Belief in Conspiracy Theories (Advanced EFL Lesson)

ESL/EFL Level: Advanced
Lesson Topic: reasons for belief in conspiracy theories, consequences of conspiracy theories
Skill Focus: Speaking, Reading, Vocabulary
Approximate Class Time: 1.75 hours
Lesson Plan Download: conspiracy-theories-lesson-advanced-102022.docx
Lesson Overview:

  • The reading passage discusses reasons for believing in conspiracy theories and the common traits of believers. The passage mentions the 5G and QAnon conspiracy theories and concludes with a summary of the criminality they have caused.
  • Post-reading activities include a graph for plotting the believability and harmfulness of popular conspiracy theories, a debate between a geography teacher and a conspiracy-inclined student, and a focus on logical fallacies and biases (namely, post hoc fallacy, confirmation bias, argument from ignorance, and the bandwagon effect.)
  • All lessons come with warm-up questions, comprehension questions, a vocabulary section, and discussion questions.

Symbol with an eye in the middle of a pyramid

Note to teachers: There are many videos that could go with this lesson. Here are some examples:

ADVANCED Lesson on Conspiracy Theories: Warm-up (Pair Work)

  1. Do you trust mainstream media? Why or why not?
  2. What is a conspiracy theory? How does it differ from an opinion?
  3. Why do people believe in conspiracy theories? Write down three possible reasons as a group.

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Comprehension Question Answers

  • ….
  • People’s desire to find patterns and draw connections in order to understand the world is what he believes led to such a theory.
  • Trump is the savior or protector of the world.
  • It implies that the author does not believe the clues are real.
  • It makes sense to be paranoid because doing so had evolutionary advantages, i.e. it helped groups survive.
  • The purpose of the final paragraph is to show that conspiracy theories are not harmless, but rather, can lead to serious real-world consequences.
  • ….
  • (Student’s opinion… The survey source is PRRI.org, which appears to be a legitimate research organization).

 Vocabulary answers: 1-g, 2-j, 3-c, 4-b, 5-a, 6-k, 7-f, 8-i, 9-L, 10-d, 11-e, 12-h

Fallacies & Biases Answers: 1-Argument from ignorance, 2-confirmation bias, 3-bandwagon effect, 4-post hoc

 Endnotes

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