Teacher Resources
Instructional Resources:
MESC has a variety of lesson plans, videos, books and music CDs available to educators to borrow from our lending library as well as a list of online resources for research on this web site. We encourage you to browse our powerpoint on Resources for Studying and Teaching the Middle East, and the lesson plans, instructional materials and supplemental materials below.
Topics: General Tools; Diverse Middle Eastern cultures; Islam; Current events and global issues; Recommended resources; Middle Eastern Literatures; Historical background; Diverse views for looking at global issues; Additional sources vetted by Title VI National Resource Centers.
Please send us any suggestions for additional resources to mesc@osu.edu.
General Tools for Teaching About the Middle East
Primary Sources for Teaching about the Middle East: Presentation and handout with primary resources and related background information to be able to teach about Afghan War Rugs, Human Rights Issues, and local perspectives from the Middle East.
Diverse Middle Eastern Cultures
A Brief Look at Turkey: This is a visual slide presentation of Turkey, complete with a teachers guide, handouts for activities, and indications of connections to Ohio Department of Education Benchmarks (double click on the symbol in the upper left-hand corner of each slide).
Iranian Culture Today: This multifaceted unit provides student handouts, discussion questions, teachers' guides, and additional resources for providing your students with diverse Iranian perspectives, and cultural information.
Handouts and Teachers' Guides (please see the unit for complete lesson materials):
- Handout and Teacher's Guide: Nowruz
- Handout and Teacher's Guide: Ayatollahs
- Teacher's Guide for Khamenei's New Year (Nowruz) Address
- Student Handout for Khamenei's New Year (Nowruz) Address
- Handout and Teacher's Guide on Related Excerpts from the Qur'an
- Powerpoint presentation on Islam and Governance in Iran: Power&Governance.pdf
Additional articles on Iran:
(Re)embracing Diversity: This curriculum unit combines a wealth of information about Islam and Muslims with interactive classroom activities that foster tolerance and respect for ethnic and religious diversity. URL: http://www.outreachworld.org/resource.asp?curriculumid=174
NPR: Open Line, Current issues facing American Muslim community in Central Ohio
Veiled Voices: Women share information about their personal lives, their views on Islam, and the ways in which Islam is practiced in their daily lives. Thie web site is dedicated to the production of a documentary, due to be released in the Fall of 2009 - it has some clips on it from the film. URL: http://www.veiledvoices.com/
Today's Middle East: Current developments, issues, and events
About Hamas: These presentation slides will help the teacher guide students through basic facts, background information, and multiple perspectives on Hamas and current events in Israel and Ghaza (last updated: Jan. 22, 2009). http://mesc.osu.edu/documents/onIsrael&PalestinianTerritories/Ghaza_crisis.pdf
Symposium on Iraq and Afghanistan: This video features the distinguished scholars Taher al-Bakaa, foprmer Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in Iraq, and Alam Payind, Director of the Middle East Studies Center and Professor in exile of Kabul University. They discuss aspects of the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan from an insider's point of view. Issues relating to military occupation, and internal dynamics are addressed with insights on how average people in these countries are viewing these issues differently than from an outside perspective. Specifically, Iraqi internal social dynamics are addressed, with an emphasis on Sunni-Shi'i relations. In addition, problems relating to the occupation in Iraq and potential solutions for the future, and an analysis of Afghanistan’s domestic and international challenges, including the Taliban's struggle to regain power. Please see the flyer from the event, and the video stream on line: http://streaming1.osu.edu/ramgen/media2/intlstds/021308.rm
Central Asian Security Presentation: Dr. Kamoludin Abdullaev of Dunshanbe State University joined OSU's Dr. Alam Payind, director of the Middle East Studies Center, in speaking about Tajikistan and Afghanistan. They addressed security issues facing Central Asia and their related causes. The speakers focused on the insider's perspective. Video stream on line: http://streaming1.osu.edu/ramgen/media2/intlstds/052308.rm
Post-9/11 Teach-in on Afghanistan: http://streaming1.osu.edu/ramgen/media2/intlstds/911.rm (RealMedia is required to play this recording). The presentation includes background information on Afghanistan's ethnic make-up, languages, geography, ancient and modern history, as well as the country's artistic traditions.
Afghanistan Today: Analyses of current events, documentaries:
- Up-to-date analyses by Center Director, Alam Payind, and selected news pieces
- National Public Radio: Open Line, interview with Alam Payind
- New York Times: "Op-Ed: Last Jew in Afghanistan (video)"
- New York Times: "Mysteries of Kabul (click on slide show)
Oil in the Global Economy: Professor Tom O'Donnell, of the New School, and currently a Fulbright scholar conducting field research in Venezuela, has come to OSU on different occasions to share his research and analysis on Iranian nationalism and the way Middle Eastern oil fits into the "Big Picture" of the global economy. He kindly allows us to post his lecture and the slide presentations on line. Please also see the related article from the MES Bulletin which summarizes and adds to the presentation.
- Powerpoint presentation Dr. O'Donnell used for his lecture on 11/13/2007: Oil-PoliticalEconomy&NewNationalism.pdf
- Online recording of that lecture (RealPlayer): http://streaming1.osu.edu/ramgen/media2/intlstds/052308.rm
- Streaming video and accompanying powerpoint of his lecture 9/30/2009 (RealPlayer): "Oil, Nukes, and the Struggle for Power"
- Article on the lecture which provides additional online sources: Bulletin_Sp08-O'Donnellarticle.pdf
Recommended Resources for Current Events
Great Decisions. A program by the Foreign Policy Association which provides guides, information and lessons plans based on current affairs in the Middle East.
- Example of a current topic: Turkey http://www.fpa.org/topics4707/topics_show.htm?doc_id=357618
- It provides links to useful information on reputable web sites.
- The article to be read and discussed comes in an annual $15 publication, with all of the Great Decisions topics for that year.
Newshour Extra – A teacher resource on PBS. Provides lesson plans and other resources on current events. Lesson plans on Iraq are updated daily. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/teachers/world/
Global Connections – another excellent educational resource on the PBS web site to enhance current events lesson plans. Here is a link to the main page for Middle East: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/index.html
The Arabian Nights, or Alf Layla wa Layla, translated by Sir Richard Burton - http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/arabnit.htm
Historical background for global issues and current events
Origins. A web publication providing analysis of current issues according to historical context and a the broader perspective that relevant historical information provides.
http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/origins/
Teaching about diverse global perspectives
Globalization101. A site dedicated to providing students with information and interdisciplinary learning opportunities.
http://www.globalization101.org/
Beyond the Fire. Learn about the lives of refugees.
http://www.itvs.org/beyondthefire/master.html
Newspapers from around the world on line. Search by country - many are in English.
http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/
Sources vetted by Title VI National Resource Centers
TeachGlobalEd.net. A global education resource, indexing the best sources of information on line about the Middle East and other world areas. Each entry tells you where to start, what to watch out for and what the strengths of the site are.
http://www.coe.ohio-state.edu/globaled/home.cfm
Outreach World. A global education resource. Provides numerous lesson plans, guides, and educational opportunities for teachers. There are numerous Middle East Materials.
The Middle East Outreach Council. A collaborative national effort between Title VI institutions. Provides instructional materials, online resources, publications, book awards, and an excellent newsletter for teachers. MEOC provides funding for teachers to attend the Middle East Studies Association Conference and participate in the MEOC workshop. For questions about membership, or if you would like to enroll, please get in contact with us at mesc@osu.edu, or simply submit the form. Thanks!
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