Unit name | Culture and Identity |
---|---|
Unit code | LANG00039 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | QCA-3 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
Unit director | Dr. Smyth |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
IELTS 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in writing and 5.0 in each part of the test |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Centre for Academic Language and Development |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This is a 20-credit unit within the International Foundation Programme, which aims to explore the concepts of culture and identity. The course will start with exploring the question ‘What is culture/identity?’ in a global context. This will be analysed from a range of perspectives, such as philosophical, sociological and linguistic. Students will explore areas such as cultural identity, influences on cultural identity, intercultural communication and global citizenship in both a contemporary and historical context.
Students will engage with a range of cultural artefacts, such as film, music, literature, fashion and art. These perspectives and artefacts will be compared and contrasted with students encouraged to reflect on these and relate them to their own context.
Students will analyse real word implications of intercultural contact and explore solutions to problems arising from issues such as the power imbalances between dominant and subordinate cultures in a single society.
Students will also explore the concept of individuals having multiple cultural identities and how they can complement and conflict with each other.
By the end of the unit, students will be able to:
Students will attend 3 hours of study per week. Learning is facilitated in classroom sessions involving a combination of teacher-led input, combined with student-led discussion and practical, workshop-style activities. On-line delivery of materials through Blackboard VLE.
Formative assessment:
Summative assessment:
Readings from a range of sources will be used to support and underpin the themes explored during the course. However, the following are indicative of some of the texts that will be examined:
Holliday, A. (1996) Small Cultures, Applied Linguistics 20/1 pp. 247-264.
Holliday, A. (2018) Understanding Intercultural Communication. 2nd ed. Routledge.
Hofstede, G. (2010) Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, Third Edition: Software of the Mind: Intercultural Cooperation and Its Importance for Survival. 3rd ed. McGraw-Hill Education.