American Ways An Introduction to American Culture Fourth Edition Teacher’s Manual with Answer Key Online Maryanne Kearny Datesman JoAnn Crandall Edward N Kearny American Ways: An Introduction to American Culture, Fourth Edition Teacher’s Manual with Answer Key Online Copyright © 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher Pearson Education, 10 Bank Street, White Plains, NY 10606 Staff Credits: The people who made up the American Ways, Fourth Edition, Teacher’s Manual team are Lisa Bayrasli, Barbara Del Rowe, Warren Fischbach, Amy McCormick, Joan Poole, and Debbie Sistino ISBN: 978-0-13-304703-5; 0-13-304703-2 ii Contents PART 1: HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL Teaching American Culture in the Language Classroom How to Use the Activities in the Text Before You Read After You Read Skill Building Expand Your Knowledge Write About It Explore on Your Own PART 2: ANSWER KEY FOR STUDENT TEXT Chapters 1–12 PART 3: REPRODUCIBLE ACTIVITY MASTERS 1 14 15 17 17 39 iii PART HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL Teaching American Culture in the Language Classroom Why Include Culture in Language Classes? There are a number of reasons for including culture in your language classes: • Culture provides interesting content for language learning, leading to engaging discussions, writing assignments, or group projects, and also can be used to develop both informal social language and more formal academic language • Culture can also be used to increase the cognitive component of the language class, helping students to develop higher order thinking skills as they analyze, compare, and discuss the cultural content • Reading about and discussing other cultures can serve as a valuable backdrop for analyzing students’ own cultures It is often said that we not really understand our own culture until we have lived outside it, or seen it through another person’s eyes In the words of a famous proverb, “A fish that never leaves the water does not discover water.” • Studying culture can lead to a better understanding of people’s behavior and help students move from ethnocentric pronouncements of what is “right” or “wrong” to more thoughtful tolerance of cultural diversity Culture, then, can be interesting content, even for those students whose primary motivation for learning English is academic, for it promotes complex linguistic and cognitive interaction and encourages students to use the kinds of skills and language that are required for both academic and professional contexts What Culture Should Be Taught? Traditional definitions of culture—or what has been called “culture with a capital C”—focus on the literature, music, dance, drama, and other arts of a group or a country That is often the focus of cultural studies in traditional language classrooms, especially the study of literature as a window to that culture Although this “Culture” is important, what may be of more interest to students and potentially more useful to them, if they are going to interact with people from a new culture, is to understand culture as it is more commonly understood by anthropologists: that is, the set of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors or customs that define or distinguish a group of people Or as Edward T Hall defines it, “a set of ideals, values, and standards of behavior that make the actions of individuals intelligible to the group.” In this book, culture represents the ways of perceiving, thinking, communicating, behaving, and evaluating that characterize Americans Culture is shared, but in a country as large and diverse as the United States, there is also a great deal of cultural diversity based on ethnicity, race, gender, and/or social class, all of which create a number of different societies in the country But even with these differences, there is still a kind of overarching culture that people grow up with that distinguishes them from those who live in other countries Moreover, culture is dynamic: cultures change as their populations change Nowhere is this more obvious than in the United States where immigration, refugee resettlement, and a number of other demographic patterns have created a rapidly changing population and country That overarching culture, the traditional mainstream core, the changes it is undergoing, and its many variations form the substance of this book What Should Be the Goals of a Culture Class or a Cultural Component? There are a number of goals that you and your students might set for studying culture • At the most basic level, that goal may be to make students more aware of American cultural patterns and how they differ with or are similar to their own American Ways Teacher’s Manual • At a deeper level, that goal may be to help students learn the reasons for those practices; that is, to understand why people what they This requires some knowledge of a people’s history and traditions, and the geography, and climate in which they live • For those students who may be going to live, work, or study with Americans, the goal may be to also develop the skills to interact appropriately with Americans in a variety of contexts This involves much more detailed attention to social roles, nonverbal communication, and speech acts Observing the media, interviewing Americans, or other activities such as these are intended to help students move from awareness and understanding to being able to predict or avoid problems and to resolve them effectively The language classroom is often the only “safe” place where students can express their frustration or ask cross-cultural questions without fear of ridicule or hostility The goal of the cultural component is not to explain away problematic features of the United States or to promote cultural imperialism; rather, it is to promote cross-cultural awareness, tolerance, or even acceptance, and greater global understanding Students come to the language classroom with different goals They are also likely to have different perspectives regarding the cultural component Taking the time to ask them their goals will lead to better discussions and a more fruitful class Is It Possible to Teach American Culture? Even with a small country or culture with few members, it may be difficult to make cultural generalizations, especially when one considers the relevance of gender, age, social status, or other factors In a country as large as the United States, with people who have come from so many different countries, bringing with them so many different languages, religions, and customs, it may seem impossible to talk about “American culture” or even “American cultures.” As you and your students read American Ways, discuss this issue and return to it several times Does the set of core values that has served as a basis for definition for generations of Americans continue to help define American people? Do even those who disagree with some or all of these values also acknowledge their existence? Answering this may be a central focus of your class Getting Started A number of games can be used to get your class started One of our favorites is a game of “shapes” that we learned many years ago from a cross-cultural trainer, Sandra Mumford, but we not really know its origin In this game, tags are made out of different colors in a variety of odd shapes, with some common features among them (a rounded corner, a triangle, a square corner, a serrated edge, and so on) (See Activity Masters and 2, Shapes, on pp 40–41 of this Teacher’s Manual, for ideas.) You can use the Activity Masters as patterns to cut out shapes in different colors, or you can use your imagination and create your own Just be sure that every shape has at least one feature in common with one other piece of a different color You will also need an envelope and some straight pins or paper clips so that students can wear the shapes like tags Here are the rules of the game: Tell students that beginning now, they are not to talk Have students choose one tag from the envelope and one of the pins or paper clips to put the tag on Remind them not to talk After everyone is wearing a tag, tell the students to walk around the room and look at each other’s tags, without talking When they have walked quite a bit and have looked at all the tags, ask them to form groups without talking Give students enough time to form groups Some students may find that no one “matches” them or invites them to join the group Others may find that several groups invite them in Remind them to look at the tags and find their group, and not to talk American Ways Teacher’s Manual Then ask them to look around their group and notice why they all belong to the group Have them notice what they have in common, but remind them not to talk After some time, ask them to walk around again, look at each other’s tags, and again to form new groups, and then to look around their group, noticing the tags, but not to talk After several rounds (at least three, but four or more is better), when students have formed the more typical groups based on color, or shape, or size, you will notice that they have to look much more carefully to find things that they have in common Some students will find that no one thinks their tag is like any others, and they may find themselves standing alone, outside a group Other times students will form one large group Now it’s time to discuss the activity with them You might ask these questions: What did you notice? Did anyone feel left out? Ignored? Did anyone invite you to form a group? How did you feel? Did anyone exclude you? How did that make you feel? Did you notice any changes in the size of the groups over time? Why you think that happened? This game can lead to an interesting opening discussion for the culture class or component and suggest ways in which we may differ, but also have a lot in common It can lead to discussions about the importance of belonging to a group and how we exclude or include people, as well as discussion about tolerance or acceptance, or even prejudice and discrimination It can also serve as a place to begin setting ground rules for your class This is important, especially in multicultural classes, where there is likely to be misunderstanding You may want to remind students that in this class you will expect all of them to be respectful of each other as individuals and as members of different cultures They may have questions; they may be surprised or even shocked at what they read or hear; but they should refrain from judging each other, other customs, or cultural differences before they have tried to understand how a custom or practice fits in with the entire system of the culture It can often be difficult to discuss values, beliefs, attitudes, or cultures Not only may the content be sensitive, but the words may not be readily available For that reason, we have provided a number of activities to be used in pairs or small groups where students may feel freer to speak up, and have suggested a number of ways in which you can organize these activities (Think, Pair, Share; SmallGroup Projects; Talk About It; etc.) The culture class is a community of individuals working together to understand each other It is a microcosm of the global community, and the efforts of you and your students represent one small but important step toward greater global understanding How to Use the Activities in the Text This section reviews the types of activities that are included in the text and provides some ideas of how they might be used in the class All chapters have the same six major sections, though the activities within each section may vary: Before You Read Preview Vocabulary Preview Content (Chapter Reading) American Ways Teacher’s Manual After You Read Understand Main Ideas Understand Details Talk About It Skill Building Improve Your Reading Skills: Scanning, Skimming, Highlighting, or Note Taking Develop Your Critical Thinking Skills Build Your Vocabulary Expand Your Knowledge Think, Pair, Share; Small-Group Discussion; Have a Debate; Small-Group Project Ask Americans; Ask Yourself; People Watching; Observe the Media; Proverbs and Sayings Understand or Compare Polls Use the Internet Write About It Explore On Your Own Books to Read Movies to See Each of these sections (except for the chapter reading) is discussed below BEFORE YOU READ All chapters include pictures, quotations, and two sets of activities preceding the reading text: Preview Vocabulary and Preview Content The purpose of this prereading section is to: • • • • • Activate students’ prior knowledge; Identify key vocabulary that will be needed to understand and discuss the text; Develop common background knowledge from various students in the class to facilitate discussion; Focus attention for the reading of the chapter; Identify or predict themes that will be discussed in the chapter There are many ways of using the Preview Vocabulary and Preview Content activities and most of the other activities in this text: • Students can try to answer or the activities individually, in pairs, or in small groups • The activity can be assigned as homework Then students can compare and discuss their answers in class Let students be the “teacher” here • Students can be asked to locate the place in the text where they found the answer • The activity can be used to teach test-taking strategies Ask students to read questions before they read the chapter and then read to find the answer American Ways Teacher’s Manual Preview Vocabulary Because this is a reading text designed to prepare students to read and write academic English, great thought has been given to the vocabulary used in the chapter readings and then selected for the vocabulary exercises The emphasis is on academic vocabulary from the Academic Word List (AWL) developed by Averil Coxhead: a set of some 500 key words that are frequent and important in academic texts used in university or professional education (For more information on the AWL, see www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/resources/academicwordlist.) The AWL contains 570 word families that were selected by examining academic texts from a variety of subject areas The list does not include words that are among the most frequent 2,000 words of English Each word family has a headword (the stem form) and a list of other word forms (or parts of speech) for that headword On page 306, of American Ways, there is a list of the AWL headwords used in the readings (Another form of the word may have been used, not the stem form.) After each word are the numbers of all the chapters in which these words appear The reading material in each chapter has been analyzed by comparing it to both the AWL and the 2,000 Most Frequent Word Family List The language analyzer shows the reading in different colors for the 2,000 most common words, the AWL words, and the off-list words that not appear on the other lists It also gives the number and percentages for each type of vocabulary item Vocabulary words used in exercises (1) are from the AWL or (2) are not from either of the two lists but are important to the context of the reading and are useful to know for academic reading in general Words from the 2,000 most common words are not used in vocabulary exercises The language analysis allows us to tightly control the vocabulary and carefully construct vocabulary exercises Our analysis of the readings in American Ways shows that 90–96% of all the vocabulary is either from the most frequent 2,000 words or the AWL The AWL words make up between 5% and 7%, and the off-list words (words that are neither among the most frequent 2,000 words nor on the AWL) average 6.6% per chapter Interestingly, Chapter has the highest percentage of off-list words because words such as frontier are not used so often, although it is probably one of the easier chapters because much of the content is concrete American is another off-list word appearing frequently in the text The percentages of 2,000 AWL, and off-list words are remarkably constant throughout the readings, so the reading level is very consistent The grammar used in American Ways has not been controlled, but there is an attempt to avoid overly long and complicated sentences A number of different activities activate the key vocabulary for the chapter and help students learn it In this edition, many of the words that are highlighted in vocabulary activities in this section are drawn from the AWL (See pp 306–308 of the text for more discussion.) They are important because they are: • Key words; • Likely to be new or unfamiliar words; • Words that students will need to understand to make sense of the text and be able to discuss the text or write about the ideas in the chapter; • Words that are often used in many related forms; for example, economy, economic, economics, economize, economical, economically, uneconomical, economist In some cases, the words are presented in questions that are intended to get students thinking about the chapter Other activities include matching, classifying, identifying connotations or opposites, and completing sentences American Ways Teacher’s Manual Preview Content For every chapter, students are asked to predict what the chapter will be about by looking at chapter headings, pictures, charts, and polls and by analyzing the quotation that precedes the text They are also asked to think about their own experiences related to the themes in the text You might ask students to: • Read this section and quickly look through the text as homework, writing brief answers to the questions and noting anything they find confusing or surprising; • Share their written answers with a partner; • Discuss this as a large group, writing students’ ideas on the board; • After they read the text, go back and compare what they now think with what they predicted or thought before reading the text AFTER YOU READ This section provides a number of activities that can be done immediately after reading the chapter The exercises ask students to: Understand Main Ideas; Understand Details; Talk About It Understand Main Ideas These activities help students understand the ways academic texts in English are constructed: from main ideas, to supporting details in a kind of “T.” This T shape (or “I,” if the main idea is repeated at the end) also is the format that whole sections or chapters take, and the same organizational format that students should use in their academic writing As they progress through the chapters, they will begin to look for the main ideas and supporting ideas and notice that the main ideas are usually at the beginning of paragraphs and also in the beginning of sections and chapters, followed by supporting details The goal is to enhance their reading (and listening) comprehension and also their academic writing in English, since they will be expected to follow this same kind of T format in their paragraphs In writing an essay, they may use an I format to return to the main ideas and summarize them in the conclusion (See p 63 of the Student Book.) Often, in these activities, students will be asked to go back to the predictions they made before beginning the chapter Discuss in class how they arrived at their predictions and what has led them to confirm or change their ideas Spend some time helping students to see how a paragraph, a section, and the chapter are constructed You can: • Ask students to work together in pairs, highlighting introductions, conclusions, and topic sentences • Discuss how they arrived at their choices Note the repetition of main ideas in the chapter title, the headings, and the sections in the chapter • Ask them to read a paragraph and then look away and try to write a one-sentence summary of the paragraph or to tell their partner what the main idea is Together they can construct a sentence that summarizes the paragraph Do this for an entire section of the chapter, then for the entire chapter • Ask them to make up questions for various sections • Assign some of these activities for homework, giving students more time to think about the main ideas of the chapter This section also uses a progressive sequence of activities to help students understand and better visualize the ways in which academic texts are organized in American textbooks (and the ways in which they should organize their academic writing in English) Students are asked to identify main ideas or supporting details, to highlight topic sentences, to develop questions related to the main idea, to complete an outline, or to fill in a graphic organizer drawn from those in the text or in the Reproducible Activity Masters (on pp 39–51 of this Teacher’s Manual) When they have completed these activities in Chapter 12, they should have a very good sense of the structure of American academic reading (and writing and American Ways Teacher’s Manual lecturing) and should be able to apply what they have learned to improve both their reading and writing of American English texts Understand Details These activities help students to understand and remember some of the important details in the chapter The activities include True/False, Matching, and Selecting the Best Answer to Complete a Sentence You can use any of the suggestions for activities suggested in Before You Read (on pp 4–6 of this Teacher’s Manual) Frequently a graphic organizer is suggested to help students identify and organize main ideas and details Graphic organizers provide excellent support for students when they are trying to organize their thoughts and remember key details for discussion or writing If there is no graphic organizer suggested, look through those provided in the Reproducible Activity Masters (on pp 39–51) section for ones that might fit with the activities Talk About It This section asks students to get into small groups and to choose one or more questions to discuss, based on the readings and their own experiences You can let students form their own groups, have students count off to form small groups of three to five, or assign students to specific groups on the basis of similarities or differences in background, experience, or personalities of the students Remind students that this is an opportunity for free discussion and that they should be respectful of one another’s opinions See the discussion on Think, Pair, Share; Small-Group Discussion; Have a Debate; etc (on pp 9–11 of this Teacher’s Manual) for ideas on ways to organize and manage the discussion SKILL BUILDING This section helps students improve their reading skills: scan, skim, highlight, or take notes; develop critical thinking skills: analyze, evaluate, use, and create polls; evaluate and compare definitions, pros and cons; express opinions; and build vocabulary Improve Your Reading Skills: Scanning, Skimming, Highlighting, or Note Taking Each chapter also has an activity that requires students to go back through the chapter to locate information by a variety of means Scanning activities ask the students to look quickly down the page to find specific information or details such as a date, a location, a name, or an event in history so that they can answer questions, fill in blanks, or complete a timeline or other graphic organizer Skimming activities ask students to read a paragraph or a section of the chapter quickly to find main ideas Highlighting activities ask students to underscore or use a highlighter to identify specific portions of the text This helps students identify and remember main ideas Note-Taking activities ask students to take notes about important information as they read For these reading skills activities, you can: • Write items on the board or on a transparency, and have the students find the information individually, or in pairs • Read the items aloud one at a time Limit the time you allow for students to find the answers Make this into a competition • Divide the class into teams and see which team can correctly find all the answers first • Have students work in pairs Give one student the questions and the other the answers from the Answer Key • Give each student a scanning/skimming/highlighting/note-taking handout to be completed as a homework assignment American Ways Teacher’s Manual CHAPTER 12 BEFORE YOU READ Preview Vocabulary (p 282) A a a a b b a b a b 10 a 11 a 12 b B emergency bankruptcy paycheck layoff AFTER YOU READ Understand Main Ideas (p 294) B not sure what future challenges will to traditional American values states thesis for the chapter and organizational plan; reviews six values and challenges Should rights to individual freedom be expanded to include economic freedom? Would this damage the value of self-reliance? Values divide between conservatives and liberals the struggle for a balance between giving everyone an equal chance to succeed without destroying fair competition Should minorities be given special opportunities to help create “a level playing field”? the American Dream Even though many Americans are working harder than ever, they are struggling to maintain a comfortable lifestyle left, liberal Democrats believe it is an income problem; right, conservative Republicans believe it is a spending problem (1) they can, thanks to computers and demographic studies; (2) many Americans are interested in only one or two political issues; and (3) about one third of Americans are independents and both parties need their votes to win Immigrants bring new life and energy and youth to an aging country; they have a strong belief in American values; many have technical skills needed in the United States; they may help create the first universal nation Understand Details (p 294) F F T F Answer Key for Student Text T F T F T 10 F 37 SKILL BUILDING Improve Your Reading Skills: Scanning (p 296) p 289—Mortimer Zuckerman p 293—Alvin Toffler p 292—President Ronald Reagan quoted by Gloria Borger p 285—John J Zogby p 291—John Kenneth White p 285—John J Zogby p 291—David Von Drehle p 292—George Washington p 288—Noemie Emery 10 p 292—Gloria Borger Build Your Vocabulary Scrambled Words (p 298) culture freedom hard work equality material wealth self-reliance competition Vocabulary Check (p 298) Words that have to with the criminal justice system: court, defense attorney, jury, criminals, justice, trial trial jury, defense attorney court More AWL Words (p 299) military security identity distinction stress evidence survive commitment Answer Key for Student Text justice criminals define 10 sector 11 target 12 challenge 13 respond 14 category 15 sole 16 reveal 38 PART 10 11 12 REPRODUCIBLE ACTIVITY MASTERS Shapes Shapes Book Talk Critic’s Corner K-W-L Semantic Web Venn Diagram Plus-Minus Compare and Contrast Decision-Making Decision-Making Values American Ways Teacher’s Manual 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 39 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 40 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 41 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 42 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 43 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 44 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 45 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 46 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 47 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 48 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 49 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 50 © 2014 Pearson Education Duplication for classroom use is permitted American Ways Teacher’s Manual 51 [...]... them to discuss what proverbs reveal about their own cultures and those of other cultures The easiest way for students to discover American proverbs or sayings is to ask Americans to share them with them They may want to make a list of proverbs from their own country related to the chapter topic and then ask Americans if they know of any similar proverbs If the students do not have access to Americans,... Ask Americans These activities consist of questions that students can ask of Americans If they are unable to interview Americans, they can be encouraged to write to Americans using email (key-pal) or pen pal letters, or other forms of communication Many ESL classes in the United States want to partner with English classes overseas to exchange information You may want to investigate ways to create email... participants 5 English 6 yes; answers will vary B Understand Main Ideas (p 12) 1 size, ethnic diversity 2 A Nation of Immigrants 3 different cultures living together peacefully 4 it’s difficult, but possible (Tocqueville) 5 They provide the main ideas or focus of this book American culture, American values, and the way in which studying another culture helps you to understand your own Understand Details... www.theamericanways.net and the Pearson website, www.pearsoneltusa.com/americanways, for more resources, teacher tips, and suggestions for activities that will complement the 4th edition of American Ways American Ways Teacher’s Manual 16 PART 2 ANSWER KEY FOR STUDENT TEXT CHAPTER 1 BEFORE YOU READ Preview Vocabulary (p 2) A 1 yes 2 yes 3 answers will vary 4 Internet 1 convinced 2 reveals 3 culture 4 job... role and may seem unnatural for many students, but it can be a way to encourage positive feedback and encouragement in discussion This is a good role for someone who is comfortable with social language and social roles American Ways Teacher’s Manual 10 Have a Debate Almost every chapter has the kinds of controversial topics that can lead to a debate Ideas for these can come from the Ask Americans or... Americans; Ask Yourself; People Watching; Observe the Media; Proverbs and Sayings All of these activities encourage students to reflect personally on what they are reading They also encourage students to observe and interact with people—and to analyze traditional sayings or proverbs— in order to gain additional information while using oral and written English American Ways Teacher’s Manual 11 Ask Americans... classroom and be sure to preview them before using them Also, the Internet, and especially YouTube, is an excellent source for speeches, short video clips, and other useful material Pew Research is an excellent source of up -to- date polls and research studies on many aspects of American life Pew’s websites are easy to use and some have interactive pages Finally, we invite you to visit our website www.theamericanways.net... partnerships to facilitate this kind of exchange of information Some students feel shy about approaching Americans You might want to encourage students to do these activities in pairs Explain to students that they should tell the person that they are interviewing that this is part of a class assignment In general, Americans are remarkably willing to answer questions and to take time for an interview... Chapter 1); • Understand prefixes and the ways that these change the meanings of words; • Match words with definitions; • Identify synonyms or antonyms; • Categorize words in relation to topics (for example, sports or recreation); • Fill in words to complete sentences EXPAND YOUR KNOWLDEGE This section asks students to synthesize and integrate what they have learned from the chapter and to extend that knowledge... channels lead to fragmented viewing or smaller numbers of people viewing any one program; computers and Internet are sources of information and entertainment 5 a very large amount of information (some say more than can fit on a personal computer) and some say it is also the tools that allow us to see patterns and make use of the knowledge; who owns our personal data and how can it be used? 6 Americans