Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
English Language and Culture
Teaching staff
Dra. Christina Howes
chowes@uic.es
Martes y Jueves 10.00-11.00 (by appointment)
Introduction
Culture partly constitutes our identity; it plays a role in how we define ourselves, how we perceive ourselves, communicate, understand, classify and describe everything around us. As such, any communicative act can also be looked at simultaneously as a social act that frames a cultural reality of a language speaker.
Hence, the role of culture is especially important in the acquisition and teaching of a language based on a communicative approach. La historia es parte importante de nuestra cultura y subyace en nuestras festividades, hábitos y costumbres.
This course aims to introduce students to history and culture of the English speaking world (principally the United Kingdom): history, literature, music and other key cultural elements the application of history and culture into the primary classroom.
Pre-course requirements
B2 level English according to CEFR in the four basic areas of evaluation: oral comprehension and production and written comprehension and production.
Objectives
The main objectives of this course are:
1) To raise awareness of the way culture and history profoundly influence language and thus knowledge of it is vital to both teaching and learning English.
2) To improve students' knowledge of the main cultural and historial moments of the U.K and the U.S.A to enable them to transfer this to the primary classroom.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- CEM-06 - To know the pedagogical dimension of interaction with peers and adults and learn to promote participation in group activities, cooperative work and individual effort.
- CEM-20 - To value the importance of teamwork.
- CEM-44 - To learn and master techniques of oral and written expression.
- CEM-45 - To be familiar with the oral tradition and folklore.
- CEM-48 - To manage language-learning situations in multilingual contexts.
- CG-07 - To be familiar with the elements that make up critical thinking, the different levels of proficiency and how to develop this skill as much as possible.
- CG-08 - To be familiar with the elements that make up reflective thinking, the different levels of proficiency and how to develop this skill as much as possible.
- CG-11 - To be familiar with the elements that make up the quality-based approach, the different levels of proficiency and how to develop this skill as much as possible.
Learning outcomes of the subject
By the end of this course students will have reflected and developed their own personal opinions over a range of relevant subjects. They will also have learned about history and culture of the British Isles and the U.S.A. Additionally, students will have participated in many debates and presentations that rely heavily on their communicative abilities in English as well as their teaching competence and their ability to integrate culture in the classroom.
Syllabus
1. Introduction
a. What is culture? Why is it important in the classroom? Discussing methodologies and other issues in teaching culture. English as an international/global language. The English-speaking world.
2. Culture and History in the English-speaking world: A brief overview of History, Festivals, Literature, Music, Film and Art through audiovisual material, readings, lectures, blogs, individual and group research.
3. Approaches to teaching history and culture. Practical implementation and an analysis of material.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
This course is based on a mixed methodology in which academic readings and subsequent discussion are combined with oral and written academic activities, presentations and individual and group work. There will be also be some group research projects.
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
Assessment is based on:
1. 1 group project (40%) to choose between:
a. History and Culture of Great Britain
b. History and Culture of the United States
2. Oral presentation of the project (30%)
b. A quiz (on history and culture of The British Isles/U.S):20%
3. Class Participation: 10%
Students are reminded that at least 80% of the classes must be attended to be evaluated by means of continuous evaluation. However, it is advisable to work during the course in order to achieve the level of B2.2 or C1 domain from MCERL, highly valued and desirable levels to pass the subjects of the English mention.
All the exercises are COMPULSORY. An exercise not handed in or failing to do a presentation will
count as an 'NA' ('no avaluable'or 'no evidence'), that is to say a 0. The submission of any exercise
invalidates the student to get a final mark of "No Avaluable".
The minimum pass mark for the whole subject is 5.
The student's command of English will be taken into account when marking all exercises and for the
final mark. It will count as 25% of this mark for all the exercises and will be assessed as follows:
Grammar (morphology and syntax): 30%; Vocabulary (accuracy and variety): 15%; Consistency (among
sentences and paragraphs): 15%; Organization (sound argumentation of ideas): 20%; Style (expression
and register): 15%; Spelling: 5%
VERY IMPORTANT! Partial or total plagiarising will immediately result in a FAIL(0) for the plagiarised
exercise or the WHOLE SUBJECT if plagiarism is repeated. PLAGIARISING consists of copying text
from unacknowledged sources -whether this is part of a sentence or a whole text-with the intention of
passing it off as the student's own production. It includes cutting and pasting from internet sources,
presented unmodified in the student's own text. Plagiarising is a SERIOUS OFFENCE. Students must
respect authors' intellectual property, always identifying the sources they may use; they must also be
responsible for the originality and authenticity of their own texts.
Bibliography and resources
Students will be provided with weekly academic articles posted on Moodle, among other handouts and materials.
Optional readings:
Books:
- Bigsby, Christopher, (2006).The Cambridge Companion To Modern American Culture (Cambridge Companions To Culture), Cambridge University Press; N.º 1 edición. ISBN-13 : 978-0521601092
- Christopher, David.P. British Culture: An Introduction. Routledge; N.º 3 edición. ISBN-13 : 978-0415810852
- Cunliffe, Barry (2004): The Penguin Illustrated History of Britain and Ireland: From Earliest Times to the Present Day. Penguin Reference Books. Penguin Publishers.
- Higgins, Smith, (2010). The Cambridge Companion to Modern British Culture (Cambridge Companions to Culture), Cambridge University Press. ISBN-13 : 978-0521683463
Articles:
•Byram, & Kramsch, C. (2008). Why is it so difficult to teach language as culture? The German Quarterly, 81(1), 20-34. •Canagarajah, S. (2007). Lingua Franca English, multilingual communities, and language acquisition. Modern Language Journal, 91, 923–939.