COURSE UNIT TITLE

: INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN CULTURE

DEGREE PROGRAMMES

Description of Individual Course Units

Course Unit Code Course Unit Title Type Of Course D U L ECTS
AKE 2025 INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN CULTURE COMPULSORY 3 0 0 4

Offered By

American Culture and Literature

Level of Course Unit

First Cycle Programmes (Bachelor's Degree)

Course Coordinator

DOCTOR CARL JEFFREY BOON

Offered to

American Culture and Literature

Course Objective

This course introduces students to major intellectual trends in American culture from the Turn of the Century until the 1950s.
The course is inclusive of major art works, architectural styles, cultural artifacts, literary works, intellectual trends,
thoughts and values as part of the evolution and transformation underwent in the United States.

Planning a course like Introduction to American Culture is difficult because every facet of any culture is necessarily connected to every other facet, be it politics, ideology, race, identification, the arts, entertainment, home and family, religion, holidays, rituals, food, sports, nature, and technology. Our main goal in this course will be to discuss how certain American ideologies give rise and make possible certain facets of American culture. In other words, how do the ways we think affect the ways we act. Studies of culture form bridges between the two.

Learning Outcomes of the Course Unit

1   Students will acquire skills to collect information about cultural objects: identifying, recognizing, perceiving and remembering.
2   Students will acquire skills in hearing in English about cultural objects. In this respect corresponding documentaries will serve as tools in audio/visual education.
3   Students will acquire skills in paraphrasing newly acquired information.
4   Students will acquire skills in describing texts in various formats.
5   Students with access to teaching material provided on course blog will learn to persue their sudies at all times.
6   Students will successfully present on a pertinent topic relation to American culture

Mode of Delivery

Face -to- Face

Prerequisites and Co-requisites

None

Recomended Optional Programme Components

None

Course Contents

Week Subject Description
1 Introduction: What is American Culture Lecture and discussion.
2 Introduction to American Studies Lecture and discussion.
3 Demonstration presentation. Lecture and discussion.
4 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
5 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
6 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
7 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
8 Midterm
9 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
10 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
11 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
12 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
13 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
14 Group Presentation: material to be chosen by the students in their groups. Presentation and discussion.
15 Course Review and exam preparation. Lecture and discussion.
16 Final

Recomended or Required Reading

Visual aids including short videos will be presented.
Handouts will also be provided pertaining to notions of American culture, history, and idenity.
"Rereading America" will be an inavluable volume as source material.

Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods

Classes
1. All selected teaching material; written and visual are to be notified prior to the semester. Syllabi maybe altered with due notice. Lectures maybe inclusive of power point presentations; black board use, and handouts.
2. Teaching material is posted on the blog site (online) allowing for duly class preparation.
3. audio/visualresources will be employed in learning.
Computer applications:
4. The Course Blog constitutes of a teaching aid disseminating corresponding audio visual texts, as well as class related announcements.

Your work in this course will involve presenting with your classmates a certain aspect of American culture and making the link between it and how American think about themselves, their communities, and the wider world.

Assessment Methods

SORTING NUMBER SHORT CODE LONG CODE FORMULA
1 MTE 1 MIDTERM EXAM 1
2 FIN FINAL EXAM
3 FCGR FINAL COURSE GRADE (RESIT) MTE 1 * 0.50 + FIN * 0.50
4 RST RESIT
5 FCGR FINAL COURSE GRADE (RESIT) MTE 1 * 0.50 + RST * 0.50


Further Notes About Assessment Methods

None

Assessment Criteria

Exams:
Throughout the semester two (2) exams will be administered.
Midterm: (%40)
Midterm exam will be in test form, inclusive of multiple choice, fill in the blanks, open ended
type questions. This exam aims to test student understanding of acquired information.
Final: (%60)
Final exam will be in test form, inclusive of multiple choice, fill in the blanks, open ended type
questions. This exam aims to test student understanding of acquired information.
home works/quizzes (%10) maybe administered as well.

Language of Instruction

English

Course Policies and Rules

1) Class attendance is compulsory (%70)
2) Students held exempt from class participation, are responsible from current years course content.
3) Students are expected to adhere with academic code of ethics.

Contact Details for the Lecturer(s)

carl.boon@deu.edu.tr

Office Hours

Wednesday, 12:00-13:00.

Work Placement(s)

None

Workload Calculation

Activities Number Time (hours) Total Work Load (hours)
Lectures 14 3 42
Preparation for midterm exam 13 1 13
Preparation for final exam 1 18 18
Preparations before/after weekly lectures 1 18 18
Final 1 6 6
Midterm 1 6 6
TOTAL WORKLOAD (hours) 103

Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes

PO/LOPO.1PO.2PO.3PO.4PO.5PO.6PO.7PO.8PO.9PO.10PO.11PO.12PO.13PO.14
LO.14553
LO.234545
LO.3553555355
LO.4555
LO.534444
LO.6

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