Apartheid in practice
January 31, 2008
In class today, we read some of the laws of apartheid together on the smartboard; here’s a handout of that document for you to print and read:
First round of grades posted
January 31, 2008
Click over to the grades page to download an Excel file containing the first round of tentative World Studies grades for this semester. You’ll need your random ID number and should have received it via email; if you haven’t, please email to request that I send or resend it.
A short history of South Africa
January 30, 2008
Read for homework:
A short history of South Africa on the country’s official gateway site. Be sure to click “next” at the bottom of each page to read all eight pages, covering pre-colonialism to post-apartheid. Pay special attention to the colonial factors that contribute to South Africa’s divisive history of racism. You do not have to outline this reading but should be prepared for a potential big picture quiz over its contents.
Benazir Bhutto & fortune cookies links
January 30, 2008
In case you missed or would like to revisit them:
- The audio slideshow we watched about Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. Remember, some of the images include bodies.
- The article, audio slideshow, and video we watched about the Japanese origin of fortune cookies. No disturbing images here
Post-Rwanda readings
January 29, 2008
Print and read the following for homework:
- An account of the Gacaca courts in Rwanda
(this page is a transcript of a radio program with photos; you can also listen to the program on the same page) - A BBC overview of the situation in Sudan’s Darfur region
- A MAP International overview of the situation in Kenya
Ghosts of Rwanda
January 25, 2008
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Response paper assignment
Outline/draft due Monday
Paper due Tuesday – at least 4-5 pages, single-spaced
Address the following questions in a serious, structured paper. You’re encouraged to write about your own thoughts and feelings, but make sure to zoom out and consider the larger perspective and issues too.
1. React, vent - what stood out for you? What issues does the story of the Rwandan genocide raise?
2. Where is the hope? In the face of such bleak desolation, where can we find nuggets of hope?
3. What lessons did you learn or should we learn from the Rwandan genocide?
We will discuss the issues mentioned in #1 on Monday & Tuesday. #2 hints at one of the major themes of the course.
Background
The PBS/Frontline site has a viewer’s guide that includes a timeline, glossary (confused about Hutu vs. Tutsi?), and narrative of the broad progression of the documentary. If you’re having trouble remembering the names of the people you met in the documentary itself or if you want a reminder of what you watched, go here.
The main Ghosts of Rwanda site also includes video interviews, background about some of the people in the documentary (e.g. Captain Mbaye), links to analysis, etc. Explore a little.
For a more in-depth background, try the Human Rights Watch site.
1/22 assignments, updated syllabus
January 22, 2008
African Studies assignments for 1/22/08
Please turn in to the substitute any outlines you didn’t give me last week.
Read & outline pages 58-71 (the impact of colonialism through independence) in the text for classwork/homework.
I’ve also placed a document called “Stanley Finds Livingstone” on the class website for you to print & read – follow this link.
Updated syllabus that reflects these assignments:
AS E1 Syllabus 01.22.08
1/22 assignments, updated syllabi
January 22, 2008
A & B periods
You should work on your reading and guided review sheets during class and for homework – you should be finished with 14.1, 14.2, and 14.3 by next class. Anyone missing a Chapter 14 packet can pick one up from the box on my office door. We haven’t had a notebook check yet, so you should be ready for one soon.
We’ll have a quiz over Chapter 13 only on Thursday.
D period
You should work on your reading and guided review sheets during class and for homework – you should be finished with Chapter 13, 14.1, and 14.2 by next class. Anyone missing a Chapter 14 packet can pick one up from the box on my office door. We haven’t had a notebook check yet, so you should be ready for one soon.
We’ll have a quiz over Chapter 13 only on Friday.
G period
We’ll make up the snow day Chapter 12 quiz on Wednesday.
You should work on their reading and guided review sheets during class and for homework – you should be finished with Chapter 13, 14.1, and 14.2 by next class. The Chapter 14 packets are in the box on my office door. We haven’t had a notebook check yet, so you should be ready for one soon.
We’ll have a quiz over Chapter 13 only on Friday.
Updated syllabi that reflect these assignments:
WS AB Syllabus 01.22.08
WS DG Syllabus 01.22.08
Stanley finds Livingstone
January 22, 2008
Students: print & read this document (no outlining necessary), which provides a fuller description of H.M. Stanley and David Livingstone, plus an extended excerpt from Stanley’s account of the “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” meeting. This document supplements the PowerPoint / notes from Friday.
The White Man’s Burden + Berlin Conference
January 16, 2008
Here’s the in-class handout of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “The White Man’s Burden” and excerpts from the 1885 General Act of the Berlin Conference partitioning Africa amongst the European powers:
