Let's get political
Which three groups of people are members of the House of Lords (The UK)? Explain how they got their membership.
Life peers - Accomplishments
Spiritual peers - Position (archbishops)
Elected hereditary peers - Remnants of the traditional system in which membership was inherited from father to son.
How is an education in the US linked to the social divide between rich and poor?
Education is to a large extent funded by the individual in the US, and therefore, if you come from a wealthy family you are more likely to get a good education.
+ Possible to link this to the 'college cheating scandal'.
What are the names of the two politicians that are left in the race to become the next presidential candidate to run for the Democratic party?
Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden
When did India regain independence from Britain and who led the resistance movement?
1947
Mahatma Ghandi
How many American states begin with the letter 'n'?
8
New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, North Carolina, Nebraska
Explain the term 'first-past-the-post'.
In general elections, a candidate needs to receive more votes than the opponents from his/her area (constituency) to get a seat in the House of Commons (and become MP). Votes for all other candidates are “wasted” in this system ("winner takes it all").
What does multiculturalism mean and what is the main reason why a country becomes multicultural?
Collective term for societies that are multi-ethnic and multi-faith, containing several groups of people with different ancestry.
Immigration.
Which American state has been hit hardest by the Corona-virus?
New York.
What is "pidgin"-English?
‘Pidgin English’: a simplified language spoken among people that do not share a common language.
Example: Tok Pidgin (Papa Ny Guinea)
What is Warsan Shire's poem 'Home' about?
Namely refugees, but Shire's main message is to enlighten the Western world about the hardships and grueling circumstances these refugees had to escape from, only to find themselves discriminated against and treated with disdain by Europeans.
"No one leaves home
Unless home is the mouth of a shark"
Explain the 'checks and balance'-system and give one example.
Definition: It enables the branches to 'check' each other's power in order to make sure that none of the branches become too powerful (= balance between the different branches).
Example to be judged by the teacher.
Mention at least three characteristics related to British society/culture/values.
Answer to be judged by teacher - me :)
Why was there an impeachment-investigation into President Trump?
Trump allegedly pressured the Ukrainian president into investigating another American political opponent (Joe Biden).
Where is English used today? Mention at least three examples from a global scale to day-to-day interactions?
Online communication (the language of the internet), science and education, entertainment industry, global organizations (NATO, UN, EU), international banking and trade. Language of traveling and global encounters.
Also -> English words seep into other languages (ex. Norwegian).
How many indigenous children were placed into residential schools in Canada?
About 150 000 children.
What are the three branches of government in the US? Who sits in each and what is their function?
Executive: President + Vice President + Cabinet -> Carry out laws
Legislative/Congress: Senate + House of Representatives -> Make laws
Judicial: Lower courts + Supreme Court -> Interpret laws
Mention at least three characteristics related to American society/culture/values.
Answer to be judged by teacher - me :)
What is the Northern Ireland-backstop?
Northern Ireland backstop = Theresa May's "temporary" plan with the EU on how to solve the border situation between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The plan would result in closer ties between these two countries and separation between NI and the rest of the UK. This solution is meant to prevent a "hard border" between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Many MPs (Hard Brexiters), the DUP and Protestants are against this solution (for somewhat different reasons).
What is 'Afrikaans'?
A language -> Found and spoken in South-Africa and is developed from the Dutch language.
Two of the texts on your reading list entails crossing a border. Which two texts?
'I am an undocumented immigrant' + 'Borders'
What is the name of the political party that Boris Johnson needed support from in order to stay in government in 2019? Which country does this party mainly represent?
DUP (= Democratic Unionist Party)
Northern Ireland
Briefly explain the timeline for black people living in the US.
Slavery - Illegalization of slavery + abolition - Jim Crow-laws - Civil Rights Movement - Obama - Black Lives Matter movement - Still tensions today
What was the creation of the 'Black Lives Matter'-movement responding to?
Police brutality towards black people. Specifically, the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson in 2014.
What is the difference between American English and British English? Find one example of differences in spelling, vocabulary, and pronunciation (In total = 3 examples)
Answer to be judged by me, but here are some examples:
Pronunciation: The word 'car' (ka: vs. car)
Spelling: Colour vs. color
Vocabulary: Car park vs. parking lot
If you had to give an example of social injustice, what text from our reading list would you use and why?
Answer to be judged by your teacher - me :)