“Middle East Revolutions: A Teachable Moment”
The events in Egypt, Tunisia, and other countries in the region have reorganized the political paradigm in the Middle East and created new challenges. In Grade 11 theme “War and Revolution”, students read different short stories depicting the turmoil of different revolutionary wars that happened worldwide in history. They also researched the difference between war and revolution. Then students watch different clips and political cartoons pertinent to current revolutions happening in the Middle East. In contrasting past and current revolutions, students found out the impact of social media in current revolutions and how that impact had far reaching ramifications throughout the Middle East. Students analyzed the role of “new media” – Facebook, Twitter, and blogging— employed by the protestors in presenting their case and promoting discussion that has not been seen in this region for decades. In a debate session, Grade 11 students questioned the extent to which the new social media played a role in the collapsing of the regimes of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak in Egypt. In a writing extensive activity, one group was asked to prepare a proposal of how social media may be used in the future to help ensure democracy in the country. Another group had to argue for the possibility of revolutions in other parts of the world and how circumstances in these countries compare to Egypt and/or to Tunisia.