The present book is about understanding and studying Russian Culture. Picturing Russia: A Research Guide to Russian Culture can be used as a basic for further research of Russian culture by scholars of various disciplines and by students who are interested in cultural analysis. The primary target audience is for any American university level classroom; however, it may also be used at the high school level. In the classroom, the book may be used in different courses such as Russian language, history, art, literature, music, political science, and even business.
The book may also be used beyond the classroom, such as for Study Abroad programs in Russia, in clubs or in the wider community. The book is suitable for any individual interested in understanding Russian culture or planning to travel to Russia for business or pleasure. It can also be used in Russian universities for students who study English as a foreign language. Russian teachers of English as a Foreign Language have difficulties in teaching Russian students to describe Russian realities in English. Because all of the English language textbooks for Russian learners concentrate on American or British lifestyles, holidays, and traditions.
The book will include several power points and digital story based on the experience American students have had while in Russia.
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 Language as a Tool of Culture—Linguistic Experiment
Chapter 3 24 Russian Ways: A Cross-Cultural Study
Chapter 4 Differences between Russian and American Values
Chapter 5 Five Facts to Know about Russia
1. Literature
a. Leo Tolstoy
b. Alexander Pushkin
c. Fyodor Dostoyevsky
d. Anton Chekhov
2. Architecture
a. Moscow
a.1. The Kremlin Cathedral Square
a.2. Moscow’s Tall Buildings
a.3. Moscow’s Parks and Squares
b. Saint Petersburg
b.1. European Influence
b.2. Canals and Bridges
b.3. Peterhof
b.4. Tsarskoye Selo
3. Music
a. Pyotr Tchaikovsky
b. Alla Pugacheva
c. Vladimir Vysotsky
d. Lyube
e. Pussy Riot
4. Art
a. Portraits
b. Landscapes
c. Action Shots
5. A Brief History of Religion and its Influence on Culture
a. Cathedrals
Chapter 6 Lesson plans
References
Alla Kourova
Dr. Alla Valentinovna Kourova is an assistant professor at the University of Central Florida, United States, for eight years. She graduated from Moscow State University, Russia with a Doctorate of Philosophy in Teaching Foreign Languages. For more than ten years, Dr. Kourova worked as a director of the International Linguistic Center at the Regional In-Service Teacher Training Institute in Penza, Russia. With over thirty years of teaching experience globally and at various institutional levels, Dr. Kourova knows that there is more than one approach to language study, and promotes dynamic and multifaceted techniques as well as cross-cultural dialogue in her publications and teaching practice. In 2002, Dr. Kourova was a Fulbright scholar at the University of Montana, sponsored by the American Council and Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State. She is the author of more than fifty publications on language teaching and cross-cultural communication. In January 2016 she has received a National AATSEEL’s 2015 award for Excellence in Teaching (Post-Secondary.) AATSEEL is the American Association of Teachers of Slavic and East European Languages. Dr. Kourova is also a recipient of the University Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award, the Scholarship for Teaching and Learning Award, the Teaching Incentive Program Award, and the Excellence in Research Award. In 2014-2016, Dr. Kourova received three U.S. Department of State grants: the U.S.-Russia Peer-to-Peer Dialogue Program and STARTALK. For many years, she has also collaborated with prestigious organizations such as the Peace Corps, the Fulbright Institution of International Education, FLEX, and Open World Foundation. Her pedagogical credo is teaching language through culture.
