英语国家概况课程教学大纲教案

1、英语国家概况 课程教学大纲 教 案（2011.4学年 第1学期） （一）课程教学目的和要求 随着我国对外交往的日益频繁和涉外工作的需要， 大学生不仅有必要学好英语语言能力，还应该对英语国家社会与文化基本情况进行大致了解， 以便进一步搞好夸文化交流。 该课程主要介绍了英国、美国、加拿大、澳大利亚和新西兰等地的社会与文化基本状况。（二）课程教学重点和难点1、重点：了解掌握5 个说英语的国家人文、地理、气候特征，政府政治与经济制度，以及文化教育特点。 2、难点：地貌特征产生的原因，各政府政治执政的相同模式和不同点。（三）教学方法讲解和讨论并用。（四）课时安排：总课时：36课时，每堂课一个专题。（五）

2、考核方式 ： 期末考试 （六）参考教材 王恩铭 英语国家概况 上海外语教育出版社 2008 谢福之 英语国家概况 外语教学与研究出版社 2007 教学日历(语1-4c )周次星期时数授课形式授 课 内 容课外作业、教材页序号、题序号参考书目书名、章节、起止页码教学大纲的章节、题目、内容,章节、起止页码2345678910111213141516171819mon.wedn.fri.mon.wedn.fri.mon.wedn.fri.mon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.fri.mon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.

3、frimon.wedn. frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn. frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.frimon.wedn.fri2 22222222222222222讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课讲课part one : geographic features of ukpart two: the people and history part three: government and politics part four: religion and educationpart f

4、ive: geographic features of usa国庆休假、实习part six: history and american identitypart seven: political situation and social servicepart eight: legal system, education and religion in american lifepart nine : the land and people of canada part ten: history and culture life part eleven: the land and peopl

5、e of australiapart twelve: government, politics, culture lifepart thirteen: the land and the people of new zealand part fourteen: history and political system review p2-8p12-41 p42-61p81-99p 114-123 p 124-155p145- 154p156-175,178-187p188- 205p226-238 p239,262,271p284-305p317-338p340p349-360lecture o

6、ne geography of u k question for discussion: 1) where does britain lie?2）what is its full name? 3）what is the total land area of the united kingdom?4）what is british isles?5）how long does its coastline run? 1. geographic features and its total area.: britain is situated in western europe and is sepa

7、rated from the european continent in the east by the north sea, the strait of dover and the english channel in the south. it is an insular（保守的）country. its coastline runs 12,429 km, it is one of the countries with longest coastline. to the west of it lies the atlantic ocean, across and beyond it is

8、america. the straits of dover between france and england is quite narrow and it is 33 km across. in 1985 the british government and the french government decided to build a channel tunnel under the straits of dover so that england and france could be joined together by road. this channel tunnel was

9、opened to traffic in may 1994 after eight years hard work.the britain faces scandinavia peninsular (norway, sweden and denmark) to the northeast and to the north lies iceland to the south across the english channel lies france and belgium and to the east across north sea lie germany and holland. the

10、 total area is about 244,820 square kilometers.it is over 1,000 km. from south to north and it is about 500 km. from west to east.2. the names of ukits full name is the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland, usually shortened , abbreviated to the united kingdom or u.k. it may also cal

11、led great britain, britain or informally england. england: 130.000skm, 60% of whole island.british isles: two large islands and several small ones britain：the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland. great britain ：england, wales, scotlandbritain is divided into highland area and lowlan

12、d area.it has large mountain ranges : the pennies ：bulk of pennines（奔宁山脉） is moorland. the cumbrian mountain range, the grampian mountains , the cambrian mountain range and such important rivers as thames river ,the seven river, mercy river, the humber, the clyde river and the forth.scotland has an

13、area of 78,760 square kilometers in northern part.it is situated in the north of great britain with a good number of mountains and islands. there are 800 islands which contain hebrides, shetland and orkney islands. edinburgh is the capital of scotland.wales: wales is in the west of great britain. it

14、 has an area of 20,761 square kilometers and it take up less than 9% of the whole island. the capital of wales is cardiff. most of wales is mountainous. the hills rise steeply from the sea and rather flat on top. 6% of wales is covered with forest and much of the country is pastureland for sheep and

15、 cattle. wales on the western prominence. 20.700skm, 9% of the whole island. wales was united to england in 14th centurynorthern ireland takes up the northern fifth of ireland. it has an area of 14,147 square kilometers. it is made up of six counties that consist of fertile, drumlin drmlin (鼓丘) coun

16、try surrounding lough neagh. belfast is the capital of northern ireland. mountains in the north and south, separated by the fertile basin of lough neagh, mainly agricultural, industrial center: two ports belfast and londonderry.3. climate and weather -a maritime type of climate: 1) moderated by the

17、atlantic gulf stream, milder than places in the same latitude. 2) equable: winters are mild, temperature exceed 4c in the west, lower in the east. july about 18c. 13c in the northern scotland. 3) changeable day-t-day conditions. 4) rainfall throughout the year. no marked dry season. in britain the w

18、eather is rainy, changeable and unpredictable. in fact it has a favorable maritime climate. it rarely rises above 32 in summer or falls below 10 in winter. winters are mild, not too cold and summers are cool, not too hot. “ can i compare thee to the summers day ?”rainfall: britain has a steady relia

19、ble rainfall throughout the whole year. the average annual rainfall in britain is over 1,ooo mm. it is rainy and so changeable and unpredictable. one can experience four seasons in the course of a single day. britain is famous for its fogs. the smoke-fogs of the big town, which used to develop in wi

20、nter time whenever there was not enough wind to blow the smoke away, were horrible, unhealthy and dangerous to movement4. rivers and lakes and natural resources there are many lakes and rivers in england: but not very large.1) the longest river: severn river, 355km 2) thames river, 338km, in oxford3

21、) clyde river in scotland 4) lakes lies in northern scotland & the cambria mountains and north walesengland is rich in coal, iron, tin, copper, oil and gasthere are no large land-based oilfields except in north sea. (also gas)5. exercise: tell if the following are true or false1) the island of great

22、 britain is geographically divided into three parts: england , scotland and wales. ( + )2) people in different parts of britain like to use the name england to refer to their country. ( - )3) today more than half of people in wales still speak the ancient welsh language.( - )4) in terms of populatio

23、n and area, northern ireland is the second largest part of the united kingdom. ( - )5) the longest river of britain originates in wales. ( + )6) because of political troubles, northern ireland has been quite significant among the four constituent parts of the united kingdom. ( + )7) though the clima

24、te in britain is generally mild, the temperature in northern scotland often falls below -10c in january. ( - ) 8) the two main islands of the british isles are great britain and ireland. ( + ) 9) cardiff is the capital city of scotland. ( - ) 10) according to a 2005 census, britain now has a populat

25、ion of 60 million. ( + )11) among the four parts of united kingdom, wales is the smallest. ( - ) 12) english belong to the germanic group of indo-european family of language. ( + )13) almost a quarter of the british population lives in northwestern england. ( - ) 14) the introduction of christianity

26、 to britain added the first element of latin and greek words to english. ( + ) 15) the evolution of middle english was reinforced by the norman influence. ( + ) lecture two the people(1)question for discussion: 1) what are the celtic languages? are they still alive? 2) how has english language evolv

27、ed in history? is it important to the uks class structure?3) what are the minor languages spoken in the uk？overview: population: 56,500,000 english 80%; welsh 5%; scots 10%; irish 4%.1. the english: anglo-saxon in origin, germanic tribes conquered in the 5th, 6th ad. norman french, under william of

28、normandy in 1066. welsh, scot, irish: celts from north-western europe, invaded britain between 700bc and 200bc.1.1 the characteristics of english people: reserved, unemotional, courteous; shy of strangers; suspicious of change and slow to accept new ideals; solid and dependable with a high sense of

29、honesty, duty and justice; physically and morally courageous; conscious of his place in the social order, disliking any show of emotion and lack of control.2. the welsh is composed of two groups of people: 1) sheep farmers in the mountainous regions of the centre and north;2) industrial workers in t

30、he south2.1 characteristics of welsh people: musical, emotional, cheerful, proud of their past, and welcoming to friends but suspicious of foreigners. they lived hard-working lives of the welshthe cultural pride in wales is very strong, famous for their love of music and poetry. welsh is an ancient

31、celtic language, more different from english than english is from french or german. 3. characteristics of the scots: inventive, hard-working, serious-minded and cautious with moneya) highlanders live by farming sheep and fishing, being proud, independent, hardyb) lowlanders live in industrialized ur

32、ban areas. 2) great empire builders, fierce soldiers . “devils in skirts” or “ladies from hell” are nicknames of scottish soldiers for their bravery. 3) distinctive national dress: kilt, pleated skirts( 百折裙) 4.characteristics of irish: introspective(好反省的) dreamers and poets, argumentative and aggres

33、sive. 1) ira: the irish republican army on the catholic side. 2) ulster unionists, (loyalists) on the protestant side.5 . immigrants:1) escape political or religious persecution2) seek a better life3) a) from old dominions of canada, australia, new zealand, south africa b) eastern european refugees

34、c) west indies, india & pakistan d) chinese, greek, turkish cypriots, italian, spaniardsemigration from britain to canada and australia, usa (doctors, scientists) - “brain drain”6. the origins of a nation6.1. early settlement (-55bc)a) the first immigrants: iberians from spain & portugal about 5000

35、years ago. their relics: stonehenge 石林(stone monuments) on salisbury plain in southwest of england. b) 3 waves: celts from north-west europe after 700 bc., 500 bc, and 100 bc tall, red hair and blue eyes. c) celtic conquerors blended with iberian6.2. roman britain (55bc 410)1) julius caesar came to

36、britain in 55bc. 2) roman occupation lasted about 400 years.6.3 impacts on its culture1) brought christianity to england2) built roads all across britain3) towns grew up along the roman roads4) english upper classes became completely romanized, roman landowners and officials. 5) social systems: laws

37、, taxes6) roman language-latin7) system of writing & numbering8) written description of the land, peoples9) engineering skills, architecture7. anglo-saxon times (446-871)three germanic tribes invaded england: angles, saxons and jutes. the name england is named after angles.7.1. danish invasionat the

38、 turn of 8th century, danes, or vikings, invaded england from norway & denmark. 8. normansthe norman conquest in 1066.8.1 consequences: william of normandy and his french-speaking followers set up a strong central government which brought a new unified discipline and control to england.8.2. french b

39、ecame the official language.8.3. established a feudal system.8.4. contacts between england & france increased.exercises：1. decide whether the following are true or false:1) the british history before 55bc is basically un documented. (+) 2) the name of britain came from a celtic tribe -the britons. (

40、+)3) the anglo-saxons came to britain in the mid 5th century. (+)4) the vikings began to attack the english coast in the 8th century.(+).2. choose the best answer:1) the _ attack on roman ended the roman occupation in britain in 410. a. norman b. danish c. celtic d. germanic (d)2) by the late 7th ce

41、ntury, _ christianity became the dominant religion in england. a. celtic b. anglo-saxon c. germanic d. roman (d)part i politics feudal englandrecorded history in britain began in the year 55bc, when julius caesar and his roman troops invaded the island. between the 8th and 5th centuries bc, the celt

42、s inhabited the island and became the dominant residents. the name britain came from the britons, a celtic tribe. in 43ad, britain subsequently became a roman province and it remains so until the beginning of the 5th century. many of the native celtic were driven to the mountainous region of scotlan

43、d and wales, which remain unconquered by the romans. the roans were excellent builders and they constructed towns and cities which prospered far longer than any previous settlements on the island. in 410, germanic barbarians attacked roman, forcing all roman troops to leave britain, which ended the

44、roman occupation of the island. these warriors included the angles, the saxons and hutes. from that time on, english, the language of the angles, replaced the old celtic language as the dominant language of the land. as the anglo-saxon were not roman christian, st. augustine was sent to britain to c

45、onvert the anglo saxon people in 587 with 40 missionaries. they converted many anglo-saxons to roman christians. augustine founded a church and a monastery in canterbury and became the first archbishop of canterbury in 601. by the late 7th century roman christianity became the dominant religion in b

46、ritain. in the 8th century the vikings from the scandinavian countries of northern europe to attack the english coast. the seven anglo-saxons= kingdom in england gradually united under alfred the great. in 1042, edward the confessor, as a pious christian, built westminster abbey, which exists today.

47、 on september 28, 1066, william crossed the channel with a formidable army. his army defeated the english army king harold (brother in law of edward) at the battle of hastings. and began the norman conquest of england, which marked the establishment of feudalism in england.by the year 1154, henry ii

48、, williams great grandson, ascended the throne and thus began the rule of the house of anjou(also known as (the house of plantagenet). henry ii is best remembered for his reform of the courts and the laws, he improved the courts of justice, introduced the jury system and institutionalized common law

49、. after richard i, son of henry ii, was killed in france, his brother john ascended the throne in 1199. he was defeated in a war in france and lost normandy in 1204. dissatisfied with johns leadership, the lords forced him to sign the magna carta(大宪法), which is regarded as the foundation of the brit

50、ish constitutionalism and it provides the basic principles for the protection of individual rights. p15the hundred years war (1337-1453) was a series of wars between england and france over trade, territory, security and the throne. this war had significant impact on the english society. it promoted

51、 the english concept of nationalism and promoted the development of the textile industry. the war of the roses was a series of civil war between two great noble families: the house of york, whose badge was a white rose, and the house of lancaster, whose badge was a red rose. both houses battled for

52、power, wealth and ultimately the throne. in the end , the house of lancaster won and their leader henry tudor became king henry vii and started the rule of the house of tudor, an efficient centralized government. 1. under williams rule, the normans changed england to a feudal state under an absolute

53、 kingship. 2. king arthur: in 6th, the central figure of many legends about him and his knights of round table. 3. the magna carta great charter, a document signed in 1215 by king john, to recognize the rights of barons. 4. hundred years war: between england & france from 1337 to 1453 in france. fre

54、nch drove english partly through the inspiration of joan of arc (a french saint & national heroine), partly through the effective use of guns. 5. wars of the roses: struggle for the throne of england (1455-1485)between .the houses of lancaster, whose badge was a red rose, and york, a white rose. imp

55、acts: the war weakened both nobility and the monarch. 6. the black death: a deadly bubonic plague(淋巴腺鼠疫), struck europe in middle of 14th, reached england in 1348. of the population died.7. religious revolution 1) the catholic church: a) headed by the pope; b) members accept the gospel of christ and

56、 the teachings of the bible.c) any revolt against the traditional christian faith was “heresy”. d) in the middle ages, pope was powerful2) protestant church:a) whose faith and practice originated with the principles of the reformation. b) popes political power and religious authority declined in 16th, protestant churches sprang up in northern europe, and in the elizabethan age, became gradually the dominant faith. 3) henry v