chinese computer hacking - impact on gov't & more

[Anonymous]

The fall 2011 UTLA East Asia Seminar class has been a refresher course as well as a more comprehensive introduction to Asian influences in Amerian history. The most expedient way to introduce the complicated subject of Japanese history for my students is to juxtapose Japanese history with the rise of Japanese films and ANIME.

On Saturday, December 3, 2011, William Tsutsui of Southern Methodist University spoke on the rise in the popularity of Japanese ANIME and its relation to historical periods in Japanese history. The global ascent of Japanese pop culture has grown exponentially. In short, Japanese cartoons and Japanese inspired films influences our everyday lives. The impact of Japanese culture can be seen in American architecture by Frank Lloyd Wright, manufacturing, and fashion, to name a few. Western scholars have only begun to explore the global appeal of Japanese pop culture. There is something inherent in Japanese esthetics, culture, language, and creed that non-Japanese cherish. According to William Tsutsui, Japanese pop culture is much more than distribution channels, novelty, or a fad. There is an "other worldliness" in the creativity within Japanese society that gives it global appeal.

From Godzilla to Hello Kitty, Sailor Moon, Pokemon, and Power Rangers cartoons, graphic novels, Japanese inspired films and comics are embraced by non-Japanese kids and adults alike. Ironically, the creativity of the Japanese is in direct contradiction to the perceived (or real) repressiveness within the Japanese culture. Pop culture vehicles of cartoons, film, fashion, and design seem to "release" latent emotions and beliefs that may not be acceptable to express in other public venues.

With Japanese ANIME as my blueprint, I can accurately relay other aspects of East Asian history (e.g., China and the Koreas) to students using museum resources from The Bowers Warlords and Warriors exhibit, appropriate PG, PG-13 films, documentaries, and docudramas to document the progression of Chinese history from ancient times until today. The only caveat is that we were not able to hear lectures on the growth of the Muslim religion in East Asia.

However, my main focus will be learning Japanese history through ANIME. Anime will convey to students how one Asian nation chose to address its "untouchable" topics. For example, students will compare and contrast how women in Japanese society overcame restrictions through art and poetry (which was an acceptable way for women to express themselves) and how American women found subversive ways to talk about forbidden topics. It is also a "jumping point" from which students can compare the expression of Japanese cultural values with the expression of American values. After elliciting varioius responses from students via graphic organizers such as Venn Diagram or two column Compare and Contrasting and Web Mapping, students will realize that Japanese and Americans have the same values, albeit through different means of expression. Current "Jpop" and "Kpop" crossover songs help to introduce students to the influx of Asian culture in America as they can easily relate to music and how it evokes core feelings within themselves as expressed by the artist.

Although my lesson plans will focus on learning Japanese history through Anime, I would use the same method by which students can learn about Chinese culture as I make reference to American films based on Chinese movies and Chinese cinema and literature (e.g., "The Tale of Genji") since 2000 which expresses some Chinese history and cultural values (e.g., "Hero").

I will use Japanese ANIME as an example of "soft power". Students will discuss and determine if "soft power" (e.g., student and teacher exchanges, language courses sponsored by The Japan Society, cultrual trips abroad, hobbies, media, ANIME) has a greater impact than "hard power" (e.g., food sanctions, armed conflict). They will write their answers in a paragraph format in groups of four and debate about the advantages and disadvantages of both. Students will discuss and answer questiona such as: "What is it about Japanese pop culture that connect with the American psyche?" "Do Japanese people learn about our culture as we enjoy their pop culture entertainment?"

Through these methods, students will learn accurate cultural information and gain a comprehensive understanding of the Japanese and other Asian cultures.
edited by cwatson on 1/5/2012

[Anonymous]

A very current cyber topic which is becoming a burning issue...Is there a specific format (essay/ graphic organizer/computer presentation) in which the students will be submitting the 'compare and contrast our First Amendent right to freedom of speech with current practices in Hong Kong'? Or it is going to be assessed based on class discussion?

[Anonymous]

We will begin with an introduction via graphic organizers and vocabulary, which students will discuss in groups, then copy for homework as a follow-up. The group discussion reveals additional relevant comments which be used in their computer presentation, followed by brief essays which address each teacher or student raised questions and facts concerning our First Amendment Right to freedom of speech (US/HK).

I want to scaffold this information to give students enough time to absorb it; it is for this reason that these methods of: lecture/demonstration via graphic organizer (overview of topic), class discussion(s), computer presentation, and essays are an essential part of the assessment process and to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all types of learners.

There is a lot of work for the students to complete, but I prefer it to having too few assignments/activities for assessment.

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

EAST ASIA PROJECT –LESSON PLANS FOR Social Studies Fall 2011 Cheryl Watson Lesson Title: Technological Effects of Chinese computer hacking in American government Businesses and institutions

"" EAST ASIA PROJECT LESSON PLANS FALL 2011.doc

Time required for lesson completion: 5 days to 7 days

Standard to be addressed:

Standard 11SS9.1 _Evaluate the effects of technological developments on society and the global economy since 1945.
California History Standards 10.9, 10.10, and 10.11
Lesson Objectives:
Guiding Question: (Note: Students should be able to answer this question upon the completion of the lesson.)

1. Evaluate the effect of the computer hacking on Chinese and American society and economies.

Main Concept(s): Determine the effect of Chinese computer “hacks” on US government and businesses.

Despite China's economic rise and subsequent prosperity, even a few of China’s most classified military secrets have managed to "leak out". An internal briefing revealed six cases regarding Chinese officials who spied for Britain and the United States. Youku.com and Tudou.com leaked clips of Major General Jim Yinan of the People's Liberation Army’s sensational disclosures before being removed by government censors.

In today's digital age, circumventing firewalls and maintaining government sponsored Internet controls is much harder than preventing defectors from crossing Checkpoint Charlie at the Berlin Wall during the Cold War era. The Internet has too many loopholes. There are those who use subversive means to escape the confines of government censorship to infiltrate highly sensitive data from businesses and government alike. China's control over its Internet will be an ongoing battle. In fact, it is an international “cyber battle” that every country “wages” (in the advent of the WIKI LEAKS debacle) for threats both foreign and domestic.

Instructional Sequence:
In a classroom setting, students will be introduced to the question:
How has China’s hacking affected the computer revolution and how has it impacted American society and the economy?
Students will view the 2-minute united streaming video entitled, “Technology at Work” (Part One or Part Two).
INTRODUCTION:
No technological innovation exists in a bubble. Every technological innovation has some impact on the economy.
Consumer devices are often hyped on television only to become obsolete two years later. Computers, both hardware and software, seems to be following the usual life-cycle for new, successful industries: initial diversification, lots of small firms, rapid growth, a huge number of failures, concentration of capital and control into a few huge firms, plus small specialized firms more or less dependent on the big ones.
The economic and political situation of the world today is very different from what it was, say, twenty or thirty years ago; one of the most popular explanations for these changes is that information technologies, especially computers, have in that time become powerful and ubiquitous, and so changed everything. Ours has changed from America’s 1945 industrial economy to an information economy of 2011. In this interconnected, global economy, technological advances also present a number of security issues for the US government and American businesses.
Beniger's book, The Control Revolution opines that you cannot have an industrial economy without a massive information-processing apparatus for record keeping. Great innovations of information processing were procedures: standardization, interchangeable parts, printed forms, record keeping, regularity, advertising, and management. By 1945, more than 35% of all US workers worked in some form of information processing. Consequently, the reason computers were able to spread so quickly was that they could replace: adding machines, switching circuits, typewriters, and punch-card tabulators. Computers filled existing niches. For example, IBM was a huge company before computers came along. Thus, our society has always been informational and computers were the next logical step in our information society - what has changed is the speed at which we communicate.
Computers are more efficient information tools, they let previously existing trends (like concentration of control and long-distance exchange) be pushed further, and this is going to disturb all the existing industries, even internally.

Classroom final project(s):

Introduction:

They will compare and contrast our First Amendent right to freedom of speech with current practices in Hong Kong. The non-profit American International School in Hong Kong will be contacted (with permission from the principal's permission) regarding their freedom of speech on the Internet.

I chose Hong Kong due to its relative freedom of information and open Internet access (i.e., the PRC government does not monitor internet communiques in Hong Kong (and in a few other provinces) very closely. Expatriates (people who are not native Chinese or Asian) who live and work in Hong Kong call it the "golden handcuffs".The term "Golden Handcuffs" refers to the high, Western style standard of living with few restrictions imposed upon its residents by the PRC government. The "expat" life-style is probably due to the British rule of Hong Kong until 1997, and its establishment as a city for international commerce which gives it an international "flavor".

***Each student must submit a signed Internet permission and release form from their parent or guardian prior to participating in this activity.

Warm-up:

Students will engage in a guided discussion about the ramifications of Social Networking (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Blogs or Vlogs).

They will answer three questions:

1. Are we allowed to post any thought or idea on a Social Media or Social Networking site with impunity?
2. Are their dangers or disadvantages to making perjorative comments against a religion or ethnicity?
3. If there are consequences to our on-line behavior (e.g., what we post in terms of pictures or comments), what is the severity of the punishment?

Objective:

The objective of this lesson is for students to understand the advantages and disadvantages of Social Media in Chinese (Hong Kong) society. See Caifornia History standards 10.9, 10.10, and 10.11.

Activity:

Students will read blogs (www.outgoing@ExpatExchange.com for the Hong Kong Daily Update life and the use of Social Media in Hong Kong society prior to contacting them.

Students will work in pairs using Twitter to communicate with high school students in China at the American International School of Hong Kong as the teacher monitors students. It may be more practical to use computers to email first, then "chat" with these students in Hong Kong, but "Tweeting" is more convenient. Students record the responses of the students in Hong Kong based on the three questions they answered for the "Warm-Up".

Follow-up:

The teacher will give examples of Americans who suffered severe consequences for making pejorative or threatening statements via Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, or Vlogs.

edited by cwatson on 12/23/2011
edited by cwatson on 12/29/2011
edited by cwatson on 12/29/2011
edited by cwatson on 1/5/2012
edited by Clay Dube on 8/3/2012

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[Anonymous]

I like how you managed to put something of interest to the students, such as "Tweeting", to get them more engaged in the class lesson. It's a good idea to make them do something they already know how to do in their sleep, in order to get them to want to do the assignment more ;o)

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