American Culture 1I.

True/False:
1. Americans are getting thinner and healthier thanks to constant exposure tothe media
which seems to promote images of slender and physically fit people.
-> F
2. Although the American system of divided governmental powers strikes many observers
as inefficient and disorganized, most Americans still strongly believe in it because it has
been able to meet the challenges of the past and it gives strong protection to individual
freedom.
-> T
3. The civil right laws of the 1960s did not make any changes to the life of Black people.
-> F
4. In the 19th century, the U.S. was the first nation to establish universal freepublic
education as a national goal.
-> F
5. Many schools and colleges have taken several measures in order to achieve
multicultural education including adopting history or social studies textbooks that include
more information about African-Americans,Hispanic-Americans and other minorities.
-> T
6. After the Civil War, African-Americans were readily assimilated into the larger
American culture.
->F
7. Martin Luther King's goal was to separate his people from American society.
-> F
8. The so-called separate but equal doctrine was used to justify racial segregation in
public schools and other public facilities in the southern states.
-> T
9. The quality of education that students receive in public schools is the same everywhere
in America.
-> F
10. On average, women and people of color still earn less than white men in the
workplace.
-> T
11. The process of assimilation in the United States has been much more successful for
white ethnic groups.
-> T
12. In America, the federal government does not directly oversee education; the states do.
-> T
13. The United States may have national standards for education but not a national
curriculum.
-> T
14. The White House is the official home of the Senators and Representatives.
F
15. Americans are encouraged at an early age to be dependent and to developtheir goals
in life.
-> F
16. Each American is considered a unique individual and a high value is placed on
personal style and action.
-> T
17. "Salad bowl" is a concept used by scholars to describe the United States as a place
where various racial end ethnic groups have been combined into one culture.
-> F
18. Martin Luther King, Jr. believed that blacks must separate themselves from whites, by
force if necessary, and build their own society based on values that they would create for
themselves.
-> F
19. The civil rights laws of the 1960s helped to bring about a significant degree of
assimilation of blacks into the larger American culture.
-> T
20. Although Americans provide a lot of financial support to people in need through
charities or governmental programs, they expect that help to be short-lived.
-> T

II. Fill in each gap with ONE word/number:

The government of the USA has three separate but (1) __equal__ parts: Congress, the
President, and the Supreme Court. Women got the vote in 1920 and all Americans can
now vote when they are eighteen. There are some rights that all Americans have by
law.Congress makes the (2) ___laws__. There are in fact two houses of Congress: the
(3)__Senate__and the House of Representatives. There are a hundred people in the
Senate and they are elected for six years. There are 435 people in the House of
Representatives, and they areelected for (4) __two__ years only. The states with more
population , like California, have more representatives.The (5)__President___is the most
important of all the people in the government. He can say “no” to laws passed by (6)
__Congress ___, and he chooses the (7) ___justices_______ for the Supreme Court.The
President and both houses have almost complete political (8) __independence___from
each other because they are all chosen in separate (9) ___elections___. To make sure
these two branches do not over use their power, a system of check and balance is also
implemented along with the (10) _____constitution_______. As well as the federal
government in Washington D.C., each state has its own government.

III. Short answer:

1. In what ways is the relationship between parents and children different in Vietnam
compared to that in the USA?
2. What is the significance of sports in the American life?
3. What are the core values reflected in the American education system? How are those
values reflected in the system?
4. What are the major concepts utilized by scholars to describe American culture and the
assimilation process of immigrants? In your opinion, which concept best reflect American
culture? Why?
5. In what ways does the structure of the US government reflect the value of individual
freedom?