[Amy Chen]

Hi Dennis, the questions you brought up are great for a middle school discussion. When teaching History, I use GRAPES with E standing for economy. When I read this article, I also thought that the decline in rice consumption was fascinating. I woudl bring this up in my class in terms of the economy of Japan and how it has changed over the years.

[Amy Chen]

I like the questions you raised about the cost of building the Great Wall and how those questions also apply to the construction of the Egpytian Pyramids. For 6th grade history, we have to cover both great wonders. It would make a great research project. I could even extend the project by having my students build their own great wonder of the world, asking them to come up with a purpose and design.

[Amy Chen]

I went to China in 2008 and even with the efforts to clean air pollution in time for the summer olympics the air quality was still so bad. I remember seeing the news last year how Chinese people were buying oxygen tanks to breath clean air. Reading the aticle about efforts to reverse pollution was very eye oepning and hopeful for me.

[Amy Chen]

In a building tall over the campus

A class is held in an air conditioned classroom

Many educators are typing and writing away

Gaining ideas to bring back to their schools

The clock ticks on toward lunch time

Ideas become ponderings about food

 

[Amy Chen]

I agree with you on how the series presented Marco Polo with much intrigue. After the seminar on Marco Polo, I learned that his travels are a complete mystery which makes this show even more interesting. When I first watched the show, I was not convinced on how historically accurate it was. Regardless, Marco Polo does a great job showing the relationship between the Mongols and Han Chinese over a long period of time. 

[Amy Chen]

I just recently watched this movie for the second time. Although it follows a romantic comedy structure, the fact that it is an all Asian cast as well as Asian directing staff makes the movie truly special. It has been almost 20 years since Joy Luck Club (another all Asian cast movie) premiered on screens nationwide. Crazy Rich Asians highlights Asian culture so beautifully, especially the street food scene and the Mah Jong parlor in Singapore. 

[Amy Chen]

One of the field trips I brought my students on this school year was to Japanese American Museum, located in Little Tokyo. The tour was led by docents who brought the students into the exhibit about Japanese internment camps. The museum also organized an artifact activity where students got to examine documents, photographs, and other primary sources from World War II. During a portion of the trip, the docents gave the students sticks that read “Interesting”, “sad”,”angry”. They were asked to place the sticks under parts of the exhibit that made them feel those feelings. Under a mockup of a internment camp classroom, many students left sticks that read “angry”. WHen they were asked about how the exhibit made them feel, they were able to communicate what emotions they felt and why. I found this method of interacting with the museum a meaningful way for 6th graders to learn empathy while learning about history.

Coming into middle school, many 6th graders are not aware of Japanese Internment camps. This field trip educated my students about the perils of discrimination during wartime. This is a part of American history that is not often discussed in textbooks. I think field trips are a great way for learning to occur outside of the classroom and away from the required state standards.

[Amy Chen]

USC Pacific Asia Museum is located in Pasadena. It is the only university owned museum dedicated to arts and culture of Asia and the Pacific Islands. I visited on a Thursday after school when admission is free.  The exhibits I viewed during my visit were Modern Kabuki Prints, Silk Road, their collection of Chinese and Southeast ceramics.

The Kabuki Prints by Tsuruya Kokei were really special to see. Kabuki is classical Japanese dance drama using intricate masks and costumes. The actors of Kabuki take on both men and women roles. The prints on display are portraits of the leading actors, capturing the movement of the actors. Kokei used oil painting and printmaking as mediums to create his artwork.

In the permanent collection section of the museum, there was the Silk Road display that was well curated. When I first walked in the room, I looked the timeline and map. In the middle of the room, there was a yurt model. Ivory, gold, ceramics, paper, jade, silk are the materials that were traded along the Silk Road. The museum’s display about the Silk Road was very informative. Near the Silk Road room, there was a section filled with jade and ceramics. The vases were mostly from the Ming Dynasty with the widely popular blue and white designs. These particular exhibits aligns with my History class and would be great for a field trip.

 

[Amy Chen]

First of all, I want to say that USC East Asia Institute covered a great amount of history that I was unaware of. Thank you to Clay Dube, Catherine, and everyone who made this aviable to us educators. I gained a lot of practical information throughout the course of the institute. Being Asian American, I have always been wary of how little I know about my own history. Clay Dube opened his sessions with current events or stimulating propaganda that ignited intellectual thinking and discourse. The statistics he shared about Chinese imports really opened my eyes because I had no idea that soybean and pork are the top imports to the U.S. Additionally, Professor Hirano clarified the common misconception of how samurais are depicted in Hollywood. Japanese warriors who are dressed in the style seen in movies are actually called Bushi and were more prestigious than Samurai.

 

As a teacher, I appreciate how all the lecturers discussed historical events that go beyond the textbook, ones I’ve learned about over and over as a student. To teach history lessons that extend beyond state standards is crucial to engage students who are easily jaded with constant bookwork. For instance, I would show clips of Samurai in blockbuster movies alongside historical images of them then have students compare them. Though sixth grade history requires covers only ancient China, I plan to add in mini-lessons about Japan and Korea. China was a big influence on both countries so I will find a way to integrate all their histories.

 

 

The forum aspect of the seminar was a great way to interact with my colleagues about the readings and presentations. I enjoyed reading and responding to the different perspectives about the topics we covered. Even though sessions were on Monday nights and Saturdays, I felt invigorated by how knowledgeable and passionate the professors were. After being the teacher all day, it was nice being a student for a change. I already recommended this class to my history teacher coworkers because I find it pertinent to our field.

 

 

[Amy Chen]

Growing up Chinese, I haven’t heard about Manchus in school or from my family until 2008 when my mom and sister visited Macau. Now reading the article about the Manchu language is nearly extinct, I’m not entirely surprised. The culture and language is overlooked by Han Chinese. According to the article, the Manchu language which is the “soul of a culture” is slowly becoming extinct. Written language throughout China is standardized even though there are many different spoken dialects. Machu written language is very different. With less and less people studying written Manchu, the core of the language is threatened. There is little interest to study the language because there is no professional gain to know it.  Cao Meng, a language professor at Shenyang Normal University, states that Manchu is the largest ethnic population therefore their language should not die out. There are few language schools where a teacher plays pop music for her students to learn the language. The teacher who knows more Manchu than her student’s parents. This is both sad and fascinating to me as as foreign language teacher.

[Amy Chen]

Of the many interesting information of the lecture today, the part that covers Zhu Yuangzhang Huang Di who defeated Mongol rule and built a lasting dynasty. He was an orphan who was accepted into a Buddhist temple. From his humble beginnings, he organized a revolt against the Mongols and drives them out. As a ruler of China,Yuangzhang, like Qing Shihuangdi, wanted to standardize China's currency, roads, and measuring system. The Hong Wu emperor also initiated a censurate that captures those who practice inappropriate behavior such as scamming or bribery. A surveillance system was also set in place to monitor his citizens. I find his legacy to be impactful to the part of Chinese history I'm most familiar with. 

[Amy Chen]

The opening to the reading, "Will China Save the Planet?" highlights the current problem with the U.S. President blaming other countries instead of coming up with his own solutions for his own country, one that produces the most environmental harm.  Over the years, China has made efforts to make changes. At the Copenhagen summit, China got most of the blame for the world's current state of climate change.  As a result, Chinese leaders have made efforts to head toward cleaner energy.

[Amy Chen]

I was not able to attend this lecture which I am dissappointed about. From the readings and your response, I can tell that it would have helped me design my lessons for Buddhism. This is my first year teaching Buddhism and I am looking for ways to improve my lessons constantly. From one of my college courses on worlld religion, I read "Living Buddha, Living Christ" by the monk Thich Nhat Hanh which details the similarities between Christianity and Buddhism. For next year, I'm thinking about combining all the world religions in 6th grade history standards so that the students can compare and contrast all of them. 

[Amy Chen]

Monday's lecture got rid of my misconception about Samurais. Growing up with Hollywood, I was always under the impression that Samurais were the main soldiers who served their entire lives with extreme loyalty. I was completely unaware that this image of a Samurai used in blockbuster movies has many errors. The more historically accurate group is called Bushi. According to Professior's lecture, they are gentleman warriors who created the early elements of goverment. Whereas, saumurai are lower level civil servants who serve their masters. The uniforms that Bushi wear are more aristocrat like. 

[Amy Chen]

Professor Ye Yan gives a well rounded lecture on Cosmopolitan China. His experience with comparative literature brings an interesting viewpoint on the history of China. His assigned readings, such as Birch, brings Chinese poetry and philosophy a much needed focus. In CA’s current standards for 6th grade history, there is not much of an emphasis on humanities but more so on facts and social studies. I intent to add more poetry into my class in cross curricular units since I teach both English and History. Additionally, I enjoyed how Professor Yan placed art from the Gu Kaizhi next to a painting by Diego Velazquez so we can compare the similarities. Doing so is a great way to discuss history through the lens of art.

 

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