L., LeCouteur, A., Sarris, A., Strelan, P. and Schneider, L. (2009). ‘First year student expectations: results from a
university-wide student survey.’ Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 6(1), pp. 11–26.
Killen, R. (1994). ‘Differences between students’ and lecturers’ perceptions of factors influencing students’ academic success at university.’  Higher Education Research
and Development, 13(2), pp. 199–211.
Leese, M. (2010). ‘Bridging the gap: supporting student transitions into higher education.’ Journal of Further and Higher Education, 34(2), pp. 239–251.
Lowe, H. and Cook, A. (2003). ‘Mind the gap: are students prepared for HE?’ Journal of Further and Higher Education, 27(1), pp. 53–76.
Moore, D. and McCabe, G. (2006). Introduction to the Practice of Statistics. 5th ed. New York: W. H. Freeman and Company.
Ryan, J. and Carroll, J. (2005). ‘Canaries in the coalmine: international students in Western universities.’ In J. Carroll and J. Ryan (Eds).  Teaching International Students –
Improving Learning for All. Abingdon: Routledge.
Tinto, V. (1987). Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
The Times. ‘Coping with transition from sixth form to university.’ p. 4, 26 September 2016
White, P. (2013). Embracing Diversity. 7th Annual Learning and Teaching Conference, 9th January 2013, [online]. Available from:  
www.shef.ac.uk/lets/cpd/conf/2013/res/preso [Accessed on 10th July 2014].
Questions
• Study the reference list above from an essay about transition from
school to university and answer the following questions.
• Find an example of:
• a book by one author
• a journal article by nine authors
• a chapter in an edited book
• a conference paper
• a journal article by one author
• a book by two authors
Questions
• What are the differences between the format of references for books
and journal articles?
• Books:
• Journal articles:
• When are italics used?
• How are capital letters used in titles?
• How is a source with no given author listed?