Self-study and classroom lessons based on newspaper feature stories

This column is for self-study or classroom use and gives guided help with reading the wide variety of writing styles and topics that appear as feature articles in the Bangkok Post. The lessons include background information, skill-building practice and vocabulary explanations.

July 1, 2003

Having an impact

INTRODUCTION

Underwater horticulture. Navy officers prepare coral shoots for planting on the seabed at Sattahip Bay, Chon Buri. The event was attended by some 600 people and registered by the Guinness Book of Records as the biggest coral rejuvenation programme.
The article and picture here today appeared on different days in the Bangkok Post. The picture was on June 15^th, one day after the event it shows. The article appeared several days later under the label ON REFLECTION which is a column for Post staff writers to express their opinions about issues in the news. In the reflection, we learn about how a school project got started; the caption and the picture show how big a project it grew to be.

ON REFLECTION is different than most of the stories you will see in the Outlook section. Mostly, newspaper stories are written in the third person – using ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘they’. That is because newspaper writing, both in the news sections and also mostly in the Outlook section, must be objective – the writer should not express an opinion. ON REFLECTION is different – there, as you will notice, the writer does use ‘I’ and she does express her own views.
The project

You will see, though, that a good reflection is not just opinion. Our writer, Chompoo Trakullertsathien, bases her thoughts on some information she got from a group of students and teachers she met. You’ll find out how that came about in the first two paragraphs.

Read the following statements now. Then as you read the refection and look at the picture with its caption, mark the statements true (T) or false (F) according to the information.

The destruction of the coral was brought about by a combination of human and natural actions. ……..

The students found garbage left by people and that was what started them on their project to save the coral. ……..

All the adults the students talked to were in agreement about the need to save the coral. ……..

The coral was grown in metal pipes. ……..

At first, the students wanted to tell other schools about their project but no one was interested in their story. ……..

The Royal Navy became involved in the project and also began growing coral. ……..

The project started by the students grew into a huge public event that will help more people understand the importance of protecting and caring for the ocean. ……..
‘de’ and ‘re’

In this reflection, you’ll find two sets of words that are common in stories about the environment. The first set consists of two words about the decrease in the quality of the ocean coral, Both have a ‘de’ prefix: deteriorate (to make worse) and decimate (to severely damage or make something weaker). How many other environment-related words with the same prefix can you think of? Work with a friend to make a list.

In stories about people like the students in our story who work to improve the environment, we find words like resurrect (to bring something back to life) and revive (to make something strong or healthy again). Continue your list with as many recovery words as you can think of together.
The writer speaks

Chompoo concludes her reflection with a challenge to other schools to create scientific projects that would make positive contributions to their own local environment. Discuss her ideas about education with your classmates or study group friends.

Do you agree that knowledge can be gained outside the classroom? Look around your community, what local problems are there that can be improved by local solutions? What are the possible sources of knowledge in your own community – older people, professionals in various occupations? Do those people have a place in the school curriculum?

To teachers: This week’s instant lesson is on a similar theme so you can use the two together to reinforce the idea and for a mini project.

OUR STORY FROM THE BANGKOK POST

ON REFLECTION

C h o m p o o T r a k u l l e r t s a t h i e n

Students help corals, and themselves, to flower

Ocean rescue project is wonderful example of young enterprise
A recent trip to Sattahip in Chon Buri province has opened my eyes to the underwater world and the people who are trying to save it.

By accident, I met a group of teachers and students at Phutalong school who have been working to resurrect and replant damaged corals.

A decade ago, coral reefs along nearby Haad Kham beach had deteriorated badly due to natural events as well as human causes. Heavy storms and currents had decimated the reefs. Some parts had died very fast, others had broken off and drifted towards the beach.

While making their way home, some students spotted the living “debris” and took it home, with the idea of rescuing it. They sought advice from their science teachers. Eventually, kids and adults agreed that they would try to revive the coral and return it to its natural home.

But how would they do it? It was a big challenge for the budding young scientists.

Some scholars they approached disagreed with the entire idea. Let nature heal itself, they said. But the students felt that could take years and years.

They went ahead. I was impressed at how smart and resourceful they had been. They invented a steel and pipe construction in which coral could be grown, and it was highly successful. Shoots began to grow.

Right now, they have about 10,000 coral branches that are ready to be returned to the sea. The young scientists are thrilled that the ocean near them will again be full of life, like it was before.

At the start, the students told me, they were very humble about the project. They were almost ashamed of it. They didn't dare show it to pupils in other schools.

That's all changed now. The young scientists are frequently asked to talk about their achievement at other schools. They were awarded a certificate of honour from the authorities. The Royal Thai Navy took an interest and joined in the experiment. Corals are now being cultivated at a nursery in the navy base in Sattahip.

Meanwhile, Haad Kham beach is still a wonderful natural classroom for the young scientists. There's lots left to explore.

One teacher told me that he would much prefer for his students to become responsible scientists who help their hometown than rich doctors who don't care about it and leave.

The teachers here have been successful not just in cultivating corals _ they've also cultivated the seeds of awareness in the hearts of their students. These young people are, in turn, seeds of hope in relation to our country's responsibilities to the ocean.

It would be great if other communities were to follow this school's example. All students should have a chance to learn more about the people and the natural environment in their own communities.

Knowledge doesn't just come from a classroom. The government should be thinking in terms of outdoor as well as indoor learning situations, so local students can have direct awareness of and experience in their environments.

That's the first step towards helping find local solutions to local problems.

A few years ago, I met a teacher in Nakhon Si Thammarat province who encouraged his students to research local history by talking to senior residents, parents and relatives. The students later presented papers on their findings.

This kind of project is wonderful. It expands local knowledge and enhances relationships between the generations.

When students know about their roots, they learn to value the wisdom of their ancestors, and they'll then make sure it's passed on again to future generations.

The project was so successful that other schools in the south soon followed its example.

Hopefully, the successes at Phutaluang School in Chon Buri province will also spark followers. The school has shown the value of local schools' initiating curricular activities that are suited to their own locality.

Other schools too, could come up with scientific projects focused on the environment around them, or on local historical sites, flora and fauna or even literature. This sort of local activity is a wonderful complement to the main school curriculum.

As a journalist, I love to learn about differences, not similarities.

SOME VOCABULARY HELP

reef
a long line of rocks or other structures near the surface of the sea

debris
pieces of unwanted material left somewhere; rubbish, garbage

budding
beginning to develop or become successful

resourceful
good at finding ways of doing things and solving problems

humble
showing you do not think that you are as important as other people

cultivate
to do what is necessary to make something grow

enhance
to increase or improve the good quality of something

spark
to cause something to start or develop

initiate
to make something begin

flora and fauna
the plants and animals, respectively, of a particular area

horticulture
the study or practice of growing flowers, fruit and vegetables

rejuvenate
returning something to a lively state

•This lesson was prepared by Maureen Paetkau, a professional teacher of English as a second and foreign language and Assistant Manager and Webmaster for Learning Post at the Bangkok Post.

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