The Reading / Listening - Smartphone Repairs - Level 5

Many people feel exasperated and helpless when their smartphone breaks. Phone makers go to extraordinary lengths to stop consumers from opening the back of their phones to repair them. A new company has produced a self-repairable mobile phone. It's called Fairphone. It set out to make "the world's first ethical smartphone". It started in 2013 with four basic principles. These were to use raw materials from non-conflict mining areas; and to make a product that was recyclable, durable and repairable. Fairphone incorporated these in its new smartphone.

The Fairphone website outlines the company's philosophy. Its mission is to get "a massive industry to take responsibility for its impact on the world, by establishing a viable market for ethical electronics". It says many tech company workers work in poor conditions. The electronics industry creates a "staggering amount of waste". Fairphone says communication technology will account for 14 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. The Fairphone comes with a screwdriver and is easily repairable. The plastic used is 40-per-cent recycled, and the minerals are ethically sourced.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Smartphone Repairs - Level 4 or  Smartphone Repairs - Level 6

Sources
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60374806
  • https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/theredbulletin/bas-van-abel-fairphone-smartphone-ethical
  • https://www.fairphone.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Impact-Report-2020-Fairphone.pdf


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. Many people feel exasperated
  2. Phone makers go to
  3. go to extraordinary
  4. opening the back
  5. It started in 2013 with four
  6. materials from non-conflict
  7. a product that was recyclable,
  8. incorporated these in
  1. durable and repairable
  2. basic principles
  3. its new smartphone
  4. mining areas
  5. of their phones
  6. and helpless
  7. lengths
  8. extraordinary lengths

Paragraph 2

  1. take responsibility
  2. establishing a viable
  3. workers work
  4. a staggering
  5. greenhouse gas
  6. The Fairphone comes
  7. The plastic used
  8. minerals are ethically
  1. is 40-per-cent recycled
  2. in poor conditions
  3. market
  4. sourced
  5. for its impact
  6. emissions
  7. with a screwdriver
  8. amount of waste

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Many people (1) ___________________ helpless when their smartphone breaks. Phone makers go to (2) ___________________ stop consumers from opening the back of their phones to repair them. A new company has produced (3) ___________________ mobile phone. It's called Fairphone. It set out to make "the (4) ___________________ smartphone". It started in 2013 with four basic principles. These were to (5) ___________________ from non-conflict mining areas; and to make a product that was recyclable, (6) ___________________. Fairphone incorporated these in its new smartphone.

The Fairphone website outlines (7) ___________________ philosophy. Its mission is to get "(8) ___________________ to take responsibility for its impact on the world, by establishing (9) ___________________ ethical electronics". It says many tech company workers work in poor conditions. The electronics industry creates (10) ___________________ of waste". Fairphone says communication technology will account for 14 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. The Fairphone comes with a screwdriver and (11) ___________________. The plastic used is 40-per-cent recycled, and the minerals (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Manypeoplefeelexasperatedandhelplesswhentheirsmartphonebrea
ks.Phonemakersgotoextraordinarylengthstostopconsumersfromop
eningthebackoftheirphonestorepairthem.Anewcompanyhasproduc
edaself-repairablemobilephone.It'scalledFairphone.Itsetouttoma
ke"theworld'sfirstethicalsmartphone".Itstartedin2013withfourbasic
principles.Theseweretouserawmaterialsfromnon-conflictminingar
eas;andtomakeaproductthatwasrecyclable,durableandrepairable.F
airphoneincorporatedtheseinitsnewsmartphone.TheFairphonewebs
iteoutlinesthecompany'sphilosophy.Itsmissionistoget"amassiveind
ustrytotakeresponsibilityforitsimpactontheworld,byestablishingavi
ablemarketforethicalelectronics".Itsaysmanytechcompanyworkers
workinpoorconditions.Theelectronicsindustrycreatesa"staggeringa
mountofwaste".Fairphonesayscommunicationtechnologywillaccou
ntfor14percentofgreenhousegasemissionsby2040.TheFairphoneco
meswithascrewdriverandiseasilyrepairable.Theplasticusedis40-per
-centrecycled,andthemineralsareethicallysourced.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

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

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

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

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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