Final Reflection Essay (Due 5/24/2013)

[Anonymous]

Having had very little prior knowledge of East Asian history, I found this seminar to be incredibly informative. I don’t think I ever really studied East Asian history in high school, which is why I am happy to have new information and ways to incorporate it into my classroom. I found the lectures on The Cultural Revolution extremely interesting, and I knew I wanted to figure out a way to teach that in my English classroom. Through the recommendations of both Clay, and my classmates, I found the book Red Scarf Girl and The Good Earth (which I can use before we begin Red Scarf Girl). I’m particularly interested in Red Scarf Girl, because as we move to Common Core standards next year, we will need to be adding more nonfiction into our classrooms, and I think this is an incredibly informative book, rich with history of the Cultural Revolution. I already do a unit on intolerance, which highlights the holocausts and current injustices in Africa, now I can add China to my unit!

My favorite part about the course was learning about the different cultures in East Asia. For my movie, I viewed Joy Luck Club, which is on the suggested reading list for the Common Core standards. I’d love to do a unit in my classroom that talks about different rituals in cultures while we read Joy Luck Club. Students could learn about the role of women during this time period, and also talk about rituals they have in their own culture/families.

The most useful part of the seminar for me was the debates. This is something I could bring in my classroom, not just as a Chinese philosophy debate, but really anything we debate. I liked how I had to “take on” the persona of a Confucian and answer questions. I also learned a lot about the other philosophies, more so than when I read the articles. Which made me think about my students and how they would probably be able to grasp complex ideas with a similar activity. So, finding a new way to debate in the classroom was helpful. I’ll not only be teaching about East Asia in my classroom now, I’ll also be introducing a new way to debate in my classroom.
edited by aaxelson on 5/5/2013

[Anonymous]

As many others have stated, I have studied very little Asian history prior to this seminar. I was excited to broaden my understanding beyond the limits of cuisine and look at history from a more Asia-centric perspective.

In the past, I have taught Amy Tan's "Mother Tongue" to my students. We read this as a part of the unit on language. Typically, my students have enjoyed this essay because it offers a perspective on the immigrant experience that is different from the perspective--that of Mexican-Americans--that they are accustomed to. While I will continue to use this lens in teaching the text next year, I would also like to incorporate a reading or two about Confucian ideals, specifically relating to parent/ child relationships. I think the principles of respecting elders are something that you can also make a connection to in Latin-American culture. I am a huge proponent of making these cross-cultural connections in class, especially for my students who are largely unexposed to communities and cultures aside from their own.

I very much enjoyed the philosopher discussion/ debate. I think this would be a wildly successful exercise as a pre-writing activity for an argumentative essay. I'd like to use this in my class next year, prior to completing our first formal essay, which looks at how language is used to influence and control people in different aspects of their lives.

I will also be making use of the Chines propaganda posters that we saw in class. I especially appreciate the repeated symbolism of the worker, peasant and soldier. I think looking at these images will be a wonderful addition to my lessons on visual rhetoric.

This course was a very positive learning experience for me, overall. I am interested in continuing to learn about modern Asia and hope to travel to Asia one day to visit some of the place we learned about in class.

[Anonymous]

After completing the USC East Asia Seminar in the fall, I was excited to continue this spring. I’m always looking for ways to refresh and add to my knowledge of what I teach while experimenting with new methods of transferring that information to my students.

I teach World History and AP World History to 10th graders. I was especially eager about this session because it applies to both groups. Early Asian history is mainly geared towards AP. With my regular class, I was able to speak much more confidently on topics like Opium Wars, Meiji Restoration, Japanese occupations, and the post WWII climate.

I’ve gained a more rounded understanding of China, Korea, and Japan in the past and today. What sticks out for me the most is the rise of communism in China and North Korea. Clay did a wonderful job of describing the passion that the communists spread throughout China. That idea of a political ideology spreading like a religion was something I was able to convey when teaching about numerous revolutions – Russia, China, Cuba, etc.

In addition, I’ve picked up so many helpful tools – from websites to books to teaching styles. For example, something that I began incorporating into all my lessons is the use of Time magazine covers of historical figures and events. I loved when Clay would show these. They give a sense of American point of view and perspective and allow students to engage in a critical examination of validity.

I found the seminar to be extremely beneficial and I have recommended this to my colleagues. I spoke about the first seminar so much to my husband, a fellow teacher that he enrolled in the second session with me. Now, his interest has been piqued so much he’s joining me on a trip to China and Korea in June!
edited by gsharpe on 5/20/2013

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[Anonymous]

I really enjoyed this seminar and would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested is gaining personal knowledge and who would like to add on to their curriculum. Before taking the seminar I knew very little about Asia and Asian culture and philosophies and I was worried that I would be lost because I would be so far behind the others in the program. However, professor Dube did an excellent job of giving us basic background starting points before going on to more specific details. The other professors that were brought in to specialize in Korea and Japan were also very informative.

I teach government, economics, and anthropology and I am going to use of the economic concepts and knowledge I gained to incorporate into my class. Specifically, I am going to focus on the importance of land ownership and land redistribution that was prevalent in most of the cultures and were a major part of revolutions and changes. I will incorporate many ideas into my anthropology course as I have a lot of leeway in what I can teach there. I will use my new knowledge and share it with my students from the concept of cultural relativism. I will use ideas like foot binding and comfort houses to get interested and will transition into the philosophies that are across East Asia. Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism are concepts that my students will be inherently interested in and will be a great way to expose them to a culture and philosophies that are somewhat different from the main stream beliefs in my community.

This seminar was both an excellent starting point for someone who is clueless about how to incorporate East Asian culture and history into their classrooms and would be excellent for anyone who is experienced in the subject matter to refine their skills and knowledge. When I first started I actually was not very interested in Asian culture and attended because my wife, who is also a teacher, was attending. I enjoyed it so much that we have booked a two week trip to China and Korea this summer!
edited by rlaunius on 5/21/2013

[Anonymous]

Final essay
I currently teach at El Sereno Middle School for LAUSD. I teach Ancient History, World History, and U.S. History, grades six through eight. My students have special needs that vary from Autism, ADHD, to Cognitive Delays. Most of them read far below their grade level and require accommodations to access the general education curriculum. Based on their abilities and backgrounds I often develop my own lesson plans and modify the curriculum. I am always thinking out of the box and trying to think of a new creative and fun activity that they will learn from. When I received an email of the USC U.S. Spring 2013 East Asia Seminar I thought it would be a great opportunity to expand my knowledge of East Asia and I hoped to gain some resources or ideas for lesson plans. During curricular professional developments at the district I have always felt that too little attention is emphasized on China. Unfortunately, what ends up happening to most classes is due to reteaching or spending too much time on previous units Asia is often over looked and not taught in an extensive way as it should be. This was another motivation for me to attend the Seminar. I am very pleased with the content, presentations, teacher/student involvement, and the resources provided from the Seminar.

In my Ancient and World History classes I can very easily incorporate several topics covered in the lectures. One of the most relevant is that of religion. Even though only Buddhism and Confucianism are covered in the content standards I would like to expose my students to Daoism and Legalism. I really thought the debate we had in class is something my students could do. I would provide them with specific beliefs of each religion and ask them to read it as group work. Students would then need to record their important points. Then I would closely facilitate the debate. Another topic I will address is Lunar New Year. On one of the lectures Professor Clay did a wonderful job of covering Lunar New Year, not Chinese New Year and provided several examples of stamps from all over the world to commemorate this festive day. I found these stamps on the USC website and will show my students next year.
edited by igonzalez on 5/21/2013
edited by igonzalez on 5/21/2013

[Anonymous]

Final Essay

This course has been extremely effective and applicable to my teaching in U.S. History and World History. I looked forward to class every Tuesday, which cannot be said about most professional development teachers attend. In addition to Professor Dube’s enlightening lectures and power points, the guest lecturers were equally informative and interesting. I would recommend this course not only to history teachers but to teachers of all subjects. In the districts move towards the common core and the belief that all courses are reading and writing based, the addition of interesting content for students to engage in is now required in all courses, including Math and Science. The most interesting part of the course was the discussions on the philosophies of Confucianism, Daoism, and Moism. Not only was the content engaging but the activity of having the students adopt a point of view and arguring from that point of view was extremely effective. As a high school teacher I plan on using this strategy more often. It forces students to actually understand the material and the perspective of historical figures so they can synthesize the information into their understanding. It just also happens to be fun and a little silly. Thank you and I look forward to taking the first part of the course next semester.

[Anonymous]

Annie Brown
Spring 2013
Final Reflective Essay: How I Plan to Incorporate East Asia Into My Teaching
I have studied ancient and imperial China in the past, so I was particularly interested in the lectures and materials on Korea and Japan. I was excited for this opportunity to learn more because I have definitely felt that East Asia is missing from my Modern World History course. My main goal in taking this course was to develop my imperialism unit to include a comparison of the responses of China and Japan to European imperialism. But, as I consider this, I do not want to only teach these regions in the context of European/Western aggression and imperialism, but also deal with the culture and history of each country independent of Europe.

In the first unit that I teach in Modern World History, we look at the Columbian Exchange and the impact of the encounter and the resulting trade and conquest. A major aspect of the Spanish dominated trade was the exchange of silver from Mexico to Manila and China in order to get Ming porcelain. Though this didn’t come up in our class, it was a bigger deal from the point of view of the West who wanted access to Chinese and other Asian goods and products. As I teach this “early period of globalization”, I will incorporate materials from the lecture on “19th Century China” into just one lesson. Perhaps, I will develop it into a PowerPoint lecture which will include Ming Dynasty and allow us to have a window on imperial China—the examination system, the emperor and the imperial palace as well as the Great Wall, troubles with Manchu invasions, and the increasing presence of missionaries including Matteo Ricci and the Jesuits. Professor Dube explained that the overall nature of relations of China was increasingly closed off from non-Chinese cultures. I will use this overview to give the students context for our later exploration of the Opium Wars and the Chinese responses.

The lesson I created is about 19th century imperialism. Because all of the materials we were given for this topic were primary source documents, I had to go back to a college textbook to get some background to understand the big picture. I developed my lesson plan for the course on the Opium Wars and will use the documents from the Treaty of Nanjing” as well as the “Placards Placed in Guangzhou” to examine attitudes toward imperialists. I will also do a version of the debate we did in class and divide my students up to argue for self-strengthening, rebellion, and reform. For my students, I will need to cut the amount of material down to a much more manageable level and amount of reading. Perhaps, I make a handout that gives the role/point of view and several quotations/ excerpts from longer documents.
I also want my students to study Japan and the events surrounding the Meiji Restoration and the opening of the Harbor to Matthew Perry. We will look at several documents from “The Debate over Seclusion and Restoration” which detail various points of view on what Japan should do in the face of Western imperialism. I envisioned the lesson being a sort of DBQ (document-based question) and my lesson includes a debate at the end and we will use a Venn Diagram to compare the challenges and responses of each country.

This class has also inspired me to think of additional topic about East Asia, including Korea into the 20th Century—particularly the struggles with Japanese imperialism. Finally, I also am developing a new course for Eighth Grades at our school and this course has given me some ideas of how I would like to incorporate earlier periods of East Asian History into the course, as well as some current topics that have roots in the past. I really enjoyed the readings and the class lectures and feel energized about the importance of making sure East Asia is not ignored.
edited by abrown on 5/22/2013
edited by abrown on 5/22/2013

[Anonymous]

The knowledge I have gained in this course has already served me in my day to day teaching of music at the East Los Angeles Performing Arts Academy at Esteban Torres High School. I plan to use my knowledge of Korea in my lesson planning, but I have also used the knowledge gained from this seminar in my current events discussions and my substitute coverages for history teachers. Much of the material that we have covered and current events in Asia have led to lively discussions this semester. I have led discussions on North Korean aggression, Chiang Kai-Shek, Mao Tse Tung, Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, Opium Wars, Samurais and Japanese atrocities during WWII. Many students were interested in these discussions and they seemed to want to follow up with research and reading on their own time. They were also impressed by how a music teacher would have so much knowledge on East Asian affairs.

I plan to further continue using the knowledge gained as background information for any lessons that have an Asian connection and for discussions whenever the situation arises. I have found that students like the open discussions because of the break that it gives them from their everyday routine in the classroom. In my case, any time I can find a break from playing music with the students and having them engage in a different learning experience with material that is relevant to what they are studying is a good thing.

I also feel that the sessions conducted by Clay and the guest lecturers were very effective. There were moments when there was so much information to be covered in one session that it at times felt overwhelming, especially after a long day of teaching, but overall I feel the sessions were conducted efficiently and informatively. The snacks were appreciated as well.

[Anonymous]

I have to say this is one of the most useful and engaging professional development seminars I have ever participated in. Not only did I gain a better understanding of the history of East Asia, I was also introduced to a number of sources I will be using in my class next school year.
I really liked the way the class was set up and we got just enough historic information to broaden our understanding. I liked that it was informal and we had the opportunity to ask questions and interact with one another. It was great to hear from other professors whose expertise lay outside of China. Clay’s account of his experiences in the country also makes for interesting stories and conversations.
My intention is to focus on East Asia a bit more next school year. I will be using the lesson I created for the seminar and would like to see lessons created by my colleagues. There are a few units I would like to add more Asia based lessons to, for example, the unit I teach on Imperialism and the Cold War. However my ultimate goal is to create a project at the end of the year were my students research and compare a Western and Eastern empire. Many of them have these misconceptions about Asia that need to be changed.
As for the resources, there are a number of films that I will be previewing this summer in hopes of adding them to my collection. I really think that visuals are imperative in the understanding of history.
edited by kquezada on 5/23/2013
edited by kquezada on 5/23/2013

[Anonymous]

Asia along with Africa has been my proverbial Achilles heel in terms of knowledge and teaching. I do have a special interest in China because I lacked the knowledge to affectively teach the curriculum/standards required. By being part of the East Asia Seminar, I expected to walk out with a better understanding of China. Japan also interested me, I was lacking in the period starting with the Meiji Restoration and December 7, 1941. Taken as I whole, I am finishing this seminar with a much better understanding of the modernization of these two countries/cultures.

I really enjoyed and expanded my knowledge of the various philosophies and religions. I liked the group work and tasking of individual participants in the roundtable setting. This strategy is effective when teaching “advanced” students, but with proper guidance it also works with “regular”, ELL and at-risk students. The Socratic seminar model would work great also.

Though intrigued by the Mao and communist era, I was more interested in the events that led to the PRC. I found it so interesting that the Nationalists and Communists were almost one in the same. Understanding cause and effect when choosing sides is a great way to get students involved. In this case, we have leaders, strategy, resources, etc. and analyzing maps, the leaders, the decisions of these leaders and the outcomes, can really involve students.

Korea never stops amazing me. I was very glad for the whole day session, but I would have preferred more than a day. I believe the issues in the Korean Peninsula affect the U.S. and the world and we must take into account why Korea is at this point in its history. I really enjoyed the video clips and the political background that specially affects South Korea. As a request, I would like more than a whole day session for Korea.

The modernization of Japan in a way begins in the shogunate era with the Attendance requirements and the road infrastructure required for fulfillment of this mandate. The teaching of geography and the internal politics is necessary in order for students to understand how Japan became such a juggernaut. Students are familiar with modern Japanese culture and I feel teaching how Japan got to be this modern would be of great interest to students through the use of movies, primary sources, novels, books, geography, and the list goes on.

Finally, as a suggestion it would be nice for teachers to have time to brainstorm with fellow seminar participants possible lesson plans. A suggestion would be to put us together in groups as if we were for the philosophies when the presenters complete a big unit/section. Our seminar had teachers from many backgrounds and I would have gained better understanding of lessons that were not just the typical ones. Example, music, art, and literature are a great way to reach all students across all multiple intelligences.
edited by mcastillo on 5/23/2013
edited by mcastillo on 5/23/2013

[Anonymous]

I just want to take an opportunity to say how cool it was to take this class for a second time. Clay, thank you so much for taking time out of your day to come and speak to us. The content and materials makes me wish that I taught more classes. Currently I teach AP Government/Economics, and World Geography/Psychology. The materials covered in this class make me want to go back to teach US History and World History. The sections that Professor Yamashita taught were awesome and the lecture leading up to WWII can certainly be incorporated into those classes so easily.

With my classes, I wasn’t sure how much I would be able to use, but as I began working on the curriculum project, I was amazed at how much can be incorporated into my classes. I decided to stay with the modern stuff, specifically the Cultural Revolution and Tiananmen Square stuff. I was amazed at how much that I really didn’t know or completely understand. Having taken the course, I can appreciate that the Chinese government and politics is so complex, much like the United States.

I would have to say that my favorite sections of the class were learning about North Korea, Modern Japan and the Cultural Revolution. For me, since there is so little known about North Korea, that was a valuable lecture that I can incorporate easily. The rise of Japan and the complex causes of WWII were so fascinating, I literally could do a whole semester of study on that one lecture. The information on the Cultural Revolution was perhaps the most interesting to me. The struggles that the Chinese faced from the fall of the Qing Dynasty up until the 1960s was just brutal. This is one of the reasons that I used the film, To Live. It’s a great depiction of life during this time period.

Once again, I would like to say thank you for the class and to all the participants who made the class awesome, and to all of you who contributed to the forum, you all have great ideas and looking forward to implementing your ideas.

And a great big thank you to Ying Jia for all your hard work. I wish you the best. Thanks again.

[Anonymous]

As I look back and reflect on my experience with the USC US-China Institute Seminar, I cannot express how glad I am to have taken this session. Despite finishing up graduate school, working on my thesis, and having a minimum background on East Asia, the knowledge that I acquired will be long lived and transmitted to the young minds within my classroom. There were many topics of interests throughout the seminar. My favorite topic was World War II and the attack on Pearl Harbor. I especially liked how many professors from different universities were invited to the classroom to share their knowledge and expertise in their specified fields. Moreover, Dr. Dube transformed my entire perspective of East Asia (China, Japan, Korea, and so forth) and the philosophies, theories, cultures and traditions that have shaped the lives of many people for many years. Furthermore, the seminars were very informative that at times, I felt as if I was going back in time and living in the moment of the past events that I was learning about.

To begin with, the first session on Confucius was a rude awakening to the ancient schools of thought and philosophies that I had forgotten about. This topic was culminated with a debate, in which I was a part of the Maoist team. I really enjoyed this exercise and the fact that we had to pretend and remain true to our beliefs, concepts, and traditions as Maoists. This is an activity that I would like to carry out with my students. I believe that allowing them to speak and defend their position on a certain topic will help them get out of their comfort zone and allow them to expand their vocabulary skills.

Moreover, there are many things that I would like to do, when it comes to the topic of teaching Asia in my classroom. For starters, I would like to implement a multicultural curriculum that focuses on teaching about other countries and introducing the literature of other writers. Aside from incorporating Asian literature into my English classes, I would like to include the geography of places and have students learn about the cultures of China, Japan, Vietnam and the political situations that are taking place. As an educator, I also believe that students learn best by utilizing their different learning modalities. With this said I would incorporate film, technology and ask students to post information in our classroom forum and website. In the past, I have been a member of epals.com, a website that allows teachers to co-teach with a teacher from another country and collaborate for a few months and develop lessons plans for their students. I have done this with Oaxaca, Mexico and would be willing to do this with a country in Asia. My students really enjoyed this experience and had the opportunity to meet the students from Mexico through a Skype video session.

Consequently, not only did this class allow me to learn any aspects of East Asia, but it also allowed me to grow as an educator. I was influenced to visit the Chuan Thien Hau Temple during the Lunar New Year and during a recent trip to Hawaii, I was able to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial and pay tribute and honor to the people and events that took place there. If it was not for this class, then I would have not been inspired to visit such places. Moreover, I the readings, films, images, stories, theories, concepts, have encouraged me to take the next step and perhaps visit China in the summer. It has been my dream to travel to a location filled with rich history and this seems to be a good opportunity for me to take. Traveling to the Great Wall of China and visiting the many temples would be a dream come true.
edited by dcoronel on 5/23/2013

[Anonymous]

MAY 23, 2013

EAST ASIA FROM 1800: SEMINAR REFLECTION

Overall, I enjoyed this seminar very much and would do it again if I could. I walked into it with pretty limited knowledge on East Asia, and through the lens of history, I walked out with a much deeper and appreciated understanding of the regions’ varying geography, culture, social practices, politics, economics, and technology. I remember the first day of class we got in groups to share what we knew for certain to be true about East Asia. I was able to think of only two solid facts. As I write this reflection and mentally run that exercise back in my head now, I’m confident I can name many things I know to be certainly true about East Asia. I would like to thank Professor Dube and all the presenters we heard for taking the time to share their work, research, and valuable knowledge with the class.

I originally wanted to take the seminar in order to develop a better understanding of a set number of my students. Many of them English learners from China, Korea, and Japan, struggling to adapt to a new environment and culture. I felt an enormous challenge this year communicating with my EL students. Without a translator, most lessons would be nearly impossible to conduct. The inability to directly speak with them prompted my decision to take the seminar and I’m very glad I did. Not only was my knowledge base expanded, but so was my understanding of my students.

Right after Professor Dube taught us about Chinese New Year and the Chinese Zodiac, I made it a point to discuss it with them and wish them all a Happy New Year! They were a little shocked I believe when they heard it coming from me. Many of them laughed and some looked confused. I asked them to share stories of their New Year’s family celebrations as well as what zodiac years they were born in. They were really enthusiastic about this discussion, and excited to teach me about Year of the Tiger, in which I was born. Many of them couldn’t express it to me directly, but I could feel they appreciated my genuine interest and curiosity. From that point forward I continued to share and discuss what I was learning about East Asia. So much so, that their favorite question became, “When are you going to China?!?”

All in all, this was a great experience and I look forward to incorporating what I’ve learned into my future lessons. In particular, for my Computer Literacy & Applications class, I could teach about technology in Japan and Korea. Like many mass media victims, I believed America to be at the apex of digital technology, mobile phones, and advances in computers. I was surprised to learn how connected Korea and Japan were, and how much of a significant role technology played in these countries across a wide generational gap. In my international business course, I would cover China and entrepreneurship. In a unit dedicated to China, we could explore the global investments being made by Chinese entrepreneurs and its government, investments into China from outside entities, significance of its size and economy, its enormous contribution to globalization and international trade (imports/exports), as well as appropriate International Business Etiquette.

[Anonymous]

0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} I believe the most powerful statement that stayed with me was, “Perspective is what creates history.” We can study, read, research, but it is the perspective of the author that creates our view. This class brings a wealth of experience in multiple professors with different views who specialize in different areas. This class also brings the perspectives of a variety of teachers with a variety of expertise and who work with diverse populations.
Each individual contributed to this class, each individual shared their experiences with the material or a previous understanding of the historical content, or shared how they used the material in the class. My greatest gem received from this course was meeting other educators who are passionate about empowering young people and sharing the world with them. How fabulous to learn about ancient philosophies and how they shaped our world! I will definitely by using the debate style with my own classes. My only criticism of the experience is I wished there was more class interaction.
I enjoyed learning about the technology aspects of various countries and how they use technology. The power point and lecture about Korea was fascinating and the information we gained about China and the environment challenged my ethics of purchasing goods. And again, returning to perspective, it challenged my western American view on my word wild topics and helped me to view things from the perspective of each country and the belief systems that have influenced their thinking throughout the ages. Perspective changes everything.

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

Reflect on the seminar experience in a 250-500 word essay. Discuss how you intend to incorporate East Asia into your teaching. Possible topics you may wish to address include attitudes, approaches, and materials. Which issues or ideas raised in the seminar are of greatest relevance to your courses and your students?

Please post your essay as a reply and attach it as a word document to the post as well.

Best,

[Author]

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