Presentation given to Access program coordinators in Ort Israel (Aug `14) on the insights gained as a participant of the US State Department's premier professional exchange program the International Visitors Leadership Program) in which a group of 5 Israeli and 5 Palestinian teachers participated.

1. American Culture
Susana Galante (IVLP 2014)

2. WHAT is it?
U.S. Dept of State’s premier professional
exchange program
A three-week visit to US communities
About the IVLP
WHO?
Current and emerging foreign leaders in a variety of fields experience
the country first-hand and cultivate lasting relationships with
American counterparts.

3. English as a Second Language Teachers Group, 2014

4. Current trends
in education and ESL

6. Where in the USA?

7. What did we learn?

8. Is there an American Culture?
There is a dominant culture, but the US is becoming
a mixed cultural nation.
What makes it beautiful are its colors.
Diversity is what defines American Culture

9. What pulls the country together
besides a set of values and beliefs?
The same things that tear people apart hold them together.
● The public school system exemplifies the American culture.
● As a country of immigrants, Americans have a psychological
need to feel they are part of this country.
Speaking English

10. American Culture
BEHAVIOR
BELIEFS
VALUES
THOUGHTS
PATTERNS
WORLDVIEWS

11. Less Government is Better Government

12. Federal, State & Local Government
Bottom-up Approach
Local Gov.
(county- district)
State Gov. (50)
Federal Gov.

13. Federal, State & Local Government
What do the States do together?
● defense
● money
● foreign policy
● interstate commerce
- never separately
- only through the institutions of the federal gov

14. Federal, State & Local Government
● Federal Government = Administration
● Policy is an implementation of law
● Each State has a constitution
● 50 legal systems
● US Dept of State manages relations between all
states & with the rest of the world

15. Federal, State & Local Government
● No national curriculum for education
- work together through minimal standards and funding.
● Partnerships with civil societies
Everything is done through coalitions
(in the process they build consensus)
● No official language
- English is the language of use

16. Natural Rights
● Freedom of Speech
● Freedom of Religion
● Freedom of Press
● Freedom of Assembly
& Association

17. Diversity

18. The American Tapestry=Multiculturalism
Diversity is seen as a strength

19. Diversity
● Absorption of refugees and immigrants
● Native American population
● Civil Rights Movement

20. Individualism

21. ● The individual has the
right to identify himself.
● “Depend on yourself”-
Calvinistic values
● Social mobility
Individualism

22. Everything that supports an individual to become independent
is an act of charity.There is a financial incentive to support
charity.
Individualism

23. Personal Responsibility- Partnerships
● Civic engagement is emphasized
● Government in partnership w/ civil societies
● Everything done through coalitions
● Pragmatism - more important than ideology

24. Volunteering

25. an expression of leadership
Volunteerism

27. Places & People

28. Washington D.C.

29. View from Lincoln Memorial

31. Lincoln Memorial

34. Martin Luther King Memorial

36. US Congress

37. Library of Congress

38. Raleigh, N.C.

39. Raleigh, Durham & Chapel Hill form the Research Triangle
Research Triangle:
- has seen impressive growth in the past several years
- known for universities, high tech jobs & Research
Triangle Park
- consistently ranked as one of the best places
to live & work
Facts about Raleigh

40. Raleigh, North Carolina

41. Absorption of refugees and new immigrants in immersion classes

42. Greensboro, N.C.

43. Civil Rights Movement Museum - Greensboro, NC

44. Civil Rights Movement Museum - Greensboro, NC

45. Greensboro, North Carolina - Refugee Centre

46. Greensboro, North Carolina - Refugee Centre

47. Rapid City, South Dakota

48. Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota

49. Reviving the Lakota language, South Dakota

50. ● First school to offer a Lakota Language
curriculum on a daily basis.
● They are creating a curriculum for the learning of
the language, making materials available and
collaborating with other communities.
Reviving the Lakota Language

51. Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota

52. Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

53. ● George Washington
1st President - led the colonists to win independence from Britain - father
of the new country- laid the foundation of new democracy (1732- 1799)
● Thomas Jefferson
3rd President - author of the Declaration of Independence - bought
Louisiana territory from France, which doubled the size of the country
(1743- 1826)
Why these four Presidents?

54. Why these four Presidents?
● Theodore Roosevelt
provided leadership when America experienced rapid economic growth
as it entered the 20th C. (1858- 1919)
● Abraham Lincoln
held the nation together during its greatest trial, the Civil War. It was his
firm conviction that slavery must be abolished. ( 1809- 1865)

55. Sioux Falls, South Dakota

56. Elementary School Immersion Center

57. Immersion School

59. San Francisco, California

60. San Francisco - cosmopolitan city

61. Teaching of in USA
English...
● as the key to success in life
Students believe that by learning the language, they can improve themselves.
● for college and career readiness
● as a way to achieve understanding among cultures

62. Thanks for your attention!
Susana Galante, IVLP Alumna, Ort Israel

63. Questions