HOMEPAGE

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Students will explore the parts of human nature that create hostilities between people based on their differences. They will then engage in a systematic study of the worst genocide in history, The Holocaust, in which at least 10 million people were systematically exterminated. The Holocaust will be used as a prism through which to examine other large scale atrocities and genocides. Students will be expected to read numerous primary source excerpts, watch videos, participate in class discussions, and take lecture notes. By semester’s end, students will be able to explain the main elements of the Holocaust, identify other genocides, and offer an explanation of the causes of such events, as well as proposals for eliminating such horrors. Students will simultaneously develop and sharpen their reading, note-taking, and critical thinking skills. Book reports, debates, speeches, songs, poetry, historical recreations, survivor and perpetrator testimony, and interpretive artwork will also be used to facilitate understanding.

MODERN GLOBAL ISSUES

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This semester course will provide students with knowledge to better meet the demands of our world and to make informed decisions, which are so crucial to our democratic way of life. The tenth grade Modern Global Issues curriculum will focus on issues and problems in the modern world and their roots in the past. Students will come to understand that modern problems did not simply materialize, but that many have their origins deep in history. With primary attention given to the regions of the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, East Asia, Eurasia, whenever possible, each unit will center on a problem dominating the world’s attention. Using a highly readable textbook and relevant media and supplementary sources, students will first examine a region’s culture in an attempt to end all forms of intolerance, followed by the study of regional issues. The issues will be traced back through the history, politics, economics, culture, and geography of the areas involved in order to gain a deeper appreciation of the situation. Finally, the unit will conclude by considering the impact each problem will have on the individual, the nation, and the world.  

• Students will be required to take an exam on the first day of class based on their summer reading assignment.
• Students will also be assigned a lengthy reading assignment over spring break.