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Sulinet Digitális Nyelvi Tananyagbank ()
The WASPS:The last class of Avenger Field
Listening tasks for upper-intermediate and advanced learners of English
Women weren't doctors, lawyers, engineers. I could be a nurse, a librarian or a teacher. Those were my choices. And if it wasn't for the war and the fact that they were so short of pilots that they condescended to let us enter the sanctum sanctorum. And they let us know that. They let us in because they needed us. They needed pilots.
-- Kaddy Steele, WASP 1942-1944
In the early 1940s, the United States Airforce faced a dilemma. Thousands of new airplanes were coming off assembly lines and needed to be delivered to military bases nationwide, yet most of America's pilots were overseas fighting the war. To deal with the excess, the government launched an experimental program to train women pilots to fly military aircraft. You will hear parts of radio documentary about these women pilots. There will be interviews with them about their memories, divided by old radio inserts. Download the documentary now, in either RealAudio or MP3 format and listen to it up to the 0:33 mark.
Which is a wasp?
And which is a W.A.S.P?
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
1 What is a W.A.S.P, and what does it stand for? How does it relate to wasp?
2 Here are some word related to thearmy and piloting below. Match them with their definitions. Feel free to use a dictionary.
A. flak / 1. the maximum distance a plane can fly to and back fromB. flight suit / 2. when two planes crash into each other
C. detachment / 3. the room in a plane for the pilot(s)
D. disciplined / 4. ammunition used to shoot down enemy airplanes
E. wingspan / 5. having self-control and obeying rules
F. rookie / 6. a smaller army group for a specific purpose
G. range / 7. to transport a plane by flying it to its destination
H. to ferry / 8. special clothing worn by pilots for protection
I. cockpit / 9. the distance between the tips of the wings
J. collision / 10. an untrained or inexperienced soldier
There are three ways to complete this task sheet, each increasing in length and difficulty. Choose one of the three options below and findthe indicated times in the documentary for the marked tasks. Play from there to hear the needed information.
- EASY – Complete tasks 3, 4 and5
- DIFFICULT – Complete tasks 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9
- ENDURANCE – Complete all tasks from 3 to 10.
3 (0:35-1:40)
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
During this section we hear Elizabeth Eyre Taylor’s introduction. What is she doing while introducing herself? ......
What surprises people about her? ......
4 (2:44-4:04)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.
What does it mean to be drafted (or conscripted)? ......
Who have been drafted historically? ......
Who are normally conscripted today? ......
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
Why did the U.S. airforce draft these people? ......
Dora Strother says she started working at an airport when she heard about the WASP program. Why? ......
Were there any women at that time who could already fly?......
5 (5:44-6:56)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.Pilots wear special clothing. What did these look like in the 1940s? You can make a drawing, or describe in your own words.
......
......
......
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
What did these women all have in common?......
How well prepared was the airforce for the women pilots? ......
One pilot recalls that her flight suit “stood by itself”. What does this mean?
......
Kaddy Steele says she had thought ofbeing there as a mistake at one point. Why?
......
6 (8:33-10:04)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.
Anti-aircraft weapons are used to shoot down enemy aircraft. What did these look like in the 1940s when these stories took place?
a.b.c.
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
The WASPs talk about their jobs. What kinds of assignments did they have?
......
What is a tow-target squadron?......
Why did the tow-target squadron in the story stop the training?
......
7 (11:18-13:15)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.
Think about bomber airplanes. What are they like? How are they different and what is important for them? If you don’t know, what do you think should be important for them?
......
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
Dora Strother talks about the B-29. Why was this plane so important?
......
Why were pilots reluctant to fly it?......
Why did Colonel Tibbets think that teaching women to fly it would help?
......
What did the two female test pilots say about the plane?
......
8 (13:20-14:45)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.
What could a pilot do when he or she no longer had control of the plane? Most airforces did not have ejector seats during World War 2.
......
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
Louise Brown talks about the death of her roommate. What killed her?
......
What did she say she disliked most about the event?
......
Why did so many women pilots die?
......
9 (17:54-19:11)
Before listening to the recording, do the following task.
What do you think happened to the WASPs after they left the airforce? Compare your thoughts with the answers in the listening material.
......
......
After listening to the recording, do the following task.
What did become of WASPs after they left the airforce?
......
What movement is connected to the experience they have?
......
10 Information hunt. Listen to the whole text again and find these pieces of information in the text.
What was the nickname of the B-26?......
In a radio insert, President ROOSEVELT talks about a famous event in US military history. Which is this? ......
Where were the WASPs trained? ......
What would the B-29 later become famous for? ......
What experience do many pilots recall as their favorite? ......
Who made the sendoff speech for the WASPs? ......
How many women applied, how many were accepted for training and how many graduated? ......
WASPs - Horváth