Dear Students,

Culture, according to the Oxford English dictionary, is the “the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement”1. Social structure and the class or ethnic group one belongs to frequently determine religious affiliation, or are determined by it. This in itself again forms, creates and directs moral principles, which are part and parcel of one’s identity within a society. This coursebook will discuss religious affiliation in both the UK and the USA.

It becomes apparent that there is a close connection between any one society’s intellectual development and the formal means of guiding and fostering this development in providing a certain education in a certain form.

Education and the school systems of Britain and the USA are highly diverse. But certain issues remain matters of contention in both countries. Some of these are:

– What are the relative advantages of private and state-funded schooling?
– How important is vocational training?
– Why is it that standards are declining, or why are they perceived to be declining?
– What role should technology play in teaching?

What is certain is that history has shaped the schools and, by extension, the culture in these countries.

It was Thomas Jefferson who said that a democratic society needed an educational system that would provide its citizens with the understanding and knowledge necessary for them not only to be able to pursue their own personal happiness, but also to fulfil their obligations and duties as citizens.

Can it be claimed, then, that education emanates from the cultural identity of any one society, or is the opposite rather the case, namely that education forms the basis of cultural expression found in literature, architecture, music and the arts, among others?

The third aspect that will be considered in this course book is that of the media and the role of the media in each of the two regions. What forms of media are predominant in each of the two regions, why is this so and what are the effects? These are some of the questions that are raised, sometimes overtly, sometimes covertly.

In our globalized world, daily life as expressed in popular culture, including sports and games, but also entertainment, has become more uniform and is given greater priority. While this is true of entertainment in particular, sports in the UK and the USA have certain commonalities but are still largely dominated by historical attitudes. Thus, while soccer, usually called football (or footie), is certainly a sport that interests a large part of the population in the UK, rugby and cricket are also of great interest. In the USA, on the other hand, American football, basketball and baseball dominate the interest of the nation (and are thus closely followed in the media).

After having worked through this coursebook, you will:

– have acquired a comprehensive view of how the culture of the United Kingdom and the USA is expressed in religion and religious institutions;
– be able to describe how the educational systems are geared towards the respective societies, their political systems and changing populations;
– see how the media has adapted to the needs of the population;
– better comprehend how the lifestyles and attitudes of the people find expression in popular culture and in the arts.