Unit 8a Book

1. Introduction

All three sections of Unit 8 deal with safety and security, which are both vital for the smooth operation of a company. In Unit 8a, in particular, you will have a chance to take part in the investigation of a theft in a company warehouse. You will not only study how to use modals for speculating about the past, but also learn about logistics and warehousing procedures. In addition, this unit will give you an opportunity to see what a high-tech warehouse looks like.

Contents

• Warehouse procedures: receiving, put-away, storage, picking/retrieving, staging, shipping.

• Modals used for speculation, regret, criticism and recommendation: may, might, can, could, can´t, must, have to, should, ought to.

• Recommending an action for the future: The police should be called right away.

• Criticism/regret in the past: The police should have been called right away.

2. Grammar Revision: Modals

Unit 8a deals with modal verbs. At the B2+/C1 level, it is highly probable that you know about the basic modal verbs: can, may, must, and some others. Revise them in this task, and if you happen to have problems with this grammar point, read this grammar overview. Which of the modals used in the task above can be used to express speculation: certainty and uncertainty? If you guess must, have to, may, might, can, could, and can´t, you are right. As you can see, modals can be used for speculation  ̶  and even in the past. This is a complex grammar point, so a general English context will first be used to introduce this use of modals. Later on, this general English context will switch into a technical English context.

3. Grammar: Modals Used for Speculation in the Present

As you could see in the previous task, modals can be used to speculate about the present and past and to express a level of certainty. Now, look at this document, but read only the first part dealing with modals used for speculation in the present. Then do this task to see if you understand this grammar fully.

4. Grammar: Modals Used for Speculation in the Past

Now that you understand modals used for speculation in the present, read the other section of the same grammar overview, which deals with speculations in the past. Then do these two tasks – Task 1 and Task 2 – to practise the grammar in a general English context. The follow-up task, Task 3, asks you to choose the correct option from the modals given. This task is harder than the previous ones because it combines speculation in the past and in the present. The follow-up task for practising modals used for speculation in the past shows the use of these modals within an unbroken text. Finally, this task demonstrates what past modals are used for; in other words, what meanings they can express. 

NB: Unless otherwise stated, the sentences in the tasks listed above have been adapted from: 

www.perfect-english-grammar.com and www.autoenglish.org

5. Technical Context: Warehousing

Below, all the tasks use modals to speculate in a technical context, namely in the context of warehousing. This context can be nicely introduced by the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO7fvrdTCgs. Watch it and do the related listening comprehension task. 

In modern warehouses, RFID tags are often used. Read this text to see how this identification works before you find out about one incident in a warehouse – a theft. Do Tasks A and B, which introduce this topic in Unit 8. Then, describe a warehouse procedure in the passive voice here. Now listen to or read the Transcript on p. 123 in the coursebook and answer all the questions in this task. Finally, complete these speculations about the incident, using correct modals.

6. Forum: Regret, Criticism and/or Recommendation

There are two questions in this forum. To participate, you need to answer at least one of them and respond to at least one contribution of a fellow student. Whatever you choose to talk about, you should use modal verbs to show either regret, criticism or recommendation.

7. Writing: What Should Have Been Different?

Write between 250 and 300 words about one of the following topics:

1) Look back at one area of the latest technological development. In your opinion, is there anything that should have been different? Was there anything that needed criticism? If so, what should have been done in the past to improve the situation? Give your recommendation for the past. 

2) Look back at the latest development in the Czech education system. Generally speaking, is there anything that should have been different? Was there anything that needed criticism? If so, what should have been done in the past to improve the situation? Give your recommendation for the past.

Your essay should have three main parts: an introduction, body and conclusion. The introduction should inform the reader what the essay is going to be about and serve as an attention-getter to present your topic: you should give general introductory information followed by an explanation of why the topic important.

The body of the essay should be more detailed, developing the idea expressed in the introduction. You should use some examples to illustrate your view. While giving your opinion, you should use modals as frequently as possible.

The conclusion should remind the reader of the topic of the essay and summarize its main points.

Submit your essay here.

8. Word List

The key terms related to the topic of Unit 8a can be found:

• in the Excel format here.
• in the interactive flash card format here. This format is particularly good for drilling the new vocabulary.
• in a zip file here. This file is downloadable, so that after unpacking it, you can drill the new vocabulary on your desktop, laptop or any other portable device where you have a browser installed. Important: after unzipping the zip file, make sure to keep all the related files in the same directory at all times. Do not change any file names and do not transfer or delete anything.

Recommendation: Remember that the best way to learn new vocabulary is to see each new word in a context; that is, step by step as you complete all the tasks in the unit.

9. A printer-friendly version of Unit 8a

A printer-friendly version of Unit 8a exercises and the key to these exercises can be found here.