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The History of How We Got Here: The Sykes–Picot Agreement

Syria. Lebanon. Iraq. Jordan. Israel. Find out how these countries' existence, and their bloody past-century of conflict, are the result of a secret treaty between England and France from 1916.
Ben Liff
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:
(239)
Class

What's included

1 live meeting
55 mins in-class hours

Class Experience

"The History of How We Got Here" series is a collection of one-time classes focused on less "popular" events in history that have had far more of an impact on our current lives than history textbooks or conventional wisdom might suggest. 

The Sykes-Picot Agreement was a secret treaty signed between England and France in 1916. It stipulated that England and France, should they defeat the Ottoman Empire in what would come to be known as World War 1, would partition much of its territories between themselves. 

The resulting artificial borders and new nations created throughout the Middle East by this agreement have led to a century of instability, war, sectarian and religious violence, and a potential flashpoint for more large-scale conflicts, especially during the Cold War from 1945-1989. 

Today, the geographic area most well-known as "The Middle East" is still a maelstrom of ethnic and religious conflict exacerbated by the ever-growing competition for access to oil and other natural resources (including water) beneath the parched soil of the region. 

During this one-time class, we will discuss the history and context of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, why it happened, and the immediate and longer-term impacts on the peoples and nations of the region. 

The course format is discussion-based with content delivered via lecture, short video clips, and other related media such as maps and still images. 

Please feel free to contact me with any questions!

Learning Goals

Students will gain a basic understanding of the Sykes-Picot Agreement and its significance in world history up to and including the current day.
learning goal

Other Details

External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined April, 2020
4.9
239reviews
Profile
Teacher expertise and credentials
Hi there!

My name is Ben and I’m an educator, instructional designer, and learning producer originally from San Antonio, Texas, and currently living in Maine.

Over the last few years, in addition to my work teaching in a classic New England boarding school, I've worked in instructional design and professional development training at the undergraduate and graduate school levels. Prior to that, I taught Composition, Rhetoric, and Literature at George Mason University while working towards my MFA in Creative Writing. I’ve also worked as a teacher trainer and corporate training administrator and spent several years as an English literacy and language teacher in Wuhan and Kunming, China, which is how I got my start in education.

Before completing my master's, I received my B.A. in History from the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. 

I’ve taught all ages and currently work as a Learning Producer at the Roux Institute at Northeastern University as well as over two years of teaching on Outschool! 

Please feel free to ask anything you’d like about me or my experiences!

When it comes to my educational philosophy and, more specifically, online learning, I’m focused on guiding students towards developing a passion or growing an already existing interest. On Outschool, I enjoy teaching courses focused on exploring world history and its always-entwined art and literature.  

As an instructional designer and educator, I find engagement to be the key to (and the best measurement of) success. If a student is not engaged, little else about a program or lesson matters in the context of 21st-century skills or long-term educational impact. When students are allowed to study and engage with topics that are interesting and understandable to them, the learning process also builds upon always-important academic and social-emotional skills. This understanding is especially crucial for students with learning differences or groups from mixed and diverse socio-economic, cultural, and/or linguistic backgrounds. 

Differentiation can and should mean more than merely accepting and adjusting a lesson plan for a learning or language difference; true differentiation should allow students to feel genuinely heard and provide their teachers with insights into their students' thoughts and learning. When we give students permission to approach education from their own perspectives and connect that work (and perspective) with other aspects of their daily life, engaged learning happens and passions develop.

Online learning and the tools available to us now can create online learning environments which allow for such differentiation quite easily. I'm committed to keeping my classes small, generally limited to 8 or fewer students, to provide each individual learner the attention and respect they deserve. 

Again, please feel free to contact me with any questions! I look forward to speaking with you soon!

Ben

Reviews

Live One-Time Class
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$12

per class

Meets once
55 min
Completed by 35 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 11-16
3-12 learners per class

This class is no longer offered
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