5.3.1.4.1. About the Worksheet. This is the only worksheet subjected to analysis that was not piloted in the university context as its language level was not deemed suitable for first-year English majors. The lesson was created based on a song by the London-based indie band, Oh Wonder. It addresses the benefits of reaching out to strangers as an antidote to loneliness and isolation, which can be regarded as modern-day epidemics. The song and its video clip can be used in intermediate and upper-intermediate classes, as the level is set to B1+. The language-related goals of the activity sequence include expanding students’ vocabulary (in connection with communication), developing their listening and their speaking skills. It also aims to develop the students’ global competence: one of the aims is raising awareness to the issue of isolation (knowledge dimension) and another one is developing their enquiry skills (by encouraging them to ask questions). Finally, the sequence is intended to help students develop their empathy and to encourage them to take action.

 

5.3.1.4.2. Results from the Reflective Journals. Five teachers selected this worksheet to try out with their groups, therefore, 67 students attended lessons centring around the worksheet. Three teachers uploaded a journal entry to Google Drive, thus, these were subjected to content analysis, as a result of which the following emerging themes were found: song selection based on the students’ personality, personalisation, song appreciation, challenging vocabulary, differentiation in the jigsaw reading activity, meaningful discussions. Two of the participating teachers (Bella and Édua) chose this worksheet because they felt that it would be helpful for their students who are generally shy and do not dare to initiate conversations, especially with strangers. The third teacher, Izabella chose this worksheet because she thought it would be a good introduction to the new module in the coursebook focusing on people. The teachers were pleased by the warmer as it gave students the opportunity to personalise the topic and it also enabled the “weaker” students to express their thoughts because, as Izabella put it, “it was about an experience that any of them must have had so far and does not require any additional knowledge or information” (J/HH-I-1). The students also seemed to genuinely like the song, even though they had some problems with understanding the lyrics after the first listening. Édua commented that she was slightly afraid that the students would not like the song, and it would hinder them in doing the activities effectively, but fortunately, it was not the case. The vocabulary development activity was not easy for either of the groups, they rather regarded it as a challenge. The jigsaw reading activity was highly appreciated in Bella’s group and she was grateful for being able to differentiate while using this activity: some students could ask questions to fill in the gaps, some students only used it for reading practice and some students found out the missing information using the Internet. Édua praised this activity for being quite similar to the activities the students are used to from their coursebooks and giving them a sense of success. The discussion activity was also deemed a success by both Bella and Édua. They felt that they had meaningful discussions, to which even shyer students contributed. Édua remarked that it was pleasing to see her students rethink their attitudes towards strangers. None of the teachers wrote about their students’ experiences with the random acts of kindness project, only Bella wrote that she assigned this task as homework and she would be interested to see the results. Even though they did not have time for all the activities, both Édua and Izabella commented that they would love to use these tasks in the future. All three teachers felt that the lessons were successful, and in Bella’s words, “the teaching goals were met, attitudes were transformed, attempts will be made to overcome difficulties. We will see how successfully” (J/HH-B-2).

 

5.3.1.4.3. Results of the Student Feedback. Even though 65 students were exposed to the activity sequence in the five participating groups, only 15 of them filled in the feedback sheet.