ENGLISH FOR CRIMINOLOGY

[DATE]
[COMPANY NAME]
[Company address]
 Course Syllabus in English for Specific Purposes for Criminology

I. COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course is prepared for the criminology students learning English to acquire
and develop English language, knowledge and skills for future work.

II. COURSE OBJECTIVE:

The course is defined according to their needs and it aims to prepare students to
use English for their professional studies and subsequently for their professional
needs in real life and career. This course will further give students the opportunity
to speak on general and specific topics, communicate and express ideas,
understand texts and information and write properly.

III. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES: The main objectives of the syllabus are:

1. Enhance listening skills to enable them to understand and apply specific
information from the input.
2. To develop the students’ speaking skills to enable them to use general,
social and professional language.
3. Apply reading skills to enable them to skim an adapted text for main idea,
to scan an adapted text for specific information, to interpret an adapted
text for inferences;

4. To develop the students’ writing skills to enable them to respond to input

applying information to a specified task, to elicit, to select, and to
summarize information.
5. Improve general capacity to a level that enables them to use English in
their professional and academic environment.
Course English for Criminology
Topics Week 1: Listening
Listening techniques
Listening for Information
Listening to Discussion
Giving Descriptions
Telephone Communication

Week 2: Speaking
Presentation and Oral Reports
Interview
Communicate Effectively
Public Discourses

Week 3: Reading
Identifying Main Ideas and Finding
Supporting details
Summarizing a Text
Deducing Meaning of Difficult Words
Obtaining Gist from information read

Week 4: Writing
Identifying Main Ideas and Finding
Supporting Details
Distinguish Facts from Opinions
Lesson 3- Summarizing a Read Text

Week 5: General Language skills

understand complex sentences
analyze and evaluate a crime
predict an outcome and respond
critically
make a spot report
 Listening

Activity 1: Crime narration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C23foF4Flq4

Instruction:

Listen to a narrative about a crime in which some heinous events are described. Give
your interpretation based on what you think is the case or possible conclusions from that event.
The interpretation or conclusion must have the following:

a) Important details of what happened; How did the crime happen?

b) Who is involved in the event?
c) What case can the suspect may face? Give some proof or law that says it is his/her
responsibility

Activity 2: Philippine criminal Law and its characteristics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B35gHO62UpI

 What is criminal law?

Criminal law, the body of law that defines criminal offenses, regulates the apprehension,
charging, and trial of suspected persons, and fixes penalties and modes of treatment applicable to
convicted offenders.

 What is generality in criminal law?

Generality of criminal law means that the criminal law of the country governs all persons
within the. country regardless of their race, belief, sex, or creed. However, it is subject to certain
exceptions. brought about by international agreement. Ambassadors, chiefs of states and other
diplomatic officials.
Instruction:

The instructor will play a video about Criminal Law in the Philippines and its features
containing about different codes or laws. Students should list the important things mentioned in
the video they saw or heard.

NOTE: Students can raise a question if they want to clarify something after watching or
listening to the video.

Activity 3: Telephone communication (Hostage crisis negotiation)

The Criminologist will be given a scenario where they need to communicate with the victims
(hostage) and suspect using a device e.g telephone, handheld transceiver…

Scenario:

The head of the Dela Cruz family is in a riot and seems to have lost his sanity because his
wife is asking for divorce so he decided to make his two children, sixteen and eight years old as
his hostage. The suspect called the police and begged to talk to the child's mothers to get back
together with him.

 What are the tactics they must do to calm the suspect?

How they will communicate with this kind of situation?

 What are the core skills to negotiate with the suspect?

 Speaking

Activity #1
Speaking: Presentation and Oral Reports.
In class, small group reports.
This exercise should encourage students to present on the concept of justice. In small groups,
students discuss and present their reports what their understanding of justice is.

Lecturer guidelines
 The exercise could be used at the beginning of the class ("The Criminal Justice System
and Legal Justice")
 Lecturer gives a brief introduction, i.e. every justice system is built around ethical
considerations
 Students are encouraged to discuss the concept of justice

 Guiding questions for students

 What is your understanding of justice?
 What are your ethical considerations of justice?
 From your perspective, what is justice trying to achieve?
 Students organize into small groups and discuss the questions.
 The lecturer calls on every group for their answers.

Activity #2
Speaking: Interviewing. Work in pairs. Ask and answer a question about incident.

Conducting effective investigation interview.

1. When and where did you see this incident occur?

Example: “I saw this incident of inappropriate behavior by my manager on August 14, 2019 in
my manager’s office. Our team has held meetings in his office before, but this is the first time he
acted this way in front of the team.”
2. Who was responsible for the alleged inappropriate behavior?
3. What happened during this incident, and do you recall the names of witnesses?
4. What was your reaction to the incident?
Example: “As noted before, Sheila and I were surprised based on the attitude displayed at our
previous meeting last week. We have never seen this behavior before from our manager so we
felt hurt by his reaction.”
5. Do you have any supporting notes or documentation to provide in regards to this incident?
6. Can you give us the names of people who possess relevant information?
Speaking:

Activity #3
Speaking: Work in groups. Role playing.
Students role play situations individually or in groups.

 students may play roles of defendant, victim, police officer, and juror to illustrate
different perspectives and issues in criminal justice.

Activity #4
Speaking: Work in pairs. Interviewing. Question and Answer.
Answering the 911/Emergency Call (Call- Taker/Dispatcher)

a) Assure the caller the police are on the way.

b) Ask open-ended questions (e.g. What can you tell me about the car?) and
augment with closed-ended questions (e.g. What color was the car?).
c) Avoid asking suggestive or leading questions (e.g. Was the car red?).

d) Ask if anything else should be known about the incident.

e) Transmit information to responding officer(s).

f) Update officer(s) as more information comes in.

Activity #5
Speaking: Communicate Effectively
In a small group. Speech Delivery.

In a group of four or five students, ask each student to give a one-minute impromptu
speech answering the question, “Why is criminology important in our society?”
 Reading
Identifying Topics, Main Ideas, and Supporting Details

Understanding the topic, the gist, or the larger conceptual framework of a textbook chapter, an

article, a paragraph, a sentence or a passage is a sophisticated reading task.  Being able to draw
conclusions, evaluate, and critically interpret articles or chapters is important for overall
comprehension in college reading.  Textbook chapters, articles, paragraphs, sentences, or
passages all have topics and main ideas.  The topic is the broad, general theme or message.  It
is what some call the subject.  The main idea is the "key concept" being expressed.  Details,
major and minor, support the main idea by telling how, what, when, where, why, how much, or
how many.  Locating the topic, main idea, and supporting details helps you understand the
point(s) the writer is attempting to express.  Identifying the relationship between these will
increase your comprehension.

The successful communication of any author's topic is only as good as the organization the
author uses to build and define his/her subject matter.

 The main idea in a paragraph is the most important idea. It is the central point that an
author is trying to get across to the reader.
 The supporting details describe the main idea. They make the main idea stronger and
clearer.
 Keep in mind that the main idea is often the first or last sentence of a paragraph.
To find the main idea, answer two questions:
(1) What is the paragraph mostly about?
(2) Which sentence best tells what the paragraph is about?

Example: Mother gorillas do a lot for their babies. They nurse their babies. They protect them
from danger. And they teach the tiny gorillas how to get along with other gorillas.
(1) The paragraph is mostly about what mother gorillas do.
(2) The first sentence tells what the paragraph is about. It is the main idea

Activity: Identify the Topic and Main idea of the essay below.
THE IMPORTANCE OF LEADERSHIP IN POLICING by - Commander Mike Wilson, St.
Joseph Police Department
Effective police leaders become very skilled at responding to challenge. Most leaders understand
the fluid conditions in which their department operates even as they compete to standardize
operations. They also know there are both internal and external forces to which they must adapt
and grow in order to remain effective. The law enforcement world is ever-changing as police
leaders must be able to recreate the way of conducting policing. Agencies are seeing a new
generation of police officers and significant opportunities in the availability of new technology.
The traditional organizational models of policing need changing and this can only be done
through effective leadership.
Over the past twenty years, I have experienced many different types of leaders. Some were
primarily autocratic. Being in charge, decisive, firm, dominating, forceful, and a tell, not ask
attitude were some of the behaviors they exhibited. Others had more of a democratic style. They
listened, consulted, were flexible, supported new ideas, delegated, had an ask rather than tell
attitude, and cared about the mission and the people.
While attending training, a former police chief from Kansas City spoke of the Leadership Line
points in between autocratic and democratic which best exemplifies five styles needed to be an
effective leader. The five styles were identified as boss, teacher, supervisor, coach and colleague.
These five styles are used at different times by understanding the levels of competency
development defined as not competent, somewhat competent, satisfactorily competent,
predominantly competent and fully competent. For example, an officer in the field training
program would be considered not competent because lack of skills, knowledge and motivation.
When dealing with this officer, a leader would tend to be more autocratic as a boss. Changes in
leadership style must keep pace by continually assessing, adapting and advising.
Summarizing a Text

Proficient students understand that summarizing, identifying what is most important and restating

the text (or other media) in your own words, is an important tool for college success.

After all, if you really know a subject, you will be able to summarize it. If you cannot summarize
a subject, even if you have memorized all the facts about it, you can be absolutely sure that you
have not learned it. And, if you truly learn the subject, you will still be able to summarize it
months or years from now.

4 Tips for Writing a Good Summary

 Find the main idea. A useful summary distills the source material down to its most
important point to inform the reader. ...
 Keep it brief. A summary is not a rewrite—it's a short summation of the original piece. ...
 Write without judgment. ...
 Make sure it flows.

Activity : Write a Summary

Respect and Disrespect in the United States Army

I am writing this essay to provide information on respect and disrespect in the United States
Army. The effects that it has on leadership in everyday life. The effect it has on your own self,
and your reputation as a United States soldier in day to day life. Also why there is a certain
system put in place such as respect in the army. The United States Army is structured on several
values and principles that it upholds, among these are military bearing, discipline and respect.
These principles represents what the organization strongly believes in and governs the most basic
customs and courtesies that all its members should abide by, otherwise legal repercussion and
punishment is enforced that could ultimately result in separation from the organization.

One of the first things that is drilled into us from the beginning, is respect. From the second you
get to MEPS you are told there is a system in place, a system that works in a way that you have
leaders, superiors, and you will respect your superiors. No matter what rank you are if they hold
a higher position you will give them the courtesies that is deserved. As stated in FM 7-21.13
chapter 4.

"The Army is an organization that instills pride in its members because of its history, mission
capabilities, and the respect it had earned in the service of the nation. A reflection of that pride is
visible in the customs, courtesies, and traditions the army holds. Adherence to them connects us
with soldiers throughout Americas history." That being said respect should be greatly enforced in
order to maintain an effective fighting team, respect is one of the united states military's core
values.When a person enlists into the military life, they swear to obey the orders of the President
of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over them, according to regulations
and the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Therefore, military discipline should be a priority in every soldiers life to give respect to the
higher ranking personnel, like the Chain of Command or the Non Commissioned Officer Support
Channel. The Chain of Command provides a method of showing respect to the next senior
person as well as a method of maintaining the integrity of the organization. As to the Non
Commissioned Officer Support Channel is designed to be subordinate to and supportive of the
Chain of Command. The Non Commissioned Officer Support Channel is used for executing the
commanders orders and getting jobs done.

The Chain of Command has legal responsibility for training, discipline, and overall welfare.
Discipline is also respect, one of the Army Values. Respect means to treat people as they should
be treated. A person to deserve respect should always recognize dignity of all, demonstrate
consideration for others, be courteous and polite, value diversity and should not take advantage
of positions of authority when being in charge of others. People should always have respect for a
person for who the person is and not only for the rank they have on.

Now this is especially important if you are specialist and below, and you have a conversation
with an non commissioned officers. Go to parade rest and talk only when spoken to, why?
Because this is the system put in place. The system works in order to put different
responsibilities on more experienced individuals. An e-5 has soldiers, e-6 has a platoon, etc. A
Non commissioned Officers duties are numerous and have to be taken seriously in the fact that
they not only have soldiers under there command but at most times they have someone in
command of them, that expects a certain level of proficiency from him or her, and including that
Non commissioned Officers soldiers. A Non commissioned Officers duty is to provide help and
support through training, and experience.

Especially in a battle situation a Non commissioned officer is expected to direct his troops
effectively, and tactfully. And the troops under him expect that what he or she is saying in such a
situation is the most effective path to take in that said situation. When people enter the Army life,
they become soldiers, soldiers who are taught to be disciplined in the military manner. As
soldiers they are taught that if they have poor discipline it can result in the loss of a soldier’s life.
Being disciplined simply means the understanding of our tasks and obeying our orders promptly
because our fellow soldiers and leaders depend on us to do so. The purpose of discipline is to
make us soldiers well trained, to ensure we wear the uniform properly, follow orders, or to repeat
tasks until they are done correctly.

In routine, discipline is things like saluting, addressing everyone with their proper tittles such as
Sergeant, Sir, Ma’am, Etc.Discipline isn’t just following orders or just giving punishments for
doing the “wrong thing” but is something leaders and soldiers built together. Discipline is the
desire to do what is right even if its difficult. It’s the desire to accomplish a task well, not
because of fear to get punish but because of pride in oneself. With the discipline developed in
training a soldier will get the job done, discipline gives the confidence to act correctly and
properly even under stressful conditions.  A disciplined unit is made up of well trained soldiers
who trust each other and know they can accomplish any mission they are giving.
Take away that respect, and the whole system falls in to chaos. Disrespect to a non
commissioned officer is punishable, anywhere from a counseling to a article-15 UCMJ (Uniform
Code of Military Justice) not only would it screw up the system, but it would also tarnish your
reputation. Among everything your reputation is your most important virtue. your reputation is
the most important thing that you have because it reflexes who you are to your leaders and
others. that being said you must maintain a certain level of discipline with your officers and your
Non commissioned officers, in the United States Army.
Deducing Meaning of Difficult Words

One of the great challenges of the police test is the spelling and police vocabulary aspect. It’s
challenging because there’s no “one list” of words to memorize. Instead, it comes down to
chance. You need to cast as wide a net as possible – reading, reading, and re-reading – to ensure
to capture as many relevant words.

7 Strategies For Using Context Clues In Reading

1. Word Parts
The idea: Break down the different parts of a word—base word (word stem or root word),
prefixes, and suffixes—to figure out what it means. Some words have a prefix only (reread), a
suffix only (reading), both a prefix and a suffix (prereading), a combination (unreadableness), or
neither (read).

Discrimination
Dis-: not, opposite of, reverse, deprive of; apart, away
crimin: verdict, judicial decision; judgment
tion: indicates the word is a noun

2. Definition/explanation
The idea: Look for a definition or an explanation within the sentence.

• Discrimination or unfairly targeting one or more groups by those who perceive themselves to
be superior can cause distress.
• Vulnerable people are oftentimes in need of protection under certain laws so others cannot take
advantage of them.

3. Synonym
The idea: Words next to the unknown word can be a clue that there is a synonym.
• Discrimination or bias can cause distress toward the targeted group.
• When people know they are vulnerable or defenseless, they tend to protect themselves to avoid
harm.
4. Example
The idea: Providing examples of the unknown word can give readers a clue to meaning.
• Like shunning smokers in restaurants by making them satisfy their habit outside, discrimination
targets a perceived undesirable group.
• Vulnerable people, such as young children, the elderly, or handicapped individuals, might have
protections under certain laws.

5. Antonym/contrast
The idea: opposite information about the unknown word can be offset by words and phrases such
as unlike, as opposed to, different from.
• Discrimination, as opposed to fairness for all people, can have damaging effects on a targeted
group.
• Vulnerable people, unlike those who can stand up for themselves, tend to be the target of
unethical or dangerous individuals.

6. Analogy
The idea: Comparisons of the word help to determine what it means.

• The ill effects of discrimination are like hateful, wicked tendrils gripping the heart.
• Vulnerable people can be like fragile glass in need of care and attention.

7. Appositive
The idea: Look for the grammatical structure of appositives which can provide a definition,
synonym, or example.

• Discrimination, the act of showing bias to one group, can have damaging effects.
• The elderly and handicapped, a vulnerable group of individuals, have laws to protect them from
unethical individuals.
Activity: Determine the meaning of the words based on it’s use in sentence. Write the letter of
the corresponding answer on the space before the number.

1. “He corroborated the claim that she was in her home that night”.
2. “He tried to suborn witnesses to speak in his favor”.
3. “The police officer sequestered the suspect in the local park”.
4. “The newspaper committed libel by falsely claiming he evaded tax for the past decade”. 
5. “The trial was adjourned to a later date”.
6. “He was granted bail at a cost of $4,000 and released and was due back in court on 14
September”.
7. “The US president was impeached on grounds that he personally profited from his public
role”.
8. “She was arraigned on charges of manslaughter”.
9. “She admonished him for taking drugs when he promised not to do so”.
10. “He was a reprobate; an individual who had no principles and who acted according to
his selfish needs”.
11. “He was taken into custody on charges of theft”.
12. “Mike was reprimanded for consuming too much alcohol”.
13. “She was incarcerated after her trial found her guilty”.
14. “He committed perjury by lying to the court about his whereabouts on the night”.
15. “She embezzled up to $5,000 from the company credit card against the company’s
knowledge”.

Choices
a) To give support to a theory or finding.
b) To bribe someone to commit an unlawful act.  
c) To isolate. 
d) To publish a false statement that damages an individual’s reputation. 
e) To postpone, often referring to court
f) Release of an accused person awaiting trial, often after the payment of a fee
g) To charge the holder of public office with misconduct
h) To bring to court on a criminal charge. 
i) To firmly warn against someone’s behavior
j) An unprincipled person
k) Imprisonment
l) To warn sternly against
m) The state of being imprisoned
n) Telling a lie whilst under oath.
o) To misappropriate, often someone’s money.
p) Illegal cooperation between two entities
Getting the Gist

Merriam-Webster defines gist as the main point or part: the essence. It's what the author spent all
that time and all those words trying to deliver to you. Being able to get to the gist allows you to
read more efficiently and more effectively. It allows you to read with purpose. Most people
read by looking at every word, every sentence, every paragraph as its own independent piece.
This is the equivalent of listening to an orchestra play and trying to isolate every note of each
instrument independent of one another.
Not only is this a very inefficient way to listen to music, it also misses the point of what the
composer and the conductor were trying to deliver to you. They wanted you to get the 'gist', the
moment, the mood, the message of the music. Such is the case in reading. If you concentrate too
heavily on each piece in isolation, you can easily miss the message the author was trying to
portray.
Getting the gist guides you through the reading process. It allows you to put together the pieces
of the puzzle the author is weaving for you, it allows you to stay with the author for the entire
piece - eliminating the need to continue to go back and re-read the information. It helps you to
place the author's work in not only short term, but long term memory by more quickly linking it
with other information you are familiar with. It even allows you to compare and contrast with
other information you have encountered in the past - having a proper dialog with the piece while
reading through it. It takes you from simply 'reading' a piece to engaging with the author and
making the time taken to read more worthwhile. Gist puts you in the proper frame of mind to
read the piece as intended. Have you ever had a conversation with someone simply to look up
and think 'what the heck are they talking about?'

Activity : Get the Gist

The Get the Gist strategy will help you find the main idea as you have to limit the number of
words used and so focus on the important ideas.
1. Read the text
2. Fill out the 5Ws and H
Who:
What:
When:
Where:
Why:
How:
3. Write the gist of what you have read in 40 words or less!

What is justice? This may seem like a simple question to answer but for many in today's society
it is not. Individuals throughout society have their own distinctive explanation of justice. It is a
word in which, to every person, has a different meaning. Although "Justice" has a vast list of
meanings, it can somewhat be defined. Loosely, it can be defined as "the principal of fairness
and the ideal of moral equity." (Schmalleger 6.0, pg 706) Justice is at the center of every debate,
involving our criminal justice system, because of its vast majority of definitions.
             Although the definitions are vast and complicated, what justice means to me is being
punished for a crime that was committed. Seeing that the offender pays for what they have done.
This so called punishment usually entails some type of prison sentence or maybe even the death
penalty. For many people justice has the same meaning. But is it justice if a person kills another
because that person previously hurt his or her child, or what about someone else who killed
someone accidentally or in self-defense? Is justice taking "an eye for an eye?" How exactly
should the punishment fit the crime? These are questions that make society question which form
of justice to agree with. Although I believe that punishment should fit the crime, I do not agree
with it to the extent of "an eye for an eye." This scenario is not justice to me because two wrongs
do not make a right. I believe a person should be punished to the fullest extent for a crime, but
there are certain ways to go about accomplishing this.
 Chapter
Lesson 1 IDENTIFYING MAIN IDEAS AND FINDING SUPPORTING DETAILS

Direction: Read the following paragraph and use it to answer pretest questions 1-4.

Robots are being used in sumo wrestling contest. Sumo wrestling is a sport that started in
Japan. It takes place in a ring. Two players try to score points by holding each other down or
pushing each other out of the ring. Robot sumo uses robots instead of human. The robot that
scores the most points wins.

1. What is the main idea of the paragraph?

a. Sumo wrestling takes place in a ring
b. Robots are being used in sumo wrestling contests.
c. Sumo wrestling is a sport that started in Japan
d. The robot that scores the most points wins.
2. Which term best describes the main idea of a piece of writing?
a. A detail
b. A broad topic
c. A central point
d. An aspect
3. Which of the following is a supporting detail of the paragraph?
a. Robots are being used in sumo wrestling contests.
b. Watching robot sumo is boring
c. Robot sumo contests are better than human sumo contests.
d. Robot sumo uses robots instead of humans.
4. Which term best describes the supporting details of a piece of writing?
a. A detail
b. A central point
c. A broad topic
d. An aspect

MAIN IDEA AND SUPPORTING DETAILS

\ The main idea in a paragraph is the most important idea. It is the central point that an author is
trying to get across to the reader.
The supporting details describe the main idea. They make the main idea stronger and clearer.
Keep in mind that the main idea is often the first or last sentence of a paragraph.
To find the main idea, answer two questions;
What is the paragraph mostly about?
Which sentence best tells what the paragraph is about?
Now it’s time to show what you have learned!
Read the Article of the R.A No. 4136 below and write the main idea and its supporting details.

CHAPTER II

Registration of Motor Vehicles

ARTICLE I

Duty to Register, Reports, Applications, Classifications

SECTION 5. Compulsory Registration of Motor Vehicles. – (a) All motor vehicles and trailer of
any type used or operated on or upon any highway of the Philippines must be registered with
the Bureau of Land Transportation for the current year in accordance with the provisions of
this Act.

(b) The dates of annual registration of motor vehicles shall be based on a registration scheme
to be prepared by the Bureau of Land Transportation subject to approval of the Minister of
Transportation and Communications. The scheme shall provide for a system that will
distribute the registration of motor vehicles equitably over different months in a calendar
year. Said scheme and rates shall not be changed more often than once every three (3) years,
and only upon due notice given to the public at least ninety (90) calendar days before the
effectivity of such registration scheme.

Any registration of motor vehicles not renewed or before the date fixed by the Bureau of Land
Transportation shall become delinquent and invalid.

(c) Dealer’s Report. – Dealers shall submit to the Director of Land Transportation a report
concerning the sale or transfer of or any other transaction involving motor vehicles, including
such information as importation, manufacturing data, and number of stocks remaining, as
the Director may require for the effective enforcement of the provision of this Act within five
(5) working days from such sale, transfer or transaction. Such dealers shall furnish also the
buyer with a duplicate copy thereof, duly authenticated by the Director of Land
Transportation.

MAIN IDEA

Supporting detail 1

Supporting detail 2

Supporting detail 3
Lesson 2 DISTINGUISHING FACTS FROM OPINIONS

For higher level reading comprehension, it is essential that students are able to accurately
distinguish between fact and opinion. To do this successfully students must begin with solid
definitions of the two concepts. Once this has been achieved, students must gain practice
applying these definitions through activities.

WHAT IS FACT
A fact generally refers to something that is true and can be verified as such. That is, a fact is
something that can be proven to be true.

WHAT IS AN OPINION
An opinion refers to a personal belief. It elates to how someone feels about something. Others
may agree or disagree with an opinion, but they cannot prove or disapprove it. This is what
defines as opinion.

Why Are Fact and Opinion so Important?

The ability to distinguish between fact and opinion helps students develop their critical and
analytical skills. Fact and opinion are often woven together in texts and speeches. It is therefore
imperative that the students are able to unravel the threads of what is true from what is merely
belief if they are to successfully navigate the deluge of media they will encounter in their
lifetimes.

Whether on the news, in advertising, books, or even in real life situations, distinguishing between
what is fact and what is opinion is crucial to becoming an autonomous person with the critical
abilities necessary to avoid being manipulated easily.

The Language of Fact and Opinion: Signal Words and Phrases

 As we mentioned above, often writers will liven up their facts with a sprinkling of opinion.
Unfortunately, it can at times be difficult to extract the verifiable truths from the author’s
preferences and biases. Luckily the language used itself often throws up helpful clues in the
forms of words and phrases that assist us in identifying statements as fact-based or opinion-based.
Let’s now take a look at some examples of those signal words and phrases being used in the
sentence fragments that often precede a statement of fact or opinion.

FACT

 The annual report confirms…

 Scientists have recently discovered…

 According to the results of the tests…

 The investigation demonstrated…

OPINION
 He claimed that…

 It is the officer’s view that…

 The report argues that…

 Many scientists suspect that…

As we can see from the above examples, the language used to introduce a statement can be
helpful in indicating whether it is being framed as a fact or an opinion.
It is important for students to understand too, that things are not always as they appear to be. At
times, writers, whether consciously or not, will frame opinion as fact and vice versa. This is why
it is important that students develop a clear understanding of what constitutes fact and opinion
and are afforded ample opportunities to practice distinguishing between the two.

Exercise 1:
Mark statements of fact with an F and statements of opinion with an O.
_____ 1. Many people order pepperoni on their pizzas.
_____ 2. Saturday is the best day of the week.
_____ 3. People use their legs to walk.
_____ 4. The cake tastes delicious.
_____ 5. King John of England signed the Magna Carta in 1215.
 _____ 6. The pH levels in acids are lower than pH levels in alkaline.
_____ 7. The internet is being used by teenagers to waste their time in social media.
_____ 8. I believe that the greatest president in the USA is Barack Obama.
_____ 9. The capital of Ukraine is Kyiv.
_____ 10. Nike is more useful than adidas.

Let’s test your understanding.

As you read Marco’s letter from Uncle Ben, think about which statements are fact and which statements
are opinion, and sort them using the template below.
Marco got a letter from his Uncle Ben, the airplane pilot. Uncle Ben has traveled all over the world.

Dear Marco,
This is my third time visiting Paris, and I think it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Paris, as I’m sure you
know, is the capital of France. Today I walked along the Avenue des Champs-Elysees, which is the most famous street in Paris. I
think it may be the most famous street in the world. It is lined with beautiful trees, fountains, and flowers. There are shops, theaters,
and restaurants, and many sidewalk cafes.
I had a wonderful lunch at one of the sidewalk cafes. The pastry I had for dessert was especially delicious. Paris is known
for its fine French cooking. I noticed on the café menu that they serve one of the most popular French dishes, which is escargot.
Snails, in other words! I don’t think I’ll be trying that while I am here, though.
When you think of Paris, you probably think of the Eiffel Tower. Anyone visiting Paris has to see the Eiffel Tower. You
can see the top of the Eiffel Tower from anywhere in the city. It is almost 1000 feet tall. When it was built, it was the tallest
building in the world. You can walk up the stairs to the top, or you can take an elevator. From the top you can look out across all of
Paris. It is an amazing sight!
Tomorrow I am going to the Louvre Museum. It is one of the largest museums in the world. Once it was the French
King’s palace. Now, it is home to some of the most famous artworks in the world. I look forward to seeing the “Mona Lisa”
painting. Have you seen pictures of it? It was painted over 500 years ago! There have been many poems and songs written about
this painting. The woman in the painting has a little half-smile. To me, that makes it seem like she has a secret that she isn’t going
to tell.

Yours truly,
Uncle Ben.

Opinion
 Lesson 3 SUMMARIZING A READ TEXT

Summarizing means giving a concise overview of a text’s main points in your own words. A
summary is always much shorter than the original text.

Writing a summary does not involve critiquing or analyzing the source- you should simply
provide a clear, objective, accurate account of the most important information and ideas, without
copying any text from the original and without missing any of the key points.

Here are three (3) steps in summarizing

original text
Read and understand the
your own words
Rephrase the main points in

SUMMARIZING
3 STEPS IN
details
Sort out main points and

Writing Summary| Learn how to write a summary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwEl-MiZH0E
 Try this out! Write the summary of the text.
“… there are two ways to become wealthy: to create wealth or to take wealth away from others. The
former adds to society. The latter typically subtracts from it, for in the process of taking it away, wealth
gets destroyed. A monopolist who overcharges for his product takes away money from those who he is
overcharging and at the same time destroys value. To get his monopoly price, he has to restrict
production.” Stiglitz, J.E. (2013). The price of inequality. London: Penguin.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Activity 1: Writing Summary

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENk_QRA2XsY

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ln2X6yA5iQ
https://www.cuesta.edu/student/resources/ssc/study_guides/reading_comp/307_read_main_idea.
html
https://laulima.hawaii.edu/access/content/user/vvenzon/Eportfolio/Main%20Idea%20Module
%20Prototype%20Final.pdf
https://www.stjoemo.info/DocumentCenter/View/10312/The-Importance-of-Leadership-in-
Policing

https://policeteststudyguide.com/top-50-police-vocabulary-you-need-to-know/

Respect and Disrespect in the United States Army. (2020, Aug 12). Retrieved
fromhttps://phdessay.com/respect-and-disrespect-in-the-united-states-army/

Prepared by: Submitted to:

Date Submitted: HILLARY JOY M. RUFINO
Ka Lok Lee July 27,
2021 Instructor
Giselle Soriano
Angelina Doronio
Leonida Gamboa