Discussion Starters

Universal Basic
Income
Pre-Reading
A. Warm-Up Questions

1. Is having enough money

to live a basic human right?
This is a discussion point, right now, most of the governments are capitalists; however, I think that having enough money is not
the right, the right is to have a work where you could get or produce that money needed to live.

2. What does it mean to live below the poverty line?

it means that people do not have enough money to fulfill the basic needs.

3. Should people who work pay taxes

to help pay for those who don’t work?
I think it could work for some time; however, it is not fair with people who work every day.

4. Besides money, what incentives

do people have for getting a good job?
People need time to share with their family and friends; good health insurance and time to rest.

B. Vocabulary Preview

Match up as many words and meanings as you can.

Check this exercise again after seeing the words in context on page 2.

lump sum l necessity h voice a a) the act of not contributing,

concern g welfare laziness
make ends meet
qualify e b) the use of machines rather than
idleness a humans for production and work
universal basic income k c) a set amount of money in a
single installment
automation b pilot
d) financial support for one’s
(verb) j looming c well-being
weigh options f e) to have the
conditions required to
receive something
beneficial
f) to consider what
is the best solution or choice
g) to talk about a troubling issue
h) a thing people need, such as
food, clothing, or shelter
i) threatening to be a problem in the
near future
j) to test or conduct a trial
k) a base income for every citizen that
is funded by the government
l) to have enough money for the
necessities of life
Reading employees with robots.

UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME

No strings attached

1. What would you do with a lump sum of free

money every week? Some people would
work less and spend more time with
their families. Others would go back to
school, start a business, or write a book.
Instead of using it to make ends meet, some would
undoubtedly spend it on drugs and
alcohol. Is free
money an invitation to idleness?

2. The idea of government-funded universal

basic income (UBI) is not new. British philosopher
Bertrand Russell and author Virginia Woolf both
supported the idea over 100
years ago. In the 1960s, many minorities agreed with
Martin Luther King Jr., who called UBI the solution to
poverty. With an aging population and the rise of
automation, the basic income debate is experiencing a
third wave.
Governments in Switzerland, Finland, India, and
Canada have tried or have considered piloting
basic income programs.

3. The looming decline of the job market due to

technological advances, such as machine
learning and artificial intelligence, is forcing
governments to weigh their options. Driverless
cars alone are expected to drastically affect
unemployment rates. At the 2017 World
Government Summit in Dubai, Tesla CEO
Elon Musk predicted that some form of basic
income will be a necessity in the near future. Despite this
recognition, Musk voiced
concerns about the lack of self-worth
people might have when they’re no
longer defined by their jobs.

4. Perhaps the greatest concern about basic

income is affordability. Offering financial
security to every citizen comes at a much
higher cost than current welfare systems where
people have to apply and qualify for aid. Could Bill Gates
be onto something? Instead of taxing the rich, Gates
suggests taxing companies that replace
“The solution to poverty is to
abolish it directly by a now
widely discussed measure:
the guaranteed income.”
—Martin Luther King Jr., activist
 Comprehension
Discuss these questions in pairs, and write the answers below.

1. What does the author want readers to think about at the beginning of the reading?

The author wants us to think about the consequences of having a lump sum of free money; some
people would do really nice things with their life, however other people could become very idle.

2. What is paragraph two mainly about?

About the universal basic income, It has been evaluated for more than one hundred years and some
countries and making pilots to see how it could work.

3. Why does the reading mention driverless cars?

Because a lot of jons are beeing lost due to automation processes, for example, machine learning and artificial
intelligence are automated think such as driving.

4. Is Elon Musk a proponent or opponent of UBI? Explain.

He is a proponent and he says that UBI will be a necessity in the future.

5. How does the reading end?

This finishes evaluating the affordability of these processes.

 Word List:

weigh sum voice unemployment

welfare income rates system
the options concerns basic lump

Vocabulary Review
A. Chunking

Create six words or expressions by

pairing the words that are commonly
found together in
English. Write a sentence
for each example.

1. I would like to travel, I must weigh the options before I decide to buy the ticket.

2. The basic income should be a human right.

3. Europe voiced concerns about the coronavirus.

4. The unemployment rates are very high.

5. Everybody should have a sum lump evey month.

6. The welfare system is very poor for elder people.

B. Complete the Sentences

Complete the sentences using vocabulary from page 1. You may

need to change the word forms.

1. Food, clothing, and shelter are all necessities .

2. Local businesses are worried about the looming property tax increase.

3. My brother doesn’t have a job. He receives a basic income check each month.

4. The mayor voiced concerns about poverty in our downtown core.

5. We are weighing the options of having another child or not.

6. Do you want to pay in one lump sum or in four weekly payments?

7. I didn’t qualify for the student loan. My income is too high.

8. UBI promotes universal basic income . There is no incentive to get a good job.
Third Conditional
PAST REGRETS

A. Reference

The third conditional is used to express a hypothetical situation in the past. It

shows a different outcome that would have happened if a
certain condition had been met. Review the pattern and examples
below.

Pattern If + had + past participle, would + have + past participle

Examples • If I had qualified for the basic income benefit, I would have started a
pet grooming business.

• If the government hadn’t canceled the UBI program, I would have gone
to nursing school.

• I would have switched to part-time if I had received more money from

the government.

B. Matching

Match the clauses to form third conditional sentences.

5. If they hadn’t lost the election, d

1. If I had received $1,000 a
month, b

2. We would have started our own

business c

3. Alia would have wasted her benefit

on clothes a

4. If my son had received a basic

income benefit, e
a) if she had been part of the UBI
pilot program.

b) I would have bought a rental

property.
c) if we had
received
financial
help from the
government
.

d) they
would
have
piloted a
basic
income
program.

e) he probably would have gone to

college.
Third Conditional cont.
C. Case Study

In 2018, a newly elected government in Ontario, Canada,

canceled a modified UBI program that the previous
government was piloting.
Many participants of the pilot program expressed regrets that the
experiment was canceled. Imagine that you are the following participants.
Express a regret from each person using the third conditional.

# Participant Regret
If i had received the UBI, I would have only one job.

1 a single mom with two jobs

I would have started my own business if I had received the incomes.

2 a middle-class businessman

I would have been able to pay my loan if I had received the UBI.

3 an employed college student

We would have got married if we had received the UBI.

4 a couple who both

have minimum wage jobs

I would have rented an apartment if I had received the UBI.

5 a homeless person
 Discussion
1. Universal Basic Income means that all citizens receive the same benefit
without conditions. Does it make more sense to only
provide financial aid to people below the poverty line?
Why or why not?

2. While Elon Musk fears that basic income programs may

cause people to experience a lack of self-worth, some
experiments have shown that UBI actually boosts
well-being and mental health. Why do you think this
would be the case?

3. How might guaranteed income

programs help improve gender
inequality?

4. Critics feel that UBI programs will encourage employers to pay

lower salaries. Proponents think it will require
employers to pay more to entice people to work.
What do you think?

Critical Thinking
IN PAIRS OR SMALL GROUPS

Many technical entrepreneurs are supportive of UBI. Why do you think people
in the tech industry typically support this idea? Explain your
reasoning. Then watch the video featuring Facebook co-
founder Chris Hughes titled “Universal Basic Income: Two Contrasting
Views on Free Money” on ESL Library’s YouTube channel.
Discuss the video.

Selfie Video Challenge

How would you define the word “work”? Do we need to
redefine this word to include things that are not related to
earning a paycheck?

Use a mobile device or computer camera and

explain your definition of “work.” Do you agree or
disagree that UBI programs encourage people to
view “work” as optional?

“To me, work is...“

Submit your 1–2 minute video to your teacher and
share it with your classmates.
 Listening
Fill in the blanks as you listen to the recording.

UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME

No strings attached

1. What would you do with a of free

money every week? Some people would work less and spend
more time with their families. Others would go back to
school, start a business, or write a book. Instead of
using it to
, some would undoubtedly spend it
on drugs and alcohol. Is free money an invitation to
idleness?

2. The idea of government-funded universal basic income

(UBI) is not new. British philosopher Bertrand Russell
and author Virginia Woolf both supported the idea over 100 years
ago. In the 1960s,
many minorities agreed with Martin Luther King Jr., who called UBI the
solution to . With an aging
population and the rise of , the
basic income debate is experiencing a third wave.
Governments in
Switzerland, Finland, India, and Canada have tried or have considered
basic income programs.

3. The decline of the job market due

to technological advances, such as machine learning and
artificial intelligence, is forcing governments to
weigh their options. Driverless cars alone are expected to
drastically unemployment
rates. At the 2017 World Government Summit in
Dubai, Tesla CEO Elon Musk predicted that some
form of basic income will
be a in the near future. Despite
this recognition, Musk voiced concerns about the lack of
self-worth people might have when they’re no longer
defined by their jobs.

4. Perhaps the greatest concern about basic income is

affordability. Offering financial security to every citizen
comes at a much higher cost than current systems where
people have to apply and for aid. Could Bill
Gates be onto something? Instead of taxing the rich, Gates suggests taxing
companies that replace employees with robots.

Great job Stiffen, keep up the good work