Summer 2010 classes

Trip to OxfordOur classes are open to all current university students and are specifically designed for the Summer School study experience. They aim to minimize the amount of time spent in a class room and maximize the amount of experiential learning in and around the London area.

We are offering the following classes in Summer 2010:

Group A

Classes will alternate between running on Mondays and Wednesdays, and Wednesdays and Fridays:

 

Group B

Classes will run on Tuesdays and Thursdays:

 

 

British Art and Architecture (3 US credits)

This class enables you to appreciate the rich material resources in Britain, developing a critical understanding of the historical, social and political circumstances that have shaped art and architecture. 

In addition to lectures, there will be visits to the National Gallery, Banqueting House, Chiswick House, Kenwood House, Tate Britain and Sir John Soane’s Museum.

[Back to top]

British Culture and Society (3 US credits)

Trip to the Roman BathsThis class gives you the opportunity to develop an understanding and appreciation of:

  • contemporary British culture and society; and
  • the differences between Britain and your home culture and lifestyle.

The course covers key topics such as:

  • the British system of government;
  • the monarchy;
  • media;
  • theatre;
  • sports;
  • multicultural Britain;
  • Britain’s changing world role; and
  • national identity.

Trip to StonehengeGuided field trips to places re-enforcing your learning support the classroom discussions. These might include visits to:

We also encourage you to make independent visits to different sites in the London area. London has some of the best museums and galleries in the world and they are mostly open free of charge.

Students not taking the British Culture and Society course can also participate in fieldtrips, subject to space and your timetable, on a fee-per-trip basis. 

 

[Back to top]

Creative Writing in London (3 US credits)

This class explores the act and culture of creative writing in London and the surrounding area.  You discuss your creative writing – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, plays and more – in regular workshops with a group of peers and professional writers associated with Kingston University’s thriving creative writing field. 

These workshops will be combined with:

  • a programme of readings, both on campus and in venues across the city, by well-known writers; and
  • visits to literary events and festivals.

[Back to top]

Exploring Cultural London (3 US credits)

This class provides you with the opportunity to explore the cultural sites and spaces of London. Based primarily upon London walks and visits, it considers the historical development of London as a world city. In particular, it looks at:

  • the changing cultural geography of the city; and
  • the impact artistic and cultural innovation has had on this. 

Visits will include St Paul’s, Museum of London, St James’s Park, Wallace Collection, the City, Festival Hall and Bond Street.

[Back to top]

Introduction to International Business (3 US credits)

This class provides an introduction to:

  • the nature of international business;
  • the strategies used to gain competitive advantage; and
  • issues faced by managers of international enterprises.

You will be exposed to the business issues surrounding the integration of the United Kingdom into Europe. Guided field trips to places re-enforcing the lectures, including one to Denbies Wine Estate.

[Back to top]

Live Theatre  (3 US credits)

This course is aimed at both students studying theatre and those with little or no knowledge of it. We will see five or six shows in the West End, the National Theatre and the fringe, encompassing a cross-section of Shakespeare, classic, modern and experimental plays.

In 2009 the shows included:

  • the musical Been So Long at the Young Vic;
  • The Observer at the National Theatre; and
  • Romeo and Juliet at the Globe Theatre, the replica of Shakespeare’s Globe on the South Bank of the River Thames.

We will also:

  • meet actors, writers or directors working in the theatre – to understand how a play evolves from the page to the stage;
  • attend a workshop at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre; and
  • go on backstage tours at the National Theatre and elsewhere.

[Back to top]

London: International Finance Centre (3 US credits)

The City of London is a premier centre for international finance and trade – delivering 20% of the UK’s Gross National Product, it is a vital element of the national economy. This course looks at the history, growth, current status and future prospects of the City of London in terms of its role as a global financial centre.

The objective is not only to learn about finance, but also to experience the history, culture and dynamics of the City at work.  We therefore include lecturer-led tours of the City of London and its institutions, such as the Bank of England, Lloyds of London and the Stock Exchange, plus the historical infrastructure accommodating financial agencies.

We will also look at:

  • London in comparison with other world financial centres, particularly New York;
  • historical and topical issues, considering previous stock market and banking crises alongside current events such as the 2007–08 credit crunch and consequent turbulence in investment banks and other financial institutions;
  • the implications of these events upon the raising and utilisation of money, insurance and risk management;
  • key elements and the role of finance, both corporate and personal, as drivers in the economy; and
  • aspects of regulation and corporate governance, including a discussion of the UK 'principle-based approach' and the US 'rule-based approach'.

[Back to top]

London and its Literature (3 US credits)

This class explores the contribution of London to English literary life since the middle of the 18th century and its representation in literary texts.

You will consider selected texts within the specific historical, political and cultural context of London and its impact on the imaginations of writers since 1750, a time when London as we know it was taking shape. After looking at mid-18th century 'neoclassical' and fashionable texts, and the more radical Blake and Dickens, we will focus on the London-based fiction of the Modernist (early 20th century) and post-colonial (early 21st century) eras.

Guided field trips to places re-enforcing your learning support the classroom discussions. These might include:

[Back to top]

Multicultural London (3 US credits)

London is a complex urban region distinguished by a uniquely vibrant multicultural atmosphere and character. The Multicultural London class aims to explore the London experience in all of its rich dimensions, including the city’s varied:

  • districts;
  • character;
  • distinctions;
  • histories;
  • politics;
  • cultures; and
  • economies.

This class will engage you with a range of media forms, such as film, literature and music, as it examines London’s status as a global city.

Teaching will combine lectures, seminars and class discussion with visits to many of the places and institutions that reflect London’s exciting multiculturalism.

[Back to top]

Museums and Galleries (3 US credits)

This class introduces the role and function of museums and galleries. You explore the cultural, economic, historical and sociological dimensions of display as they relate to critical and theoretical contexts. It includes visits to the:

[Back to top]

Provision of Healthcare: the British Model (3 US credits)

This class introduces the British healthcare system, which is based on the National Health Service (NHS), founded after the Second World War on the principle of providing free healthcare for all citizens.

The course examines different aspects of NHS provision and reforms which have been introduced to modernise the system. There will be the opportunity for students to visit some healthcare establishments within the Greater London area, which may include the Florence Nightingale Museum and St Georges Hospital.

Taking this module will enable students to compare and contrast healthcare provision in their home country with that of Britain.

[Back to top]

Shakespeare: Reading and Performance (3 US credits)

This class gives you the chance to read and attend performances of four of Shakespeare’s plays playing in London or Stratford at the time. We will:

  • compare the reading and performance of these;
  • situate them alongside their historical and cultural context in Elizabethan/ Jacobean London; and
  • take into account the theatrical conditions affecting their production and the changing interpretations they have attracted through the ages.

Guided field trips will reinforce your understanding of these contexts and are likely to include:

[Back to top]

Tudor and Stuart London (3 US credits)

This class explores the most significant developments in London’s history between 1485 and 1714. We trace the events that led to the transformation of a medieval town into the largest city in Europe through an evaluation of the impact of the Reformation, the expansion of the Royal court, the effects of the English Civil War and the destruction of the City of London during the Great Fire of 1666.

The interdisciplinary approach, which draws on history, art and architecture, provides you with a rounded view of the historical, social and cultural transformation of this unique city in the early modern period.

In addition to lectures there will be visits to historic locations in London such as:

 

 

Kingston University reserves the right to cancel a class due to insufficient student enrolments.