Approaching this module in the spirit of inquiry means that you are not expected to have all the answers and that there may not even be “right” answers to some questions. Your role is to frame questions, facilitate learners’ investigations through reading and listening, and to help them explore what is not known in various genres of speech and writing.^[1] Most of the cultural scenarios and readings are about or from Zanzibar, so you should use your own experience in other parts of the Swahili-speaking region to demonstrate the similarities and/or diversity of gender and sexual norms, such as between urban and rural areas, among practitioners of different religions, and/or people of different first languages.

Proficiency objectives

Proficiency objectives tell you and your students what they should be able to do with Swahili by the end of the module. Specific proficiency objectives, alongside content objectives, are also included at the start of each activity in the module. You might take some time to assess your students at the start of the module, using the can-do statement chart at the end of this module, to determine which proficiency objectives they most need to work on and assign particular activities that will help them achieve those objectives. They can also select ten proficiency goals on which they want to focus. At the end of the module, you might ask students to have them re-do a self-assessment and tosubmit a portfolio of evidence that documents their achievement of the ten can-do statements on which they chose to focus.

Msamiati wa Jinsia na Mapenzi

This page contains religious vocabulary that I expect students to already know and be able to use before they begin the activities in this chapter. They will also encounter and acquire some additional vocabulary while doing the activities and exercises that follow. After assigning students to study this vocabulary, you could review it in class through various activities, such as handing out cards with each vocabulary item to each student and have them either use the word in a sentence, define it using circumlocution, or act it out. You could award “points” and make it a competition among individuals or teams. You could give students a graded quiz either in class or use an online quiz in your course website. Feel free to add additional vocabulary you think is important, and/or to leave a comment on the page if you’d like me to add anything. Reviewing this vocabulary should take one class day.

Encourage students to keep a personalized vocabulary notebook where they keep track of all new words they encounter, whether in this module, in class, or through research. You could set aside some class time every day for students to share any new vocabulary they have found on their own that is relevant to the subjects of this module.

Unit One: Navigating Cultural Norms

This page includes four cultural scenarios that illustrate Zanzibari norms of gender and sexuality, and some potential misunderstandings that might arise between Zanzibaris and foreigners. Each scenario is followed by questions for writing as homework, followed by in-class discussion, and a final longer essay. If you assign everything on this page, it should take about five class days to get through.

Unit Two: Communicating about sensitive topics

This page includes a review of the contrary-to-fact conditional tenses, a reading exercise focused on how Swahili-speakers navigate sensitive topics, discussion questions that ask students to think about what topics might be sensitive in their own and East African cultures, a role play activity, and an essay.

If you assign everything on this page, it will take about six class days to get through.

Grammar Exercise

This exercise can be done at home if you think your students need a review of the -nge- and –ngali- tenses. It is a self-check exercise and does not need to be graded.

Reading Exercise

This reading exercise could be done in class (since it’s short) or at home, and should be followed by an in-class discussion. It is designed to prepare students to think broadly about “sensitive topics” in the writing and speaking exercises that follow.

Write-to-Speak

Exercise 1

The writing part of this exercise is designed to be done for homework. You might assign a specific number of questions you want students to write; I would suggest 10. There are no right or wrong answers to this list; it is designed to provoke discussion. However, you might grade it based on grammatical and lexical accuracy. You should write a list also, so students can compare the answers of an expert Swahili speaker to their own answers. It should be followed by an oral discussion in class.

Exercise 2

This exercise is designed to be done orally in class, the same day or the following day after students have discussed the lists they (and you) came up with for Exercise 1.

Exercise 3

The writing part of this exercise is designed to be done for homework. You might assign a specific number of reasons you want students to write; I would suggest 5. There are no right or wrong answers to this list; it is designed to provoke discussion. However, you might grade it based on grammatical and lexical accuracy. You should write a list also, so students can compare the answers of an expert Swahili speaker to their own answers. It should be followed by an oral discussion in class.

Exercise 4

This exercise is designed to be done orally in class after students have completed Exercise 1-3. Assign each student a role based on the discussion you had about Exercise 3. For example, you might assign the following roles: orphan, gay man, lesbian, widow or widower, polygamist, wife of a polygamist, childless adult, etc. You should also set the context for the party, e.g. is it in East Africa, where it may be illegal to be gay? or in the U.S. where it may be illegal to be a polygamist? Students should not reveal their assigned roles to one another until asked a relevant question at the “party.” The activity is designed to give the person asking questions an opportunity to practice handling an unexpected situation, an Advanced skill that is somewhat challenging to orchestrate in the classroom. After students have had an opportunity to talk about what went well and what didn’t, and what linguistic forms would have helped them to accomplish this task, you might have them re-do it again (on another day) with new roles assigned. Normally there is a practice effect; and they will need more than one opportunity to practice this challenging skill.

Exercise 5

The writing part of this exercise is designed to be done for homework. You might assign a specific number of paragraphs you want students to write; I would suggest 3-5. You might have students share their narratives in class orally (not reading aloud, but retelling their stories). Encourage active listening by requiring students to ask one another follow-up questions or commenting on how their narratives compare and contrast to one another’s.

Unit Three: Deconstructing dominant discourses

The goal of the exercises on this page is to position all genders and sexual identities as equally available for analysis and discussion. Exercises 1-3 address sexuality, while Exercises 4-6 address gender. If you assign everything on this page, it should take about four class days to get through.

Exercises 1 and 4

These writing exercises are designed to be done for homework. You might assign a specific length for student answers; I would suggest one paragraph per question. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions; they are designed to provoke discussion. However, you might grade them based on grammatical and lexical accuracy.

Exercises 2 and 5

These exercises are designed to be done orally in class, the day after students have written their responses to Exercise 1 and 4 respectively. You should also bring a list of relevant vocabulary to share with students and to compare and contrast with the words they found. Be aware of your own possible biases. For example, if you are heterosexual, are the words you know for queer identities in Swahili derogatory ones? How will you make sure you do not alienate students who are queer or who have queer friends or family members?

Exercises 3 and 6

This exercise is designed to be done orally in class, the day after students have written their responses to Exercise 1 a nd 4 respectively. Be aware of your own possible biases. For example, if you are heterosexual, are the words you know for queer identities in Swahili derogatory ones? How will you make sure you do not alienate students who are queer or who have queer friends or family members?

Exercise 7

This writing exercise is designed to be done for homework after students have completed Exercises 1-3 and/or Exercises 4-6. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. However, you might grade them based on essay structure, and/or grammatical and lexical accuracy.

Unit Four: Engaging local discourses

The exercises on this page ask students to read, check their understanding, and then write about fairly complex topics relating what they’ve read to their own experience or background knowledge. This writing should prepare them to have complex discussions in class. There are no right answers to the writing exercises; they are designed to lead to open-ended discussions, hypothesis-making, and complex cultural comparisons. If you assign everything on this page, it should take about six class days to get through.

Exercise 1

The first two parts of this exercise could be done for homework or in class. Part 3 could be done for homework or in class. If you have access to additional Swahili dictionaries, you might bring them to class or let students borrow them. Part 4 should be a discussion during class.

Exercise 2

The three parts of this exercise should be assigned for homework. Part 2 is a self-check exercise. After students have submitted their responses to Part 3, have them discuss their answers during class in small groups or as a whole class.

Exercise 3

The three parts of this exercise should be assigned for homework. Part 2 is a self-check exercise. After students have submitted their responses to Part 3, have them discuss their answers during class in small groups or as a whole class.

Exercise 4

The three parts of this exercise should be assigned for homework. Part 2 is a self-check exercise. After students have submitted their responses to Part 3, have them discuss their answers during class in small groups or as a whole class.

Exercise 5

The three parts of this exercise should be assigned for homework. Part 2 is a self-check exercise. After students have submitted their responses to Part 3, have them discuss their answers during class in small groups or as a whole class.

Exercise 6

This exercise should be assigned for homework.  After students have submitted their responses, have them discuss their answers during class in small groups or as a whole class.

Unit Five: Words bearing ideologies

The exercises on this page ask students to think about the ways words are used in context. They will do this by reading dictionary entries, writing about them analytically, writing for a specific imagined audience, and then preparing for a role play. If you assign everything on this page, it should take about one class day.

Unit Six: Interpreting proverbs

The exercises on this page uses Swahili proverbs to get students to think about how gender and sexual norms are passed on. It asks students to read proverbs; do some research on literal and figurative meaning, and contexts of use of proverbs; write about what they have learned;  and compare and contrast proverbs in their own language with those in Swahili. If you assign everything on this page, it should take about four class days.

Insha ya kujumlisha ulichojifunza

In this final assessment, students will need at least two weeks to conduct their research into an interesting topic related to gender and sexuality in East Africa, including conducting an interview with a Swahili speaker, and to write a final five-page essay. You might break it up into smaller assignments with deadlines spread out over a few weeks, such as a one-paragraph abstract of the topic, a list of interview questions/topics, an annotated bibliography, or a rough draft of the essay, with periodic opportunities for feedback from you and classmates. You might specify how long the interview should be, ask students to transcribe it, etc. Most of the work can be done outside of class, but you will need at least one class day to discuss the assignment, have students brainstorm ideas or give one another peer feedback, and one class day for presentations.