Political change
Bridget Kendall's essay on the BBC web site would be a good teaching tool when considering varieties of political change. If you can look beyond the daily events, it's often possible to find good teaching materials at times of crisis.Iran and lessons from history
The shadow of history hovers over Iran at the moment.
And it is not just the student protests 30 years ago, which helped bring down the Shah and which launched the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution, that are worth recalling.
Also relevant is what happened 20 years ago. 1989 was the start of the transformation of the Soviet Bloc...
And that upheaval tangentially helped inspire another collapse: the end of the apartheid regime in South Africa...
But let us not forget June 2009 also marks 20 years since the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing, when a popular Chinese uprising failed in its bid to get a ruling Communist elite to accept greater democracy. It is a reminder that student revolts do not always succeed in their ambitions.
So how do these transformations happen? What makes a top down, or bottom up revolution successful? And what are the factors that can stop a popular movement in its tracks, or mean that it will peter out without getting anywhere?...
But perhaps, in conclusion, there are two key issues to watch: whether a government is prepared to use force, and whether it can effectively control the information space...
posted by Ken Wedding @ 7:06 AM
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