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The Changing Face of London

1. Before reading the text.

Sommaire

Are We Heading for a London Without Children? - Worksheet
Gentrification, Does It Work? - VideoGentrification, Does it Work? - Video Worksheet

Are We Heading for a London Without Children? - Worksheet

1. Before reading the text.
a.Read the headline and identify the topic. Based on what you already know about London, suggest reasons which could explain the title. 
b.Using your completed map of London make assumptions about which neighbourhood(s) might be mentioned.
c.Can you imagine what the word gentrification means? Discuss with a partner. 
2. Read the text.
a.Check the hypotheses made in Activity 1. b. and complete your map by highlighting the boroughs mentioned in the article. 
b.The following definition of gentrification echoes ideas or passages from the article. Can you match the highlighted expressions below with elements from the text. Each colour refers to an idea or a topic from the article.
Gentrification  is the process of urban development by which the character of a poor urban area is changed bywealthier people moving in, improving housing, thustransforming it from low value to high value,often displacing current inhabitants,such as low-income families, in the process, oftenmaking it impossible for them to find affordable housing in the city.
3. React. Discuss what you understood with a partner and express your reaction to the process of gentrification. 

Gentrification, Does It Work? - Video

Extract 1: [0:00 - 0:58] 
Extract 2: [0:58 - 2:13]
Extract 3: [5:21 - 6:55]

Gentrification, Does it Work? - Video Worksheet

1. Before watching the video. Anticipate the nature of the following document entitled "Roundtable: Gentrification, Does it Work?". What do you expect to hear?
2. Watch Extract 1 [0:00 - 0:58] and check your assumption(s) from Activity 1 with a partner and say what you learned or heard that confirmed what you expected.
3. Watch Extract 2 [0:58 - 2:13]. 
a. First with sound off and discuss with a partner what you understood from the visual elements only (changes, people affected, people' s reactions, etc.).
b. Then watch with sound on and identify the effects of gentrification: 
Positive effects: ...
Negative effects: ...
4. Look at the list of participantsin the roundtable and imagine what their viewpoints on gentrification might be, based on their jobs or activities. After completing the activity, discuss your ideas with a partner before sharing with the class. 
a.King Williams, filmmaker and resident of Atlanta in the US, where gentrification has changed the city centre.
b.Elena Besussi, professor at the Bartlett School of Planning, whose vision is a world where cities contribute to the well-being of both people and the planet.
c.Rob Pearson, head executive at Nexus Planning, a group of planning and regeneration consultants.
d.Javis Huxley, an activist who wants to save the Latin Village:.
5. Watch Extract 3[5:21 - 6:55]. 
a.List the key words used by each participant below.
Rob Pearson:
Javie Huxley:
b.Sum up their viewpoints in your own words.
6.First on your own, then with a partner and finally with the whole class, draw conclusions about the point of the debate and establish a link with the other documents that you studied before.