I. Engage the Students Ask students what they know about revolution. What are some different ways that people use the term revolution? Can students give examples of revolutions from history? What characteristics do these revolutions share? How are they different? What different stages do revolutions go through? How can we assess whether a revolution is successful? Develop a definition of revolution together as a class and write it on the board. Watch the background on Arab Spring (3:04) Gives a broader background of the situation tracing the situation back to the 1100’s when Arab – countries were controlled by Mongols, Ottomans and Persians and later European powers. Current decisions – by the US means that local autocrats and monarchs no longer have the support of outside powers. -or- Narrative by academic from Brown University, discusses the specific reasons that led to the uprisings, interspersed with video from scenes on the ground, -or- (3:01) From 16 December 2011, a follow up a year after the beginning of the uprising, looks at Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Syria, Narrative over video from the countries in question Ask students what they think after watching What is going on in the video? Remind students about what they have learned previously about what motivates people to advocate for change in their communities. How does this knowledge connect with what they just learned from the video? Are the actions depicted/described in the videos revolutionary according to the definition the class has created? Announce to the students that today, they will conduct an investigation centered on this compelling question: What events shaped the Arab spring uprisings? II. Conduct the Investigation Teachers and/or students collect relevant and sometimes conflicting primary sources that provide intrigue. Students do an initial read and analysis individually and prepare notes and evidence for discussions in small groups. The following questions can be used: Sourcing What is the text? Who created it and when? Reading and Asking Supporting Questions What does the text say explicitly? What claim does the author/creator make? What evidence does the author/creator make? What is the author’s/creator’s perspective? What is its purpose?
I. Engage the Students Ask students what they know about revolution. What are some different ways that people use the term revolution? Can students give examples of revolutions from history? What characteristics do these revolutions share? How are they different? What different stages do revolutions go through? How can we assess whether a revolution is successful? Develop a definition of revolution together as a class and write it on the board. Watch the background on Arab Spring (3:04) Gives a broader background of the situation – tracing the situation back to the 1100’s when Arab countries were controlled by Mongols, Ottomans and Persians – and later European powers. Current decisions by the US means that local autocrats and monarchs no longer have the support of outside powers. -or- Narrative by academic from Brown University, discusses the specific reasons that led to the uprisings, interspersed with video from scenes on the ground, -or- (3:01) From 16 December 2011, a follow up a year after the beginning of the uprising, looks at Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Syria, Narrative over video from the countries in question Ask students what they think after watching What is going on in the video? Remind students about what they have learned previously about what motivates people to advocate for change in their communities. How does this knowledge connect with what they just learned from the video? Are the actions depicted/described in the videos revolutionary according to the definition the class has created? Announce to the students that today, they will conduct an investigation centered on this compelling question: What events shaped the Arab spring uprisings? II. Conduct the Investigation Teachers and/or students collect relevant and sometimes conflicting primary sources that provide intrigue. Students do an initial read and analysis individually and prepare notes and evidence for discussions in small groups. The following questions can be used: Sourcing What is the text? Who created it and when? Reading and Asking Supporting Questions What does the text say explicitly? What claim does the author/creator make? What evidence does the author/creator make? What is the author’s/creator’s perspective? What is its purpose?