2024-25 Teacher Professional Development Events and Workshops
Keep up-to-date with the upcoming workshops hosted by the African Studies K-16 Education Program Program in partnership with notable scholars and educational thought leaders. The African Studies Center K-16 Education Program is a registered Massachusetts Professional Development Provider. Attendees will have the opportunity to earn Professional Development Points (PDPs) and/or Certificates of Attendance. Contact africa@bu.edu for more information on the events below and sign up for our newsletter to get the latest updates.
Upcoming Event
African Literatures in English and French Books Groups
The K-16 Education Outreach Program at the African Studies Center hosts an annual series of book group meetings wherein participants of all ages and backgrounds are invited to read and discuss engaging novels by African authors.
We offer two book discussion groups: one focuses on African literature written in or translated to English, and another one focuses on African literature written in or translated to French, discussed in French.
These programs are free and open to all. Participants must procure a copy of their own books.
This year, the group discussing novels written in English will meet on the following dates:
Wednesday October 16th, 2024, reading Hisham Matar’s my My Friends. (online)
Wednesday January 22nd, 2025, reading Mamle Wolo’s Flying through Water
Wednesday April 30th, 2025, reading TBD (in person at the center)
Global Read Webinar Series 2025
Once a month every spring, the World Area Book Awards (Américas Award, Africana Book Award, Freeman Book Award, Middle East Book Award, and the South Asia Book Award) sponsor a 60-minute webinar on a book recognized by one of the awards. Each webinar features a presentation by an award-winning author with discussion on how to incorporate multicultural literature into the classroom. Be sure to join the conversation with our webinar hashtag #2024ReadingAcrossCultures. All sessions are free and open to the public.
More information about the 2025 program will be available soon.
2023 programProfessional Development Courses
The K-16 Education program sponsors the design and development of professional development courses for teachers with partners at Primary Source and the National Humanities Center. The full set of courses we have supported the development of are:
- Africans in the Age of Atlantic Slavery (4 weeks, online via Primary Source)
- Dynamic Societies of Ancient and Medieval Africa (4 weeks, online via Primary Source)
- Modern African History: Colonialism, Independence, and Legacies (4 weeks, online via Primary Source)
- Medieval Africa and Africans (5 weeks or 1 week intensive, online via the National Humanities Center)
- Teaching Africa across the Disciplines (5 weeks or 1 week intensive, online via the National Humanities Center)
Professional Development for AP Comp Gov teachers: Today in Politics Speaker Series (TIPSS)
Workshop focus: all the AP Comp Gov countries, including Nigeria
When: See the yearly line-up on the website below.
Where: online
Registration: Free.
Today in International Politics Speaker Series (TIPSS) is a multi-institutional effort to support AP Comp Gov teachers and students with monthly professional development events on the themes and countries of AP Comp Gov. Coordinated by teacher leader Sean Jacobsen, the online series offers workshops on party systems, elections, social movements, economics, and legislative, judiciary, and executive systems in each of the focal countries. Nigeria is the country in focus for Africa. Every month, there are two evening workshops offered to teachers. Students are welcome to attend as well, and free prizes are given out!
Boston University’s African Studies Center is sponsoring the session on Nigerian judicial systems on Tuesday March 4th, 2025 with Dr. Isongesit Ibokette. Teachers and students are welcome. Register here.