Educators learn about Arab-Israeli conflict at UCF

At the International Society for the Social Studies (ISSS) conference held at UCF on Feb. 25, Professor Terri Susan Fine led a session on "Teaching the Arab-Israeli Peace Process and Conflict."

Conference attendees included university faculty, teacher educators, curriculum specialists, social studies department leaders, undergraduate and graduate students, and K-12 teachers, with representation from countries as diverse as Turkey, Namibia, Barbados and Morocco.

Professor Fine's presentation, developed with the Institute for Curriculum Services, led participants through the origins of Arab Nationalism and Zionism, the connections among the broken promises made to Arabs and Jews during World War I and the current challenges in the Middle East, and the challenges and benefits of a peaceful resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Session attendees asked so many questions that the session ran over time, and Fine was asked by a Congolese attendee if the materials could be made available in French for those in Francophone countries.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando's Jewish Community Relations Council sponsored Fine, a professor of political science at UCF and the associate director of the Lou Frey Institute of Politics and Government, to speak at the conference.