Message from rbrady

[Anonymous]

Final Reflection
Summer Seminar USC China Institute
First, as I reflect on the week spent at the seminar in July I first feel gratitude for the opportunity to attend. As usual USC has put on a first class event. The staff was extremely knowledgeable and professional. The presenters were of top quality exhibiting a wonderful combination of intelligence, expertise, humility, and had evident passions for their work and areas of expertise. What a great service you provide to remind educators of the Far East. Moreover, kudos for enabling us to impart a learning of the Far East to our students through the curriculum that we present to them.
There are so many ideas and experiences from that week that will be incorporated into our units of study. Just today we had a ramen dish presented in the teacher’s lounge and a flood of memories came back regarding our afternoon learning all about the history of ramen from its Japanese and Chinese beginnings to its predominance globally as a go to food for much of the planet. The concept of food being used as a bridge to cultures is not a new one, yet it is often overlooked in academia. Children are particularity prone to seeing these connections. I had fourth grade students pointing out to me the introduction of pasta to Italy through the stories of Marco Polo. This makes for a nice introduction into the teaching of geography, trade, cuisine of the Spanish colonial period in California. In Math we are calculating the prices for a Carne Asada meal and side dishes. When looking at how Carne Asada is made we noticed some Asian ingredients in the marinade. This leads to a discussion of the Far East, in particular the Philippines, China, and Japan. When learning about the Spanish galleon we can compare and contrast that with modern containers from the San Pedro/Long Beach docks. The discussions with the WTO head come to mind in this. Your presenters were well placed for k-12 curriculum and the learning that we absorbed from them can be interwoven throughout our curriculum. If nothing else, the idea that “The Far East Matters” permeates the thought of the teacher and from here we make the stories of learning even more diverse and interesting.
As we prepare our students for their future there are many learning opportunities available to them in the greater Los Angeles, Southern California area. We have for two generations now become the major point of entry for new generations of immigrants. These dynamics alone allow for great learning and I feel that I benefited from this growing up in the Los Angeles area. Yet, how much more powerful these experiences are when this synergy is harnessed in academia and educators are allowed to engage with working experts that see profound connections between our students and these changes. And how much more powerful again these things are when they present themselves in a well thought out and organized manner by a professor and his staff for teacher training. The goal of your mandate is to show that the Far East matters and should be presented in k-12 curriculum and you have done an excellent job of that. Thank you again for a wonderful inspiring week and a goal well accomplished.
All the best,
Richard Brady MUSD
edited by rbrady on 8/26/2016