Understanding the beliefs, values, and traditions of others will help students to better relate to people around the world. Explore culture with these resources:


Teaching Activities

Investigate the Role of Women in China Students sketch or describe their ideas of what contemporary Chinese women are like; share and discuss the profiles they have created; and discuss the different life experiences of women in China, drawing from the female characters portrayed in "The Women's Kingdom" and "Shanghai Nights."

Explore the Motivations of Kurdish Nationalists Using the Rough Cut video "Return to Kirkuk" and a timeline of Kurdish history, students discuss the cultural identity of the Kurds and their appeal for independence from Iraq. Students also role-play Kurdish nationalists at a meeting with Iraq's National Assembly where they present their case for an independent Kurdistan.

The Role of Women in the United States and Kenya Students compare the lives of women in the United States and Kenya; role-play how a married couple in Kenya addresses the possibility of the wife leaving home to pursue a running career; and discuss the challenges of balancing home and career responsibilities.

Isolationism Versus Interventionism in the Philippines Student groups use a timeline to analyze past U.S. foreign policy in the Philippines and write a speech for the president that contains recommendations for future policies.

Calming Tensions Between Arabs and Iraqi Kurds Students play the role of a U.S. Green Beret in Iraq who must try to keep the peace during a community dispute.

Story Features


Enhance your classroom activities with these additional site resources related to culture.

• The Ballad of Juan Quezada (Listen to a Mexican ballad, or corrido, about a man who revitalized the economy of a desert town with the art of pottery.) pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/mexico403/thestory.html

• Notorious Writer, Forbidden Stories (Read excerpts from a book banned in China for its open discussion of normally taboo topics. Note: Please preview content before classroom use.) pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/china/candy.html

• Slideshow of Shanghai (View captioned images of the changing streets of Shanghai. Note: Please preview content before classroom use.) pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/china/slideshow1.html

• Let the Rhythm Move You (Hear music of the Garifuna in Belize.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/belize/music.html

• A Bridge Too Far? (Explore life in Sicily.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/fellows/sicily0404/

• Inside Cairo's Living Room (Visit Egyptian streets and cafes in these slideshows.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/fellows/egypt1203/index.html

• On the Roof of the World (See a slideshow of life in Kyrgyzstan.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/kyrgyzstan/photos.html

• Jukebox of Jewish-Arabic Music (Hear hip selections of Sephardic Jewish and Arabic-Andalusian music.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/france/sabbah.html

• Liner Notes (Read about the evolution of North African music.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/france/facts.html

• Nigerian Women Speak Out (Learn about the conditions under which five Nigerian women work, pray, and earn an education.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/nigeria/voices.html

• Versions of the Truth (Reporter Ben Anderson discusses culture and politics in North Korea.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/northkorea/interview.html

• Cambodian-Americans Speak (Meet a rapper, dancer, and storyteller who use art to deal with the legacy of genocide.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/cambodia/voices.html

• My Old Haunts (Reporter Andrei Codrescu discusses the culture of his native Romania.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/romania/interview.html

• Virtual Music Tour (Sample sounds from Iceland.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/iceland/index.html

• Gross National Happiness (Read about the cultural effects of television and the Internet on Bhutan.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/bhutan/gnh.html

• Kurds At The Crossroads (Explore the roots of Kurdish identity.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/iraq203/crossroads.html

• Liquid Vietnam (Catch a cultural glimpse of Vietnam in this slideshow.)
pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/vietnam/slideshow.html

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