Ethnic Identity and Conflict
March 3 and 10, 2008
University of Pittsburgh
Cosponsored by the Pennsylvania Ethnic Heritage Society


 This Act 48 teachers workshop will be held in Posvar Hall at the University of Pittsburgh over two consecutive Monday evenings, March 3rd and 10th.  It will introduce participants to the basics of ethnic identity and will present some theories on the sources and causes of ethnic conflict.  Additionally, we will examine cases of ethnic conflict around the globe.  The seminar will also include an evaluation of ethnic identity locally, including topics of emigration and assimilation.  This workshop is cosponsored by the Pennsylvania Ethnic Heritage Studies Center.


Selected Resources:

Race-The Power of an Illusion (PBS): This is a three-part video series that challenges the very idea of race as biology. The series is designed to help us to examine our beliefs about race, privilege, policy, and justice. The website has additional resources like background readings, lesson plans, facilitator's guide and interactive components.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette articles:

-Forum: The refugees next door
-Somalis say rights violated
-Fitting in is hard on everyone, teens find

Lesson Plans: PBS

-Tolerance in Times of Trial
 -A Dissection of Ethnic Conflict: "No More Tears Sister" (POV)

Lesson Plans: Paul D. Coverdell World Wise Schools (Peace Corps). This website provides lessons and accounts from Peace Corps Volunteers. Ther eare lesson plans, service learning activities, enrichment projects, language lessons, an e-newsletter, and quizzes. There are many lesson plans for all different grades and subjects here.

-Introducing Culture
-Defining Culture
-Features of Cultures
-The Iceberg
-Culture is Like an Iceberg
-Everyone Has a Culture--Everyone is Different
-Recognizing How Another Culture Differs From One's Own
-Generalizations: How Accurate Are They?
-A Single Lucid Moment (story) (lesson)
-Brief Encounters (Building Bridges)
-A Fundamental of Culture--Cultural Context
-On Being Seen as Different
-Resolving a Cross-Cultural Misunderstanding
-Cross-Cultural Dialogue (story) (lesson)
-Brief Encounters (Looking at Ourselves and Others)
-Americans

Lesson Plans: Pennsylvania Ethnic Heritage Studies Center. PEHSC, a cosponsor of this workshop, seeks "to create a positive dynamic of cultural diversity in Western Pennsylvania classrooms." The site has lesson plans about ethnic diversity, folklore, ethnic conflict, and globalization as well as an extensive collecion of wonderful links.

-The Origins of Identity
-The Origins of Conflict
-Case Study: Hutu and Tutsi
-Case Study: The Crisis in Kosovo
-The Civil Rights Movement in the United States

Lesson Plans: National Geographic Xpeditions

-What Makes a Group?

Lesson Plans: Resources for Teaching about the Americas (RetaNet). RetaNet is a website with a focus on Latin America. The organization provides lesson plans, multimedia, classroom news, and an email newsletter for teachers.

-Do I Have Culture?

Teaching Tolerance: Run by the Southern Poverty Law Center, this websie provides free resources "that promote respect for differences and appreciation of diversity in the classroom and beyond." The resources include classroom activities; kits and handbooks; and web based magazines. Additionally, there are sections for teachers, teens, and younger children.

Outreach World: This website aims to be " a comprehensive one-stop resource for teaching international and area studies and foreign languages in the precollegiate classroom." Ther are many resources created by universities that deal with a wide range of topics.

Sudan: Darfur Overview: An overview of the genocide in Darfur from the United States Holocause Memorial Museum.