The goal of Contemporary Topics is to help you develop the skills and strategies you need to successfully participate in academic lectures. You will learn strategies for listening actively and taking clear notes. Good listening skills will help you follow lectures more easily, and good note taking skills will help you better organize and understand, and later review, the information you’ve heard. As you use the book, you can develop a style of note taking that works best for you.

    Discussion skills are also an important part of academic success. You will have many opportunities to develop your speaking skills as you review lecture notes with a partner, as well as in other discussion activities where you can share ideas, reactions, and personal interests with your classmates.

    Another key to academic success is building your vocabulary. Each unit familiarizes you with key words from the lecture, many of which are frequently used in academic situations. This ensures that you learn vocabulary that will be useful to you regardless of what major you decide on later.

    By completing Contemporary Topics, you can feel confident that you’ll be better prepared for academic work. Also, I encourage you to use the book as a starting point to explore on your own topics that interest you. Go online or use other resources to find out more. Share what you learn with your classmates. By doing research on your own, you will not only be more actively involved in the class, you will help yourself develop the academic skills you need to succeed in other classes in the future. I hope you enjoy using Contemporary Topics.

Unit 1 Sociology Names
Unit 2 Linguistics Global English
Unit 3 Psychology Phobias
Unit 4 Culinary Arts Owning a Successful Restaurant
Unit 5 Education How We Each Learn Best
Unit 6 History The Silk Road
Unit 7 Business Team Building
Unit 8 Architecture Frank Gehry
Unit 9 Public Health Building Immunity
Unit 10 Media Studies Principles of Journalism
Unit 11 Biology DNA Testing
Unit 12 Public Administration Risk Management