WHAT'S INSIDE
- Real-World Context: Explore the rise and fall of WeWork, one of the most talked-about startup failures, and examine how vision, hype, and leadership decisions shaped its trajectory.
- Watching & Discussion: Watch selected extracts from the WeWork case study to follow the company’s journey from rapid growth to collapse, identifying key turning points and underlying issues.
- Vocabulary in Context: Learn natural, high-level idioms from the case (e.g. drink the Kool-Aid, peel back the curtain, keep the lights on, all over the place), using context to infer meaning and apply them in discussion.
- Psychological Insight: Analyse the concept of the "We Generation" and how emotional branding can create "cult-like" company cultures.
- Role-play & Real-World Simulation: Participate in a “Crisis Boardroom” task, making strategic decisions while balancing financial, cultural, and reputational factors.
Related Lessons
Explore how different generations view work, effort, and loyalty in today’s workplace. Engage with authentic videos and comments about Gen Z and changing work expectations. Practise idiomatic expressions. Through discussions, debates, and roleplays, learners critically explore whether younger employees are “entitled” or simply reacting to a changing labour market shaped by layoffs, insecurity, and shifting values.
FREE
Explore a controversial UK public health law and what it reveals about freedom, responsibility, and government control. Students watch a BBC News report on the new smoking ban, analyse its aims and implications, and debate whether such policies protect society or go too far. Along the way, they master advanced vocabulary (crack down on, turn a blind eye to, take a toll on, etc.) before putting it all into action in a dynamic roleplay and debate.
FREE
Explore the hidden dynamics behind cross-gender friendships through thought-provoking discussion and debate on attraction, stereotypes, and social context. Read and analyse an article from The Economist featuring real-world research, and examine how workplaces and cultural norms shape cross-gender relationships. Engage in structured debates using competing perspectives supported by evidence from the text.