英美国家概况论文

The Differences of Teenagers’ Life Between China and AmericaIt is universally known that teenagers are the expectation of their parents and the hope of a nation, and almost all the countries in the world, including C hina and America of course, pay much attention to the teenagers’ life. However, because of the differences of culture in different countries, teenagers are obviously not living a same life. And in this article, I want to talk about some differences of teenagers’ life between China and America, for life of teenagers in these two countries are both typical.First of all, let’s go into schools and find out how teenagers s pending a day at school.As a Chinese student, I really know the teenagers’ life at school in China. We have to get up early so as not to be late for classes in the weekdays, and there are nearly ten lessons, which contain Chinese, maths, physics, chemistry, English and so on, from moning to night so that many students, especially the highschool students, prefer to spend most of time staying in the classrooms rather than go to play games. As there are too many tasks of learning for us, sometimes we even think that doing things which have nothing to do with studing is just a waste of time. So now you should know that Chinese teenagers’ life at school seems to be alittle monotonous and there are few things to do except listening to the teachers in classes, reading books and doing exercises. And at the end of the day, we are always feeling very tired.Compairde with Chinese teenagers’ life at school, American teenagers’ is easier and more colourful. American teenagers attend classes for an everage of only five hours a day, while Chinese teenagers spend about 10 hours a day. What’s more, although American teenagers should also learn a lot of subjects like mathematics, science, social studies (a subject that includes history, geography, citizenship and economics) and so on, the contents of these courses are much easier than Chinese students’. In result, American teenagers have relatively few tasks of learning, and they have far more free time to do things which they like.After classes over, American teenagers will have more activities. For example, doing a part-time job is universal among the teenagers.There is an interesting fact that a ccording to a survey, it is found that “About 54 percent young students have no pocket money in America, and there are fewer chances to get money from their parents as their ages increase. It is also found that 68 percent American stude nts earn pocket money through doing part-time job in their spare time.”(Tin Jennifer, 2005) By this way, American teenagers not only earn pocket money, but also get many chances to train themselves to have the ability of adapting to environmental variety and the ability of living independently.However, it seems to be hard for Chinese teenagers to do the same things like doing a part-time job as American teenagers. One of the reasons is that Chineseteenagers have less spare time and just within the little spare time, they have to finish much homework. Besides, Chinese parents always protect their children excessively in social activities. Many parents fear that their children will face a lot of difficulties or become bad boys in society; they always reduc e their children’s chances to contact with society or do not let them go to the outside alone. As result, Chinese teenagers live a relatively safe life, with the protection of their parents and teachers, but they may lose a large quantity of chances for themselves to kown the reality of society and develop the aware of independence. And now we should somewhat understand the reason why American teenagers often seems to be more confident and mature.In a word, compared with American teenagers, Chinese teenages live a more tired and simple life. The most important things for them is to finish quite a large number of tasks of studying and they do not need to care about other things too much, because their parents always try to do almost everything for them.But why do these differences above appear? In my opinion, the key reason is that, as we all know, now the only way to select talented person in China is examination. That is to say, we test a person’s level by mark, whith sounds a little cruel. Due to this policy, Chinese teenagers have to undertake the heavy tasks of studyi ng, which is just like Zhengqiang’s(a professer of Zhejiang university) words“In the nowadays, the heavy tasks of studying brings too much pression to our Chinese teenagers but take too much happiness of the teenagers’ life away”. Their parents and teachers also put the children’s mark in an very important place,so they often urge the teenagers to sduty hard and hardly let them to other things. However, owing to the rich resources of education and the relatively variety of ways to select talented person, American teenagers have more choices and they needn’t pay so much attention like Chinese teenagers to study.And secondly, the parents’ conceptions of family education have an great effect on the teenagers’ life too.In China, parents will regard their son or daughter as a child and try to protect their child forever, and the majority of parents feel that their responsibility for their children is to create as good conditions as possible they can so that the children will not worry about anything in the future. What Chinese parents do makes Chinese teenagers live a comfortable life. The teenagers is just like the flowers which are planted in the greenhouses, with no hurt by the wind or snow, beautiful but fragile.However, on the contrary, in America, parents often encourage their children to contact with society. For instance, They let their children do a part-time job by controling the amount of children’s pocket money, which is mentioned in the previous paragraph. What American parents do is to cultivate children’s awareness of frugality and train their children’s ability of independence. Thus, American teenagers may meet more touble in the daily life, but if they overcome the trouble by themselves successfully, they will get a lot of precious social experience that will help them grow up more smoothly.By comparing and contrasting Chinese teenagers’ life with American teenagers’life, we can see that the American mode is better for teenagers to grow up healthily and there are some disadvantages about the Chinese mode. Fortunately, the Chinese government has realized this situation. For example, considering the teenagers’ heavy tasks of studying, the government makes some new education policy such as the policy of quality education to increase ways of talented person selecting to encourage the teenagers to do some other things. Besides, with society developing, Chinese parents also realize that it’s of great importance for children to for a self-supporting will, because it’s the basic quality that help a person succeed in society. Then the parents no longer help their children make all the decisions but they sometimes let their children do same choices. So Chinese teenagers’ life is not so monotonous as before, and I think the teenagers’ life will be more and more colourful, and they can grow up more healthily.参考文本文献以及电子文献：[1] 朱永涛，王立礼。

The Differences between the United States and China in Education “Better be unborn than untaught, for ignorance is the root of misfortune.” Plato, an ancient Greek philosopher, said. As we all know, education is necessary to ourselves and even our society. But people in different countries receive various educations because of diverse culture. Let us see the differences in education between America and China and the influence of different education on people.First, there is much distinction between those two countries in ideals of education. American asserts equality. She claims that as many people as possible should have access to as much education as they want so that American can produce a society of literacy and local control. She places emphasis on the basic nature of knowledge and learning. Students in America should learn to discover and create new approaches to understand what is already known. American students prefer to practice by themselves instead of listening to the teachers sitting in the classroom. However, students in China are taught to learn not creative thinking but basic skills. Chinese require that students should acquire knowledge as what teachers teach and what teaching materials tell. Chinese always instill into kids’minds a thought that what teachers and teaching materials say are definitely right so that Chinese students lack the critical thought since they are children. Thus, it becomes that American students possess great abilities though get low grades and Chinese students have low abilities while get high scores, as is known to all.Second, the atmospheres in the classroom show the divergence of the two countries’education. Chinese teachers are good at drawing conclusions from a question for students to make them have no question. But American teachers are efficient at enlightening students on a question and enable every student to put forward more new questions. A student in Chinese class has to put up his hand to be allowed to stand up by teachers to answer questions while in American class students are encouraged to speak freely. If a Chinese student disagree what his teacher say, he will suffer some criticisms; nevertheless, an American students will be awarded praise if he does that. We can find out that the Chinese class pays more attention to discipline and the United States focuses on human rights.Three, the ways to further education are entirely different in China and America. There is no annual college entrance examination. Applicants are chosen on the basis of four aspects: high school records, high school teachers’recommendations, the impression they make during interviews at the university, scores on Scholastic Aptitude Test. In an American soap opera called Gossip Girl, an actor called Dan, who wants to study in Yale and passed the SAT, struggles to get three recommendations from his high school teachers or famous writers. But every Chinese student knows that if they want to go to university they must pass the college entrance examination and if they hope to go to key colleges, they have to get higher scores. So the purpose of American education system is to make students find out their shortcomings and straighten them up and Chinese educational system is elimination.Four, students’ extra-curricular life in United States is more colorful than Chinese students’. There are many students’organizations----clubs and activities in the American school helping students become successful when pursuing hobbies. Inaddition, they often do some part-time jobs to make money, which may be for activities or other things. However, Chinese students don’t have so many activities and in their extra-curricular life they will spend most of time attending cram school or doing their homework. So, they are losing their hobbies gradually.In general, I think our government should make reformation on our educational system immediately. Not only should our grades be focused on, but also students’practical ability and creative thinking should be paid more attention. Thus, our country will be more thriving and prospering and we Chinese will be more happiness!。

湖南涉外经济学院外国语学院2013-2014《英语国家概况》期末小论文班级_英本1202班___ 姓名__黄爱灵__评分____________American Higher EducationAmerican education system in the United States is the world's cause of education of the most developed countries in the world. American education system as early as the founding of beginning to take shape when, after 200 years of development and gradually perfect, Formation of the primary, secondary and tertiary institutionsHigh education in the United States began with the founding of Harvard College in 1636. In the past more than 300 years, it has developed into a large enterprise with a very complex system. The higher education comprises four categories of institutions: a) the university; b) the four-year undergraduate institution----the college; c) the technical training institution; and d) the two-year community college.In America, the education system has the differentGraduate Degrees years, Bachelor’s Degree have 4 years; Master’s Degree have 1-2 years; Doctor’s Degree, ph.D (doctor of philosophy), have at least 3 years.So what are the differences between the “college” and the “university” in America? The term “college”refers to an undergraduate institution that confers the degree of Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science after four years of study or an associate degree after two years study. While a university is generally a group of colleges, each serving a special purpose: college of business, college of arts and humanities, college of education, etc. The system of higher education in the United States has three functions: teaching, research and public service. Each college or university has its own emphasis with regard to its functions. The majority of the higher educationinstitutions are located in states that have a large population.The American higher education institutions offer a wide variety of subjects, from the finearts to practical and career-oriented fields such as engineering and marketing. The United States has a variety of higher education institutions, from large comprehensive universities to small traditional liberal arts colleges. Distinctions among these institutionsare in size, level, educational quality, residential atmosphere and the time it takes to complete a degree.At the undergraduate level, students’personal preferences as to size, academic quality and location play a key role in their choice of college or university. At the graduate level, more attention is paid to the reputation of the faculty and department.However,all this effort in America’s higher education is very expensive. Some of the costs come from fees and benefactions, particularly towards research, but most have to be paid from public funds. Parents favor big expenditures on higher education;a wider public opinionfavors them for idealistic and cultural reasons, and because of the supposed value of education as an investment by society.The first universities were developed by private charitable organizations. The private universities are still very important, and most of the best-known institutions, like Harvard, Yale and Princeton, are private.Most of the principal state universities have between 10, 000 and 30, 000 students,and some have increased rapidly in the past few years. Private universities and colleges are generally smaller, and although they are more numerous than public institutions they have a smaller total number of students than those in public institutions. The private colleges vary very much in standards and reputation, from the world-famous and select to the cranky and the obscure. The best known of all is Harvard.There are also many junior colleges to which students may be admitted at the end of their high school career, providing only the first two years of university work.For the most part Americans think that there’s some advantage in attending one of the better-known private institutions, in spite of the higher cost, rather than a state university. However, testate universities are becoming increasingly important, and some of them, particularly in the Midwest have a reputation practically equal to that of the private ones. Almost every state by now has several university institutions directly under the authority of the state government.For a university student, an academic year is about nine months, usually for mid-September until early June or from late August until May. In most universities, it isdivided into either two semesters or three semesters, excluding the summer session. The students usually enjoy a “break”of one week during each semester and a 30-day winner break.Typically, an undergraduate student has to earn a certain number of “credits”(usually at least 120) in order to receive a degree at the end of four years of college. Credits are earned by attending lectures (or lab classes) and by successfully completing assignments and examinations. One credit usually equals one hour of class per week in a single course. A course may last 10 to 16 weeks, the length of a semester.Living accommodations are usually not large enough to hold all university students, though large numbers of residence halls have been built. Many students live off campus and prepare their own meals.It is common for students to work to earn their tuition and living expenses not only during vacations but also in their free time during the semester. Many colleges and universities offer work-study programs so that students can earn money while working at the school.Sports have a significant place in American university life. Football is the most popular university sports. Some universities award both football and basketball scholarships, and students admitted mainly as athletics or “jocks”receive not only free tuition but also other financial assistance.There are clubs and activities for almost every student’s interests, such as art, music, drama, debate, foreign languages, photography, volunteer work, all aimed at helping students become successful in their later life while simultaneously pursuing their hobbies.There is evidence that even incomplete university study gives a person better career prospects than none at all. So, it is accepted that the benefits of a university career are usefu l.In American, there are the best research universities such as Harvard, Yale, Princet on, Columbia and MIT in the east, as well as Stanford and Berkeley on the west coast.Except for some college sponsored by the Catholic Church, all college and universitie s in the U.S, public or private, are governed by a board of trustees composed primarily of laymen. The community college calls for education to serve the good of both the i ndividual and society. It embodies Thomas Jefferson’s belief that an education should be practical as well as liberal.Let’s look some famous universities of the United States:Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States, is a comprehensive university. Harvard College was established in 1636 and was named for its first benefactor, John Harvard. The university has grown from nine students with a single master to an enrollment of more than 20000 degree candidates, including undergraduates, graduates and professional students in 11 principal academic units. Harvard University is known around the world for its outstanding academic achievements. The university has product more than 40 Nobel laureates. English Presidents of the United States are graduates of Harvard.Yale University was founded in1701 as the Collegiate School in Killingworth, Connecticut. In 1716, it moved to its permanent location in New Haven. Elihu Yale, a weathy British merchant, donated generously to the school, and it was renamed Yale College. In 1864, Yale College was renamed Yale University. The university is now comprised of three major academic components: Yale College (the undergraduate program), the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and 10 professional schools. Yale encompasses a wide array of research organizations, libraries, museums and administrative support offices. Approximately 12000 students attend Yale. And it embarks on a steady expansion. With strictteaching and enrollment, Yale University has a high academic standard and great prestige. Some of the world’s most famous and powerful men today are graduates of Yale, including George W. Bush, John Kerry and William F. Buckley Jr., etc.Princeton University was known as the College of New Jersey from 1746 to 1896. It is well known for its History Department, Philosophy Department, English Department, Mathematics Department and Physics Department. The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs has been continuously training government officials. Presidents Wilson and over 80 Senates are graduates of Princeton University.Massachusetts Institutions of Technology is an institution famous for its scientific and technological training and research. Established in 1861, the institution used to be a purely technical institution. It is comprised of five schools: the School of Architecture and Planning, the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, the MIT Slogan Sciences, the MIT Slogan School of Management and the School of Science. While attaching importance to teaching, the institute pays great attention to theory study and applied research. Both the undergraduate and the graduates participate in cooperative research work. MIT has achieved significant success in the fields of scientific research.Education system in American obviously is different with ours, but they all aim to make more talented people to make the country better and strong, modern and developed.。

比较地理环境对中英两国文明进程的影响人类的文明，无论是古代的、现代的、都发生于某一特定的时间和空间所外的自然环境。

原始人采撷果实、居于洞穴或露宿于野，所有的一切都离不开自然环境，他们的衣食住行、生活和生产都深深地依赖地理环境。

进入文明之后，随着人类自身巨大潜能的逐渐发挥，人类对自然的依赖表面看来似乎有所淡化和隐化，但实际情况是，人类的文明程度愈高，对地理环境的利用的范围也愈益扩大和深化。

今天，科学技术的突飞猛进，都是建立在无数对自然宇宙的新发现、新认识和众多新材料、新方法产生的基础之上。

所以，无论对人类历史的哪一阶段进行研究，都决不能忽视自然地理环境对人类文明的影响和作用。

英国是一个岛国，总面积244200平方公里，东邻北海，西、北面对大西洋，南面是英吉利海峡，与法国隔海相望。

地理学上叫“不列颠群岛”，它们星星点点地散布在欧洲大陆西北边的水域中。

最大的岛屿——大不列颠岛，上面分布着英格兰、苏格兰和威尔士三个区域单位。

从英格兰的最南端到苏格兰的最北端只跨越10个纬度，最长也不过600英里（966公里）。

在欧洲国家中英国的面积之小可想而知。

英国的海岸线异常曲折，构成了许多港湾。

在英国，“内陆”离海洋最远处也不过75英里（120公里）。

位于欧洲大陆袈上的不列颠诸岛沿海水域不深，当大西洋暖流缓缓穿过这个“陆桥”之时，它温暖了空气、提升了水温，使不列颠的气候与同纬度其他地区相比，都要暖和宜人。

浅水、暖流、深湾共同构成了远古时代养育不列颠人的天赐富源。

独特的地理环境，对英国的政治、经济、文明、价值观念和民族精神都产生了深远的影响，其影响可归纳为以下几点：1.国家面积小，有助于政治统一，社会、经济和文化易于交流，制度容易规范化。

亚里士多德曾论述过城邦人口的规模，他认为一个城邦最适当的人口限度应该是足以满足自我需要而又是观察所能遍及的最大数目。

正是这种小国寡民的城邦才有条件建立那种公民直接参与的民主政治，而且极不容易形成专制。

Britain and the United States, in today's world is the two big powers in society, the two countries have extremely similar in a lot of places, so they have the obvious differences?First，the character of Americans and British man was not the same.British tradition, focusing on good manners etiquette. Americans believe in freedom, not like constraints.The British character traits are: apathy, subtle, introverted, conservative and rational rigor, gentleman's humor. Corresponds to American character was summed up as follows: warm, cheerful, adventurous, innovative, and imaginative alive, straightforward humor.Second，British and American philosophy of education is different.British Conservative and strict, reflected in education was rigorous style of study, improve the education system. It has a strict quality control system, quality assessments and scientific research and university teaching evaluation results known to the world, United Kingdom higher education is being checked on a regular basis.Americans are pursuing equality and freedom, reflected in education is the United States education system with diversity, openness Characteristics, internationality, flexibility, the United States education is to ensure fair and equal opportunities for education, and to give full play to different educational objects can meet the personality characteristics to raise the full of vigor and vitality.Third, British and Americans in their everyday life practices also differ.From the fashion point of view, Britons are paying attention to clothing, paying attention to a gentleman, Americans are more casual, wants to wear what, in their own comfort, not to mind other people's assessment, will not be evaluated.See from eating food of both countries, British diet also exudes British upper classes should be noble, from selection to Cook, and then at the dinner table, the British none to maximize detail. Americans -diet does not pay attention to fine, the pursuit of fast and convenient, not luxury, more popular. Three meals a day are just. Such eating habits to some extent also reflected American life, vigorous and resolute, as if it is not to the British procrastination, so attention to detail.British and American in their respective essence on why such a huge difference? Human environment is the main reason, I think. Secondly geographical environment is one of the indispensable factors.。

Before
1AD. British people were made of Celtic people （凯尔特人， tribal people)

in 43 AD, British was invaded by the Roman Empire, English and Wales became a part of the Roman Empire
next invaders were the Normans from Northern France
legend of Robin Hood (罗宾 汉带领绿林好汉) ，rob from the rich to give to the poor
The
It
was independent from the UK for a long time, so still imagine themselves as independent
Many
people who think of Britain think of the English gentleman But most of the British people are not like that For example, a Scottish woman would not be like to be called an English gentleman Actually Scottish people and English people do not like each other
Immigration
was encouraged in the 1950s and 1960s 1/20 are not of European origin Some from India(印度) or Pakistan(巴基斯坦) Some from Caribbean(地中海国 家)

随着我国改革开放的深入和对外贸易的日益发展，国内机构和企业与国外相关机构和企业开始了更加频繁、更加密切的交流合作。

特别是商务领域对商务英语人才的需求和素质要求不断提高。

作为高层次复合型商务英语人才，不仅要注重语言技能和商务知识的教学和训练，更要注重人文素质的熏陶和培养。

由于英语往往是当今国际交流和贸易活动中常用的工作语言之一，商务英语人才必须具有国际视野，深入学习和了解英语国家特别是英美国家的社会历史和文化。

奥巴马政府上台后，以经济金融危机为首要任务，先后出台《美国复苏与再投资法案》、《金融稳定计划》等政策措施，实施量化宽松等非传统货币政策，稳定金融市场，刺激经济增长和创造就业；高度重视能源、气候变化等问题，加大科技研发投入，实施创新战略，倡导发展绿色经济；完成医疗保险、金融监管等经济社会改革立法，推进教育改革。

2012年以来，奥巴马集中精力竞选连任，围绕促进经济复苏和保障社会公平两条主线，不断推进各项内政议程。

围绕保增长、促就业目标，先后推出两轮“量化宽松”和一轮“操作扭转”，推动国会通过延长工资税减免、促进制造业回流和就业外包、努力吸引境外投资、促进房地产市场回暖、加强外贸执法、继续促进地方能源发展、稳定油价等议案.。

聚焦社会公平，充分维护医保改革等既有改革成果，塑造中产阶级代言人形象，保障弱势群体利益。

2012年11月6日，美国正式启动2012年总统选举。

8月底9月初，共和党和民主党相继召开全国代表大会，正式提名现任总统奥巴马击败共和党总统候选人罗姆尼、瑞安、奥巴马和拜登，分别成为总统和副总统候选人，并通过各自的党纲扩大领先优势，使得晋级前景明朗。

美国总统选举逐渐进入两党对抗阶段，选情更加激烈，顺利连任。

在国会选举中，民主党和共和党分别赢得参众两院多数席位，保持分裂局面。

2012年底和2013年初，两党围绕“财政悬崖”(多项税收优惠政策到期、大规模强制减支措施启动、国债上限再度触顶)展开激烈角力.。

Comparison of the Politics in Britain and United StatesAbstract: The system that British established in 19 century has a profound effect not only on its own country’s society developments of politics and history but also on other counties’ modern institution, politics and history. British is the mother of world capitalist constitutionalism. As a powerful capitalistic country, US’ system is also based on the British’s system and set a prefect system after some reforms. Even so, the systems of the two countries still have many differences. Both of the two countries have powerful political systems in the world.Keywords: constitution, party systems, electoral system1. Introduction: (political institution is superstructure, generally refers to the state power organs and the basic system which adapted with the social nature. "Political system, as same as the various systems of the human society, is the product of history development, branding with time and space.”) After the English bourgeois revolution, democratic politics was gradually established. The constitution was promulgated and constitutionalism was gradually be taken. Capitalism got a considerable development in Britain. Britain built the first set of the capitalist system, which is known as the source and model of Western political system.British and US political systems have the same theoretical basis: the principle of "separation of powers” and the theory of “human rights”; the concrete content includes the parliamentary system, the electoral system, the judicial system, and the political party system, etc; these are all considered to be the elements of "people's democracy", Regimes implemented the principles of separation of powers and check and balance and the "rule of law". And most fundamentally,as two typical representatives of capitalist countries’ political systems, Britain and USA have the same nature in the maintenance of bourgeois interests and the private capitalist system, the implementation of other aspects of bourgeois dictatorship. But in the specific political system level, they present different characteristics, the paper only compare British and American political system from three aspects of the Constitution, the party system, the electoral system.2. Comparison of constitutionsBritain is typical of countries with unwritten constitution, there is no unified, complete written form, and its constitutional system is extremely complex which is constituted by a variety of written and unwritten customary law, jurisprudence and constitutional practices constituted. British constitution can not be listed by one or several pieces of documents, nor strict distinct by the time, it lacks rigorous and explicit content, consistent and complete system。

美国本土东濒大西洋，西临太平洋，北靠加拿大，南接墨西哥及墨西哥湾。

美国源自于1776年从英国统治下脱离而出的北美殖民地，13州的殖民地代表们一同发表了《美国独立宣言》，在经历艰苦的独立战争后，于1783年与英国签订了巴黎协约，从此受到世界各国的承认。

政治美国是现存历史最悠久的宪政立宪共和国，有世界上最早并仍在运作的成文《宪法》。

在《宪法》授权下，政府通过国会运作代议民主制。

政府分为三级架构：联邦、州和地方政府。

三级政府中的官员由选民进行不记名投票选举产生，或者由民选官员任命。

行政长官和立法机构官员从单一选区多数制选举产生，司法系统和内阁官员由行政长官任命并经立法机构批准产生。

在某些州，司法系统官员也通过多数制选举产生。

联邦政府本身有三个分支，互相制约和平衡：立法机关：即国会，由众议院和参议院两部分组成；行政机关：即总统，总统提名和参议院批准的内阁官员及其下属，负责行使基于联邦法律的治理权；司法机关：即最高法院和较低级别的联邦法院，法官由总统提名并参议院批准。

美国国会实行两院立法体制。

众议院设435个席位代表各自的国会选区，任期2年。

众议院席位根据人口分布，每10年重新划分一次，每个州最少都会分配到1个众议院席位：目前有7个州只有1个议席，人口最多的加利福尼亚州则有高达53个议席。

而无论人口众寡，每个州在参议院都有2个席位，加起来共一百席，任期6年；每隔2年，重选三分之一的参议员。

在联邦体制内，州与联邦政府的关系很复杂。

法律规定，各州是主权实体。

然而，在美国内战和“德克萨斯对怀特案”建立的规则是，州无权脱离联邦；根据宪法，也无外交权。

美国联邦法律在经过宪法授权的领域要高于各州所制订的不同的法律，但是联邦政府的权力只能在宪法规定的范围之内行使；所有未授予联邦政府的权力由州政府和人民自行保留。

美国宪法以及权利法案等一系列修正案致力维护公民自由：包括言论、宗教信仰和出版自由；接受公正审判的权利；拥有和携带武器的权利；选举和财产权。

从奥巴马看美国的种族歧视—浅谈美国种族歧视消弱的原因【摘要】美国是一个多民族国家。

种族歧视是美国历史上的一个长期问题，它困扰了美国几百年。

终于，在美国黑人们的长期抵抗和奋斗下，种族歧视在美国逐渐被消弱。

更甚之，2008年，第一位非洲裔总统奥巴马在美国出现，这更加表明黑人在美国社会中的地位显著提高，黑人将会过上更加美好的生活，并且美国的种族歧视也将最终走向消亡。

【关键词】美国种族歧视消弱原因众所周知，2008年，奥巴马当选为美国总统，成为美国历史上第一位黑人总统，从而创造了美国乃至世界上的一大奇迹。

看到奥巴马在就职仪式上那激情澎湃的演说，我不禁想起几百年来在美国历史上那惨不忍睹的种族歧视。

当时，美国黑人处于极其卑微的地位，这与现在黑人成为美国总统形成鲜明对比，这不仅表明美国黑人的社会地位不断提高，更加表明美国的种族歧视正在被消弱，这是一种积极的社会现象，也是全世界人民所乐意见到的。

可是，是什么原因引起了美国社会种族歧视的消弱呢？一、美国黑人奴隶制的废除在北美殖民地时期，由于殖民地急需大批劳动力，所以在此时期对非洲黑人奴隶的贩卖和奴役十分猖獗。

从1686—1786年的100年间，约有25万非洲黑人被贩卖到英属北美殖民地。

黑人奴隶在北美殖民地的地位极其悲惨，特别是那些在田间终日劳动的黑奴，被当作“耕畜”使用，每天被迫劳动18—19个小时。

美利坚合众国成立后，制定了联邦宪法。

但宪法保留了奴隶制，维护了奴隶贸易。

到1860年，美国黑人奴隶已达到400万。

19世纪上半期，美国人民开展了广泛的反对奴隶制运动。

30年代起，废奴主义在美国广为流行。

废奴主义者加里森创建了新英格兰反对奴隶制协会，并领导成立了全国性废奴主义组织——美国反对奴隶制协会。

到40年代，废奴团体已达2000个，形成了声势浩大的群众运动。

虽然反动势力多方压制和迫害，但废奴主义者仍坚持开展多种活动。

他们出版书籍、报刊并散发传单，到各地宣传演讲，控诉奴隶主的罪行，揭露和抨击奴隶制的罪恶。

英国（大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国）大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国（United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland），通称英国，又称联合王国（United Kingdom），本土位于欧洲大陆西北面的不列颠群岛，被北海、英吉利海峡、凯尔特海、爱尔兰海和大西洋包围。

英国是由大不列颠岛上的英格兰、威尔士和苏格兰以及爱尔兰岛东北部的北爱尔兰以及一系列附属岛屿共同组成的一个西欧岛国。

除本土之外，其还拥有十四个海外领地[1] ，总人口超过6400万，以英格兰人（盎格鲁-撒克逊人）为主体民族。

1688年的光荣革命确立英国君主立宪政体，英国是世界上第一个工业化国家，首先完成工业革命，国力迅速壮大。

18世纪至20世纪初期英国统治的领土跨越全球七大洲，是当时世界上最强大的国家，号称日不落帝国。

在两次世界大战中都取得了胜利，但国力严重受损。

到20世纪下半叶大英帝国解体，资本主义世界霸主的地位被美国取代。

不过，现在英国仍是一个在世界范围内有巨大影响力的大国[2] 。

英国是一个高度发达的资本主义国家。

欧洲四大经济体之一，其国民拥有较高的生活水平和良好的社会保障制度。

作为英联邦元首国、八国集团成员国、北约创始会员国、英国同时也是联合国安全理事会五大常任理事国之一。

特产苏格兰威士忌英国苏格兰威士忌历史悠久，苏格兰高地的特殊水质和极为严格的酿造工艺，使那里出产的威士忌被誉为“液体黄金”。

泰迪熊泰迪熊（TeddyBear）有着浑圆丰满的身材和泰迪熊四肢，蓬松温厚的安哥拉羊毛，简素的材料和绣线，憨厚的表情，以及百分之百的手工缝制和填塞作业。

在白宫的一次宴会上，有几只玩具熊被打扮成猎人、渔夫的模样陈列在桌上当作装饰品，罗斯福总统，对这批小熊着迷不已。

恰巧英国国王爱德华七世小名也叫泰迪，很快泰迪熊也成为英国家喻户晓的宠物泰迪熊。

如今的泰迪熊就像芭比娃娃一样，已经不再是一般玩具的概念了，更多的，它们被赋予了各种特殊的纪念意义，担负起了传承某种文化的作用。

What I've learnt in this courseName:*** Number:***If we want to grasp the essence of a language，we must know more about the culture it stands for. So, from my perspective,it's necessary for us English learners to learn something about the cultures in English speaking countries.Our group have given the lecture of "British Government System" and "The Forms of Government" , it had taken us much time and energy, but the effect was not very good. However, it helped me to know more about the politics of Britain and America.Politics of the United States takes place in the framework of a presidential, federal republic where the President of the United States , United States Congress, and judiciary share federal powers, and the federal government shares sovereignty with thestate governments. The federal government of the United States is the central United States governmental body, and has three branches: the legislative, executive, andjudicial. Each of these branches has some authority to act on its own, but they are also regulated by the other branches. What's more, the powers of the federal government are limited strictly by the Constitution.The United Kingdom is aunitary state governed by ademocratic constitutional monarchy. Its system of government has directly inspired the government of other countries. The constitution here is largely unwritten, being made up of constitutional conventions. Thehead of state and theoretical ultimate source of power in the UK is the British monarch, currently Queen Elizabeth II. In reality, the Queen has an essentially symbolic role, restricted in exercise of power by convention and public opinion. In practical terms, the political head of the country is the Prime Minister who must have the support of the House of Commons. In formal terms, the Crown in Parliament is sovereign.Besides, I've learnt something about the religion in these two countries.America is a highly religious country, and has a history of diversity, due in large part to the nation's multicultural demographic makeup. American religious institutions are large, powerful and influential in social and political life. Even Americans who are members of no established religion are likely to believe in God. In fact, the US is the only developed nation that religion plays a " very important " role in their lives. Generally, America is largely a Christian nation, consider 85% of Americans with a Christian connection, which including Protestant, Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Armenian and Polish National Catholics. Other religions such as Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu even no religion all fits well here.The main religion in Britain of course is Christianity. However, Britain is a multi-faith society in which everyone has the right to religious freedom. Most people are usually very tolerant towards the faiths of others and those who have no religious beliefs. Like the United States, most of the world’s religions are also existed. There are large Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, and also smaller communities of Buddhists, Jains, as well as followers of new religious movements. However, the Britain people are notcrazy about it like the USA, and the relation between religion and state in those two country are also different.Separation of church and state is a key concept in American government and culture, well, this won't happen in UK.And I got to know that the media of the United States consist of several different types of communications media: television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based Web sites. Although many of the media are controlled by large for-profit corporations who reap revenue fromadvertising, subscriptions, andsale of copyrighted material, Some people allege that the success of such companies may be due to certain policies of the American federal government, the media there always tends to be the best media around world . The U.S. Media today is frequently known as the Fourth Estate, and it plays a vital role as a guardian of U.S. A law which adopted in 1789, stipulating that Congress not enact any laws abridging freedom of the press.The media in the United Kingdom is large, complex and mature, arguably ranking second globally to that of the USA. Although none of the major global media conglomerates is based in the UK, a great number of media organisations, such as notably Reuters and the BBC, have international standing in their own right. Besides, NewsCorp, Bertelsmann and Time Warner also contribute significantly to the operations of global conglomerates. The media sector here is relatively open, with participants from many countries active in almost all aspects – newspapers, television, magazines, radio, film, books, advertising, music and public relations.The book is pretty good, but I have a suggestion to the author. Once I've heard the word that learn about the holidays of an area is the best way to learn its culture. So, why not put more details about the holidays in America and Britain into the book? Such as April Fools Day, Easter and Halloween, all these holidays are representative.The 30 lessons English course is about to over, and "Essentials of British and American Cultures" is a pretty fantastic course as the English teacher’s style just fits me very much. Having say that, I have met many good friends from the class. It makes my class more interesting and fun.I have learnt few new words and the structure of the sentences to express myself in your courses. Honestly, I cant remember how many teachers I have met for the past 2 years, but I believe I'll remember our young tutor Miss Xiao for a long time.。

A Comparative Study on the Election System Between United Kingdom and United StatesBoth United Kingdom and United States are the developed capitalist country,however,the former is constitutional monarchy one while the latter is democratic republican one.As a political practice, election is the foundation of modern democracy.Through the comparative study on the election system between the two typical capitalist countries,we can understand their national conditions and modern democracy better.In a modern democratic system between United Kingdom and United States,a fair,honest and regularly held election is the decisive factor of the quality of democracy. On one hand,they both have set up a relatively perfect system of election monitoring.In particular, the news public opinion also plays the role of the supervisor with voters themselves.On the other hand,election process is open and transparent.The candidates were chosen launched a months-long win votes in the election campaign, and voters to vote is completely voluntary.At the same time,both United Kingdom and United States carry out single-name selection system ,which is only one representative in a district.As far as United Kingdom ,it imposed direct elections at the moment.Its elections is concentrated in the parliament election. Communist party and the conservative by parliamentary elections for seats in the parliamentary majority, is composed of the majority party in parliamentary elections, administrative organs, the majority party leader as the head of government and form in order to exercise the administrative power of the country.Elections in the United States mainly concentrated in the President's election. The President of the United States are indirectly elected , but the foundations of this election is based on direct election voters,and this generally called double election in modern election.Republicans and Democrats through the presidential campaign, winning party obtains the national regime, led by the President of the federal government, are appointed by the President's secretary of state, the exercise of administrative power. In the United States, presidential elections determines the belonging of national leadership.Additionally, the congressional elections in the United States also is very important. Both parties in congressional elections, and strive to become a majority, with control of congress, the supreme power.If the majority is consistent with the President and the congress, the President does not have the exercise of executive power resistance, if appear not consistent, so the President at the time of the exercise of executive power is a variety of resistance from the opposition.Yet elections in the United States, is a "rich man's game", cost is higher, the election procedure is more complicated in the election campaign.From what has been discussed above, we may safely draw the conclusion.Election as a basic political system, must be in conformity with its national conditions.At the same time, we should prevent election from commercialization,continuously develop and improve the system of democratic elections. ReferencesNet1吴月.比较和借鉴:英美两国选举制度探析./view/5daf29c5d5bbfd0a79567375.html,2006-01/2013-6. Net2 叶乃康.英美政治制度比较综述./Article/ShowArticle.asp?ArticleID=55179,2013-1-5/2 013-6-6.Net3 付林，荣红霞.英美等国选举制度比较./view/b5725fe1b8f67c1cfad6b8a7.html,2005-11/2013-6.。

A GUIDE TO ENGLISH-SPEAKINGCOUNTRIESWhen English jumps to life, it displays a starting quality. Nowadays, the connections among countries are increasing frequently, English is becoming more significant. After learning this course, I know more about some English-speaking countries, like Canada, Australia and New Zealand, especially the UK and America.Britain, the whole is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, in ancient Britain is known as the "day not fall", includes England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. England is the largest part of Great Britain.There are many rivers in Great Britain. Among the most important rivers is the Thames, which flows into the North Sea. Its length is 336 km and it is the deepest rive in Britain. It is navigable as far as the capital of Great Britain –London. The longest river in Britain is the Severn. Its length is 354 km. London is also called foggy London as the climate of Britain is classified as temperate, with warm summer, cool winters and plentiful precipitation throughout the year.Britain also has a long history. The earliest setters include Iberians (3000BC) , the Beaker folk and Celts. But the recorded history dates from 55BC, when Julius Caesar and his roman troops invaded the island. And then through the medieval period, the industrial revolution, the colonial expansion, and the World War II, the history has been in the present day.Britain is a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarchy. Although the Queen is the head of state, their power is largely symbolic. The government is elected by people and governs according to British constitutional principles, and that election is held every five years. However, parliament is the law-making body of Britain. Strictly speaking, it consists of the Crown, the House of Lords and the House of Commons. TheHouse of Commons is elected by universal adult suffrage and consists of 651 Members of Parliament. It is in the House of Commons that the ultimate authority. Britain is divided 651constituencies. Each of the constituencies returns one member to the House of Commons. A general Election must be held every five years and is often held at more frequent intervals. Britain has a number of parties, but there are only two major parties. These two parties are the Conservative Party and the Labor Party. Since 1945, either the Conservative Party or the Labor Party has held power. The party which wins sufficient seats at a General election commands a majority of Government. The leader of the majority party is appointed Prime Minister. The party which wins the second largest number of seats becomes the Official Opposition, with its own leader and shadow cabinet. The rule of Opposition is to help the formulation of policy criticizing the Government and debate with the Government. However, the monarchy is usually regarded as a separate institution because even though the Queen must consent to pass a law, that consent is given as a matter of course. Additionally, it is a capitalist country in Western Europe. Agriculture, energy production, manufacturing industry, service industry and foreign trade are current British economic characters. Since the end of WWII, service industry has a spectacular growth.Britain has a rich culture. Education in Britain is compulsory for all children between ages of 5 and 17. There are two parallel school systems in Britain for primary and secondary education, which includes the state system, where education is provided free of charge, and the independent system where fees are required. Britain’s education and academic research level is currently in the world's leading position. The world-famous education has a holy land at the university of Cambridge and Oxford University. British especially like reading newspapers, like the Times, the Guardian and the Daily Telegraph and so on.The United States is located in the central part of North America, expect Alaska and Hawaii. The country is bordered by Canada to the north, Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, the Atlantic Ocean t the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The coastline is 22680 kilometers. Unlike UK, major area belongs to temperate continental climate, the southern subtropical climate, while western coastal area distribution has a temperate climate with Mediterranean climate.The US is a country of the western hemisphere, comprising fifty states and several territories. Forty-eight contiguous states lie in central North America between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bounded on land by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south; Alaska is in the northwest of the continent with Canada to its east, and Hawaii is in the mid-Pacific.After Christopher Columns has discovered American, this nation was founded by thirteen colonies declaring their independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776. It adopted the current constitution, which has been amended several times subsequently on September 17, 1787. When the War of Independence was over, the US was not one unified nation as it is today. Each new state had its own government and was organized very much like an independent nation. One of the most events in America is the Civil War. American slavery existed after the first immigrants from Europe founded their settlements. In certain circumstances, slaves were treated with occasional dignity by their owners, but for the most part they were neglected and treated with severe harshness.Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the U.S. and formed the Confederate States of America. But the south feared that the north would abolish slavery, and the north was afraid it would spread westward into the newly established states. Soon, anti-slavery leaders were becoming active and loud. Slavery effectively ended in the U.S. in the spring of 1865 when theConfederate armies surrendered. The victory can also be attributed in part to failures of Confederate transportation, materiel, and political leadership. And then the country greatly expanded in territory throughout the 19th century, acquiring further territory from the United Kingdom, as well as lands from France, Mexico, Spain, and Russia. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, it became the world's sole remaining superpower, and is a declared nuclear weapons state. The United States continues to exert dominant economic, political, cultural and military influence around the globe.The United States is a federal constitutional republic with Washington DC its federal capital. The Constitution of the United States is the basic law of the land. There are two obvious characteristics in the Constituti on. One is “check and balance”, consisted of the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Each branch has powers that the others do not have and each branch has a way of counteracting and limiting any wrongful action by other branch. Another characteristic is that the Constitution specifies the respective powers of federal government and of the state government. Congress is the legislature branch of the federal government. It is law-making and the supreme legislative body of the nation. It consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives, while the executive branch consists of 15 departments and many independent agencies. According to the Constitution, the judicial power of the US shall be vested in one Supreme Court. The judicial system has evolved into the present structure: the Supreme Court, 11 Court of appeals, 91 district courts and 3 courts of special jurisdiction. Us judges are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.As in Britain, a two-party system has been dominant in the United States. Today, the two major parties in America are the Democratic Party which evolved out of Thomas Jefferson’s party, formed before 1800 and the Republican Party which was formed in the 1850s by people in the states of the North and West.Curre nt American economical forms are the same as Britain’s.American society is the product of large-scale immigration and is home to a complex social structure as well as a wide array of household arrangements. The U.S. is one of the world's most ethnically and socially diverse nations.In America, education is regarded as both an individual benefit and a social necessity. It is a general view that every American should have the right and obligation to become educated. They hold the view that the future of the nation depends largely on education. Formal education in the United States consists of elementary, secondary and higher education. Elementary and secondary educations, the basis of public education, are compulsory and are divided into 12 grades. Higher education in the US began with the founding of Harvard College in 1636. As a undergraduate student, he has to earn a certain number of credits In order to receive a degree at the end of four years of college, which is similar to Chinese students. The culture of the United States is a Western culture, and has been developing since long before the United States became a country. Its chief early influence was British culture, due to colonial ties with the British that spread the English language, legal system and other cultural inheritances. Other important influences came from other parts of Europe, especially countries from which large numbers immigrated such as Ireland, Germany, Poland, and Italy; the Native American peoples; Africa, especially the western part, from which came the ancestors of most African Americans; and young groups of immigrants. American culture also has shared influence on the cultures of its neighbors in the New World.Although American history is not so long, but it still is the super country. Let’s find out the cause together. It is said that American active, confident and brave, while British diffident, gentle andreliable. British and American detest each other, British think there is no history in America, but American think British cannot understand what future is.According to this term’s study, I know more about Britain and American. In addition, this course arise my interests in Britain and America. Nowadays, more and more people like traveling abroad. So do I. I try to find something more about these two counties.People in Britain and America are different in greeting and introduction. For British people, a handshake is the most common way of greeting, and it is customary when being introduced to someone new. When one wants to introduce oneself, one extends his or her hand for a shake and says “hello, I am…” and it is proper to say “pleases to meet you…’ as a response. For friends, the British will also hug. And if the friends have not seen each for a long time, they would kiss the cheek of the opposite sex. For America people, they greet total strangers by saying “hello’ and it is thought polite to reply. They say “have a nice day when parting” and “you are welcome” when thanked. British people are punctual persons, so it is polite to arrive on time for appointments. Being late for even a few minutes would be considered impolite.In social settings, people always say “come to see me soon’ and “drop in anytime”. But it is often necessary to call before visiting others. If one does not plan to go, it is better to accept the invitation. It is often considered polite to bring gifts like flowers, chocolate or a small thing for the host. It is an appropriate way to express ones appreciation for being invited by writing a thankful note or giving a telephone call after the visit.In most parts of Britain, the evening meal is the main meal. When one is invited for dinner, it is better for one to tell the hosthis or her dietary restrictions. Food may be served in the following ways: family style, buffet style or serving style. But in America, some families express grace before meals.In the USA, everyone takes pride in doing things by themselves, which is a spirit from their forefathers. And it is also a call of the whole society to do things like gardening, carpentry, upholstering and interior decorating all by oneself.But both British and American people love privacy. It is their right to have privacy and personal freedom. When we communicate with British or American people, don’t ask some private questions. We should remember it.At last, I want to say that this course is quite interesting and practical. I do learn something through the study. Although this course is going to end, I think we should not stop the study of western country cultures because it is useful for our other study as well. if we come to a foreign enterprise after graduation, we could know how to talk with our foreign interviewers or our bosses. When we travel aboard, we could experience local culture in a better way. To some extent, no matter what you are learning now, it must be useful in your future. Thus, I am happy I have learned something in this course.。

Sino-American Relation: Dangling Between Friendsand Rivals姓名：微微班级：11级英语二班学号：1112019677二零一三年三月1.IntroductionSino-American relations refer to international relations between the United States of America (U.S.A.) and the government of People’s Republic of China (PRC). Most analysts characterize present Sino-American relations as being complex and multi-faceted. The United States and the People's Republic of China are usually neither allies nor enemies; the US government and the military establishment do not regard the Chinese as an adversary but as a competitor in some areas and a partner in others. As of 2011, the United States has the world's largest economy and China the second largest. China has the world's largest population and the United States has the third largest. China is also the largest foreign creditor for the United States. China's challenges and difficulties are mainly internal, and there is a desire to maintain stable relations with the United States. The Sino-American relationship has been described by top leaders and academics as the world's most important bilateral relationship of the 21st century. 2.history2.1 Opium WarsThe end of the First Opium War in 1842 led to the Anglo-Chinese Treaty of Nanking which forced many Chinese ports open to foreign trade. Until then, Sino-American relations had been conducted solely through trade, but this new pact between Britain and China severely threatened further American business in the region. This treaty effectively ended the era of the Old China Trade, giving the United States as many trading privileges as other foreign powers.2.2 World War IIThe outbreak of the Second-Japanese War in 1937 saw aid flow into the Republic of China, led by Chiang Kai-shek, from the United States, under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. A series of Neutrality Acts had been passed in the US with the support of isolationists who forbade American aid to countries at war. American public sympathy for the Chinese was aroused by Japanese brutality in China. When open war broke out in the summer of 1937, the United States offered moral support but took no effective action.After World War II ended in 1945, the hostility between the Republic of China and the Communist Party of China exploded into open civil war. American general George C. Marshall tried to broker a truce between the Republic of China and the Communist Party of China in 1946, but it quickly lost momentum.2.3 Relations frozenThe United States continued to work to prevent the PRC from taking China's seat in the United Nations and encouraged its allies not to deal with the PRC. The United States placed an embargo on trading with the PRC, and encouraged allies to follow it. The PRC developed nuclear weapons in 1964 and, as later declassified documents revealed, President Johnson considered preemptive attacks to halt its nuclear program. He ultimately decided the measure carried too much risk and it was abandoned.Despite this official non-recognition, the United States and the People's Republic of China held 136 meetings at the ambassadorial level beginning in 1954 and continuing until 1970, first in Geneva and later in Warsaw.2.4 RapprochementBoth the PRC and the US made efforts to try to improve relations between the two major powers. This became an especially important concern for the People's Republic of China after the Sino-Soviet border clashes of 1969. The PRC was diplomatically isolated and the leadership came to believe that improved relations with the United States would be a useful counterbalance to the Soviet threat.Nixon believed it necessary to forge a relationship with China, even though there were enormous differences between the two countries. He also worried immensely that one of the Democrats would preempt him and go to the PRC before he had the opportunity.From February 21 to February 28, 1972, President Nixon traveled to Beijing, Hangzhou, and Shanghai. At the conclusion of his trip, the US and the PRC issued the Shanghai Communiqué, a statement of their respective foreign policy views. In the Communiqué, both nations pledged to work toward the full normalization of diplomatic relations. The US acknowledged the PRC position that all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait maintain that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of China..2.5 Obama administrationBarack Obama’s presidency has fostered hopes for increased co-operation and heightened levels of friendship between the two nations. On November 8, 2008, Hu Jintao and Barack Obama shared a phone conversation in which the Chinese President congratulated Obama on his election victory. During the conversation both parties agreed that the development of US-China relations is not only in the interest of both nations, but also in the interests of the world. In the cooperation between China and American, the conflicts of profit happened normally. Only the common profit exists, the relations between them will to turn to better.3. Important issues3.1 Economic affairEconomic affair is the biggest issue among countries. With the help of open and reform policy, based on natural advantages of mineral and cheap human workforce, China sucks in huge amount of funds in developing its internal economy while exports numerous kinds of cargos to the whole globe. Both the US and China benefit a lot after mutual complementary economic relation formed. But that does not mean the whole. Conflict and tension arises when trade surplus oc curs, also with several interest groups’ malevolent attitudes towards a more prosperous China.3.2 Both of them have their own unique way in dealing with politic matters.Though the politic ideology of social status differs sharply, China and the US have to seek cooperation in dealing with regional affairs in order to protect nation’s own safety and interest. The North Korea nuclear incident is such an occurrence that requires multilateral mutual cooperation.3.3 China and America do not share a same origin of civilization.This means that the difference of cultural between countries may bring about conflicts and deputes ceaselessly. Today, with the gradual deepen of mutual understanding in civilization, old hostile attitudes are gone. In the mean time, some of them stay alive or even sharpened as a weapon to achieve creepy goals. For example: the cultural invasion, accusation of human rights, democracy and religion.4. ConclusionFrom all that above, we can see that the relation of the big two has its own uniqueness apart from common bilateral relations. Conflicts, interest intrusions and ideological disputes are constant, however, all of them laid on the foundation of mutually dependent economy. Though trouble happens and in some certain periods the two sides acted like rivals, they are a little more like cooperators, for the foundation they stand on is so steady to wobble. What we can do for the two countries ‘relation is not much, but we all hoping that our country will become powerful and prosperous again and for all.。

What I Have Learnt in This CourseAs we know,English has become the most popular language in the world nowadays.And as the main countries that use English as the offical language,the UK and the USA both have a long and splendid culture.After the course of Essentials of British and American Cultures,we have got more understanding of the different cultures.After the course, we can make a comparison between the west and the east culture.So much common point and difference can be found in different kind of cultures.At the the same time,it can promote us with a deeper understanding of our own Chinese culture.Now,I will share something useful that I have learnt in this course.1.The basic information of British and AmericaThe full name of British is United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.England, Scotland, wales and Northern Ireland constitute the United Kingdom, the unification of the central government and in a head of state. Britain is located beyond continental Europe in Great Britain, surrounded by the North Sea, British Isles, Celtic sea, across the English channel, the Atlantic ocean and the Irish sea.The land area is 24.36 square kilometers and a population of about 60 million. Britain is the world's first industrialised countries and with a culturally diverse and opening-up thoughts of society. Capital London is the largest and most international city in Europe.America is short for The United States of America.The east is coast Atlantic, west near the Pacific, north to Canada, south meets Mexico. The land area of America is more than 962 million square kilometers,third in the world.On July 4, 1776, the continental congress in Philadelphia has officially approved the declaration of independence, declared the U.S. to birth. Since 1870, United States national economy ranks the first in the world.Today's America is one of the five permanent members of the UN security council, in its global politics,the huge influence in economy, military, entertainment and other domain can’t be matched by other nations.2.The history of British and AmericaAlthough the United Kingdom covers only a small area of the earth’s surface,it represents people of many different origins and cultures.The history of human habitation and settlement in Britain goes back to the Stone Age hunters and gatherers who arrived from the European continent about 10,000 years ago.Around 2000 BC these Stone Age people started to erect huge monuments.Work on the henges continued intermittently into the Bronze Age,until about 1500 BC.The clearest historical item in the general knowledge of most British people is the year 1066.Passing quickly over a long period of civil wars,the wars of the Roses,fought between two branches of the English royal family who each claimed the throne,we approach the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the modern period.In the 16th century,Europe as a whole was changing rapidly.During the 17th and the 18th century,Britain was under war for decades.The main enemy was Spain and France.After the battle of Waterloo and the fall of Napoleon,Britain enjoyed a long period of peace.And then time cames to 20th century.Britain is still widely respected.America is a young country,it was first discovered around the year 1000.after that,some English settlements come to this continent,and they captured the land.In the 18th century,a revolution took place,Americans broke away from the control of British,and then a constitution was devised.After sectional conflict and civil war,America came to get a quickly development in the following decades,and America now has become a great nation.3.English as a languageAs we know,English is one of the main offical languages of the United Nations, is a international exchange language as well. English belongs to the indo-european of sino-japanese Germanic branch, and through the British colonial activities,it widely spreads to other part of the world. Because of history and various national language contact, its vocabulary, grammar from a dollar into multiple from "more inflectional" into "little inflectional", voice has also undergone a regular changes.According to the number of English native speakers of English may be calculated, the world's third-largest language, but it is the world's most widely second language. The world is more than 60% of the letters written in English in two centuries, English and American culture, economic, military, political and scientific leadership makes English become a international language.Along with the time changes, China's continuous development and the level of English requirement rise ceaselessly, more and more foreign students go abroad. Oral English gradually developed into a indispensable part in life. Therefore, the prevalence of oral English in expanding the scope constantly too, the importance of spoken English also will be more and more important.In about 1500 years,English has developed from the language of a small,warlike,agrarian people,to the language of a highly developed technological civilization and now has one of the richest vocabularies of any language in the world.It has become the most influential and most international language of modern times,spoke by 275 million native speakers,and the language that so many people in the world want to learn.4.Others beyond the text bookBeyond the text book,I think I have experienced a lot in other aspects.During this course,for instance,we have seven team members,when we made the PPT,we divided our work and then united them together.It improves our team spirit and raises our passion.When we acted as a teacher in class,I think we all have terrific performance because we have prepared it for so a long time.Afterwards,Mr.Tyler,the foreign teacher,give me very deep impression.From the lesson,I realized that my English is so poor.Even though I studied English when I just a child,but I found so many sentences that he said was beyond my comprehension.As a motto puts it,where there is a will,there is a way.As far as I’m concerned,the learning way is still far and I have no alternative but to improve my oral English,spare no effort.。

The British Educational SystemAs far as we know, there are pre-primary schools, primary schools, secondary schools and university or college. Pre-school education is available (often on a fee-paying basis) for children aged 2 to 4/5 through playgroups and nursery schools. And many of them are private. The emphasis of pre-primary schools is on group work, creative activity and guided play.Two systems of primary and secondary education in Britain: 1. State Schools: 11-year Compulsory Education (5-16), we can know that there is comprehensive school (84%), grammar school (3%) or secondary modern school (7%) from the state primary school. 2. Public schools/Independent schools: there is an only 7% public (independent) school from prep school.What are the main differences between the two? We can find four points. 1. School Funding. In state schools, state funding from central government; supplemented by local finance. And in public schools, funding from tuition fees; endowments or donations from society (esp. alumni to their ammeters). 2. Attendance. There are 93% in state schools, only 7% in the public schools. 3. Teaching Staff and Facilities. Public schools have better teaching staff & facilities. 4. Graduates. Students from the public schools are more promising, e.g. Eton College has educated 20 Prime Ministers, 6 Chancellors of Exchequers, etc.Compulsory education begins at 5 in England, Wales and Scotland and 4 in Northern Ireland. Pupils mainly attend state sector primary schools (co-educational or mixed schools). Infants schools have equal to the first schools (for 2 years from 5). Junior schools (for 4 years to 11). There’s little or no specialist subject teaching and great emphasis is on literacy and numeracy in early years.Compulsory education ends at age 16. At 16, students in England and Wales take GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) examinations involving a final exam, an assessment of work done during the two-year course, or both of these things. Then they can leave school and find a job. Other pupils who decide not to go to university may choose to take vocational training and get the GNVQ (GeneralNational V ocational Qualification).In my opinion, about the entrance procedures, in the third term of Year 12, students prepare their applications to university. Applications are then made in the first term of the Year 13 through one centralized organization known as UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service). Students can apply to a maximum of 6 universities/institutions. Admission-selection on basis of A level results & an interview.In teaching methods, we can see, the UK educational system encourages self-study, discussions and practical work. The students may have time-tabled classes or might be encouraged to do more of independent work for a substantial amount of time depending on the course.Most of the courses would include the following teaching methods: lectures, seminars, tutorials, independent workand coursework.There are two famous universities in Britain. They are the Cambridge and Oxford. Cambridge University was founded in 1209 by students fleeing from Oxford after one of the many episodes of violence between the university and the town of Oxford. Cambridge is one of the world’s great universities, and has the ability to transform lives. If you study here, you will experience that quality at first hand. Day to day, you will work with academic staff who are leaders in their fields, and who are also committed to see you succeed, and to help you develop your ideas, knowledge and understanding.Legend has it that Oxford University was founded by King Alfred in 872 to encourage education and establish schools throughout his territory. Like a grammar school, it was just a place for teaching Latin grammar at that time. The University actually began in the 12th century as gatherings of students around popular masters. The university consisted of people, not buildings. The buildings came later as a recognition of something that already existed. In a way, Oxford was never founded; it grew.Oxford is one of the greatest universities in the world. It has played a distinguished part in the history of our country and our continent, and has much to contribute to our success and our well-being as a civilized community in the future.The Boat Race between Oxford & Cambridge started June 10, 1829.The event is now a British national institution, and is televised live each year. The race has beenwon by Cambridge 79 times and Oxford 73 so far. The race is currently run over a four mile and 374 yard (6.8 km) stretch of the River Thames between Putney and Mortlake in London.Oxford wear dark blue and Cambridge light blue.In Chinese higher education, we can find five dilemmas. There is enrollment expansion, elite education vs mass education, intense competition in the job market, resources are straining and education quality is suffering.There are five defects of Chinese higher education. Defect 1: Blind Enrollment Expansion. Universities seem to have enrolled more than they can accommodate! Limited facilities & space, insufficient resources, shabby dorms (slum)…Expansion means a lot more! Fierce competition in the job market. Defect 2: Awkward Teaching Method. Teachers tend to spoon-feed their students who are in turn spoon-fed and force-fed!More trust, freedom, interactions and responsibilities for the students! Teachers should serve as advisors & assistants!Defect 3: Prescribed / Designated Textbooks. A lack of flexibility (few alternative choices), Outdated contents (keep pace with), The prescribed textbooks can be replaced by …Defect 4: Unreasonable Curriculum. Many outdated courses should be abolished! More utilitarian courses are welcome! (Computer Science, Business, Finance, Accounting and Law)One shouldn’t be confined to one’s specific field.Moral education is in urgent demand! (campus violence, suicide, theft, murder) Defect 5:Unfair Assessment System. Exam-oriented style! (Scores talk!)Students: exams of lottery(memory test / work overtime shortly before the test)How can we improve it? I will show my answer. It’s a time-consuming & systematic project.Never wait for the improvement! Get a move now! You and me are part of Chinese higher education! Try to make the best and most of the current situation! Stop complaining and try to make a difference from now on.。