Curated OER
Whitewashing History
Students revisit issues of civil rights in the U.S. They use the recent national discussion of retiring Senator Strom Thurmond's 1948 Dixiecrat Presidential campaign as a starting point.
Curated OER
True Admissions
Students examine affirmative action and study the diversity of their own classrooms and communities, then of a particular college or university. They write essays examining how colleges should increase the diversity of their student bodies.
Curated OER
Bootleg Bytes
Students conduct background research to explore the positions of different groups involved in the digital piracy debate, then participate in a fishbowl discussion that seeks to find a consensus on the issue.
Curated OER
The Whole Story
Students collect and convey information about a current event. By focusing on who, what, when, where, why, and how questions, students study to thoroughly analyze and report on important world events.
Curated OER
Hall Monitors
Students investigate the incidence of different types of violence that occurs in their schools through reading, discussion and interviews. They question local authorities about the best ways to reduce school violence.
Curated OER
A (Class)Room of One's Own
Students assess the educational and social issues of boys and girls in school as a springboard to interviewing women in the fields of science, in order to study of their early interests and experiences in these typically male-dominated...
Curated OER
When Students Don't Clique
Learners explore the roles of cliques in schools and ways in which schools can foster tolerance among diverse groups by reading and discussing "Alma Maters: Two Words Behind the Massacre."
Curated OER
A Sense of Emptiness in the House That Michael Built
Students investigate different journalistic techniques used to add color and new dimension to fact-based news stories. They write a journal discussing techniques that journalists could use to make Michael Jordan's retirement from the NBA...
Curated OER
Tending To The Greenhouse
Students investigate global warming through initial discussion of recent findings of an 11-day lengthening of the growing season caused by warmer temperatures. They research and propose solutions for restricting greenhouse gases.
Curated OER
In Search of Truce
Students explore the relationship between a country's political and social history and its position today. They study 8 African countries immersed in the present conflict in Congo. They present their findings.
Curated OER
National Tragedy, Global Response
Students explore how different people on local, national and international levels respond to a destructive natural disaster and the needs of its victims and how various facets of the media cover such an event. The August 1999 earthquake...
Curated OER
"Pressing" Issues In Zimbabwe
Students explore the nature of freedom of the press through examining a story about the capture and torture of journalists in Zimbabwe. They participate in a round-table discussion of the issues. They research an African country of their...
Curated OER
The Ugly Truth about Hate
Students investigate examples of hate crimes and their causes by participating in a round-table discussion. They also write a personal essay describing their personal views on the subject and describing a plan for putting their views...
Curated OER
You Light Up My Life
Young scholars examine the relationship between solar activity and the Earth's geomagnetic field in producing the phenomena known as aurora borealis (Northern Lights) by reading and discussing "Earth, Wind and Fireworks." students graph...
Curated OER
Safety First
Students explore safety issues and challenges related to various modes of transportation through readings and discussion. They create blueprints for technological methods to make those modes of transportation safer.
Curated OER
Manifestations of the Manifesto
Students explore the workings of FARC, a Marxist guerilla group in Colombia, as well as study the basics of Marxism. They examine the discrepancies between Marxist theory and Marxism as it is actually realized in Colombia and other parts...
Curated OER
Popular Mechanics
Learners explore the five essential parts of every robot and design their own robots to perform everyday tasks. They explore robots created for fighting competitions by reading and discussing "When Nerds Collide: Robots at War."
Curated OER
Acting Up
Students, in groups, study a Tony Award winner from the past through researching its history, watching the production, and reading the written origin of the production. They create programs for these productions and assess
Curated OER
All Rights Reserved?
Learners explore, through discussion, research, dramatic skits, and writing, the debate over genetic ownership of biological products and evaluate the economic viewpoints of the countries and companies involved.
Curated OER
Freedom of Hate Speech?
Students, using a New York Times article as a springboard for discussion, investigate and debate the complex issues of First Amendments Rights and censorship for Hate Groups using Websites for propaganda.
Curated OER
Is Monopoly the Microsoft Board's Game?
Students first participate in an in-depth discussion about capitalism, monopolies, trusts, mergers, and the Sherman Antitrust Act. They work in groups to investigate past examples of corporations tried for antitrust act violations.
Curated OER
Unearthing the Past
Students analyze artifacts from an early society to determine information relating to daily life in that society. They consider which artifacts from our society would be most valuable to future archeologists.
Curated OER
Objects of Memory
Learners consider the importance of individual artifacts in memorializing important historic events. They read and evaluate an article discussing the removal of the last steel beam from the World Trade Center site.
Curated OER
Write Like an Egyptian
Students study the discovery and import of the Scorpion Tableau. They research other examples of ancient writing systems and synthesize their knowledge of them by designing new writing systems based on these early models.