In 2025, with the celebration of the Semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence, American political structures are once again the subject of discussion and controversy. This workshop seeks to contribute to an important segment of teaching English in Swiss high schools; namely, the segment devoted to Landeskunde / Civilization.

We will discuss a number of key texts ranging from the founding of the American republic in 1776 to the crisis of democracy at the current moment. We will study some familiar and some lesser-known texts that have proven to be significant in shaping Americans’ ideas about their political culture.

The texts selected for this workshop are carefully chosen, excerpted where necessary for use in the Gymnasium / lycée classroom, and framed for a 4– to 6–week teaching unit on American democracy. They will be provided in advance for participants in this workshop.

To enliven our discussion of nonfiction political documents, we will take a look at some poems and a few selections from the musical Hamilton.

The workshop will begin with an overview lecture that sketches the development of the American political system – from the Declaration via the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution – and an in-depth discussion of the unfamiliar parts of the Declaration of Independence, supplemented by Tracy K. Smith’s provocative poem «Declaration».

Participants will then work in groups to analyze some key texts (please refer to the flyer for the list of the texts) and will report back to the plenum. In an afternoon session, differently constituted groups will develop suitable lesson plans for this material, considering context, vocabulary, relevance, and teaching strategies.

Target audience

Teachers of secondary level II

Responsibles and speakers

Responsibles

• Austenfeld Thomas, Emeritus Professor of American Literature

Dates and locations