[Betsy Ures]

I am impressed with your lesson. I did my lesson on geography of China for 3rd graders, but I struggled with relating it to the 3rd grade standards about  local geography. Way to go!

[Betsy Ures]

I do too! It is one of the reasons I love in-person lectures and classes. I've had a hard time adjusting to Zoom classes as a teacher and a student.

I wonder too if the reason that Japanese history isn't documented much is because of the lack of written language until the time of Chinese influence? It reminds me of how a lot of Native American tribes have large amounts of undocumented history due to the high value of oral traditions.

[Betsy Ures]

I too am impressed, but I also think it is definitely happening in the United States, but on a different scale. Because China has control and ownership of all media, the government directly controls the flow of information. It is very transparent from the outside.  Here in the U.S. information is controlled by large media conglomorates, which funnels information in a way that affirms the markets and political status quo. That's why we have news channels with extreme bias, they are pushing a certain political perspective based on the beliefs of the people in power or people with wealth. The supression of information seems much more muddy here, and we do have some laws in place that protect our right to information.

It's interesting how two different countries with large populations have taken different economic and political paths, but in both there is suppression of information. 

[Betsy Ures]

I really felt moved by the poem as well. The role of identity and the way that is percieved is extemely formative. Students are experiencing trauma on multiple levels right now. I personally have felt raw and angry constantly this week, so allowing your students to express themselves will be critical. I feel hopeful that the current self-expression I've seen with protests will inspire meanigful change. Take Care Brigid.

[Betsy Ures]

As we are making historical comparisions between the Uyghur "education camps" and the concentration camps of the holocaust, I see a connection to the Manzanar concentration camp. The alleged purpose of detaining over 10,000 Japanese Americans in these camps was to control the behavior of a group of people while at war with Japan. The decision to choose national security over the freedoms and rights of Japanese Americans was made. This is important to use as a lesson that war crimes are not something that happen only in Germany and China, but also in the recent history of the United States. To make even more of a recent connection, the United States apprhended and detained over 800,000 immigrants and held them against their will. How can we bridge the connection for our students that the Chinese mistreatment of the Uyghur people? We can do research on various human rights infringements of governments and make connections to the modern era. 

[Betsy Ures]

I found the story titled "The Spirit of the King of the Three Mountain Tells Everything" to be very intriguing. The use of religious beliefs and spirituality to manipulate people to admit the truth in researching the missing person report was so familiar. When I read how the magistrate told the father how the Spirit had exposed the truth, the father admitted to selling his daughter off to remarry. It's similar to how law enforcement uses manipulation in interrogation during an investigaton. The belief in sprits and buddhas was used against people according to the casebook. Students may find this story interesting and informative of the social norms of the Qing Dynasty.

[Betsy Ures]

Your lesson sounds like an excellent opportunity to bring in engineering to the study of history. Students would have to read about the Song Dynasty's use of water and maybe even compare to other civilizations' prior to designing a water system to replace ours. Using human need as a motivator will be critical to a deeper understanding of the challenges the Song Dynasty faced.

[Betsy Ures]

I think you're on to something with this lesson. I have found that students engage deeply with a text and sources when they are seeking social guidelines to analyze. 

[Betsy Ures]

Reading about the Penal Servitude in Qin law reminded me of the Hammurabi Code. Punishments were harsh and relevant to the crime. When I taught middle school history, the students enjoyed studying the Hammurabi Code and comparing to the American system. I know they would find this topic interesting in comparing and contrasting with the Hammurabi Code nd the American Penal system. They would enjoy looking through the perspective of justice to determine whether punishments were too harsh or rightful based on their values and world views.

[Betsy Ures]

As I am reflecting on the way the virus has affected China and now the United states, it seems appropriate to draw comparisions. China was able to support their residents to stay home using their governmental authority and deliver supplies to sick or quarantining residents. How have these actions been able to save their citizens? I think of this now as we are past 100,000 deaths in America and our governement is slowly reopening, while not providing medical support to its citizens.

I've seen and heard a lot of criticism of the Chinese government from American Media (and government) , but there are some key aspects to their eventual strategy for reducing the virus' impact. Our own American history is being erased with the deaths of 100,000 people. I'm grateful that I took this course during this moment. 

[Betsy Ures]

It was interesting to read about the development of cities in Korea. The two functions of developing cities were administrative and commercial and there is still evidence of that today in cities. The temporary use of streets and alleys for commercial use and for communal activities is so innovative and should be implemented more in urban cities where space is limited and cars are a burden. I love hearing about how Korean city planners used cul-de-sacs as well as in other places. I learned that golmok means alleyway and are between residential homes and is often used as a communal space. It's unfornate that these spaces are being threatened with new development.

[Betsy Ures]

I also loved the way he used visuals to guide his teaching. It is a useful approach that could also be effective in working with English Learners. In elementary we are using constructive conversations to help students make observations and claims based on visuals. This would be helpful for studying artifacts in order to make inferences about Japanes culture.

I love your idea of incorporating history into CGI. We are always looking to increase connections from math to other subjects at my school.

[Betsy Ures]

I love your idea about comparing the experiences of the two families as examples of class awareness. It would also be beneficial to examine the title of the film and how it can be interpreted. Many students may feel that the poor family is considered parastic, while others (including myself) see the wealthy family as the parasite. The classroom discussion would be very interesting with high schoolers. It could be interesting to see how the students justify their opinions.

[Betsy Ures]

I also love using art to create a deeper understanding of a topic. I found some poetry from a detained Uyghur poet: "Tarim" . It might be helpful to you as it was for me.

I Believe (我相信)

I believe
They say there are two “cannot-leaves”*
The Han Chinese can’t leave the minorities
The minorities can’t leave the Han
What a lovely slogan
What honeyed poetry

I believe
When the hotel refuses me
And I sleep in February 7 Square
The earth and the sky are the same
The stars are just as gorgeous
That fruit has no race

I believe
I speak good Chinese
In Chinese I clearly explain to the police
That I am Chinese
I believe that the hotel refusing Uyghurs
Has nothing to do with whether I speak Chinese

I believe
I can’t leave the police
I can’t leave my ID
I can’t leave Xinjiang
My papers are worth
More than myself
Facing me, nothing
Is prouder than my papers

They believe
More than I
That I’m Uyghur

—Zhengzhou, Henan, April 2013 [Chinese]

[Betsy Ures]

Many things stuck with me about what Dr. Nurnisa Kurban shared about her experiences. One that I have been thinking about is the treatment of Uyghur people traveling inside and outside the country. She shared that her traveling documents include a label of Uyghur and it greatly restricted her treatment in traveling and upon arrival to China. As I am thinking about the racist structures that exist in the United States, it is critical that we continue to analyze the ways that groups of people have been forced to live under increased scrutiny. At times I wish I taught middle school or high school in order to have more complex discussions on types of injustices. However, even with elementary students, we can use the subject of social students to start conversations about creating fair and empowering systems for all. Looking to less "mainstream" sources will be essential for preparing students to be well informed. 

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