Download Describing Trends

English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
Describing Trends
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Skills Focus Interpreting data
Language Focus Collocations - Verb + preposition / Noun + preposition
Vocabulary Development – describing trends
A. Read the definitions and then do the crossword.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
expand
trend
reflect
enroll
faculty
predict
approximately
overall
statistics
to become bigger in size or in number
overall movement in a particular direction
to show what you see
to join a course at a university or college
a department or group of departments in a university or college
to say what you think will happen in the future
more or less, almost the same, roughly
in general, generally, not specific
numerical data; numbers about a specific subject
Across
1. According to ......, Cairo is the
largest city in Egypt.
3. The busy roads ...... the large
number of cars.
7. We used to have one shop. We
needed to ......, so now we have nine.
8. He was promoted to Dean of the
...... of Arts at Virginia Commonwealth
University.
9. More and more Qataris are
attending universities every year.
There is an increasing ...... for higher
education.
Down
2. I don’t remember the exact time of
the accident, but it happened at ......
ten ‘o clock.
4. They ...... that the temperature
would reach 55º today.
5. Leqhwiya lost a few matches, but
...... the season was very successful.
6. I wanted to improve my writing so
I decided to ...... in a creative writing
course.
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English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
Enrolment Statistics at Coral University
Subject
Arts
Medicine & Industry
Information & Technology
Engineering & Technology
Law
Economics & Commerce
2000-2001
men
women
495
989
154
186
108
72
245
119
300
103
461
466
2006-2007
men
women
560
1020
130
230
140
86
264
123
353
196
467
407
B. Look at the table in detail. Read the text about changing trends at Coral
University. Complete the paragraphs with words and phrases from the box.
nearly
the same
just under
three-quarters
twice as many
a. There has been an overall rise in the numbers of students enrolling in higher education in
the last twenty years. It is clear that the subjects chosen by students reflect trends in the job
market as well as changes in the students’ field of interest and research.
b. The table shows the numbers of students enrolled at Coral University for the years 20002001 and 2006-2007, according to subjects studied. Firstly for the academic year 2000-2001,
the most popular subjects for both men and women were in the arts, with
1……….…………….….……….
500 men and approximately 2……….…………….….………. women
studying these subjects. In Economics and Commerce the numbers of men and women were
almost 3……….…………….….………. in that year. However, Engineering and Technology were
more popular with male students that year, with only 119 women, compared to 245 men
choosing these subjects. Information Technology was also more popular with men, with 108
male and 72 female students, and in Law just under 4……….…………….….………. of the total
number were men.
c. The academic year 2006-2007 saw a general increase in student numbers, as most faculties
recorded a rise in enrolment. For example, the number of men studying IT rose
significantly from 108 in 2000 to 140 in 2006, and numbers studying Law rose to over 350
men and 5……….…………….….………. 200 women. However, there were also some decreases.
The number of men studying Medicine and Dentistry dropped to 130, and the number of
women studying Economics and Commerce also fell sharply by 60, to 407.
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English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
Skills Focus
Interpreting data
When you interpret figures, look first for general patterns
 words of quantity and comparison such as majority, twice as many, the same as
 approximations such as almost, nearly, approximately, (just) over/under
Then look in more detail at the actual figures or values. Are these real numbers, percentages,
or other values?
Identify equivalents, for example, one in ten = 10%, a quarter = 25%
C. Some of these words were used in the passage. Use your dictionaries to
find the meaning of the words you don’t know and write them in the box.
rise
decline
increase
remain stable
fluctuate
fall
grow
reach a peak
decrease
go up
go down
stay the same
change frequently
peak
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
…………………………
D. Look at the verb + adverb taken from paragraph C. Note how they’ve
been changed to adjective + noun. Does the adjective and adverb
describe a large change or a small change?
verb + adverb
rose significantly
fell sharply
adjective + noun
large or small change
a significant rise
large
a sharp fall
large
Complete the table with adjective + noun.
verb + adverb
adjective + noun
large or small change
1. rose dramatically
1. ……..…………………………………...……
1. …..…………………….……
2. fell substantially
2. ……..…………………………………...……
2. …..…………………….……
3. increased considerably
3. ……..…………………………………...……
3. …..…………………….……
4. dropped slightly
4. ……..…………………………………...……
4. …..…………………….……
5. decreased noticeably
5. ……..…………………………………...……
5. …..…………………….……
6. climbed rapidly
6. ……..…………………………………...……
6. …..…………………….……
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English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
E. Correct the wrong information of each graph.
150
100
50
0
150
100
50
0
1. The numbers grew
dramatically and
after remaining
stable, decreased
slightly.
sharply
60
2. Prices fell
substantially and
then fluctuated.
…………….…………
…………….…………
…………….…………
3. After a sharp rise,
the number
peaked at 100 and
then declined
slowly.
…………….…………
…………….…………
100
40
20
0
4. The value
dropped sharply
and then
remained stable.
…………….…………
…………….…………
50
0
F. Replace the underlined words or phrases with words or numbers from the box.
90%
47%
70% of
nearly two-thirds
a quarter
1. Seven in ten students live in university accommodation.
……………………………………..
2. 25% of arts students work in education.
……………………………………..
3. Nine out of ten factory workers are men.
……………………………………..
4. 64% of jobs in the textile industry are in South-East Asia.
……………………………………..
5. Almost half of office workers travel to work by car.
……………………………………..
G. Look at paragraph C. Underline the nouns and verbs that refer to changes.
Circle the prepositions that go with them.
Example
increase in
H. Look at the graph below and complete the gaps with a suitable preposition.
Number of people who worked in the oil
industry between 2000 and 2006
x 1000
80
There was an increase 1………. the number of people
who worked in the oil industry between 2000 and
2006. From 2o00 to 2001, the number rose 2……….
60
40,000 but there was a slight drop 3………. 10,000 in
40
the following year.
20
4
………. 60,000 and reached a peak
in 2004.
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Numbers rose again in 2003
It then came down
6
5
………. 70,000
………. 50,000 in
2005. The number stayed the same in 2006.
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English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
I. Look at the graph below and follow the instructions carefully.
Students' purchase of academic books in Sweden in 2012
%
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
1. Unscramble the introduction below.
Sweden in 2012. The shows the percentage graph academic books of students buying in.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
2. Add suitable prepositions in each of the spaces.
From January to March the percentage of students dropped steadily ………….. one third
………….. 30% ………….. 20%.
3. Describe the trend from March to August.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
4. Change the verb + adverb in bold to an adjective + noun. Rewrite the
sentences.
Then in August the number increased significantly by 90%. It then dropped
sharply to 30% in the next month.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
5. Describe the trend from October to December.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...
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English for Academic Purposes II
Lesson 5: Describing Trends
J. Describe the trends for this graph.
Students' purchase of academic books in New Zealand in 2012
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
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