reaction/discussion -- monday afternoon

[Anonymous]

It is wonderful that we have Chinese nationals in the seminar. I'm am really curious about their reaction to the information and discussion being disseminated this week. I couldn't imagine going to a USC seminar series on Australia so I wonder what their learning experience is and what it must be like seeing their country viewed from a different cultural perspective
edited by jahawdon on 7/29/2014

[clay dube]

Excellent primary source:
The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi,
http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/ps/japan/fukuzawa_yukichi.pdf

http://books.google.com/books?id=sGUis3b0D5AC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

[Anonymous]

Thank you for responding. I always feel like it is left in Hong Kong's wake just as the Portuguese were left in britain's wake... But it is a model for what can happen under Chinese control and maybe a model for the future of China. Would love to learn more and talk to you about your experiences,
Rich

[Anonymous]

Like other people here, I was quite surprised with the geometrical similarities in terms of latitudinal positioning and climate discrepancies found with some of the Asian countries. I was unaware of the Japanese having such a different climate in the south versus their northern region. This would be a nice project to compare and contrast surface areas of each of the countries in a geometry class. You can discuss how it might affect the country's decision to make resource allocation decisions or to speak about what effects it might on the population in each region. This is important because you can make a comparison to the way in which we allocate resources here in the States.

[Anonymous]

What shocked me about the geography of China was that it borders 15 other countries and how it handles that in comparison to the US borders. I'm not as much amazed at the population density between east and west China because most larger countries have areas that are disproportionately populated because of the conditions and climate of the land.

[Anonymous]

In studying Government and Economics, a course of study students might enjoy is looking at the role of government in providing resources to its people. When looking at the super-imposed maps that demonstrate just how densely populated East Asia is we can discuss how well governments have provided for their people and look at the differences in the process in which the governments go about it.

[Anonymous]

ARNOMADATHIAN SAID: What shocked me about the geography of China was that it borders 15 other countries and how it handles that in comparison to the US borders. I'm not as much amazed at the population density between east and west China because most larger countries have areas that are disproportionately populated because of the conditions and climate of the land.

I agree! I mean, I taught Ancient Chinese history this past school year focusing on the early dynasties, the rules/forms of government, and social structure, but not really about the neighbors. Using the textbook, our focus was so narrow. We did study a little about the Great Wall and how Emperor Qin was afraid of invaders and that was why the wall (or at least part of it) was constructed. What would be nice, is if we could take a closer look at how and when those other civilizations/countries "appeared" or developed, and how that impacted China as their civilization developed.

[Anonymous]

Coming back to this discussion about geography and population grown in East Asia, I'm wondering what the out-migration patterns look like. If there are established Asian communities throughout the world, certainly Chinatowns, where do we see the most growth? I remember as an undergraduate some 20 years ago being surprised at Korean families in the Midwest and East Coast. The film we watched about the Taiwanese grandmother was considered by Brian Hu clearly Taiwanese, possibly representing another example of the variety of Chinese CinemaS.

[Anonymous]

It seems that much of the narrative in the media depicts the rise of East Asia as something that is novel. However, when you look at the entirety of history, China, Japan and Korea have long been vibrant economic and culturally-rich societies. I think this is so powerful for our students to understand. Our idea of progress and achievement is narrowly based on post-industrial and western ideals.

[Anonymous]

With my school year starting tomorrow, I wanted to revisit my geography test which I hope prepares my 7th graders for the places we'll visit in the year ahead. I've only included China, Japan, and Korea among East Asian locations - it occurs to me that this gives short shrift to Japan in particular, since the seminar helped open my eyes to the unique qualities that distinguish the separate islands. I don't think there's enough time or space in the 7th grade school year to delve into those separations, but I do want to spend more time this year than previously on Japan's unique geographical features (the students get a thorough grounding in China's climate zones in 6th grade). I'll pass along anything helpful that I find out in doing so.

[Anonymous]

I've never been to East Asia and I'm just imagining everyone shoulder to shoulder like when I see the subway footage. I dont think it's helpful to put the land masses of two countries next to one another and then say the population in each. Instead, the professor showed up how the population is dispersed disproportionately to the East part of China.

Arno Madathian

[clay dube]

What realities of EA geography / demography surprised you Monday afternoon? What might be the consequences / advantages / disadvantages of EA land and population trends? How might you bring geography and demography realities into history, government, economics, language arts, math, and other classes? Is this worth attention?

[Author]

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