DADES IDENTIFICATIVES 2008_09
Assignatura CULTURES NORD-AMERICANES Codi 125232210
Ensenyament
Ensenyament de Llengues Estrangeres (2007)
Cicle 2on
Descriptors Crèd. Tipus Curs Període
6 Optativa Únic anual
Llengua d'impartició
Anglès
Departament Filologia Anglogermànica
Coordinador/a
GALLARDO TORRANO, PEDRO
Adreça electrònica pere.gallardo@urv.cat
Professors/es
GALLARDO TORRANO, PEDRO
Web
Descripció general i informació rellevant The aim of this course is to familiarize students with the basic features of American society. By the end of the term students will have been exposed to a wide array of aspects of American society (i.e. historical and geographic landmarks, social and cultural traits, political and administrative organization, artistic production).

Competències
Tipus A Codi Competències Específiques
  Comú
  AC3 Actituds. coneixements i destreses. Ordenació i estructuració del procés d'aprenentatge segons un model comunicatiu, basat en l'acció (comprensió, producció, interacció i mediació orals i escrites) d'acord amb les orientacions del Marc Comú Europeu de Referència per a les llengües, del Consell d'Europa.)
  AC6 Sensibilitat lingüística i cultural. Capacitat per a fer servir la multiculturalitat i la diversitat lingüística com a eina enriquidora i complementària en l'ensenyament de la llengua
  AC9 Ús instrumental de la llengua. Fluidesa i precisió en l'ús instrumental de la llengua segons l'itinerari
  AC10 Capacitat de treball en equip. Interacció alumnat-professorat i entre l'equip docent.
  Recerca
  AR4 Capacitat organitzativa i comunicadora
Tipus B Codi Competències Transversals
  Comú
  BC1 Creativitat. Desenvolupar idees i projectes originals
  BC2 Treballar autònomament amb iniciativa
  BC3 Flexibilitat. Disponibilitat per a l’adaptació en ambients canviants
  BC5 Transferibilitat. Aplicar coneixements i habilitats en entorns nous o no familiars i en contextos multidisciplinars relatius a la seva àrea específica
  BC6 Actuar amb un esperit crític i responsable
  BC7 Considerar l’ètica i la integritat intel•lectual com a valors essencials a la pràctica professional
  BC8 Autoestima professional. Comprendre el valor del propi coneixement i del seu impacte a la societat/comunitat
  BC9 Disponibilitat a la participació compromesa en la vida social
  BC11 Treballar en equip i gestionar equips
  BC13 Aprendre a aprendre
  BC14 Planificació i organització
Tipus C Codi Competències Nuclears
  Comú
  CC1 Domini de l’expressió i la comprensió del/s idioma/es estrangers per al desenvolupament professional derivat del curs del postgrau.
  CC3 Desenvolupament d’una perspectiva global del món en l’àrea específica on s’ubica el postgrau

Objectius d'aprenentatge
Objectius Competències
Students will be exposed to some of the main features of American culture, and will therefore obtain a wider, more international approach to human relationships . Students will learn to express ideas and opinions in a multicultural context. The use of English as the vehicular language will help them focus not only on expression; it will also make them aware of cultural differences. By the end of the term students are expected to have learnt to approach American culture from a realistic, unprejudiced point of view. AC3
AC6
AC9
AC10
AR4
BC1
BC2
BC3
BC5
BC6
BC7
BC8
BC9
BC11
BC13
BC14
CC1
CC3

Continguts
Tema Subtema
1.The country Natural resources & economic development
Climate
The regions
Native American cultural regions
Cultural regions in the contemporary USA
2.The people: settlement and immigration Early encounters between Europeans & Native Americans
The founders
The first wave, 1680-1776
The second wave, 1820-1890
The third wave, 1890-1930
The fourth wave, 1965 to the present
Attitudes to immigrants
3.The people: women and minorities Women in America
Native Americans
African Americans
Asian Americans
Latinos
4.Political institutions: the federal government Historical origins
The constitutional framework
The political parties
The legislative branch
The executive branch
The judicial branch
Attitudes to branches of the federal government
5.Political institutions: state and local government The place of state government in American federalism
The evolution of state government and federalism in the USA
The structure of state government
Local government
6.Foreign policy American attitudes to world affairs
From neutrality to isolationism, 1776-1830
From expansionism to imperialism, 1783-1914
Isolationism and internationalism, 1914-45
The Cold War era, 1946-92
The sole superpower in the post-Cold War era
7.The legal system The sources of US law
The court system
Federal and state court proceedings
The legal profession
Crime and punishment
Attitudes to the legal system
8.The economy Economic history
American economic liberalism
Social class and economic inequality
The contemporary economy
Industry and manufacturing
Service industries
Agriculture, forestry and fisheries
Financial and industrial institutions
9.Social services Social services history
The organization of contemporary social services
Public social services
The needy and the poverty line
Health care
Housing
Attitudes to social services
10.Education American attitudes to education
American educational history
Elementary and secondary schools
Higher education
Recent problems and policy debates
11.The media Media history
Freedom of the media
The contemporary print media
The contemporary broadcasting media
Attitudes to the media

12.Religion Religious history
Contemporary US religion
Church, state and politics
Religion and education
Attitudes to religion
13.The arts, sports and leisure The arts
Sports
Leisure

Planificació
Metodologies  ::  Proves
  Competències (*) Hores a classe Hores fora de classe (**) Hores totals
Activitats Introductòries
6 0 6
 
Sessió Magistral
60 0 60
Presentacions / exposicions
26 0 26
 
Atenció personalitzada
4 0 4
 
Proves objectives de preguntes curtes
54 0 54
 
(*) En el cas de docència no presencial, són les hores de treball amb suport vitual del professor.
(**) Les dades que apareixen a la taula de planificació són de caràcter orientatiu, considerant l’heterogeneïtat de l’alumnat

Metodologies
Metodologies
  Descripció
Activitats Introductòries Students will be given a short questionnaire with traditional cultural clichés about American life and institutions. After that, the questions will be jointly discussed in class in an attempt to prepare the students for the information they will receive throughout the course, and which tey may find slightly disconcerting.

Sessió Magistral Lectures will focus on the topics included in the textbook. They will highlight the main areas or the most difficult points. Alternatively, they may also include references to cultural landmarks or people

Presentacions / exposicions These one-hour presentations will be delivered in small groups. The topics will have been agreed upon previously, and students are expected to provide information on specific topics, but also to show their ability to speak in public, keep the audience's interest, manipulate IT, etc.

Atenció personalitzada
 
Atenció personalitzada
Presentacions / exposicions
Descripció
Once the topic of presentations has been decided, students will meet with the teacher at least twice. The first meeting will serve to channel the students' interests and give directions on how to prepare the presentation. The second meeting will be a follow-up session in which students will inform the teacher on the progress of their work.

Avaluació
  Descripció Pes
Sessió Magistral Class attendance and participation in the discussions that may arise in the course of the lectures 10
Presentacions / exposicions 1-hour presentation in class on one topic previously decided. Items to be valued: language accuracy, delivery, originality, use of IT, etc. 20
Proves objectives de preguntes curtes Two short-question tests on topics related to major landmarks in the culture of the United States. The questions may be connected to the lecture topics. but may also include other elements 30
Altres

"Final" exam, which is not such as it only accounts for 50% of the final grade. Between 50 and 100 short questions related to the textbook and the general lectures

50
 
Altres comentaris i segona convocatòria

The work and characteristics of the second sitting will be specified in class because, depending on the amount of work done and handed in, it may not be the same for all students


Fonts d'informació

Bàsica David Mauk & John Oakland, American Civilization. An Introduction, 4th, 2005
 , Anthology of Reading Materials, , September 2007
Complementària

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Altres comentaris
Regular class attendance is a requirement, as a high percentage of the final grade will be based on exercises and activitites done in class. Notice that the end-of-term exam only accounts for 50% of the final grade, which means that it is practically impossible to pass the course unless you have handed in a number of exercises.