South Asia is a dynamic region that provides an effective vehicle for exploring numerous core themes of world and human geography. This set of lessons (targeted towards a high school audience) was prepared with a view towards indeed engaging with some of these themes through a variety of select case studies. The packet can consequently serve to supplement a more comprehensive examination of the region.
Highlights include (exploration of):
the Ganges river system as a polluted waterway that is closely connected to (and tells us much about) the economic, cultural, political, and religious patterns in the region
the ice stupas of Ladakh in the Himalayas as both necessitated by climate change and an innovative adaptation-oriented cultural response to it
the population demographics of India through reflection/discussion of what it means to be "undesired" and a subsequent interrogation of the gender imbalance in the country and the dowry system underlining that gap
the caste system as (still) central to the social class structure and opportunities in Indian society and subject to political criticism
collaboration on the development of a political cartoon on one of the above topics (gender imbalance or caste system) from the perspective of an activist on the issue
the scope of diversity in India through an examination of the key physical features and election system of the country
the role of borders, their design and implementation, in shaping economic and political relations and the lives of people (nomadic yak herders in Nepal, Sri Lanka/India fisheries, Pakistan/India)
a collaborative problem solving activity on placing the ideal city at different periods of time
the rise of the city (and mega-city) as foundational to the economic and social changes of the population of the region and the world more broadly
the slum as a place where people live (in often difficult conditions), but also participate in (innovative) employment, recreation, and political struggle, and as a setting undergoing technological change
the factory as a site of upward mobility and precarious (or fair) labor embedding Bangladeshis in global supply chains
micro-credit as a potential route towards entrepreneurship and a road out of the vicious cycle of poverty (but with some drawbacks)
the world happiness index, as developed in Bhutan, as an alternative to indexes focused on development but also one where Bhutan performs poorly
The packet can all be found here. The lesson plans for the Ganges, gender imbalance, the ideal city problem solving challenge, and the Megacity/Dhaka classes have been fully elaborated on and explained elsewhere on this website.
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