Time and Place: Tuesday 8: 00-9: 40, Room 109

Time and Place: Tuesday 8:00-9:40, Room 109

This seminar course is designed to improve first-year students’ language skills through acquainting them with some of the core topics of American civilization, including geography and regionalism, government, basic political concepts, politics and the Constitution, society, national holidays, and everyday life. Special emphasis will also be put on certain aspects of American English. Students will be graded on the strength of their class performance, an individual short lecture, short written assignments (i.e. response papers) and in-class tests (short tests and an end-term test).

Class attendance and participation in the discussion of the topics at hand are essential and considered an important part of the final grade. In addition, each student will give a max. 10-minute presentation during the semester on a pre-approved topic, prepared on the basis of the instructions discussed during the first class. There will be short tests (announced in advance) and an end-term paper. Students will have to hand in some written assignments of about 1,000-1,200 words altogether) during the semester. The details of the specific assignments will be discussed during orientation.

Each student is required to choose a presentation topic from the issues indicated under the weekly discussion topics, or recommended either by the instructor or the students. Presentations should be about maximum 10 minutes in length and should be interactive (with thought-provoking questions to the class or various activities) to generate discussion. Audio-visual aids, PPT presentations, etc. are more than welcome to support your talk.

A typed handout strictly not longer than one page should be handed in to the instructor ONE WEEK before the due date of the presentation for overview. Only handouts approved by the instructor can be presented. The handout should be only a guideline to the presentation and not a word-by-word transcript. You must not read out your presentation! The content of your talk, your performance and presentation skills as well as your pronunciation will be evaluated. If someone does not show up when his/her presentation is due and does not notify the instructor in advance, he/she will lose all the credit points on the assignment.
Short Quizzes

Students will write FOUR short tests or quizzes on (1) the US map and the Facts and Figures handout, (2) the Election Glossary, (3) society, and (4) legal vocabulary, etc. If necessary, students will write random vocabulary and comprehension tests on each occasion based on the week-by-week assigned readings.

Students will be required to write ONE response paper based on or inspired by an American magazine or newspaper article of the students’ choice (e.g. The New York Times, Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, etc.). This may include articles related to topics and issues discussed in class. This paper should not be a simple summary of the reading or the problem at hand but should include reflections of the student on the particular topic. The originality as well as the composition features/language of the papers will be evaluated. Plagiarized papers are unacceptable. Plagiarism will automatically result in ‘fail.’

Students are required to prepare a brief report or interview (400 words) with some of their Hungarian and/or non-Hungarian peers, family members, friends, etc. to pursue information about these people’s views and opinions about the United States. The questions may address a wide variety of issues and debated topics of American life and culture. Reports are due on Week 19 (April 14).

The end-term exam will be a comprehensive test on the material discussed during the semester and it will also include short essay questions. There is no excuse for absences on this occasion. Please note that there is NO re-sit for the end-term test (except for illness or other justified serious emergencies).

The final grade will be calculated from the grades assigned on class participation (20%), presentation (10%), short quizzes (20%), written assignments (15%) and the end-term paper (35%). More than three absences will result in a “not fulfilled” grade. Grades will be assigned according to the following conversion formulae: 0-60% = fail; 61-70% = satisfactory; 71-80% = average; 81-90% = good; 91-100% = excellent.

It is an essential part of the course requirements to attend all class meetings. If you must miss a class because of illness or emergency, please let me know, and make arrangements to complete any work missed.

Students may not miss more than three classes under any circumstances. If you do not turn up on occasions when course assignments (presentation, quizzes) are due and you fail to notify the tutor you will lose all the credit points on the particular assignment.

There is no excuse not to come to class when the quizzes and the end-term are due.

During the class please DO refrain from using your electronic devices including tabs, mobile phones, etc. Please, DO NOT receive phone calls and text messages during the class!!! It is disturbing and impolite in the first degree!!!!

The basic textbooks for the course are Maryanne Datesman, JoAnn Crandall and Edward M. Kearny, American Ways. An Introduction to American Culture (New York: Longman, 2005) and Pintér Károly, Szántó Ildikó, Jancsó Daniella, Suba Ferenc and Surányi Emőke, Cultural Relations. Brit, ausztrál, Amerikai és kanadai országismereti nyelvkönyv (Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2001). The relevant sections of textbook are scanned and available electronically in the IEAS Library.

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