Effects of European Explorations in Latin America

This unit encourages students to think critically about world history by connecting to their prior knowledge. Students must rethink traditional notions of Christopher Columbus as the "discoverer" of the Americas and balance this against the atrocities inflicted upon natives. As they weigh this new information, they justify their answer to the focus question: what are the short- and long-term effects of European exploration to the Americas?

The unit focuses on four topics:

• Disease, Decimation of Native Populations, Slavery, and Bartolome de las Casas
• Collapse of the Aztec Empire
• Castas
• Trial of Cortes

This unit was produced to fulfill a requirement of the 2004 UCLA International Summer Institute, "Latin America: Connecting with the World."

Download files for this resource:  Euro Explorations in Latam


Keywords

Global Regions: Latin America

Countries: Mexico , Peru

Centers: University of California, Los Angeles, Latin American Center

Universities: UCLA

Length: Four class periods

Year Produced: 2004

Material: PDF file, weblinks