English Lesson: Reading Practice

Welcome back to JForrest English.

I'm Jennifer.

And today we're going to read a news article together so you can learn a lot of advanced

vocabulary, advanced grammar, and natural expressions.

Let's get started.

Let me read the headline Netherlands phone Ban Announced to Stop school disruptions A

Ban.

What does this mean?

When you ban something, it means that it is no longer available or allowed.

No longer available or allowed?

Here the word ban is not.

The verb of the sentence is being used as the subject, the phone ban, so it's a noun.

The verb in the sentence is announced.

In the past simple announce so you can use ban as a noun or as a verb.

As a verb, you could say the Netherlands banned phones in schools, so this is the verb in

the past simple.

I could also say this article is about the Netherlands phone ban.

So here ban is being used as a noun.

Now you may notice also that I said the Netherlands the Netherlands phone ban.

The Netherlands as a country is an exception and it takes an article.

Countries in general don't take articles, but there are certain exceptions.

the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands.

So keep that in mind, but make sure you don't put it on most countries because they don't

take articles.

Let's continue devices, including mobile phones.

Are set to be banned from classrooms to stop them from disrupting learning.

Are set to be banned.

When something is set to and then you have the infinitive, it means that it is about

to.

For example, the party is set and then we have our infinitive, so our verb to be the

party is set to start now maybe this.

Is in the past, so you would change this.

The party was set to start at 7:00 PM, but it started at 8:00, so this was the set time

and then this is the actual time.

So set to be banned, to be banned because the mobile phones are receiving the band,

they're not the ones doing the action, they're receiving.

The action So we commonly use that for a verb ban as well, to be banned.

You might say my sugar was banned in my house.

To be banned, sugar was banned in my house.

Now, using an active sentence, you could say my mom, my dad, my parents banned sugar in

our house.

Which could be a common thing that's banned devices, including mobile phones, are set

to be banned from classrooms to stop them from disrupting learning.

When something disrupts something, it prevents it from operating or performing as usual or

as expected.

So I'll put that here for you, to prevent something from continuing as usual or as expected.

And that's what the phones are doing in the classroom and that's why they've been banned,

to be banned.

They've been banned.

I've summarized all the notes from this lesson and you can download the free lesson pedia.

Simply look in the description for the link to download it.

Let's continue.

The initiative so the initiative is the Netherlands plan to ban mobile phones.

The initiative is being introduced in collaboration with schools and is to take effect at the

start of next year.

So to take effect this is just when it will start, so you can say the initiative will

start.

At the start of next year.

In this case, start means the beginning of next year.

I don't know if they mean calendar year or school year because those are different, but

to take a fact simply means to to start being operational.

So another common expression is to come into effect, to come into effect, and this is to

become operational or to become law, because we use this a lot with policies or rules.

You could say that the regulation will come into effect.

So when it comes into effect and is operational, it is in fact the law.

So you'll see this a lot with with government, our new policy, our new tax change comes into

effect on August 1st and then they can list a specific date or they might say comes.

Into effect soon in the new year.

It doesn't have to be a specific date come into effect or take effect.

When it will officially start or become operational, there will be some exceptions.

Now if there is an exception, it means that certain people or certain times won't follow

the policy.

So the policy that phones are banned applies to everyone except the people who are exceptions,

so it doesn't apply to them.

So this is when a rule or policy doesn't apply.

So they'll identify the exceptions there are, including for students with medical needs

or a disability.

So those are two of the exceptions.

And then for classes focused on digital skills, so this could be another one.

You likely use the conjunction except a lot.

For example, I study English every day except.

Sunday.

So you're listing the day that doesn't apply.

Sunday doesn't apply to this.

Using the word exception you could say I said the English every day.

Sunday is my only exception exception.

So here you're just using it in a different way, a shorter way, but they mean the exact

same thing.

Let's continue.

The ban.

So here they're using it as our noun.

Noun.

The ban is not legally enforceable, so you can't enforce it.

Make someone follow that legally, but may become so in the future.

So become so means it may become legally enforceable, but right now it's not.

Let's continue, even though mobile phones are almost intertwined with our lives.

Let's take a look here at intertwined.

Intertwined means that something is closely connected and difficult to separate.

We do have more of a literal definition of this.

You probably have a drawer in your house where there are just lots of random chords.

So if this white chord is difficult to separate from this black chord, you can say they're

intertwined, they're connected and difficult to separate.

Right now they're not intertwined, but then if I mix them all together, they can become

intertwined.

So this is more of a literal meaning, and we do use it especially.

In this situation, which does seem to happen to me, but we also have more of a figurative

meaning, you might say our lives are intertwined.

So maybe this is you and your best friend, or you and your significant other, or you

and a colleague even and.

You are so close together, you have all of these areas that you share, and it's difficult

to separate your life from your best friend's life because they're so intertwined.

So we do use this a lot with very close relationships as well.

Our lives are intertwined even though mobile phones are almost intertwined with our lives.

So.

Closely connected.

They're difficult to separate.

Could you imagine separating your daytoday life from your mobile?

Will that be difficult because it's so intertwined?

They do not belong in the classroom.

What do you think?

Do you agree with this statement?

Share your opinion?

Do you agree that mobile phones don't belong in the classroom?

What do you think?

Yes, I agree.

No I don't agree and you can share the reason why, said the education minister.

Students must be able to concentrate there, there, being in the classroom.

When you see there, you always have to look back at the last location, because in this

case there represents a location over there and the last location is the classroom.

Students must be able to concentrate there in the classroom and be given every opportunity

to learn well.

I see a lot of mistakes with this sentence structure and it is pretty basic, I'll be

honest, but I still see a lot of mistakes with it.

The sentence structure is.

To be able to do something.

So here you have your verb to be.

You can conjugate your verb according to the subject and the time reference.

Able does not change.

It's always able.

And then you have your infinitive.

So you could say we weren't able to locate the file.

We weren't because this is my verb to be, which is conjugated with my subject and the

time reference, which is the past simple, and I turned it into the negative as well.

We were not able to locate the file.

Now I am able to come to the party.

I'm able to so my subject, my verb able doesn't change.

And then the infinitive.

Very common, very basic sentence structure here.

But I still see mistakes with this.

So take some time and practice this.

Students must be able to concentrate.

Now must is a modal verb, so notice after a modal verb we don't use the infinitive.

You have modal verb plus your base verb, which is just the.

The verb without to students must be able to concentrate there and be given every opportunity

to learn well.

We know from scientific research that mobile phones disrupt this.

And then we already learned disrupt.

Here.

Disrupt is being used as a verb.

They disrupt this.

This is their ability to concentrate and learn well.

Previously we looked at.

Disrupt as a verb as well, but it was in the ING form because it followed A preposition.

From is a preposition after prepositions.

You have your gerund verb with ING, and here we simply have it as our present simple conjugated

with mobile phones, which is our subject.

They they disrupt this, they disrupt this.

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Let's continue.

Various studies have found limiting children's screen time is linked to improved cognition

and concentration.

OK, so limiting children's screen time this is.

The action, and this is linked to, is linked to.

You can think of this is linked to to show connection.

So we have one thing limiting children's screen time, and then we have another thing, improved

cognition and concentration.

If something is linked to something, it means they're connected because this is a link.

You can think of a chain link in a fence.

They're connected, so that's to be linked to, so their verb.

Here our expression is to be linked to, to be linked to.

Now, we generally use this expression when you want to show.

That one thing has an effect on another thing, so there's a cause and effect relationship.

So again, our one thing exercising our next thing.

Reduced heart attacks.

And I want to show there's a cause and effect relationship.

Exercising causes the effect of reduced heart attacks.

Exercising has been linked to reduced heart attacks.

So here's the expression to be linked to.

So my verb is in the present perfect.

And then I have my infinitive to be linked to.

Let's continue.

Other tech, including tablets and smartwatches are also included in the ban.

The government said it would be up to individual schools to agree.

The exact rules with teachers, parents and pupils.

This sounds a little weird to me because we don't use agree and then directly whatever.

You're agreeing to notice because you agree to something.

So I think it's just there is missing a preposition here individual schools to agree to.

The exact rules.

Because you agreed to something, you don't just agree something.

I agreed.

Stay late.

This sounds weird.

It does not sound correct.

I agreed.

Stay late.

I agreed to stay late.

Now it sounds great.

This means you accepted, your boss said.

Can you stay late?

And you said yes, I can stay late.

I agreed to stay late.

So that's why we need this preposition here to agree to the exact rules with teachers.

Now notice the government said it would be.

Up to to be up to and then we have a someone or a something.

The individual schools, while it represents the teachers and the administrators at the

school.

So technically it is a someone.

When something is up to someone, it means they have the ability to make the decision.

It's their decision to make.

So a friend could say, do you want to?

Have pizza or pasta tonight and then you can say it's up to you.

It's up to you.

You're saying you decide it's your responsibility.

I'm giving you responsibility to make the decision.

It's up to you.

You can decide if we're having pizza or pasta.

It's up to you.

So the government said it would be up to the individual schools to agree to the exact rules

with teachers, parents and pupils.

So the schools have to decide on the rules, including whether they wanted to completely

ban devices from schools Okay So schools have the flexibility to decide.

The announcement follows a similar decision by Finland last week.

Is something follows something, it means it comes next.

Just like if this is Sally and this is Larry, you could say Larry is following Sally, he's

coming next.

So something follows something, it comes next.

I'll write that for you.

So this means that Finland announced before the Netherlands announced because.

The announcement by the Netherlands followed Finland's announcement.

So first Finland announced and then the Netherlands announced the ban.

Other countries, including England and France, have also proposed banning.

When you propose something, it means you suggest it.

So they haven't decided they're considering it.

So when you propose something, you suggest it for consideration, to suggest something,

something for decision or consideration.

They have also proposed banning mobile phones to improve learning so proposed.

You may be more familiar with this.

Word from a proposal.

When someone proposes to someone, they say Will you marry me?

Because you're suggesting marriage.

But it's the other person who gets to consider your proposal and then decide.

So we use that.

Will you marry me?

This is will you marry me?

This is the words used when someone proposes the traditional words.

You can say other things, but this is the traditional way to propose.

When someone proposes and what are they proposing?

They're proposing marriage.

You don't need to say that.

You don't need to say, oh wow, Sally proposed marriage to Tom.

Well, generally the guy proposes, but why not a girl can propose to.

But I'll say it the more traditional way.

Oh, wow.

Tom proposed to Sally and you proposed to someone.

Did you hear that Tom proposed to Sally?

So you proposed marriage, but you don't need to say that it's implied to someone.

And how did Tom do that?

He said.

Sally, I love you.

Will you marry me?

And then hopefully he gave her a ring and some flowers and some other special items,

and then Sally will say yes or no, or I have to think about it and will consider that proposal,

that proposal.

And that is the end of our lesson.

So what I'll do is I'll go to the top and I will read it from start to finish.

And this time you can focus on my pronunciation.

Netherlands phone ban announced To stop school disruptions devices including mobile phones

are sent to be banned from classrooms to stop them from disrupting learning, the Dutch government

has announced.

The initiative is being introduced in collaboration with schools and is to take effect at the

start of next year.

There will be some exceptions, including for students with medical needs or a disability,

and for classes focused on digital skills.

The ban is not legally enforceable, but may become so in the future.

Even though mobile phones are almost intertwined with our lives, they do not belong in the

classroom, said the education minister.

Students must be able to concentrate there and be given every opportunity to learn well.

We know from scientific research that mobile phones disrupt this.

Various studies have found limiting children's screen time is linked to improve cognition

and concentration.

Other tech, including tablets and smartwatches, are also included in the Dutch ban.

The government said it would be up to individual schools to agree the exact rules with teachers,

parents and pupils, including whether they wanted to completely ban devices from schools.

The announcement follows a similar decision by Finland last week, other countries including

England and France.

Have also proposed banning mobile phones to improve learning.

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