Column Discussion (Expert)｜コラムディスカッション（上級）Lesson33 : Male Elephants Are Not Loners After All

PART A_1

Let’s learn vocabulary. Listen and repeat the words and the sentences with your tutor.

PART A_2

1.　tread	/tred/
	-to set down the foot or feet in walking; step; walk.
	The hikers were instructed to tread back to the campsite.
2.　lessen	/LES-uhn/
	-to become less.
	His exhaustion was lessened after drinking a glass of cold water.
3.　sight	/sahyt /
	-the act or an instance of seeing
	A group of teenagers caught sight of the burglar escaping the bank.
4.　promote	/pruh-MOHT/
	-to help or encourage to exist or flourish; further:
	They are blindly promoting their favorite candidate.
5.　presence	/PREZ-uhns/
	-the state or fact of being present, as with others or in a place.
	Her mere presence brightened up the room.

PART B_1

Let’s read the article. Please read it aloud, and I will check your pronunciation and intonation.

PART B_2

Scientists: Male elephants are not loners

For the longest time, male elephants were thought to be loner creatures. Most often, they separate themselves from their mother’s herd at the age of 10 to 20 years old. But a recent study debunks this idea.
Based on a study by the experts, a few younger male elephants were found treading behind older male elephants as they moved around. While watching the videos of elephants, experts caught sight of 1,264 male African elephants. They concluded that young male elephants seldom traveled on their own.
In addition, older males would usually take the lead when traveling with other male elephants of different age groups. They were also observed to promote order within the herd. Another study showed that the presence of older male elephants lessened the aggression of the younger ones. Adult male elephants are characterized by having larger and longer tusks – a kind of huge tooth protruding outside their mouth.

PART C_1

Let’s answer comprehension questions. Please answer them based on the article.

PART C_2

1.	What was the misconception about male elephants?
2.	When does a male elephant leave its mother’s herd?
3.	What makes older male elephants distinct from younger ones?

PART D_1

Let’s discuss the article. Please answer the questions below and express your opinions.

PART D_2

1.	What is your reaction to this study?
2.	Do you think it is important that a false idea about elephants has been debunked?
3.	What can you say about younger male elephants being more aggressive than the older ones?
4.	Do you think adult male elephants and adult men have something in common?
5.	What is your opinion on hunting elephants for their tusks?

REVIEW AND FEEDBACK

Now, let us review the things that you learned in this lesson.

ではこのレッスンで学んだことを振り返りましょう。

(Please give a short feedback on how your student did in your class.)

	Grammar 文法	Pronunciation 発音	Vocabulary 単語	Comprehension 理解
GOOD	文法の誤りはほとんどなく、完全な文章で話すことができる	ほとんどの単語をはっきりと正しく発音することができる	習った表現を適切に使うことができる	文章を理解し、質問に正しく答えることができる
FAIR	文法の誤りはあるが、完全な文章で話すことができる	発音の練習が必要な言葉がいくつかある	たまにミスはあるが、習った表現を適切に使うことができる	文章を完全に理解するのは難しく、質問に正しく答えられないときもある
POOR	文章で話すのは難しく、単語だけで話すことができる	発音の練習が必要である	習った単語と表現を少しだけ使うことができる	文章を理解するのは難しく、質問に答えるのは難しい

TUTOR FEEDBACK

GRAMMAR
Good:	Was able to speak in complete sentences with minimal grammatical errors.
Fair:	Was able to speak in complete sentences with evident grammatical errors.
Poor:	Was able to speak using words only.
PRONUNCIATION
Good:	Was able to pronounce most of the words clearly and correctly.
Fair:	Mispronounced a few words.
Poor:	Mispronounced most of the words.
VOCABULARY
Good:	Used appropriate expressions learned in class.
Fair:	Used appropriate expressions learned in class and made a few errors in word choice.
Poor:	Used only a few words and expressions.
COMPREHENSION
Good:	Was able to understand the passages and answer the questions correctly.
Fair:	Had a little difficulty in understanding passages and answering questions.
Poor:	Had a hard time understanding passages and answering questions.

Parts of this lesson material are based on:
An article by Voice of America