E9 E - Digital consumption and attention

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E9 E - Digital consumption and attention

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E9 E - Digital consumption and attention

Mini-description: Compare several short materials about digital consumption, convenience, advertising and attention. Develop a differentiated position in English, support it with sources and revise your own text.

Target group: English as a first foreign language, Klasse 9, E-Niveau, Baden-Württemberg.

Media start – Look, think, pair: What is useful about smartphones in this picture? What may distract people? Write two short English observations. Then compare them with a partner.

Your learning route

English first → understand → respond → ask → hint → improve → use again

Step	What you do
Understand	Get the main idea from a short image, text or video.
Respond	Give a short reaction in English.
Ask	Ask one useful follow-up question.
Hint	Use keywords, sentence starters or subtitles only when needed.
Improve	Check content, language and source use.
Use again	Reuse the idea or phrase in a new speaking or writing task.

I-can goals

By the end of this aiMOOC, you can say:

1. I can compare perspectives on convenience, advertising and attention.
2. I can understand key points in age-appropriate videos and short source texts.
3. I can check a source for author, purpose, evidence and date.
4. I can discuss spontaneously and react to follow-up questions.
5. I can write a coherent opinion text with source references and counterarguments.
6. I can revise my own text without replacing it with a completely new text.
7. I can mediate information for a clear purpose and audience.

Activate your knowledge

Quick start: Complete the three sentences in English.

1. Digital services are convenient because ...
2. Advertising becomes a problem when ...
3. My attention is easier to protect when ...

No private data: Use examples, not your real account names, messages, shopping history or social-media profiles.

Material 1: Convenience

Read the image as a message: A phone can make buying, booking and comparing products fast. Convenience saves steps and time. But a very easy process can also reduce the pause before a decision.

Think:

1. What is one clear advantage?
2. What is one possible downside?
3. Which point matters more in your example, and why?

Useful language:

Function	Phrase
Add a benefit	One advantage is that ...
Add a limit	However, this can also ...
Weigh both sides	The convenience is useful, but ...

Material 2: Attention

Short source card: In the attention economy, attention is treated as a scarce resource. Many advertising-funded services have an incentive to keep users engaged for longer. This does not mean that every design feature is harmful; it means that time and attention can have economic value.

Source basis: Wikipedia: Attention economy

Reading check: Choose two words that show the economic perspective: resource – incentive – value – engaged.

Respond: Is a “free” digital service always free in every sense? Give a two-sentence answer.

Material 3: Viewing – the attention economy

Video laden

YouTube

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

BrainCraft / PBS Digital Studios: “The Attention Economy Needs to Change. But How?”

Viewing routine:

1. First view: Watch for the main idea only. Do not stop for every unknown word.
2. Second view: Note one design or business idea connected with attention.
3. Compare: Does the video mainly describe a benefit, a risk or a trade-off?
4. Ask: Write one question you would ask the presenter.

Listening support: Use English subtitles if needed. Reduce playback speed only if the original speed blocks understanding.

Material 4: Advertising

Short source card: Online ads can look similar to ordinary posts, articles or videos. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission states that advertising disclosures should be clear and easy to notice so that users can recognise commercial content.

Source basis: FTC: Native Advertising – A Guide for Businesses

Source question: Why might the position of an “Ad” or “Sponsored” label matter?

Material 5: Viewing – online advertising

Video laden

YouTube

YouTube sammelt möglicherweise persönliche Daten. Datenschutzrichtlinie

Fortfahren Ausblenden

Crash Course Media Literacy: “Online Advertising”

Watch selectively: The video is information-dense. For the first task, focus on about the first three minutes.

1. Note two reasons why digital advertising uses data.
2. Write one term or idea that you want to check after viewing.
3. Compare the video with Material 4: What do both sources say about recognising advertising?

Challenge: Is personalised advertising mainly convenient, persuasive, or both? Support your answer with one example.

Material 6: Persuasion

Video laden

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

Crash Course Media Literacy: “Influence & Persuasion”

Focus question: How can media try to move people from attention to action?

After viewing, give a 45-second summary. Your partner asks one spontaneous follow-up question.

Compare the materials

Material	Main focus	Possible benefit	Possible concern	Source / purpose
Shopping-phone image	Convenience	Fast access and fewer steps	Less time to pause before buying	Visual example
Attention-economy card	Attention as a scarce resource	Services compete to be useful and engaging	Engagement can serve business goals	Encyclopaedic overview
FTC card	Ad recognition	Clear labels support informed choices	Ads can resemble normal content	Consumer-protection guidance
Videos	Explanation and persuasion	Rich examples and spoken English	Fast pace and selective framing	Educational media

Your task: Add one more row in your notes. Use one example from your own everyday experience, but do not include private data.

Source and media check

Before you use a claim, ask:

1. Who? Who created the source?
2. Why? Is the purpose to inform, sell, entertain or persuade?
3. Evidence? Is the claim supported?
4. Date? Is the date relevant?
5. Ad or information? Can you tell the difference?

AI check: If an AI tool gives you facts, sources or feedback, verify important claims with the original source. Keep your own first version and your revised version. Do not upload private profiles, messages, recordings or personal shopping data to external AI services.

Context vocabulary

Word	Simple English meaning	Use it
attention	mental focus	compete for attention
convenience	something that makes a task easier or faster	the convenience of one-click buying
consumer	a person who buys or uses goods and services	protect consumers
engagement	active use, reaction or involvement	increase engagement
personalised	adapted to one user	personalised advertising
disclosure	information that makes something clear	an ad disclosure
persuade	make someone more likely to think or do something	persuade users to click
trade-off	a balance where one gain can bring one cost	a trade-off between speed and reflection

Context strategy: First guess from the sentence. Then check the word only if it is important for the task.

Pronunciation and fluency

Practise these stress patterns:

1. atTENtion
2. conVENience
3. ADvertise
4. conSUmer
5. perSUADE

Fluency drill: Speak for 30 seconds with no script: “One digital feature I find convenient is ... However ...”

Goal: Be understandable. Clear stress, pausing and linking matter more than sounding like a native speaker.

Functional grammar

Use grammar to compare and qualify ideas.

Purpose	Useful form	Example
Contrast	although / while / whereas	Although personalised ads can be useful, they may also feel intrusive.
Careful claim	can / may / might	Notifications may interrupt a task.
Recommendation	should / could	Platforms should make ad labels easy to notice.
Evidence link	according to / the source suggests	According to the FTC guide, disclosures should be clear.

Upgrade: Replace one absolute claim such as “Ads always manipulate people” with a more precise claim using can, may or in some cases.

Speaking

Question: “Do digital services give us convenience, or do they take too much attention?”

Work in groups of three.

1. Speaker A gives a 60-second position.
2. Speaker B gives a different perspective.
3. Speaker C asks two follow-up questions.
4. Change roles.

Use at least three: although – according to – one example is – I partly agree – a trade-off is – what do you mean by ...?

Feedback: Give two strong points and one genuine question. Do not judge accents.

Writing

Task: Write a source-based opinion text of about 180–220 words.

Question: “How should teenagers balance digital convenience and control over their attention?”

Your text should include:

1. a clear position,
2. at least two materials from this course,
3. one counterargument,
4. a balanced response to that counterargument,
5. linking words,
6. a short conclusion.

Source reference model: “The FTC guide shows that clear ad labels matter because ...” / “The BrainCraft video presents attention as ...”

Keep both versions: Save Version 1. Revise it yourself. Keep Version 2 next to it so your improvement stays visible.

Mediation

Situation: An English-speaking exchange student asks about a fictional German school’s phone rule.

German information: “In der Lernzeit bleiben private Smartphones in der Tasche. Für Recherche dürfen sie nach Absprache genutzt werden. Persönliche Nachrichten, Fotos und Accounts werden im Unterricht nicht gezeigt. Aufnahmen sind freiwillig und bleiben privat.”

Your task: Explain the important points in natural English for the exchange student. Do not translate sentence by sentence. Focus on purpose and audience.

Help ladder

Level 1 – keywords: convenience – attention – ads – choice – control – evidence

Level 2 – sentence starters:

1. One benefit is ...
2. A possible problem is ...
3. According to ...
4. I partly agree because ...
5. On balance, ...

Level 3 – challenge: Add a limitation to your own argument. What might a reasonable person disagree with?

Feedback and error analysis

Check	Common problem	Improve it
Claim	too absolute	add can, may, often or in some cases
Evidence	source named but not used	explain how the source supports the point
Comparison	sources listed separately	connect them with while, whereas or both
Coherence	ideas jump	use a clear topic sentence and linking words
Language	one long sentence	split it and keep one main idea per sentence

Revision rule: Correct patterns, not just single mistakes. Choose two recurring errors and fix them throughout your text.

Transfer

Imagine a new app promises: “Everything you want, instantly.”

Transfer question: Which three design choices would make the app convenient without demanding unnecessary attention? Explain your choices in English.

Privacy and safety: Use a fictional app. No real profiles, no private screenshots, no personal tracking data.

Can-do check

Mark each statement: Yes – Almost – Not yet.

Can-do	Yes / Almost / Not yet
I can explain the idea of the attention economy in simple English.
I can compare convenience and attention costs.
I can recognise key features of online advertising.
I can use two sources in one argument.
I can answer an unplanned follow-up question.
I can revise my own argument after feedback.

Next step: If you marked “Almost” or “Not yet”, repeat one material with one help level more than before.

Interaktive Aufgaben

Quiz: Teste Dein Wissen

What is the attention economy mainly about? (Attention as a limited resource with economic value) (!The price of smartphones in different countries) (!Only the amount of time spent watching television) (!A system for buying products without advertising)

What is one benefit of digital convenience? (It can make tasks faster and easier) (!It removes every advertising message) (!It guarantees better decisions) (!It makes all services free)

Why should native advertising be clearly labelled? (So users can recognise commercial content) (!So every ad becomes longer) (!So users must buy the product) (!So all online content looks the same)

Which sentence makes a careful claim? (Notifications may interrupt focused work) (!Notifications always destroy concentration) (!Every app is designed to manipulate users) (!Online shopping is never useful)

Which phrase is best for comparing two perspectives? (While one source stresses convenience, the other focuses on attention) (!This source is nice) (!I watched both videos) (!The topic is digital media)

What should you do with an important fact produced by an AI tool? (Check it against a reliable original source) (!Use it without checking) (!Replace your own text completely) (!Upload private account data for more detail)

What is a trade-off? (A situation where one gain can come with a cost) (!A message that contains only facts) (!A type of password) (!A video without advertising)

What makes a source-based opinion stronger? (Explaining how evidence supports your point) (!Listing sources without connecting them) (!Using only very long sentences) (!Avoiding counterarguments)

What is good mediation? (Selecting useful information for a purpose and audience) (!Translating every word in the same order) (!Adding private details to make the text realistic) (!Changing the original message completely)

What is the main pronunciation goal in this course? (Being understandable) (!Copying one perfect accent) (!Speaking as fast as possible) (!Avoiding all pauses)

Memory

Attention	mental focus
Convenience	easier or faster use
Consumer	person who buys or uses goods
Disclosure	clear information about commercial content
Persuasion	attempt to influence a choice
Trade-off	gain connected with a possible cost

Drag and Drop

Ordne die richtigen Begriffe zu.	Thema
Convenience	faster access with fewer steps
Attention	limited mental focus
Advertising	commercial message
Disclosure	clear label that identifies an ad
Revision	improving your own first version

Kreuzworträtsel

Attention	What word means mental focus?
Consumer	What do we call a person who buys or uses goods and services?
Persuade	Which verb means to influence someone toward a choice?
Evidence	What supports a claim in a strong argument?
Revision	What is the process of improving your own text?
Convenience	What word describes ease and speed of use?

Lückentext

Complete the text.

Digital services can offer by making tasks faster. Human is limited, so platforms compete for it. Online may be personalised to users. A clear can help people recognise commercial content. A strong argument uses and considers more than one perspective. Careful writers use words such as when a claim is not always true. After feedback, you should keep your first version and make a thoughtful .

Offene Aufgaben

Leicht

1. Digital diary: Create a fictional one-day media diary for a teenager and mark moments of convenience and distraction.
2. Ad spotting: Design three fictional content cards and label which one is an ad, which one is information and which one is entertainment.
3. Image analysis: Choose one Commons image from this course and record five English observations without identifying any real person.
4. Vocabulary remix: Create eight new sentences using the context vocabulary in realistic school-age situations.

Standard

1. Mini debate: Prepare a two-minute contribution on “Personalised services are worth the attention they cost.” Include one source and one counterargument.
2. Source check: Compare the Wikipedia attention-economy page with the FTC advertising guide using Who, Why, Evidence and Date.
3. Podcast plan: Plan a private two-minute English audio about one convenience-attention trade-off. Recording is optional and stays private.
4. Mediation task: Write a short English message for an exchange student explaining the fictional school phone rule by purpose, not word-for-word translation.

Schwer

1. Design challenge: Create a fictional app screen on paper that supports user goals without unnecessary attention grabs. Explain five design choices in English.
2. Research comparison: Find two additional reliable English-language sources, check author, purpose, evidence and date, and compare their perspectives.
3. Panel discussion: Run a five-minute group discussion with roles such as student, advertiser, app designer and consumer advocate. Use fictional roles and spontaneous follow-up questions.
4. Source-based commentary: Write 220–260 words on whether convenience justifies persuasive design. Use three sources, a counterargument and your own revision notes.

Lernkontrolle

1. Perspective comparison: Explain how the shopping image, the FTC source and one video frame the topic differently. Connect the differences to each source’s purpose.
2. Transfer to a new app: A fictional study app sends frequent reminders and offers one-click purchases. Evaluate which features support users and which may compete for attention.
3. Argument quality: Improve the claim “Social media is bad for attention” so that it becomes precise, evidence-based and open to a counterargument.
4. Source decision: Decide which source from the course you would use for a school presentation about advertising transparency and explain your selection criteria.
5. Mediation transfer: Explain a fictional German school’s digital-use guideline to an English-speaking visitor in a way that is relevant to that visitor.
6. Revision reflection: Compare Version 1 and Version 2 of your own text. Identify two changes that improved reasoning, not only grammar.

Lernnachweis

For a successful learning record, you should show that you can:

1. compare at least two perspectives,
2. use evidence from reliable materials,
3. distinguish information from commercial purpose,
4. react to a counterargument,
5. speak understandably and answer follow-up questions,
6. write a coherent source-based text,
7. revise your own language and reasoning,
8. protect privacy and use only fictional or non-personal data in tasks,
9. check important AI-generated facts, sources and feedback before using them.

No external upload is required. Recordings are voluntary and may remain private.

Sources and media

1. Wikipedia: Attention economy – overview of attention as a scarce resource.
2. Federal Trade Commission: Native Advertising – A Guide for Businesses – guidance on recognising and labelling commercial content.
3. Wikimedia Commons: Mobile phone overuse.jpg – CC0 image.
4. Wikimedia Commons: Scrolling on phone.jpg – freely licensed image.
5. Wikimedia Commons: QGIS – shopping mobile phone.svg – free-software icon.
6. Wikimedia Commons: Notification.svg – freely licensed icon.
7. BrainCraft / PBS Digital Studios: The Attention Economy Needs to Change. But How?
8. Crash Course Media Literacy: Online Advertising
9. Crash Course Media Literacy: Influence & Persuasion

Media rule: Use the media actively for observation, listening, comparison and source analysis. Do not upload private social-media data or personal recordings.

Folgekurs

Next course idea: E9 E - Algorithms, feeds and media choices

Focus: recommendations, source diversity, feed design, fact-checking and a short evidence-based presentation.

Verknüpfte Lernbereiche

Digital consumption and attention Medienkompetenz Werbung Attention economy Online advertising Argumentative writing Listening comprehension Speaking Mediation Quellenkritik Datenschutz