Global Field Courses - Middle East

A group of history students from Eastern Connecticut State University took a week-long global field course (GFC) in the Middle East in March 2017. The students visited sites throughout Israel, Jordan and the West Bank as they learned about the region’s various conflicts and histories.

The course abroad was designed to expose students to the modern Middle East; teach them the ancient and modern histories of the region; provide multiple perspectives on the Arab-Israeli conflict by visiting the Israeli-Lebanese border, the Israeli-Syrian border, Jordan and a Palestinian refugee camp in the West Bank; and provide students with an appreciation for the Holocaust by visiting the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem.

“I would recommend visiting the Middle East to anyone seeking to learn more about the world we live in,” said Alexa Potter ’17. “I believe as a student at Eastern I need to gain firsthand knowledge through visiting and experiencing other cultures. As a young adult, comprehending the idea that other cultures share a much longer collective memory of history, especially one tied to the land, is essential to developing a holistic view of the world outside of the United States.”