GLOBAL INITIATIVES -- RWANDA: A CASE STUDY
This course in the Social Sciences Department is offered as a semester elective for students in grades 11 and 12. The curriculum is designed to develop sensitivity to, and respect for, another culture by asking students to engage “in a cycle of reflection and action [which will] nurture a sense of social responsibility and global citizenship” (Community Service Mission
Statement).
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1.
To introduce students to the geography, history, and culture of
Rwanda
2.
To explore in detail the components leading up to the genocide of
1994 and to apply this understanding to the current situation in Darfur
3.
To investigate the governmental leadership and non-governmental initiatives required for the process of recovering from a nation-wide trauma
4.
To provide the opportunity for focused independent study and presentation to the class on a topic of the student’s choice
5.
To provide the opportunity for social action for the benefit of Rwanda on the part of the student
COURSE OVERVIEW:
Weeks 1-3: Introduction to the objectives and format of the course
Language: basic vocabulary and phrases in Kinyarwandan
Geography: the continent of Africa the country of Rwanda
History: overview of pre-colonial societal organization,
colonization, independence, post-colonialism, civil
wars and genocides, current political situation
Culture: the oral tradition, music and dancing, the arts

Weeks 4-8: Intensive study of the genocide of 1994 in Rwanda: historical events leading to the initiation of atrocities assassination of two presidents killing of Belgian UN peacekeepers one hundred days of genocide the extension of the war: 1994-1997 the last ten years: 1998-2008 the future of Rwanda: forging a new identity
Weeks 9-10: Application of Rwandan case study to the current situation in
Darfur (comparison and contrast)
Weeks 11-13: Independent study unit: choice of project from suggested topics and supplementary materials (see below); project will be done individually or with a partner, resulting in a detailed outline/power point presentation to the class
Weeks 14-15: Social action component: for the purpose of making personal contact with individuals and/or organizations associated with an aspect of the rebirth of Rwanda, in order to play a small but active role in the larger social picture
Week 16: Final reflections (oral and written)
COURSE MATERIALS (required texts):
Cheadle, Don and John Prendergast. Not on Our Watch: The Mission
To End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond. (2007)
Gourevitch, Philip. We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families: Stories from Rwanda. (1998)
Ilibagiza, Immaculee. Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the
Rwandan Holocaust.
(2006)

COURSE MATERIALS (supplementary texts to be excerpted):
Carr, Rosamond Halsey.
Rwanda . (1999)
Land of a Thousand Hills: My Life in
Fossey, Dian. Gorillas in the Mist.
George, Terry. Hotel Rwanda: Bringing the True Story of an African
Hero to Film. (2005)
(1983)
Kinzer, Stephen. A Thousand Hills: Rwanda’s Rebirth and the Man
Who Dreamed It. (2008)
Rucyahana, John. The Bishop of Rwanda: Finding Forgiveness
Amidst a Pile of Bones. (2007)
Steidle, Brian and Gretchen Steidle Wallace. The Devil Came on
Horseback: Bearing Witness to the Genocide in Darfur . (2007)
Weber, Bill and Amy Vedder. In the Kingdom of Gorillas: The Quest
To Save Rwanda’s Mountain Gorillas.
(2001)
Whitworth, Wendy (editor). We Survived: Genocide in Rwanda.
(2006)
COURSE MATERIALS (supplementary novels):
Achebe, Chinua.
Eggers, Dave.
Things Fall Apart.
What is the What.
Kingsolver, Barbara.
(1959)
(2007)
The Poisonwood Bible.
(1998)
COURSE MATERIALS (supplementary films):
The Ghosts of Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda
Shooting Dogs
100 Days
Sometimes in April