English, Civics and Citizenship, and Humanities Resources

There are numerous texts with teenage protagonists from Arabic-speaking backgrounds, with themes centred around identity, racism, dislocation and human rights issues. Many of these texts feature heroines who exhibit independence and equality, often at odds with existing cultural norms. Librarian Judy Blyton from the Languages and Multicultural Education Resources Centre (LMERC) has written a summary of texts involving themes of cultural diversity and identity. This summary, and the texts themselves are available from LMERC at http://www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/lem/lmerc/about.htm

Examples include:

  • Hawke, Rosanne (2004) Soraya the storyteller. Lothian Books. Soraya, an Afghani refugee, must adjust to life in her new home Australia.
  • Jamal, Nadia and Taghreb Chandab (2005) The Glory Garage: growing up Lebanese Muslim in Australia, Allen & Unwin. This is a collection of true stories in which Australian teenage girls reflect on their lives and issues which concern them.
  • Al-Windawi, Thura (2004) Thura’s Diary. Penguin. The diary of an Iraqi teenager during the bombing of Baghdad.
  • Tolbert, Steve (2005) Dreaming Australia. Ginninderra Press. Soraya is forced to flee Afghanistan alone. After travelling through Pakistan and Indonesia she eventually arrives in Australia only to be locked up in Woomera as an illegal immigrant.
  • Ellis, Deborah (2000) Parvana. Allen & Unwin. Parvana details a young girl’s fight to survive in Afghanistan under the Taliban.

Teacher notes are often available from publisher’s websites. For an example, see the teacher’s notes for The Glory Garage at http://www.allenandunwin.com/Teaching/glorygarage.tns.pdf

Use the Racism. No Way site to source a variety of lesson plans.   Go the the site using this link http://www.racismnoway.com.au and then use the lesson plan number to search to go directly to a printable lesson plan:

  • Satellite Self (English and Humanities).  Students identify important aspects of their identities and consider associated stereotyping.  Students examine some stereotype cliches and explore their origins.  Search using 20030928.
  • Icons (LOTE, Humanities and Arts).  Students explore different cultural influences and their contribution to Australian identity. Search using 20001011.
  • V-R-A-N-T-S-I-S and Me (Enlgish, Health and Physical Education, and Arts).  This lesson engages with the importance of a person's name for their self-esteem.  Students discuss themes and issues of culture, identity and self-esteem and construct responses to them.  Search using 20000930. 

Muriel’s Wedding is an example of a film which can be used to explore issues of identity and belonging. It could be used in both English and ESL (English as a Second Language) classes to also examine peer group pressure, family relationships, and Australian culture and morality. Looking for Alibrandi, both the film and text, could also be used to explore similar themes, this time from the perspective of a girl with an Italian background. Study notes by ATOM (Australian Teachers of Media) for the film are available through Metro Magazine http://www.metromagazine.com.au/metro/default.asp

Florida Geographic Alliance   has a collection of lesson plans that explore physical and cultural environments from a spatial perspective.   This link will take you to a lesson plan 'The World in the Classroom' focused on the geographic theme of movement.   Students explore their ethnic and cultural backgrounds and resources by interviewing one another: http://fga.freac.fsu.edu/misc/world.htm

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