Recommended Curricula:
Culture & History of the Middle East
Please click on the titles to go to the resources.
Introducing the Middle East
Grades: 9-12
Time: Flexible. Three possible lessons.
Provided by: Project Look Sharp, Ithaca College. This unit is part of Media Construction of the Middle East: A Digital Media Literacy Curriculum.
This unit allows students to reflect on what they know about the Middle East and where their information and impressions come from. Emphasizing the geographic, ethnic, religious and historic diversity of the Middle East, the lessons give accurate background information that challenges stereotypes and provides a basis for future study. The second lesson in this unit, "The Magic of Stereotypes," is similar to the curriculum on our Stereotypes & "The War on Terror" page of recommended curricula, called "Exploring Stereotypes with 'Aladdin.'"
The Middle Eastern Family
Grades: K-12 (slideshow); 9-12 (articles)
Time: One class period.
Provided by: Center for Middle Eastern Studies Outreach Program, University of Texas at Austin
Consists of a slide presentation downloadable for Windows or Macintosh in the Flash format with accompanying script, as well as three articles followed by discussion questions. The photographs in the slide presentation may look slightly dated as the unit was originally published in 1984, but this lesson is good for presenting a major aspect of Middle Eastern culture that can easily be overlooked from the viewpoint of one living in American society.
Cairo: Living Past, Living Future
Grades: 1-12
Time: Flexible. Thirteen possible lessons.
Provided by: The Middle East Network Information Center, Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
This curriculum covers two units: Historic Cairo and Modern Cairo. The first unit contains eight lessons which can be used individually and "plugged in" as illustrations of a broader topic. For instance, the lesson on Ottoman Cairo, 1517-1805 could be used for teaching about the Ottoman Turks—or, with the French invasion of Egypt in 1798, European colonialism. The five lessons in the second unit on Modern Cairo are recommended to be taught as a whole. Caution: the Modern Cairo lesson on Politics and Economy may leave the impression that Egypt is an open democracy. We recommend supplementing this lesson with information from other sources, such as the U.S. State Department's 2003 Report on Human Rights, Egypt.
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