Syllabus Western Culture - Autumn 2013Teacher: Joe MonroeEmail: joseph.monroe.iigmail.comPhone: 13241867808Education: Case Western Reserve University, J.D., 2010Ohio State University, B.A., 2007IntroductionThis course is designed to give you opportunities to use and improve your English skills. We will do this by using selected topics of Western Culture to generate discussion. Class discussions will frequently involve comparison of Chinese and Western Culture. Your score is influenced heavily by effort in addition to English speaking ability. Your final score in this class comprises 50% of your total English score for the semester.PresentationsEach student must give a presentation on their assigned date. The presentation must be on a topic of Western Culture. The length of your presentation should not exceed 5 minutes. Use of PowerPoint is encouraged but not required. Please do not download a PowerPoint presentation from the internet. This is cheating and unnecessary. Each students presentation will be graded according to the students speaking, preparation, and presentation content. You are not expected to memorize your presentation, but students who simply “read” their presentation to the class will receive lower scores.HomeworkHomework assignments are designed to be brief and not difficult. They will involve interpretation of some cultural item such as a song lyric, expression, or famous quote. The most important rule is that all work must be original, i.e., your own thoughts and not someone elses.Final ExamThe final exam will take place in class the week of December 23, 2013. Class Rules1. No Cheating. No cheating will be tolerated in any form and any evidence of cheating or plagiarism will result in a lowering of your class score. 2. It is English Class - Please make every attempt to speak English in class, remember that is the real purpose of the course.3. Pronoun Rule - Confusing “he/she” and “him/her” represents the only unforgiveable mistake you can make in class. Although “Xi” Jinping is a “he,” “she” is most certainly not. The consequence of violating this rule will be announced in class (dont worry it isnt serious).GradingYour grade will be calculated as follows:- Presentation 40%- Participation 40% (in-class speaking, homework, attendance)- Final Exam 20%Class Topics (final order still to be determined)I. What is in a Name?II. College in the U.S.A.III. American Civil Liberties & Legal SystemIV. Marriage & FamilyV. Immigration & the American DreamVI. Work/Employment after GraduationVII. Food & Eating OutVIII. Role of Religion in Western SocietyIX. Superstitions/Omens/Numerology/Traditions and Selected FestivalsX. Duty to Help & Role of Police in SocietyXI. Informal Conversation/Slang/AccentsXII. How to be a “good” Foreign TouristXIII. Movie Class the subject of the movie will be used as the basis of the Final Exam.