Since the Israel-Gaza war began last October, professors teaching courses related to the Middle East region have faced unique challenges in addressing the ongoing, charged conflict. A year later, several professors said they have changed how they teach and what they teach about.

“Everything changed” after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, said Ori Rabinowitz, a visiting associate professor at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation from Hebrew University in Israel. This quarter, she is teaching POLISCI 115B: “Israel, the Middle East and Nuclear Weapons” for the third consecutive year.

“In my darkest nightmares, I didn’t think that I would have to include material on an attack like the one that unfolded on October 7,” she said. “This isn’t something you anticipate teaching, and no one tells you how to teach it. And I don’t wish on anyone having to teach that.”

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