Final Essays (due by June 22, 2012)

What do we need to write about for our final essay, and what are the requirements?

My experience in taking the USC-China Seminar has been extremely positive, uplifting, and instructive. The professors, Clay Dube and Samuel Yamashita were superby well-informed and interesting in their presentations.The assistants were accessible and helpful. Not only did I enjoy the seminars themselves, but the experiences in doing the homework were very enriching for me and will enhance my teaching. For example, next week I intend to show my Advanced ESL students the photos I took at the Taiwan Palace Museum Exhibit at the Taiwan Academy in El Monte and to explain some of the technology used to bring the paintings to life for the modern viewer of ancient Chinese art. Also, I am looking forward to having the students choose three topics from the Chinese cultural website that I referenced in that assignment. I will first let them explore the website on their own because it is rich and varied and with graphics that appeal to that age group and I would think, to anyone else. Then they can choose one topic to present to the class, using the computer projection screen. The fact that I am better informed about Asia thanks to the seminar, I believe that I can transfer my enthusiasm for what I gained from the seminiar to my students as we, together, explore the history, language and culture of this fascinating part of the world. Also, as one of the journalists who spoke to us on a Saturday seminar at USC, "Covering China", China is as close as the several neighborhoods in greater Los Angeles that have attracted large Chinese and other Asians to settle here. I learned so much about Asia from Clay and from the professor who lectured on Japan. It really opened my eyes to a fascinating historical and cultural picture of the various Asian geographies, histories, philosophies and culture. One use of that experience will be my creating a panel discussion similar to what Clay had us do when we, in groups, spoke on a panel from the viewpoint of the philosophy that we had chosen to represent, Confucianism, the Tao, Legalism, and Mohism. I will use this technique but at a simpler level due to the age group and limited language skills of my students. That brings me to the curriculum assignment. I have chosen to have my students compare an American style comic book and a Japanese-American Manga style comic book on the basis of characterization, (focusing on any change or growth in the character from beginning to end of story), plot elements, and theme. The USC-China Seminar has given me a broader perspective and deeper appreciation of what the Chinese and Japanese, especially, but also the Koreans and others have gone through in history and how England, Portugal and the United States had major early encounters with each, that profoundly impacted that history and culture and art. My students will find my interest in the current culture, as well as the history and geography to be a resource for them in their own independent and directed studies of Asia.

At the seminar, I learned a lot about East Asia and the relations among China, Korea, and Japan. The debate on the four major schools of Chinese philosophy was very helpful. It forced me to examine each school’s ideas on key issues, such as human nature, society, education and government. The “Covering China” workshop gave me a rare insight into what it’s like working as journalists in China. Even today, I still think about the touching stories the journalists shared.

As a Mandarin teacher, I could definitely incorporate many topics from the seminar into my teaching. The textbooks our program uses are the “Integrated Chinese” series. All lesson texts are dialogues focusing on topics related to daily life, such as family, school, dining, and travelling, etc. The following is what I intend to incorporate of East Asia in my lessons.

When teaching the chapter about “Family”, I plan to introduce “Fen Jia” (Division of family property). This practice helped China’s population growth and led the government to adopt the “one child policy” to control overpopulation. I would divide students into groups and have them discuss the pros and cons of this policy. Then I would go over the effects of this policy, such as over-indulged children; more abandoned baby girls because people favor boys over girls, etc. I would share Mei Fong’s article about parents who lost their only child during the Sichuan earthquake.

When covering the “School Life” chapter, I intend to introduce the “civil service exam” to my students, explaining how ordinary Chinese citizens who passed the exam could serve as officials as well as how this exam system affected the society even until present day. For instance, high school students in China have to pass the college entrance exam in order to go to college. Ching-Ching Ni’s report on the cave school in southern China could be introduced at this time. For class activity, I would ask students to work in groups and compare Chinese schools and American schools.

In the chapter about “Travelling”, one of the main characters talks about visiting China during her summer vacation. I would take the opportunity to introduce China’s geography, such as showing a map of China, pointing out the major rivers, mountains, special autonomous regions and major cities. To engage students in active learning, I would assign a “Travel to East Asia” project. Students would work in small groups and research on a province of China or Japan or Korea. They would have to create a PowerPoint slideshow about their province/country, including famous scenic and historic sites, and present it in class.

Overall I really enjoyed the seminar and I could really use what I learned in my teaching. I look forward to attending the other seminar which will cover East Asia beyond 1800.

Final Essay- East Asia
There are a few ways I intend to incorporate East Asia into my teaching. First, the ideas raised during this seminar are the Chinese Philosophers. Before, I never learned much of other Chinese Philosopher’s besides Confucius. It was very important to me and for my students to know at least the basics of the four major philosophies such as Confucianism, Mohism, Legalism, and Taoism. I like the idea of how the class can be divided into four sections of major philosophies, and have a class discussion on the similarities and differences when it comes to ruling, education, and etc. I intend to use that in my classroom as well.
The topic I enjoyed the most was the subject on Buddhism. I enjoyed learning some new things about the Buddhism traditions and beliefs. My memorable line from Buddhism is “Suffering Stems from Desire”. I was able to take what I learned and compare and contrast to my own beliefs of Buddhism as well. Also, given the opportunity to visit an Asian museum was great. The exhibit to the Pacific Asia Museum was small but was very compact with a lot of history. With the some amazing art seen at the museum, it gave me an idea for my lesson plan. I was able to incorporate comparisons of art tools with Chinese character writing into my lesson plans.
Clay and Yamashita gave great lectures along with visual presentations. I was very fascinated with the pictures they presented during their lectures. I am a visual learner so having slides helped me out a lot. It was a not only a positive but great learning experience when taking this course.
edited by rtuyentran on 6/7/2012

When I signed up for the class I have to admit that I had no idea what it would be about. I plead total ignorance here. I came to look forward to Mondays and the class itself. There was an overwhelming amount of information in the class, much of which I find myself being able to use. One of my disappointments is that Professor Yamashita kept giving a lot of facts that are not readily available or published, so it was hard to keep up with the facts that were given to us. Nevertheless I really enjoyed both Professor Dube and Yamashita’s lectures.

I have two classes I am planning on using these materials and lesson plans. One is an Economics class and a World Geography class. For my Economics class I plan on using the Commercial Activities contracts. I plan on doing a comparison with that and a rental contract agreement that we do with a financial literacy unit. Another component that I cover is international business, specifically with China and globalization. I use a 60 Minutes segment on China and the amount of phony goods that they produce. I plan on using this with an article to analyze the trade gap that exist between the US and China. I want to look at the idea and theme that was brought up in class, of an open versus closed China. That is a theme that I think the students in my school like to examine, especially since we have a huge Asian population with many of the students coming from immigrant families.

The final component that I plan on using is a lot of the facts/slides/etc. for my geography class. I also have already used the four Chinese philosophies that we debated in class for a jigsaw activity. I would like to incorporate this more as an actual debate next year but it definitely worked well this year as all four groups. We emphasized the focus on family on structure of the law. The kids really got into it.

I look forward to reading about more ideas from you all to see what I can borrow for my classes. As teachers, we do this frequently. I have enjoyed this class immensely and know for me that trying to incorporate more of the Chinese culture into my class will be interesting coming from a westerner in an immigrant heavy school. The students are easy to reach and offer a lot of unique insight as well as they are an invaluable asset for this type of material. Hope next year goes well for all of you. Once again thank you to Professor Dube for your ongoing enthusiasm and expertise.

I remember years ago putting my resume together for sending out to school districts, I wanted them to know I was Asian-American, bilingual, AND bi-cultural, thinking this might give me a leg up on the next applicant. I can't say it worked because I only heard from two out of what seened like dozens of districts, and ended up substituting for almost a year and a half before getting hired full-time. I wish I could take credit for slipping in the term "bi-cultural," but it was my wife who thougth it aptly describe who I am. It was from that resume-writing moment I began to think of myself as the product of two cultures. I should say I do not have a working definition for the term, but after being part of USC US-China Institute Spring Seminar-Pasadena 2012, and realizing there is so much about Asia (particularly China) I do not know, I feel I'm way more westernized than Chinese. I don't feel guilty or shameful about this (which would make me more Chinese). It is who I am.

I would like to reflect on three topics I did not know before, and how I will incorporate them into my teaching. First, I learned the difference between the Japanese and Chinese models for the legitimacy of rulers, and what that meant for the two groups of people. The Japanese believe their emperor is the Son of Heaven. He is essentially a god, and thus infallible and cannot be challenged. This provided Japan with a stable institution that could withstand changes and challenges over the centuries. No matter how bad things got, the imperial house is there providing a sense of stability. On the other hand, China's rulers claimed legitimacy base on Mandate of Heaven, which means an emperor's power to rule is dependent on Heaven's favor. It's possible, therefore, to fall out of favor. This explains the rise and fall of dynasties. I've taught twelfth-grade US Government, and recently found out it's assigned to me next year again. It would make an interesting lesson to compare and contrast the two types of legitimacy, and compare that with the way our government is set up. It seems to me our Constitutional form of governance is more similar to the Chinese/Mandate model: The document (the Constitution) is "god," and administrations are dynasties. Hopefully the students will pick up on this. The Chinese and Japanese models can both deal with change, but in different ways. How does the American model change? In what ways does the Constitution reflect aspects of both the Chinese and Japanese models?

Second, I would like to further explore the history and culture of Korea; how it has been influenced by China and Japan, and the difficulty it face being caught between two powers.

Third, I want students to realize the value western philosophy places on the the individual person, especially when compared to other cultures, such as China. I am thinking in particular the sample contracts for buying and selling of concubines and sons in Ming dynasty China. Even their existence seems unbelievable to westerners.

I know more ideas will come to me when I have time for more reflection of the notes and reading handouts from the seminars. One thing is certain: The more I think about them the less I feel I know.

I was surprised to find people weren’t lining up to take this course. I got really excited about it when I got the email and frantically tried to get my principal’s letter in so I could apply, hoping there would still be spaces. I think it was definitely worth a few Monday nights and Saturdays to get as much information as we did. The topics were consistently interesting and somehow each seminar was thorough and gave good details, though overall quite brief. It was definitely an overview of a ton of varied information, but an intimate introduction nonetheless. I actually enjoyed the lecture format, as it is nice to be a student and not just a teacher. The debate actually made me really nervous, because I didn’t feel like enough of an expert to be speaking as an authority on the subject. The guest speakers were thrilling, and Professor Dube was clearly passionate and dedicated to the topics, which is such a crucial part of teaching. I walked away having a much better understanding and deep appreciation for Asian history. The region has always been on my list to explore, but because of this seminar, it has moved up a few notches on my list. I try to stress to my students the importance of understanding the world they live in, and how totally interdependent we have become. This seminar helped me understand a little bit better these connections, and I feel like it showed in my classroom this semester.
I am grateful for the opportunity to be exposed to such high quality materials and professionals, and not only not having to pay for the opportunity, but actually being rewarded for it was such an incredible bonus. I would like to thank everyone involved for such a great experience.
I hope to be able to participate in the second half of this seminar series, and perhaps one day get to take a tour with the Institute.

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This has been a tumultuous year with many drastic changes occurring. But learning about China and the world that exist there has given me a new enthusiasm. I have had over the years many Asian students, but have known surprisingly little about their vast culture. I had now realized how we are surrounded by Asian culture and don’t even realize it. When I travel through the city I am more apt to look at architecture and see the different influences that have created the look and feel of Los Angeles.

Using Asian studies in the classroom can come in many ways. I think the classroom can be set up with a multicultural feel that encompasses the feel of many of the cultures that influence our community. Posters that represent cultures and history would help. Perhaps some books that go along with the lessons that could be displayed would also be helpful. News reports and current events are also good for expanding the students understanding of culture.

As an English/History teacher I think what I will take from the history of the Asian cultures is how misunderstood their culture is. I think most people wouldn’t ever associate Asian culture with a sense of humor. I believe there are as many mistaken ideas about Asian culture as there are as many truths. The Asian clichés that abound in High School lead to so much ethnic stereotyping. It would be good for the overall community to take a deeper interest in each other’s culture, and ways of life.