Educators Learn About the World through Primary Source Summer Institutes Teaching for Global Understanding and Crossroads of Culture
With two more summer institutes underway, this was another busy week for Primary Source. Friday, July 29th was the culminating day for Teaching for Global Understanding in the 21st Century, held at Boston College, and Crossroads of Culture: Interconnections in Asia from 600-1500 CE, held in collaboration with Boston University.
At Teaching for Global Understanding, Primary Source's flagship course, educators from across the country learned strategies for cultivating global awareness and other skills in students through exploring five global issues: human rights, the environment, the global economy, health, and peace. Fifty-five educators attended the course, including eight participants from outside the New England area. Out-of-state participants hailed from cities including Washington, DC, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Denver, Colorado.
On Tuesday, Dan Brabander, professor of geosciences at Wellesley College, introduced teachers to the idea that environmental issues should not just be taught in science classes, but that they can be fruitful for many types of cross-disciplinary investigations.
Harvard Business School professor Catherine Duggan addressed the importance of the role of educators to the global economy in a talk on Wednesday. She stressed that as members of one of the wealthiest countries in the world, the solution to alleviating global poverty does not only lie in donating to specific causes in specific countries, but that "our most important job is to imagine ways that the world could look that seem more fair and stable - for everyone." She added that it is the job of educators to "inspire people to dream of this better world." In response, one teacher said, "I am very inspired to incorporate global economic issues into curriculum across grades and subjects."
Educators also had the chance to connect with representatives from South African health and human rights nonprofits, including Doctors without Borders South Africa, through a talk facilitated by Primary Source using videoconference technology.
Crossroads of Culture drew 32 educators from across New England and focused on the transmission of peoples, goods, ideas, and beliefs across the Silk Roads in Asia and the Middle East. Through scholar presentations and interactive lessons by expert teachers, participants explored a different theme each day: trade, empires, Islam and Islamic art, Buddhism and music, and current exchanges in central Asia.
A visit to the Arthur M. Sackler Museum at Harvard University was one highlight of the week, and included a talk given by Sharon Smith from the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture. The institute wrapped up with Boston University scholar Eugenio Menegon's talk on "Foreign Devils on the Silk Road," where educators learned about Great Britain and other imperial powers' use of the Silk Road for their own purposes.
Primary Source is thankful for the opportunity to collaborate with scholars and universities in the area to provide global learning experiences for teachers. "Working with Primary Source has been great for me personally and for Boston University," says Joseph Fewsmith, head of the Center for the Study of Asia at BU. "Primary Source is so dedicated and knowledgeable about how to help teachers be better prepared, and the Center for the Study of Asia is able to provide expertise to help Primary Source. It is a great collaboration."
