A kurzus oktatója Hanni Thoma, a Fulbright Intézet munkatársa.

Kreditérték: 5 kredit
Időpont: kedd 18:30-20:00
Helyszín: Folyóirat-olvasó
Keretszám: max. 12 fő

Hanni Thoma is a current Fulbright recipient and graduate student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, in Amherst, Massachusetts, where she is studying Bilingual\ESL\Multicultural Education.  Her professional interests lie in bilingual education, genre-based pedagogy, and Systemic Functional Linguistics.  Previously, she taught at a lycée polyvalent in France.


Introduction to American Culture and Civilization

Saint Ignatius Jesuit College

Fall 2014 (Tuesdays, 6:30-8:00, Room TBD)

Instructor

HanniThoma

Email: thoma@fulbright.hu

Office: Room 111 EducationUSA Advising Center, Fulbright Commission, Baross u. 62

Office Hours: Thursdays and Fridays by appointment only.

Readings

Because this course will focus largely on current issues in American culture, most readings will be available via online news outlets, media files, etc.Additional items will be provided as handouts.However, all formal written assignments are expected to follow APA formatting, therefore the APA Style Guide is recommended, especially for those who plan to study in the U.S. as this is one of the most widely used formats.

American Psychological Association. (2009). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

Electronic version: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Purpose

The purpose of this course is to expose students to aspects of American culture through a critical and analytical lens.  We will read, write, and discuss both the practical and everyday aspects of American culture, as well as current and more controversial topics.

Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, you should have developed a greater understanding of broad contemporary issues and perspectives in American culture, and to effectively articulate your own opinion on these perspectives.  

Expectations for Participants

You are responsible for your own learning and for creating a learning community!  This includes:

·Regularly engaging with the instructor and classmates;

·Having read and studied assigned material in a thoughtful, critical, and reflective manner;

·Engaging with each other in meaningful dialogue in which participants openly examine ideas and assumptions in a manner that leads to fuller understanding of the issues;

·Submitting written assignments that are on-time, complete, and properly formatted based on APA guidelines.

Evaluated Activities

Attendance40%

In class participation20%

On-time completion of homework assignments20%

Final research paper10%

Presentation10%


Written homework assignments: Each week you will be expected to respond to a question based on that week´s readings.Writing should be one page in length and single-spaced. In addition to responding to the question, please also include a brief summary, quotes that you found interesting or noteworthy, new vocabulary, and questions.

Final research paper and presentation: In addition to bi-weekly reading and writing assignments, I would like you to independently research a topic that is of special interest to you.  Research can be conducted collaboratively, either in pairs or small groups, but all papers must be authored individually.  Your paper must have at least 5 citations, and must follow APA formatting.  Topics can be either on a subject covered in class, which you will conduct further research on, or something new.  Research papers will be assessed for both language and content.Rubrics will become available later in the semester, as will a sign-up sheet for presentations.

Class Session

Topic

Reading Assignment

Writing Assignment

Class Activities

1: Sept. 23rd

The culture of language

No reading assignment

No writing assignment due

1.Introductions and ice breaker

2.Culture of language

3.Brainstorm ideas for research paper

4.(If there is time: American-style resumes)

2: Sept. 30th

Politics

1. Romney before Obama speech: ´We don´t have a president that knows what to do´

http://us.cnn.com/2014/09/10/politics/christie-romney-obama/index.html

2. Bill and Hilary Clinton Sell Their Brand of Sizzle at a Steak Fry in Iowa

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/15/us/at-a-steak-fry-in-iowa-the-clintons-sell-their-brand-of-sizzle.html?ref=politics%C5%B1&_r=0

3. Quiz: Which political party should you belong to? http://www.playbuzz.com/dylanb/which-political-party-should-you-really-belong-in

Homework response:

1.Summarize both news articles

2.Write a response to: Do you agree with the quiz´s assessment? Why? Why not?

3.Homework share and class discussion

4.Gil Fulbright: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz_V4lRdtjo

5.In-class activity

6.How to organize a research paper

§Begin drafting outline

3: Oct. 7th

TBD

TBD

TBD

TBD