What 'globalization' covers: Globalization is part of the theme Sharing the planet. You need vocabulary to talk about it — and to give your opinion about it.
What you need words for
- international trade
- global brands and chains
- cultural exchange
- the loss of local identity
Use the list as a glossary: The words below are common English B vocabulary. Treat the list as a glossary: learn each term with its meaning and a synonym, then reuse them in the reading and writing sections.
- globalization
- the way the world's economies and cultures become connected and more alike
- (international) trade
- the buying and selling of goods between countries
- (global) brand
- a product name sold and recognised all over the world
- (fast-food) chain
- a group of identical shops or restaurants owned by one company
- local business
- a small shop or company run by people in your own area
- cultural exchange
- people sharing customs, food and ideas between different cultures
- identity
- what makes a person or place who or what they are; their distinct character
- diversity
- the existence of many different kinds of people, cultures or things
- inequality
- an unfair gap between richer and poorer people or countries
- consumption
- the buying and using up of goods and services
- the environment
- the natural world — air, water, land and living things
- to support (local)
- to choose to buy from and help local shops and producers
- the global village
- the idea that the whole world is connected like one small community
| Useful expression | What it means |
|---|---|
| We live in an increasingly globalized world. | Countries and cultures are more and more connected. |
| The same brands are everywhere. | You see identical global brands in every city. |
| I try to support local businesses. | I choose to buy from small, local shops. |
| Globalization encourages cultural exchange. | It helps people share customs, food and ideas. |
| We shouldn't lose our identity. | We should protect what makes our place distinctive. |
Why this matters: This vocabulary turns up in every skill — a reading text about global brands, a listening interview about local food, a Paper 1 article about globalization, or your oral. Reusing precise topic words is how you score Criterion A (Language).
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Have something to say: Examiners reward developed ideas, not just vocabulary. Take a position and back it up.
The common debates on globalization
- Global brands vs local businesses.
- Cultural exchange vs the loss of local identity.
- Is a more connected world fairer or more unequal?
Opinion phrases (use these to introduce a view)
- In my opinion… / From my point of view… — to introduce what you think
- It seems to me that… / I believe that… — a slightly softer way to give a view
- The most important thing is… — to highlight your main point
- On the one hand… on the other hand… — to weigh up two sides
- I (completely) agree that… / I'm not convinced that… — to react to an idea
Drawbacks of globalization
- Big chains make local businesses disappear.
- Many cities end up looking exactly alike.
- People can lose their own culture and identity.
Benefits
- We can get to know and enjoy other cultures.
- Trade creates jobs and makes many products cheaper.
- Technology connects us with the whole world.
Trade and products
- The long journey of a cheap T-shirt
- When one factory stops, the world waits
- Global chains and local shops
Culture and language
- Does one shared language make a global village?
- Learning Mandarin, Spanish, Arabic
- Festivals and food that travel
Across borders
- Studying abroad with exchange programmes
- Teams that work in five countries
- What we gain and what we lose
- a supply chain
- all the steps and companies that make a product and bring it to you
- a multinational (company)
- a company with offices or factories in many countries
- to outsource
- to pay another company, often abroad, to do part of the work
- a shortage
- a situation where there is not enough of something
- cultural homogenisation
- when places and cultures become more and more alike
- a lingua franca
- a shared language used by people with different first languages
Link your ideas: Connectors lift your answer from a list into an argument: moreover (to add), however (to contrast), therefore (to conclude), although (to concede). Use at least two or three in any written answer.
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Read like Paper 2: Here is a short blog post — the kind of text Paper 2 (Reading) gives you. Read it once just for the general idea; don't worry about every word. Then we'll work through one exam question together.
The Corner is gone (1 of 3): In the neighbourhood where I grew up there was a family restaurant called The Corner. They served traditional dishes there and everyone knew one another.
The Corner is gone (2 of 3)
Two years ago it closed, and in its place a fast-food chain opened, just like the ones you find in any city in the world. At first it seemed convenient: it was cheap and quick. However, little by little I realised that the neighbourhood was losing its character, because the same chains were everywhere.
The Corner is gone (3 of 3)
Now I try to support local businesses whenever I can. Globalization brings us closer, but it is also worth looking after what makes us different.
- neighbourhood
- the area around where you live
- traditional
- long-established; passed down over time
- to lose its character
- to stop feeling special or distinctive
- everywhere
- in every place
- to realise
- to become aware of something you hadn't noticed
IB-style task — one Paper 2 question
One question, step by step
- The question — "According to the text, what opened in the place of the restaurant The Corner?"
- Find it in the text. Look for the words "in its place": "Two years ago it closed, and in its place a fast-food chain opened."
- The answer — A fast-food chain opened. The words are right there in the text, so no outside knowledge is needed.
Reading technique: For an "according to the text" question, find the exact line that proves your answer — don't rely on memory or general knowledge.
The task: Your school is running a week about the global and the local world. Write a report for the school council: describe how your neighbourhood has changed and recommend ways to enjoy globalization without losing what is local.
Write 250–400 words.
Report structure — 4 steps
1
Title
Say what the report is about. "Report: Globalization in our neighbourhood"
2
Purpose
One sentence: why this report was written. "This report describes how the area has changed…"
3
Findings
The facts: what happened or what you found. "Ten years ago… Today, five of the twelve shops…"
4
Recommendations
What should be done, using should. "First, students should support local businesses."
Title → Purpose → Findings → Recommendations
Model: the 4 steps in ~100 words
The report, step by step
- Report: Globalization in our neighbourhood
- Purpose. This report describes how the area around our school has changed and suggests how students can protect local life.
- Findings. Ten years ago, the high street was full of family shops and restaurants. Today, five of the twelve shops belong to international chains. In a class survey, most students said they rarely buy anything local.
- Recommendations. First, students should support local businesses. Second, they should find out where the things they buy come from. Finally, the school could hold a local food fair to celebrate the area's identity.
Why it works: A strong report does this for each of the three Paper 1 criteria:
A — Language /12
- Range of tenses: past "was full of", present "belong to", modals "should", "could"
- Connectors: "ten years ago… today", "first/second/finally"
- Topic vocabulary: international chains, local businesses, identity
B — Message /12
- Task fully done: describes the change AND makes recommendations
- Findings backed by facts and a survey
C — Conceptual /6
- Report conventions: title, purpose, headed sections
- Formal, impersonal register: "students should"
- Findings and recommendations kept apart
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How listening is tested: Paper 2 also tests listening: you hear short clips, each played twice, and you never see the words.
How to answer — 3 steps
1
Read the questions first
Do this before the clip plays.
2
Listen for the key idea
Focus on the part each question points to.
3
Then answer
Use what the speaker actually says.
Questions → Key idea → Answer
Practise on the page: Here we'll use a transcript so you can practise the technique on the page. Read the questions, then find the answer in the speaker's words.
Transcript — Omar's team in five countries (1 of 3): Hi, I'm Omar, and I work for a software company with offices in five countries. My team has colleagues in Brazil, India, Poland and Canada, so we meet on video calls and we all use English, even though it isn't anyone's first language.
Transcript — Omar's team in five countries (2 of 3)
I've learned a lot about other cultures: for example, my colleague in India taught me to celebrate Diwali, and we sent each other sweets by post. The hardest part is the time difference — sometimes I start a call at seven in the morning and finish another at ten at night.
Transcript — Omar's team in five countries (3 of 3)
Still, for me, working with the whole world from my own desk is amazing.
IB-style task — two listening questions
Two questions, step by step
- Q1 — Which language does Omar's team use? Listen just after "we meet on video calls and": "we all use English, even though it isn't anyone's first language." That is your answer.
- Q2 — What is the hardest part of the job for him? He says it near the end: "The hardest part is the time difference." Answer: the time difference, with calls from seven in the morning to ten at night.
Listening technique: Read the questions before the clip plays. Each question usually points to one short part of the recording — listen for the words around it, not the whole thing.