An initiation ceremony which marks the passage from adolescence to adulthood in an African village is the topic of this learning module for elementary and secondary students. A reading is adapted from the autobiography of a Guinean youth who participated in the initiation experience with other boys in his village at the age of 12 years. A lesson…

Reveals a preponderance of stereotypical beliefs about the African continent among preservice social studies teachers. Many social studies teachers possess little, and often inaccurate information concerning Africa. Includes guidelines for correcting these misconceptions and teaching about Africa from a global perspective. (MJP)

Discusses the educational philosophy of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus and its impact upon the women of Nigeria and Ghana. This religious instruction allowed them to attain a liberated means of self-expression and leadership faithful to their cultural heritage as African women and their formation as Christians. (MJP)

Examines the various reasons for the rise of Botswana, from one of the poorest countries in the world circa 1966, to its current position of relative prosperity. A prime ingredient in this progress was the incorporation of external aid into a stable system defined by a cohesive ethnic identity. (MJP)

African-American students may experience cultural disequilibrium in American schools due to conflict between components of school culture and student racial identity. The therapeutic instructional process of cultural clarification is proposed to encourage positive self-image among Black students through peer learning, television, memorizing,…

Profiles the process of South Africa's transformation into a democracy. Outlines the many characteristics of the transition from white to majority rule, such as the attempt to achieve catharsis and bury the apartheid past through a process of amnesty and reconciliation. Describes the remaining obstacles to that transition. (MJP)

Critiques six current history textbooks concerning their representation of African history. Identifies strengths and weaknesses in the texts and establishes criteria of judgement. Includes the use of primary sources, consideration of African perspectives, and a balanced portrait of contemporary problems. (MJP)

Thomas Sayers Ellis, assistant professor of creative writing at New York's Sarah Lawrence College, is one of many scholars fighting for the soul of Black poetry, a struggle that takes place largely off-campus. Unless one is accepted into a top-level graduate poetry program, such as Boston University's program or the Iowa Writing Workshop, a poet's…

In this chapter response, the author revisits young men and women whose voluntary writing and visual literacy practices helped teachers, teacher educators, and literacy researchers rethink the "funds of knowledge" urban youth bring to classroom communities. She examines transformations of everyday spaces into teaching and learning…

Background/Context: Most narratives of Brown v. Board of Education primarily focus on integrated schooling as the ultimate objective in Black people's quest for quality schooling. Rather than uniformly assuming integration as Black people's ideological model, the push by Black people for quality schooling instead should be viewed within the…

This curriculum unit is part of a larger project designed to introduce communication-based, culturally specific instructional materials on French-speaking African societies into the foreign language curriculum with the goal of increasing the appeal and relevance of French language study, especially to African-American students. The materials,…

Because disadvantaged children rarely receive extra assistance or encouragement, the National Black Child Development Institute created Each One, Reach One: The Spirit of Excellence, a comprehensive tutorial program designed to improve the academic skills and self-esteem of African American children to help them achieve. The program, originally…

A handbook is presented to assist Western Oregon State College faculty in identifying and understanding the problems and needs of international students and to help them welcome international students as positive influences in classes, on the campus, and in the community. Included is information on culture shock, transition problems of…

This vocabulary guide is an alphabetical listing of English words and their equivalent in Chinyanja. A general list of verbs is included, as well as commonly used expressions for planned conversation. The basic expressions are intended for use in learning the health needs and problems of the Malawi community. (NCR)

A semester-long unit on African art and culture for high school art students is presented. The unit is comprised of 12 lessons. Lessons one, two, and three examine the concept of the artist as a close observer. Students examine their attitudes about Africa, view filmstrips which depict early African art and sculpture, recreate an African sculpture…