Final Essay Assignment. “Reflect on the seminar experience in a 250-500 word essay. Discuss how you intend to incorporate East Asia into your teaching.”

Attached below is the description and outline of my next course. It shows how I will incorporate the lessons from this class in teaching about East Asia.

This is an adult education class so most lectures include a discussion of China-related current events. Discussing the news encourages students to follow China-related news online. In turn, this increases active engagement in the learning process.

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Course Description: China Politics & Economics to 2049

China has been in the news a lot in recent years but how can we make sense of what is going on?  This course will look beyond the headlines to explain the strategies China is following.  

Chinese President Xi Jinping has set ambitious national goals for 2049 when China will celebrate the 100^th anniversary of the founding of the Peoples Republic of China.  To achieve these goals, he is promoting comprehensive strategies to make China stronger economically, militarily, and politically.  

The success of these strategies would make the “China Model” of authoritarian governance more attractive internationally and possibly allow China to become the #1 superpower and global hegemon by 2049. Conversely, the failure of these strategies would undermine China’s authoritarian model of governance and weaken the Communist Party’s monopoly on political power.

Weekly classes will address the following topics as well as current China-related news.

Weekly Lecture Topics

1. China’s “Century of National Humiliation”
2. China’s 2049 National Goals
3. China Geography & Geopolitics
4. China’s Pacific Strategy
5. China’s Export Strategy
6. The Belt & Road Strategy
7. China’s Demography
8. China’s education strategy
9. China’s Soft Power strategy
10. The “China model” of governance vs. US model
11. China’s international relations strategies since 1950
12. The China-Africa Strategy & Role
13. Economic Growth Strategy to Strengthen China
14. Will China be the #1 global power by 2049?

Incorporating East Asia into my teaching

In my history classes I plan to add three separate units. One will focus on treaties, and how the wording of treaties matters not just to what happens, but how the parties involved feel about the outcome. I plan to use the following: Treaty of Nanjing, Treaty of Wangxia, Versailles Treaty, and the Treaty of Point Elliott (between the US government and the Native Americans s of the Seattle area).  I will also add my lesson on Japanese imperialism in the late 19^th – 20^th centuries.  We already cover British imperialism in Africa and India and both outcomes of the Industrial Revolution and causes of WWI. Adding in Japanese imperialism will help students see that economic desire and a sense of culture superiority are not limited to the Europeans.  Understanding the treaty of Versailles and the development of Japanese imperialism will also help them understand why Japan sided with the allies in WWI but the Axis in WWII. My third unit will be a current events project focusing on coverage of an international event or issue (Covid, the Olympics, global warming, etc.) and how that event is covered by news sources outside the United States.  I will require at least two of the sources to be from Asia.  I also want to include something about the Mao playing cards. I might just introduce the next year when we discuss propaganda before starting Animal Farm. The pictures are good examples of how propaganda doesn’t require words, and will make a fun comparison with the Russian propaganda we already use. 

I also use the class as a whole to demonstrate to my students that learning doesn’t stop with graduation.  Seeing their teacher as a student who does homework and prepares for class discussions helps them look beyond their own existence – I hope.

As an out-of-classroom teacher, I can support teachers with planning their own lessons about East Asia using the resources from this course. Using archived photographs and works of art are very impactful for elementary aged students. One specific challenge I face is that I mainly teach sample lessons in the area of English Language Development. I am the EL Designee for my school, so I find creative ways to integrate East Asia into these sample lessons.

Many Designated ELD lessons are focused on eliciting student voice and supporting English Learners with using academic English in a discussion or written assignment. A major standard covered during dELD is:

Exchanging information and ideas with others through oral collaborative discussions on a range of social and academic topics. 

One of the best ways to support English Learners is through visuals. In my next ELD lesson for a group of 4th and 5th graders, I can use photographs that will allow for students to make observations and discuss topics pertaining to East Asia. Students can even learn about East Asian food, customs, attire, history, and religions through visuals.

The ideas that my students are most interested in about East Asia are: music, attire, food, dance, religion, transportation, technology, and childrens’ activities. When I select visuals, it's helpful to keep materials that align to their interests. During the recorded presentations and Zoom discussions, I find it helpful to screenshot specific visuals that my students would find engaging! 

The use of photographs and art from different East Asian countries allow for students to generate their own ideas and engage with the content at a deeper level. Since we are in Los Angeles, many of my students have friends with East Asian heritage or at least have eaten food that is East Asian. These positive experiences allow for my students to keep an open mind about new learnings.