Shadowing Practice: Australia's social media ban explained - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Australia's centre-left Labor government has just passed a world-first social media ban, making headlines across the globe.
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Australia has now done something that no other country has been able to do.
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They are all looking at what we are doing.
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The Senate approved the world's strictest laws, and they are applauding what we are doing.
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Anybody out there who's got kids, listen up.
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The first country in the world to ban the use of social media apps for anyone under the age of 16.
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That's pretty huge.
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The ban will prevent children under the age of 16 from creating an account or using social media sites,
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including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X and Snapchat.
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At this stage, YouTube will be exempt, along with messaging services, online games like Roblox, and health or education apps,
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but those details will be worked out over the next 12 months.
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The hope is that the ban will protect children from the harmful side of social media.
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It is about making sure that children have a childhood and parents have peace of mind.
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When you limit social media use, depression and anxiety gets better.
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77% of Australians support the ban, according to international research group YouGov.
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Parents are scared and overwhelmed, and they don't know how to protect their children.
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But there's been no shortage of opposition.
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Social media has had catastrophic consequences for some young people.
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But cutting it off altogether will have catastrophic consequences for other young people.
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That parents over the summer holidays can tell their kids it's illegal to be on your phone.
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It's illegal to be on social media.
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Get off it.
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It doesn't actually make social media safer for young people.
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And that's the devastating thing about this.
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Some raising concerns government is encroaching on what should be a parent's responsibility.
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Ultimately it's a tool that parents can have, but they're still the determinant of how they raise their children, not government.
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Booting them off social media isn't going to wind back the clock so that they can live the childhoods that we did.
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It's going to invariably nudge them into darker, less safe corners of the internet the internet.
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Labor's bill was introduced just over a week ago before going to a final vote today, but the process has been criticised by some as being rushed
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in a bid to clear the federal government's agenda before the end of the parliamentary year.
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We are not sure yet whether this hasty blunt attempt will do anything to reduce the social harms.
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Clearly we should be doing something, but this is not the way to do it.
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It eventually passed through Australia's parliament with support from both of the country's major parties but not without change.
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One question remaining, how will tech companies actually verify the age of their users?
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Some were concerned the ban would force Australians to hand over their government-issued ID, including passports and driver's licences, to prove that they're over the age of 16.
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In response, last-minute amendments were made to prevent platforms from requesting digital ID unless they offer an alternate method of age verification.
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That could take the form of experimental facial recognition technology
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or linking a credit card to an account to prove you're over 18.
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These amendments mean that no Australian will be forced to use government identification,
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including digital ID, for age assurance on social media.
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This is a rubbish bill, it has no substance.
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And it doesn't even take place for another 12 months.
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Giving 12 months for social media companies to develop the technology.
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With a threat of a $50 million fine for non-compliance hanging over their heads, the onus is firmly on big tech to make sure this ban works.
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Platforms now have a social responsibility to ensure The safety of our kids is a priority for them.
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A digital duty of care has also been imposed, requiring platforms to delete any personal information collected.
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It also sends a strong signal to social media platforms, treat Australians' privacy seriously.
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We don't argue that its implementation will be perfect,
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Just like the alcohol ban for under-18s doesn't mean that someone under 18 never has access, but we know that it's the right thing to do.
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Big tech companies are unsurprisingly expressing concern over the new laws, drawing criticism from global tech giant Meta and the ire of Elon Musk.
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Oh, look, I think we should treat the concerns of social media companies with the world's largest grain of salt.
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Australian children can continue using social media for now.
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The ban will come into effect in a year.
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Thank you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Australia's social media ban explained”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: ban, Australian, platforms, tech, companies. This video has 54 sentences and 765 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:14. The speaker talks at a steady 146 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| catastrophic adjective | /ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/ | Of or pertaining to a catastrophe. |
| consequence noun | /ˈkɑn.sɪ.kwəns/ | An effect; something that follows a cause as a result. |
| applaud verb | /əˈplɔd/ | To express approval (of something) by clapping the hands. |
| determinant noun | /dɪˈtɜːmɪnənt/ | A determining factor; an element that determines the nature of something. |
| devastate verb | /ˈdɛv.ə.steɪt/ | To ruin many or all things over a large area, such as most or all buildings of a city, or cities of a region, or trees of a forest. |
| encroach verb | /ɪŋˈkɹəʊtʃ/ | To intrude unrightfully on someone else’s rights or territory. |
| invariably adverb | /ɪnˈvɛɹ.i.ə.bli/ | Every time; always, without change. |
| overwhelm verb | /ˌoʊ.vɚˈwɛlm/ | To engulf, surge over and submerge. |
| unsurprisingly adverb | Not surprisingly, as could be expected. | |
| verification noun | /ˌvɛ.ɹə.fɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/ | The act or process of verifying. |
| exempt adjective | /ɪɡˈzɛmpt/ | Free from a duty, obligation, rule, law, etc. |
| assurance noun | /əˈʃʊɹəns/ | The act of assuring; a declaration intended to inspire full confidence; something designed to give confidence to someone. |
| rubbish noun | /ˈɹʌbɪʃ/ | Refuse, waste, garbage, junk, trash. |
| verify verb | /ˈvɛɹɪfaɪ/ | To substantiate or prove the truth of something. |
| blunt adjective | /blʌnt/ | Having a thick edge or point; not sharp. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get off verb | To move from being on top of (something) to not being on top of it. | |
| hand over verb | To relinquish control or possession of something to someone. | |
| hang over verb | To be threatening, to be imminent. | |
| listen up verb | To listen closely; to pay attention. | |
| pass through verb | To go through, to travel through, to transit or lie across a place or from one place to another. | |
| wind back verb | /waɪnd ˈbæk/ | To wind (a tape, cassette, or film, etc) towards the beginning; to rewind. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | will be worked · was introduced · were concerned |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has just passed · has now done · has been criticised |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 9 contractions and reduced forms, such as doesn't, don't, they're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: verification /ˌvɛ.ɹə.fɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, assurance /əˈʃʊɹəns/, rubbish /ˈɹʌbɪʃ/, shortage /ˈʃɔː(ɹ)tɪd͡ʒ/, facial /ˈfeɪ.ʃəl/
- Long words — get the stress right: catastrophic /ˌkætəˈstɹɑfɪk/, determinant /dɪˈtɜːmɪnənt/, invariably /ɪnˈvɛɹ.i.ə.bli/, verification /ˌvɛ.ɹə.fɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, altogether /ɔl.tuˈɡɛð.ɚ/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like catastrophic, consequence, applaud.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.