Paying with your face?

This intermediate lesson plan explores a new payment method – paying with your face, and the use of biometric data in our everyday lives. Students will learn useful vocabulary and will talk about current and future methods of payment, applications of biometric data and other related topics. It is perfect for low intermediate students as there are a lot of photos to facilitate learning, as well as a relatively easy video. You might also like “Idioms: technology”.
The lesson starts with a vocabulary activity – students match the photos given to the type of biometric data (fingerprints, voice recognition etc.). Next, different applications of biometric data are given. Students discuss what kind of biometric data is collected in each case, for what purpose and a few other questions.
Pre-listening vocabulary: Students are given a few sentences which introduce verbs they are later going to hear in the video (roll out, get rid of, launch, comply with). They work out the meaning of the verbs from context and match them to their definitions. To practise, students complete 4 questions with the correct word and use them to start a conversation.
Video: Before watching the video, students discuss the most common current methods of payment and what they like and dislike about each of them. Then they watch a short news report “Mastercard trials paying with your face” and complete 2 tasks: the first one asks students to answer 6 questions. In the second one, students need to complete the transcript of the audio with the words they hear. The listening part of the lesson concludes with a post-listening discussion.
Debate: the last task is a speaking task: students divide into pairs or small groups and debate whether the use of biometric data has mostly positive or negative implications.
Homework: 3 research questions are suggested so that students can expand on the topic and see the vocabulary presented in class in different contexts.
This lesson goes well with other money-related topics such as: “Should we give children an allowance”, “Inflation and young people”, “Financial tips for athletes” and “Phrasal verbs: Money”