Call of the Killer Whale

In this two-hour program, Jean-Michel Cousteau and his team of explorers travel to both the Northern and Southern hemispheres as they seek out killer whales in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. They discover that people and orcas share surprising similarities, even similar needs, and they relate their findings to the captivity and release of Keiko, from Free Willy fame, who captured the world̢ĺŰĺŞs imagination and whose survival depended on pioneering efforts to reintroduce Keiko into the wild. The team also learns how some of the threats to killer whales now intersect with human lives. During the expedition, intriguing detours arise, leading to critical examinations of our environment, of the food on our dinner tables, even of our own health.

Material Type: Teaching/Learning Strategy

Author: Andrea Swensrud

Conversations with History: America, Europe, and the Islamic World with Mark Steyn

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes writer/critic Mark Steyn, the 2007 Nimitz Lecturer at Berkeley. Focusing on his new book, "America Alone: The End of the World As We Know It," they discuss Europe and America's relations with the Islamic world. In the interview, their conversation also focuses on the craft of writing in a multi media globalized world. (55 minutes)

Material Type: Lecture

Conversations with History: Britain and America and the Making of the Modern World

Conversations with History host Harry Kreisler welcomes Walter Russell Mead of the Council on Foreign Relations for a discussion of the Anglo American maritime system—its origins, development, and impact on the world. The conversation touches on the unique synergy between Protestant religion and capitalism, the consolidation of Anglo American power in the process of transforming the international system, the importance of culture in international politics, and the need for a dialogue of civilizations in the 21st century. (57 minutes)

Material Type: Lecture

Conversations with History: Islam and the State, with Vali Nasr

Political Scientist Vali Nasr joins host Harry Kreisler for a discussion of the role of Islam in politics. (59 min)

Material Type: Lecture

Conversations with History: Power and Culture in International Affairs (Part II), with Josef Joffe

UC BerkeleyŐs Harry Kreisler continues his conversation with Die Zeit editor, Josef Joffe. In this episode, they discuss the U.S. role in the world. (33 min)

Material Type: Lecture

Culture Talk: Yemeni Arabic

CultureTalk - Arab World features native speakers from across the Arabic-speaking world giving filmed interviews, in Arabic and sometimes English, on selected topics. Text-based translations and transcriptions are often provided as downloadable documents for most Arabic videos. The videos engage a number of region/country-specific topics, including cultural traditions, religion, politics, and sports.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lecture, Reading, Teaching/Learning Strategy

Finding Solutions to Food Waste: Persuasion in a Digital World

Using various reading strategies and resources, students explore the issue of food waste. They also create persuasive arguments and blog posts examining this topic.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan, Unit of Study

Folklore and Mythology Electronic Texts

Almost every culture throughout the world has a long tradition of folklore and myths, with some of the tales having dozens of variations and permutations. Retired professor D.L Ashliman has placed hundreds of these tales on this well-designed website for the edification of the web-browsing public. While the site does not have an internal search engine, visitors can look through the available materials alphabetically. Here visitors can read the story of Androcles and the Lion, the Bear Trainer and His Cat, and the Hand of Glory, which includes legends about magic lights made from human hands. Professor Ashliman has also contributed a number of original thought-provoking essays on such topic as Censorship in Folklore, Aging and Death in Folklore, and the topic of changelings. Overall, this is a fine site for those looking to explore the vast world of folklore and its many manifestations through a number of varying cultural traditions.

Material Type: Reading

Author: Ashliman, D. L.

Globalization

The world is becoming more and more interconnected. Globalization changes how people consume, work and live almost everywhere on the world. Today, many economic, political, cultural or ecological relationships are not explainable from a national perspective. At the same time, a controversial debate about the consequences of globalization has begun. But what are the main causes for globalization? In what areas it is most prominent? And who are the winners and looser of globalization?

Material Type: Lecture

Authors: Barkemeyer, Künzl

Global Media Perspectives

This kit provides the materials and background information needed to engage students in a dynamic and constructive process of learning how global media perspectives differ based on country of production, media source, target audience, and political and social context. There are five lessons representing important issues and media documents from: Africa (news and documentary film clips about the food crisis), Latin America (editorial cartoons about immigration), Europe (news and documentary film clips about Islam and cultural identity), India (magazine covers about India's rise in the global economy), and Southeast Asia (websites concerning Islamic majorities and minorities).

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Diagram/Illustration, Homework/Assignment, Teaching/Learning Strategy, Unit of Study

Author: Sox Sperry

Hunting Deer: Sharing the Harvest

Greg Johnson is a hunter and traditional craftsman. In Hunting Deer, he shares how and why hunting is so important to his family and to his communityŐs health and way of life. He discusses how treaty rights for hunting allow his people to continue their traditional relationship with the natural world, including both respect for and dependence on the deer for food, crafts and traditional art.

Material Type: Lecture, Primary Source

Author: Wisconsin Media Lab

Indian Ocean in World History

The Indian Ocean Basin is becoming an important topic in middle and high school world history and geography courses, but one for which there are few instructional resources. This web-based resource helps teachers incorporate the Indian Ocean into world history studies by illustrating a variety of interactions that took place in the Indian Ocean during each era. The material is assembled into an integrated and user-friendly teaching tool for students in upper elementary, middle and high school. It offers students the chance to investigate primary sources that illustrate historical interactions, helping them to become more adept at the analytical historical thinking skills that are required by virtually all state history standards today.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Diagram/Illustration, Interactive, Lesson Plan, Reading, Teaching/Learning Strategy

Iraqi Jewish Archive

Database of Hebrew and Arabic texts recovered by a US Army team in Iraq. Primary Resources/Authentic Texts. The restoration and preservation of these documents is explained.

Material Type: Primary Source

Language & Civil Society: Civic Education

The volume is designed specifically for language teachers who are turning toward content-based instruction to promote content learning and language learning in their classes. Through the exploration of topics related to civic education, language teachers can help their students master English and simultaneously become more knowledgeable citizens of the world. The combination of improved language skills and increased knowledge can enhance students' studies, work, and ability to become more active and conscientious participants in their communities.

Material Type: Lesson Plan, Reading, Teaching/Learning Strategy

Author: Fredricka L. Stoller, Ph.D.

La Ropa - Hispanic Fashion Designers

Students will research and discuss different Hispanic fashion designers, their backgrounds, designs and impact on the fashion industry. Photo CC-BY-NC-ND: https://www.flickr.com/photos/georgewbushcenter/14656358446 

Material Type: Lesson Plan

Author: Lindsey Fairbanks

Lascaux

Take a virtual tour of the prehistoric caves at Lascaux, France. The discovery of Lascaux in 1940 opened a new page in the knowledge of prehistoric art and our origins. Monumental work, the cave continues to feed the imagination and move the new generations of the world. This website is intended to help understand the secrets of the artists who painted and engraved bestiary at Lascaux 19,000 years ago, and to present the current trends in scientific research on the painted caves.

Material Type: Simulation

Learn Lebanese Arabic through English (Blog)

This blog aims to teach people the Lebanese dialect. It uses both video components and themed vocabulary lists such as weather and words for schools and universities. Vocabulary lists are written in both Arabic and transliterated English. Cultural components about Lebanon and occasional news items are included.

Material Type: Lecture

Lions, Dragons, and Nian: Animals of the Chinese New Year

The most important festival in the Chinese calendar is the New Year or Spring Festival. One of the annual events used to commemorate the festival is a colorful parade complete with animated dragon and lion figures. In the first activity the student will learn the major differences between Eastern and Western dragons and discover why Eastern dragons are associated with Chinese New Year. They will hear a story about how the dragons came to rule major rivers of China. In the second activity, they will also learn about the Chinese New Year Dragon Parade and discover why firecrackers are used to drive off evil spirits, especially one called the Nian. In the third activity the students will see images of parading dragons, including sound-enhanced video and read poems about the New Year. In the fourth lesson the students will discover that the Chinese lion has imaginary characteristics similar to the dragon. They will view images of the lion and hear about how this highly stylized beast once fought the ferocious Nian. They will learn about the lion dancers in the New Year parade and compare them to the dragon dancers. Finally they will make their own lion masks.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Lesson Plan

Listen to Learn

UCLA's Listen to Learn activities page features numerous, high-quality videos and activities covering a variety of Arabic dialects, including Iraqi, Lebanese, Egyptian, Moroccan, as well as Modern Standard Arabic. Users may pick from a number of speakers within a chosen dialect, all of whom speak from readily available text about a range of topics, including family life, culture, school, activities, and food. Each topic is accompanied by a video and activities designed to reinforce the vocabulary and ideas covered in the video.

Material Type: Activity/Lab, Interactive, Lecture, Reading

Lunch Poems: Li-Young Lee

World-acclaimed young poet Li Young Lee fuses memory, family, culture, and history in his work. Meditating on the vulnerability of humanity, Lee produces passionate and profound lyrical poetry. (28 minutes)

Material Type: Lecture