Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. socially
    • ex. It is socially acceptable to bow and shake hands during business meetings.
  2. integrate
    • ex. Jacob plans to integrate music lessons into his schedule to start a new hobby.
  3. a cause
    • ex. Lana supports good causes by volunteering. She helps to feed poor children and to clean dirty parks.
  4. shallow
    • ex. I prefer deep and serious conversations over shallow small talk.
  5. interact
    • ex. Maria takes her daughter to the park to interact with other kids.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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Many companies are improving their volunteering programs lately. That is because more employees want their employers to be socially responsible. Workers might want to integrate volunteering into their regular work schedules, and it’s also beneficial for them. Research by the University of Oxford found that organized volunteering is effective in improving workers’ well-being.

Dr. Eddy Hogg, who studies volunteering, has suggestions on how companies can design their volunteering programs. First, employees should be allowed to help design their volunteering programs. They should be free to choose when, where, and how they can volunteer. This way, employees can feel a deeper connection to the program. This can encourage employees to pursue causes that are important to them.

Second, Hogg suggests avoiding short and shallow volunteering events. Deep connections between workers and the community won’t form if they only interact once or twice a year. And third, it’s important to consider employees working in hybrid schedules, which are very common today. For example, Shiseido Americas gives employees volunteering kits. This way, employees can help clean parks or make blankets for children wherever they are in the country.

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Volunteering Programs

  • Companies are improving their volunteering programs because more employees want their employers to be socially responsible. How would you describe a socially responsible employer (ex. it volunteers, it has eco-friendly practices)? Discuss.
  • The article says organized volunteering is effective in improving workers' well-being. Why do you think volunteering is beneficial (ex. it helps a person have a positive mindset)? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, how would developing volunteering programs benefit companies/organizations (ex. it gives the company a good image, it attracts good employees)? Discuss.

Dr. Hogg’s Suggestions

  • Dr. Hogg suggests ways to help employees form deeper connections with the community. What does it mean to have deeper connections with the community? Discuss.
  • Dr. Hogg also suggests avoiding short and shallow volunteering events. What do you think makes a volunteering event shallow (ex. if it’s only done twice a year, if volunteers don’t care about the cause)? Discuss.
  • Imagine you are helping your company design a volunteering program. What cause would you like your company to help (ex. environmental causes, helping animals on the street)? Why? Discuss.