New Elective Offers Students Insight into Pacific Island Cultures

The 2010-11 academic year at NCHS debuted a new social studies elective. Pacific Studies was designed by instructor Stephen Kai Nemeth based on his desire to share his love of Pacific cultures, and from requests of students whom he had taught World Geography Studies as freshmen.

“As freshmen, it was easy to see that Mr. Nemeth was a walking encyclopedia of the Pacific Islands,” said Senior Patrick Kelly. “But our world geography class couldn’t go into a lot of depth regarding Pacifica. When I heard he was teaching this new class, I definitely signed up.”

Pacific Studies begins with a consideration of the Earth’s largest physical feature, the Pacific Ocean. Students learn about this expansive area as a habitat for many life-forms. Migration patterns are studied in order to understand how these life-forms came to inhabit the distant islands and how different species of birds and animals have struggled – and continue to struggle – for survival. The next part of the course involves the study of Pacific Island cultures. Students note commonalities as well as distinctions among Pacific peoples. Highlighted cultures include the Yali of Papua-New Guinea, the Aborigines of Australia, the Maori of New Zealand, Tahitians, Samoans, Tongans and Hawaiians.

As part of the cultural studies, students learn a sample Pacific language, Hawaiian. This study includes useful phrases, grammar, prayers and chants.

“The study of the oral languages is important since Pacific languages remained oral for many years,” said Nemeth. “For example, oral Hawaiian did not take a written form until 1820 A.D. when the Congregationalist missionaries from New England arrived on Maui and provided English letters for Hawaiian sounds.

Students describe Nemeth as a storyteller whose methods are a little out of the ordinary. “This is not a class that you just read out of a book,” said Kelly. “Mr. Nemeth incorporates a lot of different interactive elements into the lesson. Once, he performed an authentic hula dance for the class. Another time he brought in a gourd-drum (ipu heke) and we learned chants.”

Recently, the Pacific Studies students visited the Dallas Museum of Art where lead docent Sheila Durante guided a tour of Pacific Island art.  After a luncheon at the museum’s Atrium Café, students next visited the Crow Museum of Asian Art where docent Nancy Jones explained several exhibits of Japanese, Chinese and Indian art. These were all cultures the students had studied their freshman year.

“The museum tours touched on things that we are actually studying,” said Senior Calandra Jones. “Since Mr. Nemeth had lived in this region, he was able to give us some amazing insight into the culture through their art forms.”

This course is currently a one-semester class and offered to juniors and seniors. Mr. Nemeth created this course out of his passion for cultures, but also through his conviction that NCHS must prepare students to be tomorrow’s “global citizens.”

Mr. Nemeth's Pacific Studies class at a recent field trip to the Crow Museum of Asian Art.