Secondary School Teachers at AAR

Annual Meeting for Teachers of Religion

Hyatt Regency, Downtown Atlanta, GA
Friday, October 29, 8:30am - 4pm

New Developments in Religious Studies XI:  Keeping Ourselves Current

Co-sponsored by the Program in Religious Studies and Education at Harvard Divinity School, and the Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education.

This annual event provides an opportunity for secondary school teachers to meet colleagues from across the country and hear about new developments in the fields of ethics and the major religious traditions of the world. Nationally and internationally known scholars share information about new research and resources, and teachers share information about projects they are working on.

The conference is held in conjunction with the American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting. See below for discount rate ($135) for those who wish to attend the Academy meeting in addition to the secondary school teacher meeting.

Register online. The registration fee for all participants is $160 (includes lunch). For information and to register for the other two days of the AAR conference, please scroll to the bottom of this page.

2010 Conference Program

Schedule (tentative)

Friday, October 29, 2010, 8:30am - 4pm

  • 8:30-9 am — Participant Check In/ Coffee/Tea
  • 9-9:20 am — Welcome and Introductions
  • 9:20-10:35 am — Whitney Sanford, Ph.D., Rethinking Justice and Sustainability with Gandhian and Hindu Ideas
  • 10:35-10:45 am — Break
  • 10:45-12:00 pm — Hazem Ziada, Ph.D., Hence the Mosque in America
  • 12:00-1:00 pm — Lunch (included in registration fee)
  • 1:00-2:15 pm — Teacher to Teacher presentations (please contact CSEE if you need more than 10 minutes for your slot)
    Ralph Singh, Stories to Light Our Way
  • 2:15-2:30 pm — Break
  • 2:30-3:45 pm —Roger Gottlieb, Ph.D., Engaging Voices: Non-violent Communication in the Face of Environmental Crisis

 

Hazem Ziada: Hence the Mosque in America

In this presentation architect and scholar Hazem Ziada will trace the mosque’s history from its inception in 7th century Medinah to the modern mosque in North America, including its entanglement with colonial history and orientalist views, and some of the design issues that modern mosques encounter. The presentation includes slides illustrating a rich variety of architectural styles and cultural traditions—a reflection of Islam’s expansion throughout history—and argue that the mosque’s unique spacial construct nevertheless maintained unity despite all the diversity it incorporated.

 

Roger S. Gottlieb: Engaging Voices: Non-violent Communication in the Face of Environmental Crisis

Our ecological dilemmas provoke emotions and deeply contested views. How should we think about them? And how can we live together, or even talk together, when we cannot listen to people who think differently? What keeps us from truly listening to those "on the other side?" This presentation will explore these questions as they arise in controversies over issues like the meaning of life, the value of nature, animal rights, the roles of science and religion in environmentalism, and political choices facing environmental activists. Participants will look at the complex interplay of anger, fear, despair, love, and care—including the arguments and emotions that surround them—and delve deeper into the environmental crisis and the human community that both causes and seeks to overcome it.

 

Whitney Sanford: Need, Not Greed: Reimagining Sustainability and Justice through Gandhian and Hindu Thought 

Over 50 years ago, Mohandas K. Gandhi offered a paradigm for food democracy that emphasized sustainability, equity and social justice regarding natural resources. He drew upon Hindu concepts, such as non-violence and self-discipline, to rethink food production in a globalized context. Today, communities in the US and India are drawing upon Gandhian and Hindu thought to rethink food production and social relations, using tropes like self-sufficiency and non-violence to address the moral dimensions of eating and food production. These emphases provide a framework for practice that, dialectically, leads to the transformation that Gandhi thought necessary for personal and social change. These communities, exemplars of Gandhi's environmental legacy, demonstrate Gandhian approach to one of our greatest societal challenges: feeding the world's growing populations in a manner that is just and sustainable.

 

 

About the American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting

The annual meeting of the American Academy of Religion is the largest gathering of religious studies scholars and teachers in the world. Keynote speakers, paper presentations, and informal receptions allow opportunities for secondary school teachers to learn about new developments in a broad range of fields, and to broaden their range of contacts. Publisher displays offer—at discounted prices—hundreds of new resources for both personal scholarship and classroom use. Participants in the Secondary School Meeting are again offered a discount rate ($135) to attend the regular AAR meetings. To get this discount, go to the AAR site, select  "register at the non-member rate," fill out your information and put the code "SEC101" in the Access Code Box (this will activate the discount rate). The discount rate will not apply to teachers not registered for our Friday sessions.

 

Accommodations

There are many hotels in the area with varying prices. Some participants of this event will be staying at The Residence Inn in downtown Atlanta, just a few short blocks from the workshop venue. Price is approximately $120 per night. To make reservations: 404.522.0950.