Africa Teaches is produced and developed by the African Studies Center (ASC) at Michigan State University in an effort to address the severe shortage of high-quality African resources available to students and educators, particularly at the K-12 level. As an academic community comprised of more than 200 scholars who study Africa from a diversity of more than 20 disciplines, we are acutely aware of the need to provide learners and educators with resources that help them to engage Africa in a comprehensive manner, taking into account the continent’s rich diversity and complexities. Recognizing that for many people their only formal introduction to Africa will come in during their K-12 schooling, Africa Teaches is a serious attempt to provide this important community with curricular resources based on solid interdisciplinary scholarship that provide them with the opportunity to adequately engage Africa through knowledge, resources, and thoughtful learning activities that allow students to construct a more comprehensive and sympathetic appreciation for and understanding of Africa.
The Africa Teaches curriculum and lesson plans are available free of charge. These resources are designed to support classroom instruction by providing accessible, research-based materials that help students explore Africa’s histories, cultures, societies, and contemporary issues.