The news media constantly uses words and references that require specific knowledge and understanding if the public is to grasp the substance and implications of events and developments concerning the Islamic religion. Most frequently encountered Islamic terms and ideas are explained. (RM)

Reports on a tenure controversy within the Indiana University department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures that has involved possible death threats, a hunger strike, and controversy over the department's continued existence. For now the professor, an expert on Islamic philosophy, remains at the institution, other faculty have left, and…

This annotated guide lists 16mm. films on the Middle East for use in grades K-12 and with adults. The Middle East refers to a vast area extending from eastern Afghanistan and the northern Caucasus to the western coast of Morocco and the southern periphery of the Sahara. The guide does not list films according to their merits. Rather, it includes…

Offers an art lesson designed to introduce junior high school students to a Shiva sculpture and to Hindu symbolism. The lesson is based on a full-color photograph of a 500 year-old bronze sculpture entitled Shiva Nataraja, King of Dancers. (BR)

In Iran and Egypt, preaching from the pulpit has existed as a distinct medium of public communication for centuries. Studying such traditional institutions could reveal a model of public communication which might be most effective in a developing society. (PD)

This article provides a number of oral communication-based learning activities which focus on the social, religious, and political history of the Middle East. (JDH)

Examines John F. Kennedy's negotiations with Egypt's Gamel Abdel Nasser as he attempted to improve U.S.-Arab relations and prevent the spread of Soviet influence in the Middle East region. States that Kennedy's failure to meet his Middle Eastern objectives resulted from his inability to reconcile the many factions dividing the Arab world. (GEA)

This curriculum project is intended for studying nonviolent conflict resolution at the undergraduate and graduate level, but it could be adapted for high school classes. The project first presents an historical context of Israel to illuminate the present conflict in the Middle East. It then presents a series of vignettes that represent differing…

Traces history of European interaction with Islamic countries of Middle East from Crusades through World War I. Explains political expendiencies of war and resulting mandate system. Provides religious and political bases for Arab distrust of West. Concludes that no lasting peace is possible in area as long as Palestinian question is ignored. (DK)

Reviews Constructivism and the sources of its influence over Israeli educational discourse. Describes examples of Constructivist projects, several Constructivist schools, a summary of obstacles to implementation of such projects, and two basic flaws in the Constructivist view. Introduces a post-constructivist autonomy-oriented educational…

Argues that schooling in Israel is identified with ideology, resulting in an indoctrinary orientation that contributes to divisiveness and imperils Israeli democracy. Presents an alternative vision of education as an agent of good rather than ideology, grounding that vision in democratic Jewish theology emphasizing God as teacher rather than…

Describes the major Moslem edifice (the Ka'bah) in the holy city of Mecca and explains the importance of the Ka'bah in Muslim religious belief. Cultural and religious practices related to the Ka'bah are described. (Author/DB)

Presents a strategy for teaching students about Islam from a geographic perspective. Explains that information about the history and spread of Islam is conceptualized as a study of religious spatial diffusion. Suggests that students be kept actively involved in the learning process by study of the carriers of and barriers to the spread of…

The author frequently teaches introductory courses in what was once generally called "Western Civilization" and has often been called upon to referee all or parts of the manuscripts of new editions of "Western Civ" textbooks. Through his own reading, he has become aware that much current scholarship on ancient Israel and Judah…