CATEGORY: BUSINESS

GROUP: 2. TECHNOLOGY & COMMUNICATION

Topic: 3. Telecommunications
Introduction:
Staying in touch with friends and family is important to many international people living
in the U.S. Today there are many different kinds of telecommunications that make
this easy and inexpensive. Telecommunications are also important for communication
in global business.

Dialogue:
Kim has just transferred from a company overseas to a position in the U.S. Shes been
in the U.S. for two months now and has befriended an American colleague at work,
Amy. Today theyre chatting together after their classes.

Amy: Hi, Kim. Hows everything going?

Kim: Oh, just OK.
Amy: Is there something wrong?
Kim: Well, Im just feeling a little lonely and homesick. Im still getting adjusted to life
in the U.S.
Amy: How long have you been here now?
Kim: Two months.
Amy: Thats such a short time. Im sure its normal for everyone to feel homesick for
the first few months they move to a new country.
Kim: Yeah, I guess so.

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Amy: Do you talk to your family and friends back home much?
Kim: I talk to my parents about once a week and to my friends every couple of weeks.
Amy: Do you call them?
Kim: I dont have a landline. So, I use my cell phone to call my parents.
Amy: Isnt it expensive to use your cell phone to call long distance?
Kim: If I just used my cell phone it would be. But, I buy pre-paid phone cards and use
those to pay for the calls.
Amy: Is it expensive?
Kim: No. Its about seven cents a minute.
Amy: Oh, thats not bad at all.
Kim: Do you talk to your parents a lot?
Amy: I guess I talk to them about once every two weeks. They live on the other side of
the country.
Kim: Is it expensive to call them?
Amy: Well, they usually call me, but sometimes I make a collect call to talk to them, so
I dont have to pay.
Kim: Oh, youre a bad daughter! Just kidding.
Amy: What about your friends? Do you call them often?
Kim: We dont usually talk on the phone. Usually I just email them, or we talk online
using Skype or another VoIP.
Amy: Ive never heard of VoIPs. How do they work?
Kim: Its very simple. Both people have to download a companys free software. Then
they use it to talk for free over the Internet using a microphone and a headset.
Amy: Thats so cool! So, you can call anywhere in the world for free?
Kim: Yep. Its the cheapest way for my friends and I to stay in touch.
Amy: Ill have to try it out. Will you show me one day?
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Kim: Sure.
Amy: Well, Im sorry that youre missing your friends and family. It must be hard being
so far away from them.
Kim: Thanks.
Amy: Would you like to go see a movie with me tomorrow? It might cheer you up.
Kim: That would be great, thank you!
Amy: Sure. Ill check whats playing and we can talk about it tomorrow.
Kim: Sounds good.
Amy: OK, see you tomorrow.
Kim: Bye.

Vocabulary:
befriended: become friends with
telecommunications: communication at a distance
chatting: to talk in an informal manner
homesick: longing for home and family while absent from them
landline: a line of communication (as by telephone cable) on land
pre-paid phone cards: cards that can be bought in set amounts ($10, $20, etc.), which
can be used to pay for phone communication
collect call: a call where the receiver pays for the charges
VoIP: The acronym VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol and is the technology
for transmitting voice conversations via the Internet
stay in touch: remain in communication

Discussion Questions:
1. Whats the main form of telecommunication that you use to talk with clients or
partners at work?
-At work I dont use any form of telecommunication. I dont communicate with
people overseas for work purposes. At my previous job I did, and I mainly used
email.

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2. Whats the main form of telecommunication that you use to talk with friends or
family?
-I have friends and family that live overseas. To communicate with them, I
mainly use email. Sometimes we talk on the phone as well. I use my cell phone
and a pre-paid phone card to call them.
3. Have you ever been homesick before? When?
-Yes, I have. I was homesick when I first moved to France during my college
years. I missed my friends and family. After a month or two, the homesickness
went away.
4. Do you think landline phones will become obsolete in the future?
- I think they probably will. Many people today dont have landlines anymore.
They just use their cell phones for phone communication. Theres really no
reason to pay for a cell phone and a landline.
5. How many email accounts do you have? How often do you check them?
-I have too many. I have six or seven. I have personal email accounts, accounts
from school, and accounts from work. Im in front of a computer working for a lot
of time each day, so I check my email about five times a day.
6. Are cell phones popular in your country? Do you have one?
-Yes. Cell phones are very popular in the U.S. Almost everyone has one
nowadays. Yes, I have one. Its a Samsung slide phone.
7. How do you think face-to-face communication differs from telecommunication
(email, phone, etc.)?
-I think telecommunication is a lot more impersonal than face-to-face
communication. You cant see a persons facial expressions or gestures. This
sometimes leads to miscommunications.
8. Are long distance calls expensive in your country?
-No. I dont think so. There are a lot of good long distance phone plans out there
and phone cards. The charge per minute for long distance phone calls is usually
pretty inexpensive.

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