SPICE Home
Lesson Plans & Teaching Resources
We draw upon Stanford University's diverse research, top faculty, and best scholarship to develop effective lesson plans and teaching resources on international topics.
Professional Development for Teachers
We run free teacher PD throughout the year, including summer institutes for middle school and high school teachers, a fellowship for community college instructors, and half-day seminars on global issues.
Online Courses for Students
We introduce college-level scholarship on global issues to high school students in the United States, Japan, and China through interactive, synchronous online courses.
After the Darkness
Spotlight: 10 Years After the Great East Japan Earthquake
On March 11, 2011, the largest earthquake in Japan’s 2,000-year recorded history struck Japan’s northern region of Tohoku. Within minutes, a massive tsunami devastated much of the Pacific coastline of Japan, and up to 19,000 lives were lost. "After the Darkness" is a free documentary film and Teacher's Guide that touch upon the events of the disaster itself but also focus on the experiences of two young survivors in particular. The film chronicles their personal stories, tragedies, and triumphs and ultimately depicts how they, and Japan as a whole, have started to recover.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Envisioning and educating for a more just and inclusive future.
Featured Lesson Plans
Our lesson plans are content-rich, standards-aligned, and backed by the best Stanford scholarship available.
Uncovering North Korea
North Korea remains one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented countries in the United States. American students largely remain uneducated about North Korea, lacking the proper context with which to understand and interpret today's current events. This curriculum unit seeks to fill this gap and strives to bring more accurate information and objectivity to the study of North Korea in U.S. high schools and beyond.
A Whisper to a Roar
The documentary film "A Whisper to a Roar" tells the heroic stories of courageous democracy activists in five countries around the world—Egypt, Malaysia, Ukraine, Venezuela and Zimbabwe—who risk everything to bring freedom to their people. The film's companion teacher’s guide provides materials that supplement the information and issues explored in the documentary, filmed by award-winning filmmaker, Ben Moses.
Divided Memories: Comparing History Textbooks
This unit asks students to examine prevalent history textbooks from five Pacific Rim societies and compare their coverage of sensitive historical episodes in the 20th century. As students analyze, compare, and contrast different history textbooks, they are forced to confront some large questions of history—including the possible bias of their own historical knowledge—and encouraged to become more critical consumers of information.
Join our Mailing List
Sign-up to receive news on upcoming teacher programs, student courses, and classroom resources from SPICE.