Summer 2023 classes

Our classes are open to all current university students and are specifically designed for the Summer School study experience.

These classes focus on experiential learning in and around the London area. Our classes are fully accredited and worth 3 U.S. / 6 ECTS credits each.

The classes minimise the amount of time spent in a classroom and maximise the amount of experiential learning in and around the London area. All classes require a lot of walking as they are all field trip based, so please only apply if you are happy to be on your feet a lot!

If you are taking two classes then you need to select one from group A, and one from group B (due to timetabling).

The classes on offer for 2023 are as follows:

PLEASE NOTE: The field trip dates on the 2023 class syllabi are tentative. Dates may be subject to change based on availability at the time when we book the field trips.

British Culture and Society (A)
Creative Writing in London (A)
Exploring Cultural London (B)
From Civil Liberty to Human Rights (A)
Live Theatre (A)
London Global City of Enterprise (B)
Museums and Galleries (B)
Muggle Madness: Harry Potter and other popular British icons (B)

British Culture and Society (3 US credits)

This class gives you the opportunity to develop an understanding and appreciation of:

contemporary British culture and society
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
national identity.

Guided field trips re-enforce your learning and support the classroom discussions. These might include visits to:

Greenwich
Gurdwara Sikh temple (Southall)
a performance at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre
Hampton Court Palace
Stonehenge and Bath
Oxford.

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 free of charge.

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

Download the syllabus for British Culture and Society (Word doc).

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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
visits to literary events and festivals.

Download the syllabus for Creative Writing in London (Word doc).

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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
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.

Download the syllabus for Exploring Cultural London (Word doc).

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From Civil Liberty to Human Rights (3 US credits)

The course aims to introduce students to a broad history of human rights tracing it from the struggle for civil liberty to the incomplete institutionalisation of human rights in the 21st century.
The course explores the emergence of and changes in ideas about freedom and human rights, different people who tried to put the idea in practice and their struggle to do so. The students visit Runnymede, where Magna Carta was signed. There will be an opportunity to meet those involved trade union movements as well.

Featuring:

A visit to Runnymede (where Magna Carta was signed).
Meeting with trade union activists/civil society activists.

Assessment

A 1,500-word essay reflecting on a visit/meeting/lecture. ‘What does the visit/meeting/lecture tell you about human rights today?

Download the syllabus for From Civil Liberty to Human Rights (PDF)

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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 2015 the shows included:

Alice's Adventures Underground, The Vaults
Bend it like Beckham, Delfont Mackintosh Theatre
Death of a Salesman, Noel Coward Theatre
Everyman at the National Theatre and
Lampedusa at the Soho Theatre

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
go on backstage tours at the National Theatre and elsewhere.

Download the syllabus for Live Theatre (PDF)

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London Global City of Enterprise (3 US credits)

Kingston Business School has a USA accreditation with AACSB (The Association to advance Collegiate Schools of Business).
The aims of the module are to:

To explore the nature of enterprise, the characteristics of entrepreneurs and identify the factors involved in starting and growing businesses.
To identify what makes London a global city and why this is important for enterprise activity and why it attracts entrepreneurs.
To demonstrate how London has supported and encouraged enterprise and innovation for 2,000 years and has developed into one of the world's top global enterprise cities.

The course will include lecture led tours to:

Download the syllabus for London Global City of Enterprise (Word doc).

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Museums and Galleries (3 US credits)

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

The University of Kingston's partnership with the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) aims to provide opportunities for creative exchange, investigation and discussion between students and staff at the University and the ICA, its network and audiences.

Download the syllabus for Museums and Galleries (Word doc).

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Muggle Madness: Harry Potter and other popular British icons (3 US credits)

This class will celebrate not only the popular and internationally successful creations of J K Rowling but also place the Harry Potter stories in a lineage of heroic British fiction – from Sherlock Holmes to James Bond, Frodo Baggins to Doctor Who. We will study a range of these stories and also read them in terms of politics and gender. In doing so, we will seek to understand how these narratives can provide us with an alternative cultural history.

Field trips will include expeditions to the Harry Potter Studios, the Covent Garden James Bond exhibition and the Harry Potter walking tour.

Download the syllabus for Muggle Madness: Harry Potter and other popular British icons (PDF).

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