Abstract:

Understanding the cultures of others has been important since the beginning of time. Yet, with the new century, it is arguably more important than ever. The united states' department of defense (dod) is paying unprecedented attention to culture and regional expertise, necessitated by all of the challenges which it has faced fighting two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although there is a plethora of methods for teaching culture and regional expertise, one of the more interesting methods is the use of roadmaps, a new concept for the dod. Roadmaps, essentially course curricula, are intended to chart a path towards greater cultural and regional expertise for the dod employee.

In our presentation, we will explain the concept of the area studies roadmap in greater detail (to include samples) and show how the dod hopes to build cultural and regional expertise into its repertoire using this method. We would like to pass on our experiences to other nations also facing challenges in cultural and regional understanding. This presentation, although essentially oral (to include powerpoint), does have an interactive component. For example, attendees will be asked to assign levels to a sample list of courses from an existing roadmap. Did dod get it right? Our presentation can apply to many of the topics of the ICERI conference this year, e.g. curriculum design, global issues in education and research.