Teacher’s Notes (REAL Skills Book 2: Evaluation Package 2)

Listening

Audio Segment: The Otesha Project

Title and Source / Length / Audio Location / Included in Testing Package / Link to
REAL Skills Book 2 / Time
The Otesha Project
CBC:
Experience 7 and Otesha / 08:24 / Odilon /
  1. Student Exam
  2. Answer Key
  3. Transcript
/ Theme:
Unit 6:
How Can You Make A Difference? / 40-50 minutes

Notes

  1. Give students time to read and become familiar with all instructions and questionsBEFORE playing the audio segment.
  2. This Listening Exam relates to content from Unit 6: How Can You Make A Difference? However, it is not mandatory to complete this unit before doing the exam.

Students are evaluated on: / Evaluation information
  • Vocabulary
  • Scanning
  • Details
  • Inference
/
  1. Allow students time to complete the Pre-Listening section to help them activate prior knowledge.
  2. Play the audio segment twice.
  3. Allow time between playing the audio segment for students to complete answers.

Students are evaluated by:
  • Dictation
  • 5 Ws
  • Short answer questions
  • True and false questions

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LISTENING Teacher’s Notes - REAL Skills Book 2: Evaluation Package 2

Reproduction permitted © Chenelière Education Inc.

TRANSCRIPT

Listening / The Otesha Project

MICHAEL (Radio Host): I think you can’t vote anymore. Anyway, we’re joined now by Kathleen Côté of The Otesha Project. The Otesha Project is an organization that looks to promote sustainability in all those other happy environment things. Good morning, Kathleen, and thank you for joining us.

KATHLEEN CÔTÉ (The Otesha Project): Good morning. Thanks, Michael.

MICHAEL: So why do you tell us a bit about The Otesha Project.

CÔTÉ: Sure. Well, The Otesha Project was created in 2002 by two then 21-year-old women. So, that's Jessica and Jocelyn. They were in Kenya doing a field studies program with their university, and they saw the huge disparity between the poverty amongst the people there, different water conservation issues. And what they were experiencing as sort of this little micro chasm of luxury in their Canadian camp with all the students, and they thought how can we take this message of, you know, stewardship and equality back home to Canada? Because not everybody will be able to come to Kenya and experience these issues, first hand. So, they went back to Canada and they decided we're going to cycle across Canada. And, we're going to take a message of environmental and social justice to youth across the country. So, in 2003, they have their inaugural coast-to-coast tour. They travelled from Vancouver to Corner Brook, Newfoundland. And so, they spent five and a half months cycling across the country, and took a theatre piece to students and talked about different issues.

MICHAEL: So what does the theatre piece talk about?

CÔTÉ: There are six issues. So, we have water, clothing, media, transportation, coffee, and clothing [sic]. So, all the different ways that you can make a positive impact in your life that will have repercussions both locally and globally. So basically, the play goes through the course of one small chunk of any individual's life, and how all of your actions can either have negative consequences or positive ones. So why not let those consequences be positive?

MICHAEL: And how has it grown over the last five years?

CÔTÉ: Well, in 2003, for their inaugural coast-to-coast tour, I believe there were approximately 30 individuals who did the tour, and they were able to reach thousands of people through this play that they took across the country. And now, this past season, so between May and October of 2007, we had about 180 people participate in the cycling tours, and we also have high school programs that cater to… the different high school students in the area. And, they're starting to… So, in Ottawa, but also starting to bloom around Ontario. So, high school students are taking this play into their schools, and collectively with all of Otesha’s programs, both the Triple H, which is… Hopeful High School Hooligans, so both the Triple H Program and the cycling tours are now reaching upwards of 70,000 people altogether. So. it's… definitely growing. The message is definitely getting out there.

MICHAEL: And now. how do you measure the response to these sorts of things? So, I mean we've all been through high school and all been through assemblies, and so know that they can be very effective and they can also just be an opportunity to skip math class. So…

CÔTÉ: (...)

MICHAEL: … how do you sort of evaluate how your message is getting into people?

CÔTÉ: Well, one way that we find is very inspiring to get some feedback about how people are taking this message and… living it in their own life, is we hand out postcards at our different functions…

MICHAEL: (...)

CÔTÉ: … and these postcards say, you know, they have the Otesha logo on the front, and they talk about hope. And then. on the back, we… encourage people to commit to a certain action that they're going to take in their life. So whether it's, you know, trying to avoid buying sweatshop, you know, clothing that's produced in a sweatshop, or whether it's taking a staggered shower, which is just turning the water on quickly and then turning it off, and turning it on again at the end of your shower. So, whatever action they feel empowered to commit to, they'll write it down and then send us in these postcards. And we've gotten thousands of them from, you know, kids of all ages, adults, teachers. We have our books called The Otesha Books: From Junk to Funk, and it discusses all the six issues that are also covered in the play. And there's a teacher menu that goes along with this, so teachers are, you know, preparing lesson plans that are very curriculum links, and… we just see people wanting to be involved all the time. The Otesha community is… growing all the time.

MICHAEL: Okay. Now, what… would be an example of one of the lessons that you teach, or one of the things that people commit to doing that is most common?

CÔTÉ: One of them is I will recycle, or I will plant a garden, or I will have a clothing swap with my friends. So instead of going out and… buying new clothing all the time, they'll get together with their friends and give away clothing that they don’t… like.

MICHAEL: (...)

CÔTÉ: We also hear about people taking on more sort-of crafty projects, just doing things first hand, you know? I will make my own clothing, or I will… recycle old… materials into something new. I will commit to only buying Fair Trade organic products when I can. But, it's also important to be flexible, to know that, you know, you don't have to be the be all and end all for everything.

MICHAEL: Okay. Now, how is this organization supported? Obviously you're a not-for-profit organization, but…

CÔTÉ: In the past, we've had a lot of support from granting agencies, and we're just in the process of sort of converting to a new fundraising model. So, we're trying to be more donor-based, and our cycling tour participants do a certain amount of fundraising in order to participate in the tour. So, we're trying to shift away from granting agencies because it can be a bit risky if you don’t know where your funding is going to come from in future years.

MICHAEL: (...)

CÔTÉ: So we hope to be financially self-sufficient in… the next few years.

MICHAEL: Cool. Now obviously you just celebrated your fifth anniversary and had a lovely presentation on Sunday in Sandy Hill.

CÔTÉ: (...)

MICHAEL: What is… What are you looking for over the next five years? What’s sort of the transitions of an organization like this, the five year mark, I think are always important. So what five years from now…

CÔTÉ: Well this…

MICHAEL: … (inaudible)…

CÔTÉ: … as I had mentioned, this past summer we had five tours. So those all covered different regions in Canada. We had a couple out West, a couple around Ontario and a couple out East. So, this coming season, for the 2008 cycling season, we’re going to have seven tours. And then for… In the future years, we want to have up to, you know, ten tours going. So that means, you know, ten tours with 15 to 20 individuals on the tours reaching thousands of people. And also, growing our Hope High School Hooligan Program and getting more youth involved and having them be champions of the program at their schools. And you know, just building their potential to be leaders and role models. And, we also do a fair amount of public speaking, keynote addresses, conferences, workshops. We have a lot of individuals, and groups, and schools… contacting us to do presentations for their, you know, for their… students and… people who are interested. And… So, basically, just doing as much outreach as we can and getting people as excited about Otesha and involved in whatever way possible.

MICHAEL: Cool. Now if people did want to get involved or find out more about the organization, how would they do so?

CÔTÉ: We could check out the website. So, it's So that's O-T-E-S-H-A. And, we have all kinds of information on our website. Our French portion of the website is still under construction, so we’re working on that. And you can feel free to just use the general Otesha email address. . And somebody will get back to you right away. And it's… definitely something that we're really excited about. And. I guess I should mention too, Otesha means reason “to dream” in Swahili.

MICHAEL: Cool. Well, thank you so much for joining us. Good luck. And we will I'm sure bein touch over the coming years.

CÔTÉ: Great. Thanks a lot, Michael.

MICHAEL: Thank you.

CÔTÉ: Okay.

MICHAEL: And that was Kathleen Coté, who is involved with The Otesha Project, which is an organization that promotes environmental sustainability, as you heard, both in high schools and through a performance piece that is carried on by a troop of travelling cyclists.

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LISTENING Teacher’s Notes - REAL Skills Book 2: Evaluation Package 2

Reproduction permitted © Chenelière Education Inc.