| 4Roads of Asia
In this eight week unit students will investigate this often neglected region of the world. They will come to understand its once critical role in connecting the pre-modern world. They will understand why it has faded in importance. In addition to their knowledge of history, students will develop skills in research, presentation of research and in the use of technology for academic endeavors. The two primary projects of this unit will require students to research and read both for depth and breadth. The nature of the research topics and the web-based presentation will require that students employ a wider range of types of evidence than they normally use. 1. Silk Road Geography b. Map Items c. Map Quiz 2. Background: i. Franck, Irene. The Silk Road. New York: Facts on File, 1986 ii. Morris, James. “The Silk Road,” Horizon, Autumn 1967, pp. 4-23 iii. Bradeen, Ryan. "Cave Temples of Western China", soon to be available at http://www.monkeytree.org b. Silk Road CD assignment: Gronowski, Marek. "The Silk Road". Vancouver, Canada. DNA Multimedia, 1997 c. Silk Road video assignment: "The Silk Road". New York: Central Park Media, 1990 d. Lecture series: “T’ang Cosmopolitanism: the Silk Road at its Height.” i. multimedia presentation soon to be available at www.monkeytree.org e. “Tibet Rated PG: How a Country is Imagined and Imagines Itself.” i. Readings ii. Film. “Tibet: the End of Time” Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Video, 1995 iii. Assignment: “Tibet According to Amazon.com” 3. Journey of a Thousand Li: a History of Travelers “A journey of a thousand li (miles) begins with a single step.” - Taoist proverb. This research project will require students to research intensely one long-distance traveler of the Silk Road. By linking together a series of traveler’s histories from different eras of the route’s history, we will see the entire history. Groups of students will investigate an idea or technology which was transmitted along the Silk Road. The product of this research will be a website. The topics of research and the mode of presentation will require students to use a much broader array of source material than they have normally employed. |