AramcoWorld : March/April 2015 Classroom Guide

Volume 66, Number 2March/April 2015

For students: We hope this guide will help sharpen your reading skills and deepen your understanding of this issue’s articles.

For teachers: We encourage reproduction and adaptation of these ideas, freely and without furthe permission from Saudi Aramco World, by teachers at any level, whether working in a classrorom or through home study.

— THE EDITORS

Jump to If You Only Have 15 Minutes...

Jump to McRel Standards

Class Activities

This edition of AramcoWorld has some particularly fascinating photographs of artwork, so a larger-than-usual portion of this Classroom Guide focuses on visual analysis. Beyond that, students will explore conflict and cooperation in two articles—one about Ottoman assistance to the Irish during “The Great Hunger”; the other about the 12th century travels of Ibn Jubayr. In a 15-minute activity, students examine the way a writer poses, and then goes about answering, a question for readers.

Developing an Ancient City: “Sea Change Comes to Bagamoyo”

Places change. You’ve probably read about such changes in history books, and maybe you’ve seen them in your own community. Cities grow in places that were once farmland. Highways cut through long-established neighborhoods. Old buildings are torn down to make way for more modern ones. Look at the verbs in those sentences: cities grow, highways cut, buildings are torn down. Someone makes those things happen, but who? It can be difficult to tell, which makes it all the more important to find out. There is a lot to be learned by answering questions such as: Who makes places change? How do they do it? Who benefits—and who suffers—when places change?

The article “Sea Change Comes to Bagamoyo” shows how changes are coming to an 800-year-old city—particularly in the form of a large new seaport. You’ll find that it’s a complex process that involves a lot of people who have different—and sometimes conflicting—wants and needs. In this lesson, you’ll look closely at what and who is involved in transforming this city in Tanzania.

In this lesson, you will:

recognize that different people have different points of view about change
articulate those points of view
negotiate differences among groups
evaluate which groups are most likely to benefit from the proposed changes

Start by reading the article. (If class time is short, you can read it for homework.) As you read, use your comprehension skills—note-taking, underlining and/or making notes in the margins—to improve your understanding. Be sure you’ve got a good grasp of the content so that you’re prepared to work with it. For these activities, focus on the part of the article that starts on page 18 with “Now” and ends at the end of the article on page 23.

Go through this section of the article, either by yourself or with another student. On a sheet of paper, make a three-column chart. In the first column, list the different people the writer interviews. In the middle column, write what group each person is part of or represents. In the third column, write that person’s perspective on the changes coming to Bagamoyo. Here is one example:

As you fill in your chart, think about how writer Amanda Leigh Lichtenstein chose to describe each of the people she quoted. What details about them did she include? Based on what you’ve read, why do you think they are important details? When you’re finished, compare your chart with that of another pair. Revise your chart if necessary, checking with the article to get any clarification you need.

Now divide the class into groups, with each group representing one of the people on your chart. (Depending on your class’s size, you might have one or two teammates, or maybe you’ll be working solo.) With your group, write a short statement of your position about the development of Bagamoyo’s “mega-port.” Then look over the others in the chart. Who is most likely to share your point of view? What makes you think so? To see similarities visually, color-code your chart, using one color to identify a specific point of view, and another color to identify a different one.

Find a team that you think could be your ally. Explain to them what your position on development is, and tell them why you think you could work with them. Have that team respond. Are your perspectives similar enough to merit an alliance? Or are there differences that are too important for you to become one team? Use the color coding to help you evaluate whether or not someone would be interested in working with you.

When you’ve finished, sit down with your enlarged group and write what your group wants regarding the development of the port in Bagamoyo, and what you do not want. Have each group present this information. Have a discussion among the groups. What, if anything, can you agree about? Do the “wants” and “don’t wants” conflict?

Look at these final comparisons. As a class, answer these questions: Given that change is fairly certain to come, who do you think is most likely to benefit from the redevelopment of Bagamoyo? Why do you think so? Who do you think is most likely to suffer? Why?

The Art of Diplomacy: “The Busbecq Letters”

The news sometimes has stories of heads of state holding “high-level meetings,” often showing leaders shaking hands or standing side by side. But, photo ops aside, what exactly did they say in those meetings? We don’t usually know. An article in this AramcoWorld uses historical documents to see what went on during “high-level meetings” more than 400 years ago. Ogier Ghiselan de Busbecq’s letters offer an insider’s view of how a diplomatic solution was reached between two nations who were at war, on and off, for many years. In this lesson, you will take a close-up look at the process of reaching an accord. In this lesson, you will:

see the two competing empires as Busbecq saw them, and explain why he continued to mediate between them
chart the process by which Busbecq was finally able to broker a peace treaty
identify, based on the experience of Busbecq, some qualities and skills that are useful for diplomats
create a job description for a diplomat

Start by reading “The Busbecq Letters.” (You can read it in class or at home.) According to the article, because Busbecq, who was born in part of what is now Belgium, spent a great deal of time in Turkey, he was able to provide his fellow Europeans with a more realistic view of the Turks than they got otherwise. Like any good diplomat, he was able to see and admire aspects of the society his country was opposing. And like any good diplomat, he was able to see his own society with a critical eye. Find the parts of the article that describe what Busbecq admired about the Turks, and what European society was like.

Make a two-column chart. Label the first column “Ottoman Empire” and the second “Hapsburg Empire.” In each column, write what Busbecq says about each of the two societies. When you’re done, look at the two lists. Which of the two empires did Busbecq think would win a military confrontation? How do you think his answer to that question affected his commitment to working out a peace deal?

A good diplomat must also be familiar with the situation into which he or she is stepping. The situation Busbecq faced was complicated by the recurring strife that had gone on for decades. (If you aren’t familiar with that chapter of history, get more help by going to the online edition’s timeline at www.aramcoworld.com.)

Now imagine that you are Busbecq, and you are meeting for the first time with Sultan Suleiman in Amasya in April 1555. What was the situation? (Check your timeline.) With a partner, act out what happened at the meeting. Fill in any gaps with what you imagine the two men said. Above the timeline, fill in what happened in the negotiations from April 1555 until August 1557. Then add what transpired between that time and the time Busbecq left Turkey in 1562. What is most striking to you about the process? In the end, how was an accord finally reached? What does that suggest to you about diplomacy?

Busbecq was a successful diplomat: He brokered a peace treaty between two warring empires. You’ve read about how he did that. Now step back from his experience and think about the skills he used, and the qualities he possessed, in order to succeed. Write a job description for a diplomat, using Busbecq’s success to guide you. Your job description should take the following format:

A statement of what the employer is looking for. Complete this prompt: “Seeking a diplomat who will:”

A list of qualities that the individual should have. Complete this prompt: “The successful candidate will have the following qualities:”

A list of skills the successful candidate will have. Complete this prompt: “The successful candidate will be able to:”

Looking at the job description, would you apply for a job as a diplomat? Why or why not?

(Note: For each exercise above, there is a completed chart at www.aramcoworld.com.)

Visual Analysis

Much of what you read, in print or online, is illustrated, and most of that illustration is through photographs. But what is the best way to illustrate something that happened long ago, before the advent of photography? Choose one of the articles in this edition of AramcoWorld that is illustrated with visual material other than photographs. Make a list of the different types of visuals. Which adds the most to your understanding of the article’s content? What is it about that type of visual that is so helpful?

IF YOU ONLY HAVE 15 MINUTES...

“Travelers of Al-Andalus, Part II: Abu Hamid Al-Garnati’s World of Wonders” describes two “books of wonder” he wrote in the 12th century. As writers Ingrid Bejarano Escanilla and Louis Werner describe it, a “book of wonders” is “not only what one sees and hears on one’s travels, but also what one could not have possibly seen because it did not then nor did it ever exist … [It fuses] the world of the impossible with the world of the merely strange-but-true.” Now imagine you are writing your own “book of wonders” for travelers coming to your community. Take a few minutes to free-write what you would include. What would be real? What would you make up? What might be a little of both? Then, have each student read aloud his or her contribution to your book of wonders. As a group, make a “10 Places to Visit” list based on your class members’ wonders. How well might this interest people in visiting?

Curriculum Alignments

Assyria to Iberia

World History

Standard 8. Understands how Aegean civilization emerged and how interrelations developed among peoples of the Eastern Mediterranean and Southwest Asia from 600 to 200 BCE

Geography

Standard 10. Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics

Historical Understanding
Standard 2. Understands the historical perspective

Sea-Change Comes to Bagamoyo

Geography

Standard 10. Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics

Standard 14. Understands how human actions modify the physical environment

Standard 15. Understands how physical systems affect human systems

World History

Standard 22. Understands the growth of states, towns, and trade in Sub-Saharan Africa between the 11th and 15th centuries

Standard 34. Understands how Eurasian societies were transformed in an era of global trade and the emergence of European power from 1750 to 1870

Ogier Ghiselan de Busbecq’s Turkish Letters

Geography

Standard 10. Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics

Standard 13. Understands the forces of cooperation and conflict that shape the divisions of Earth's surface

World History

Standard 26. Understands how the transoceanic interlinking of all major regions of the world between 1450 and 1600 led to global transformations

Historical Understanding
Standard 1. Understands and knows how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns

Dubai Melting Pot

Geography

Standard 10. Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics

Abu Hamid Al-Garnati’s World of Wonders

Geography

Standard 10. Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics

World History

Standard 25. Understands the major global trends from 1000 to 1500 CE

Answers

Sea-Change Comes to Bagamoyo

Common Core Alignments
RI.11-12.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.

RI.11-12.2 Determine two or more central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to provide a complex analysis; provide an objective summary of the text.

RI.11-12.3 Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events and explain how specific individuals, ideas, or events interact and develop over the course of the text.

Who	Representing whom?	Point of View
Felix Nyakatale, 30 years old	Restauranteur; represents businesses	welcomes change; it’s good for business
Anthony George Nyanga, middle aged	Community organizer	jobs & education, for good of community
Terri Place	Directs school, orphanage	Will China have too much power?
Mr. Rajab, 40	fisherman	change relationship w/ environment. Damage coral. Opportunities to improve environment for tourists.
Hassan Alawi, 38	Small village	wants jobs; wants village to stay together
Abdillahi Kamota	College for Advancement of Fisheries; speaking for students, administration	wants jobs; willing to relocate
Benedict Jagadi	conservationist, historian	wants to preserve historic sites
Hatibu Bakari, 90; Mohammed Issal Mitoso, 74	elders	dislike loss of traditional values; need for patience
Shafee, 18	migrant, taxi driver	wants jobs
Emma Mihayo	town planner, speaking for people in poverty	people want to relocate, villages want to stay together

KEY
Wants Jobs
Values Preservation

***

Ogier Ghiselan de Busbecq’s Turkish Letters

RI.11-12.3 Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events and explain how specific individuals, ideas, or events interact and develop over the course of the text.

Ottoman Empire	Hapsburg Empire
beauty of natural landscape kindness toward animals soldiers’ discipline and fortitude; strong leaders Ottoman court based on merit not family ties expanded rights for non-Muslims fine architecture silk, glass, ceramics education: high standards, small population	made up of often-hostile states Catholic church weakened Renaissance art education limited to small population

Julie Weiss (julie.w1@comcast.net) is an education consultant based in Eliot, Maine. She holds a Ph.D. in American studies. Her company, Unlimited Horizons, develops social studies, media literacy, and English as a Second Language curricula, and produces textbook materials.