Unit 1 British Core Values
LEAD-IN
Schoolchildren should be taught "traditional British values" as part of an attempt to challenge extremism and promote a more cohesive society, the UK higher education minister claimed.
Under the proposals, all 11 to 16-year-olds will learn about free speech and democracy in the UK, as well as about the contribution of different communities to building a modern, successful country.
Do you think core values should be taught at schools?
Should governments promote "traditional values" in their societies?
READING 1: WORKING WITH TWO TEXTS
Read the following texts on the British core values. Discuss the question in groups: In what way are the British ‘core values’ different from the core values of other nations, or are they?
Text 1
What's British about core values?
Martin Kettle
The Guardian May 15, 2006
Now, if there is one thing that most people will accept (happily in some cases, unhappily in others) about a country like ours in the 21st century, it is that the old nation state no longer comfortably embodies the people who inhabit it - call that the Tebbit test or the melting pot according to choice. But it's a fact that we all know we live in interconnected and weakened nations. So I'm very sceptical that a dose of shared national values are really the answer to any of these issues. I fear they might merely be a source of fresh divisions and disagreements.
I'd be more in favour of kids being taught Core British Values if I knew what CBV actually were. But in every discussion I've ever been involved in on this subject (and I've been in a few) it's not long before someone (sometimes me) makes the blindingly obvious point that fairness or ingenuity or respect or love of the countryside - or whatever virtue some other speaker has identified as essentially British - isn't in fact uniquely British at all. If I were French, I would have no trouble claiming that all these qualities were French Values too. Or if I were American. Or Chinese. And so on around the world. It is just daft to pretend that we British, however polite or pastoral we may imagine ourselves to be, are uniquely defined by them.
I'm not going to pretend that there isn't something worthy of the name that I would want to call Britishness. I think it's a fascinating challenge to define what, if anything, really differentiates one group of human beings from another. But this is an incredibly slippery and elusive subject and too much of the debate is owned by scoundrels.
Yes, some aspects of what I would define as truly distinctive Britishness are rather admirable, like our pride in our particular independence, or an inherent scepticism towards theory and authority and a rumbustiously creative and adaptive use of language. But there are other British values, like drunken aggression and a seemingly unquenchable appetite for smut, that do less for me. And in any case, as I've said, a lot of what we tend to pass off as British is actually common to all humankind, while quite a lot of the rest is more accurately labelled, I suspect, as English.
So my view is that we should abandon the rather quaint and daft (and perhaps rather British) idea of trying to define the Britishness of core values, and should concentrate instead on the Core Values themselves, without trying to plant the Union Jack on any of them. I'm all for kids being taught about good citizenship and the principles of democracy, about respect for others, about non-violence, the rule of law, the ethical life, respect for the environment, individual freedom and the ties of community - and about how we can reconcile them.
Reading Notes
Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, CH, PC (born 29 March 1931) is a British Conservative politician and former MP. He proposed the "Cricket test", also known as the "Tebbit Test", where he suggested that people from ethnic minorities in Britain should not be considered truly British until they supported the England cricket team, as opposed to the country of their or their ancestors' birth.
The melting pot - is a metaphor for a heterogeneous society becoming more homogeneous, with different elements "melting together". It is particularly used to describe the assimilation of immigrants to the United States.
The first use of the concept of immigrants "melting" into the receiving culture is found in the writings of J. Hector St. John de Crevecoeur. In his Letters from an American Farmer (1782) Crevecoeur writes, that the American is one who "leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the government he obeys, and the new rank he holds. Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labour and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world."
Text 2
Ten core values of the British identity
Telegraph.co.uk
27 Jul 2005
It cannot be said too often that terrorist atrocities are solely the responsibility of those who perpetrate them. To blame the invasion of Iraq, or the occupation of the West Bank, or poverty, or racism, or Western decadence, is both intellectually and morally wrong. What is reasonable, however, is to ask why modern Britain is breeding so many anti-British fanatics.
Part of the answer has to do with how Britain sees itself. The ancestors of the Leeds bombers, who arrived here in the mid-20th century from countries which had prospered under colonial rule, were infected by the self-belief of the British Empire. They were content, as it were, to buy into a nation whose subjects were so obviously proud of it.
Many countries try to codify their values in law. Some oblige their citizens to speak the national language; others make it a criminal offence to show disrespect to the flag. But statutory patriotism is an intrinsically un-British notion. We prefer simply to set out, in general terms, the non-negotiable components of our identity - the qualities of the citizenship that so many people crave for.
I. The rule of law. Our society is based on the idea that we all abide by the same rules, whatever our wealth or status. No one is above the law - not even the government.
II. The sovereignty of the Crown in Parliament. The Lords, the Commons and the monarch constitute the supreme authority in the land. There is no appeal to any higher jurisdiction, spiritual or temporal.
III. The pluralist state. Equality before the law implies that no one should be treated differently on the basis of belonging to a particular group. Conversely, all parties, sects, faiths and ideologies must tolerate the existence of their rivals.
IV. Personal freedom. There should be a presumption, always and everywhere, against state coercion. We should tolerate eccentricity in others, almost to the point of lunacy, provided no one else is harmed.
V. Private property. Freedom must include the freedom to buy and sell without fear of confiscation, to transfer ownership, to sign contracts and have them enforced. Britain was quicker than most countries to recognise this and became, in consequence, one of the happiest and most prosperous nations on Earth.
VI. Institutions. British freedom and British character are immanent in British institutions. These are not, mostly, statutory bodies, but spring from the way free individuals regulate each other's conduct, and provide for their needs, without recourse to coercion.
VII. The family. Civic society depends on values being passed from generation to generation. Stable families are the essential ingredient of a stable society.
VIII. History. British children inherit a political culture, a set of specific legal rights and obligations, and a stupendous series of national achievements. They should be taught about these things.
IX. The English-speaking world. The atrocities of September 11, 2001, were not simply an attack on a foreign nation; they were an attack on the anglosphere - on all of us who believe in freedom, justice and the rule of law.
X. The British character. Shaped by and in turn shaping our national institutions is our character as a people: stubborn, stoical, indignant at injustice. "The Saxon," wrote Kipling, "never means anything seriously till he talks about justice and right."
Not for the first time, we have been slow - perhaps too slow - to wake up to the threat we face. Now is the time to "talk about justice and right", and to act on our words.
Answer these questions on the texts:
Text 1
· How important are the shared national values according to the author?
· What qualities does the author define as distinctively British?
Text 2
· How do you understand the words of the author: “… statutory patriotism is an intrinsically un-British notion”?
Find words in the texts which mean the same as the following. (They are in text order.) Use an English-English dictionary to help you. Make up sentences of your own using the words from the text.
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Продайвода Е.Д. Graduation Course
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Text 1
resourcefulness
evasive
a rogue
typical of
adjust
Text 2
cruelty
to commit
forefather
essentially
to observe
to put up with
inherent in
feeling anger at sth
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DISCUSSION POINT
The Russian Government has put the concept of a national vision for Russia back on the political agenda, arguing the need to fill the current "ideological vacuum" in the country. It is widely recognized that reforms had left Russia without a unifying theme. To fill this void, a new national idea should be constructed, one based on "patriotism in the most positive sense of the concept."
What ideas can form the basis of the unifying theme in your country?
Do traditional values help maintain order?
Are family values equally important?
PAIR WORK
In pairs make a list of personal values.
Get ready to speak about two to five values that have shaped your life. Also think about specific ways they have benefited you in your life.
Consider which one or two new values you would like to implement in your life. Now think about the specific ways you can do it.
READING 2:
WOULD-BE BRITONS 'TO RECITE GOD SAVE THE QUEEN' FOR CITIZENSHIP TEST
Foreign nationals wishing to become British citizens will be required to know the first verse of God Save the Queen and key historic facts under a rewritten test, it has been claimed. Immigrants applying for a British passport will have to take
The new test will focus on the UK's culture and past rather than practical information, according to the Sunday Times.
Under plans drawn up by home secretary, immigrants will be told in an accompanying handbook that Britain is historically a Christian country with a 'long and illustrious history'.
Key battles, inventions, discoveries and culture will form the base of the 45-minute test, which will also require applicants to memorise profiles of William Shakespeare and Sir Winston Churchill among others.
The new test would replace the Life in the United Kingdom test introduced by the then Labour government in 2005, which included questions on welfare payments, borrowing money, dealing with the local council and the Human Rights Act.
A Home Office spokesperson commented: 'Putting our culture and history at the heart of the citizenship test will help ensure those permanently settling can understand British life, allowing them to properly integrate into our society.'
For getting a citizenship is the knowledge of the country’s history and culture more important than understanding social security schemes and being aware of one’s rights?
See how you can deal with some of the questions from the Life in the UK Practice Test:
1. What type of constitution does the UK have?
A. A legal constitution
B. A written constitution
C. An amended
D. An unwritten constitution
2. When are general elections held?
A. At least every year
B. At least every four years
C. At least every five years
D. At least every six years
3. How is it decided which party forms the Government?
A. The members of the House of Lords vote for their preferred party
B. The party that wins the majority of the constituencies forms the Government
C. The party with the most candidates forms the Government
D. The party with the most votes forms the Government
4. What are functions of the House of Lords? Select two options from below:
A. Suggest amendment to laws
B. Propose new laws
C. Elect the Prime Minister
D. Elect the Speaker of the House of Commons
5. How often does the Cabinet normally meet?
A. Bi-weekly
B. Daily
C. Monthly
D. Weekly
6. What politicians are members of the Shadow Cabinet?
A. Civil servants working in the Government
B. Peers from the House of Lords
C. Senior members of the main opposition party
D. The remaining MPs in Government who are not in the Cabinet
7. Which minister can sit in the House of Lords or in the House of Commons?
A. Chancellor of the Exchequer
B. Foreign Secretary
C. Lord Chancellor
D. Home Secretary
8. What is the name of the system that governs how MPs are elected into the House of Commons?
A. Electoral College system
B. First past the post system
C. Proportional representation system
9. Members of the House of Lords can stand for election to the House of Commons. Is this statement true or false?
A. True
B. False
10. What are the functions of the Speaker of the House of Commons? Select two options from below
A. To keep order during political debate
B. To make sure rules are followed in the House of Commons
C. To Promote Members from the House of Commons to the House of Lords
D. To give royal assent to new laws.
11. What is the name of the official record of proceedings in Parliament?
A. Hansard
B. Parliament News
C. The Recorder