Practice English expressions and academic vocabulary words from an interview about ChatGPT!

What is ChatGPT?

Study Tip! Tap or scroll over the underlined words to see their definitions.

ChatGPT is a computer program that can answer questions, write papers, take exams, and make up original stories. Does it sound too good to be true? Well, since it first launched, opinions have been mixed. Some people are very enthusiastic about the benefits of ChatGPT in education, healthcare, and business. However, people are also asking if it will create problems, especially in schools where students could use it to cheat on assignments. Let’s look at some of the vocabulary words and sentences related to this topic.

First, read through the vocabulary words:

Study Tip! Tap or scroll over the list below to see their definitions.

1. banned
2. shy away from
3. generate
4. get rid of
5. resign ourselves
6. minimize
7. cheating
8. level the playing field
9. ubiquitous
10. novel

Now, look at how Ethan Mollick and Mary Louise Kelly use these vocabulary words in an interview about ChatGPT.

1. “Some school districts have banned access to the tool [ChatGPT], and not without reason.”
2. “…despite… the clear potential for cheating, not all educators are shying away from ChatGPT.”
3. “…we had a class yesterday where people had to generate ideas for their class project [using ChatGPT].”
4. “We can’t get rid of [ChatGPT].”
5. “It’s not going away, so we have to just resign ourselves to ways to learning to live with this .”
6. “That doesn’t minimize the fact that cheating and negativity is there, but those have been there for a long time.”
7. “…[ChatGPT] might help level the playing field in the classroom for students whose first language is not English…”
8. “…there is a lot of evidence that cheating has been pretty ubiquitous for a while.”
9. ” I think there’s a reason we assign homework and assign essays, but I don’t think that that is novel.”

After reading the quotations, what are the speakers saying about the use of ChatGPT, and it’s possible advantages and disadvantages?

What do you think?

1. Have you ever used the Internet to generate ideas for a class project or essay? What did you use it for?
2. Is cheating ubiquitous at your school or work place? Do you think it will be more ubiquitous with ChatGPT? Explain and give an example.
3. How could technology level the playing field for ESL students?
4. Should schools ban the use of ChatGPT? What are some of the benefits and drawbacks of using this kind of artificial intelligence?

Got it? Now practice the vocabulary words in context below.

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Improve your listening skills and hear the vocabulary words used in context. Listen to the full interview about ChatGPT from NPR here!

What do you think about ChatGPT? Keep practicing English and learn even more new words by joining the conversation and sharing your thoughts with learners from around the world.

Practice using the present perfect while looking at examples from the interview about ChatGPT. Then take a short quiz to check your understanding.

Try the complete practice with everything included. Let us take you through the listening, vocabulary, grammar, and joining in the conversation. Here, all English skills are integrated with a real topic! You’ve got this!

Sources

Kelly, Mary Louise, host. “How to Stop Worrying and Love (or at Least Live With) ChatGPT.” All Things Considered, NPR, 24 Jan. 2023, https://www.npr.org/2023/01/24/1151160196/how-to-stop-worrying-and-love-or-at-least-live-with-chatgpt.