Overview | How is its history of apartheid continuing to affect life and politics in South Africa? How can South Africa best address the range of concerns regarding its hosting of the World Cup? In this lesson, students consider South Africa’s history and the legacy of apartheid along with news about the upcoming World Cup. They then engage in a simulation to generate policy recommendations for the South African government, with respect to hosting this international event.
Materials | Computer with Internet access and projector, Times articles, handouts, research materials or computers with Internet access
Warm-up | Ask for a show of hands in response to two questions:
- Who here follows soccer (football, as it is known outside of the United States)?
- Who has heard that the World Cup will be held in South Africa this year?
Then ask: Why has the choice of South Africa to host the World Cup gotten a lot of attention around the world? How many people are expected to attend?What might hosting the World Cup mean for South Africa?
Next, ask students what they know about the history of apartheid in South Africa and write their ideas on the board. Fill in any gaps in students’ basic knowledge. Return to the question What might hosting the World Cup mean for South Africa? in the context of the country’s history of apartheid.
Next, show students one of the following Times videos:
- If they have already studied Nelson Mandela and the history of Apartheid in South Africa, show “Riding a Bus into South Africa’s Future.” While students watch the video, have them record the arguments for and against the new bus using our Debatable Issues handout (PDF). (You may need to pause the video multiple times to give students a chance to jot down arguments.) Afterward, have students share the arguments that they recorded for and against the introduction of the new buses and route, as you record their information on the board. Ask: What did you notice about the different neighborhoods featured in the video? What kinds of people were interviewed? How did their perspectives contrast? What could you tell about existing tensions in South Africa from watching this video? If you could talk with someone in the video that you disagreed with, what would you tell them?
- To introduce Nelson Mandela or refresh students’ knowledge about him, show “Mandela Celebrates Prison Release.” Our Multiple Points of View(PDF) handout can help students take and organize notes as they watch. Ask: What can be learned from this video about apartheid? about Nelson Mandela? about how South Africans today think about their history and their heroes?
- Or, to foster a better understanding of how the legacy of apartheid influences modern South Africa and kids their age, show “Apartheid Haunts South Africa’s Schools.” They might use our Problem-Solution Organizer (PDF) to jot down issues and problems raised in the video. Ask: What did this video reveal about how the history of apartheid has influenced modern South African schools? What struggles to the students in the video face? How have students’ struggles been influenced by the history of apartheid? Without a history of strict apartheid, how might things be different in South Africa’s schools? Why?
Related | In the article “Cost of Stadium Reveals Tensions in South Africa,”Barry Bearak examines how South Africa’s preparations for the World Cup illuminate how the nation is still a deeply divided country...
