In summer 2007, a group of Western Pennsylvania educators toured Egypt to study that country's unique intersections of East and West. Based on their experiences and professional expertise, this free workshop series has been designed to help teachers incorporate age-appropriate and culturally sensitive content into existing school curricula.
While its historic stature as a world leader is well known, today's Egypt remains the most influential Islamic Arab nation in the world. Rather than attempt a broad-brush summary of Egypt's past, the workshops provide essential background information for just a few relevant topics that ignited the interest of our study tour participants. The result is content and instruction modules making dynamic connections between past and present, useful in classrooms of art, world cultures, sociology, history, current events, and world religions.
- Opening Session - Egypt: Past and Present (June 16, 2008)
- Workshop 1 - Egypt: Influences and Intrigue (June 17, 2008)
- Workshop 2 - Egypt: Changes and Choices (October 13, 2008)
- Workshop 3 - Egypt: Perceptions and Politics (February 7, 2009)
- An Islamic Glossary
Opening Session - Egypt: Past and Present
June 16, 2008
University of Pittsburgh in Wesley W. Posvar Hall, room 4130
Throughout the millennia, Egypt has played a pivotal role as a geopolitical crossroad of cultures. It is a site of political, social, and religious changes as Arab, African, Western, Islamic, Jewish, and Christian cultures meet and mingle in the latest of a long history of encounters. The series Opening Session will provide an overview of periods of East and West intersection from ancient times to the Mubarak regime and as well as offer a snapshot of the lives of the 80 million Egyptians living today.
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The History of Egypt: Ancient Egypt to Present Days |
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The People of Egypt: 80 Million and Growing |
Workshop I - Egypt: Influences and Intrigue
June 17, 2008
University of Pittsburgh in Wesley W. Posvar Hall, room 4130
What are Egypt's cultural contributions? Who has benefited from them the most? To whom do they belong? Beginning with insights into how Egypt has been influenced over time by religion, we'll take a look at its distinguished history in the arts. After learning about Napoleon's invasion in the 1700s and the West's subsequent fascination with Egypt (that still shapes assumptions about Muslims and the Middle East today) we'll look at how colonial attitudes set the stage for contemporary questions about the ownership of cultural antiquities and the right of modern nations to reclaim usurped artifacts.
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Art in Ancient Egypt |
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The Qur 'an and Islamic Art (Curriculum, Handout) |
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Sufi Muslims: “The Heartbeat” and Soul of Islam? (Curriculum) |
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France's Invasion of Egypt and Its Heritage (Curriculum) |
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Who Owns Antiquities? (Curriculum) |
Workshop 2 - Egypt: Changes and Choices
October 13, 2008
University of Pittsburgh in Wesley W. Posvar Hall, room 4130
Are other faiths tolerated in Egypt? Who writes the laws? Are women really free? The second workshop will delve into the religious customs and codes of ancient, Coptic, Islamic, and secular Egypt and how they have co-existed in for centuries. Islamic law and tradition will be discussed, including how Sharia laws are formed and applied, who creates and mandates the laws, and how they are integrated into a secular government system. With that background we'll talk about the impact of religious doctrine and contemporary Western secularism in the lives of Egyptian women today.
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Religious Continuity and Change in Egypt (Curriculum) |
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Islamic Jurisprudence and the Grand Mufti (Curriculum) |
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Different Types of Marriage in Islam (Curriculum) |
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Women, Culture, and Islamic Dress (Curriculum) |
Workshop 3- Egypt: Perception and Politics
February 7, 2009
University of Pittsburgh in Wesley W. Posvar Hall, room 4130
Why do Muslims hate us? Don't Egyptians want democracy? Do they really value peace? While in Egypt our study group met with leading political activists, educators, and student groups at three major universities. What surfaced repeatedly were the complex and contrasting perceptions of Islam, U.S. foreign policy, human rights, democracy, and the state of Israel. In this third workshop we will formulate ways that Pennsylvania students can better understand how cross-cultural perceptions are formed, how to engage in dialogue with the Muslim world, how to comprehend the politics of Islam, and how Israel continues to be a polarizing issue for the Arab world.
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