Workshops and Seminars

On a regular basis, teacher workshops on various aspects of global studies are sponsored by the Center and by Hemispheres, the international outreach consortium, which is a collaborative partnership of the four Title-VI funded area studies centers on the University of Texas campus, representing Latin America; the Middle East; Russia, Eastern Europe and Eurasia; and South Asia.

More information and a calendar of current events.

An Introduction to the Middle East
In 2007, the CMES outreach program introduced a set day long workshop for educators entitled “An Introduction to the Middle East.” The workshops were developed in conjunction with the Region XIII Educational Service Center of the Texas Education Agency in Austin, and are specifically intended to assist social studies educators in expanding their background knowledge about Southwest Asia and North Africa.

The workshops are designed in ‘modules’ of an hour and a half that can be arranged based on the interests of attendees, which allows for one workshop to explore, for example, the Abrahamic faiths in detail, while another workshop might focus on women and gender. The workshops have been offered at Educational Service Centers in Austin, San Angelo, and Abilene, and a half-day version was offered in Victoria. 

A limited number of these workshops can be offered each semester, and are intended for presentation to groups of educators at school districts or regional service centers. If you are interested in learning more about hosting a workshop, please contact Christopher Rose, CMES Outreach Director.

Past workshops have included:

• Sense of Place: Intersecting Geography, History and Culture
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2009

• Recognizing Rights and Responsibilities in the 21st Century
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2008

• Restoring Women to World Studies
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2007


• 21st Century Challenges in the Developing World
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2006

• Antiquity and Continuity
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2005


• People and Place: Exploring Human-Geographic Relations
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2004

• Teaching about the Arab World
  Fall 2003

• Introduction to Islamic Art
  Fall 2003


• Explorers, Traders, and Immigrants: Tracking Cultural Contact through Food
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2003


• On War and Peace: Teaching about Conflict
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2002


• Presenting and Re-presenting Islam: Teaching and Studying about Islam in the United States
  March 21 and 22, 2002
  This workshop began with an examination of the ways and means to teach about Islam in the public school classroom. Following this, there were in-depth presentations and discussions on topics including: how Islam is presented in popular media, Islam in the United States, gender and Islam and issues of pluralism.


• Faith, Devotion and Worship: World Religions in Central Texas
  February 12 and 13, 2002
  The four NRCs at UT hosted a two-day workshop for K-12 social studies teachers that addressed issues of faith, devotion, culture and identity in world societies. This interactive workshop was designed for middle and high school teachers of history, politics and literature.


• World Cultures Through the Arts
  Hemispheres Summer Teachers' Institute 2001