[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I wonder if a simulation would help students understand the difference.  

1.  Half the students begin with  a few coins.  Each "day" or round of the game they complete a simple puzzle to earn their daily coins. This represents the economy.  Say 10 students "earning" 1 coin apiece.  Total economic production would be the total number of coins earned.

2. Then the other students join the group, representing population growth. Now the puzzles are more difficult, but all students still complete them to earn their coins. The total number of coins being earned in higher, but the coins per person are no different.

I think a struggle for students will be how population growth intersects with a limit of resources. What happens when there isn't enough land, or water, to grow food for a growing population? Will technological innovations just keep up? Will people fall further into poverty?

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

The comparison of GDP between the US, Europe, India and China in 1800 helps students understand what  tremendous global change  was brought by the Industrial Revolution. It also helps us understand why China was slower to industrialize, as production was already very high.  We focus a lot on why the IR began in England, as opposed to India or China, and this starting statistic helps set the stage for the major economic shift.  I also encourage students to speculate WHY China's output was greater, besided just the higher population. We look at cultural attitudes, seasonal weather patterns, agrigultural output, etc. 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I'm not sure about how to use population shift information in my world history class, but my Senior English class has been looking at college demographics.  This article from the Atlantic speaks about the gap between genders in college attendance and the possible problems that will arise.  They have already had world and US history and we have been discussing what happens in a society with an overpopulation of disconnected men.   https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/09/young-men-college-decline-gender-gap-higher-education/620066/

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

My 10th grade world history students start with a journey around the medieval world - looking at what civilizations, trade routes, technology, etc. existed and interacted.  We just finished the early Americas, and students were very interested in Incan aquaducts, and how the Mayan civilization was devastated by drought.  Although here in western Washington we aren't having water shortages yet, just across the mountains the farms of central and eastern WA are constantly in need of water from the river systems, often competing with salmon runs, hydroelectric needs, and golf courses! I think adding a water component to each unit could be an interesting way of comparing civilizations based on a common need.  

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

Hi! I'm Jennifer Macchiarella. I teach a combined 10th grade World History (1200-present) and World Literature course at Eastlake High School.  

My favorite part about teaching is how the same lesson produces different reactions and different discussions every year. Students are never boring!

I have never been to Asia and my college coursework didn't offer much. I feel I need more background to present a solid course to my students.  

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I appreciate Mr. Dube’s focus on open and closed societies.  I teach a world history course that begins with the Industrial Revolution and the documents discussed in the class will improve our “what the world looked like in the 1700s” introduction.  Looking at what causes a country to open or close – to trade, to religious missionaries, to cultural ideals – will help students draw useful comparisons across Asia and the rest of the world.  As it stands now our course is mostly Eurocentric until we get to the 20^th century.  I look forward to integrating the letter from the Chinese emperor to King George III and the information about the very successful Japanese attempts to protect their culture from European influence. Students will understand that Asia, and not Europe, was the center of production and even trade before the Industrial Revolution.

I also appreciated the approach of looking at Asia as a region, and not just as disconnected countries. While our current curriculum looks at Europe as a region, and Africa is broken up by geography, Asia tends to have “the Japan unit” or “let’s look at China.”  I appreciated gaining a better understanding of the trade, cultural, and religious interconnectedness of the region. I think this approach will also help our students “get a sense” of the world throughout history. 

My favorite and most useful part of the class was access to documents – historic records, letters, pictures of art work, and ideas of how to incorporate them into our classes. As a teacher I spend so much time developing curriculum that any word done by others is extremely helpful.  I look forward to the next course.

 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

As President Biden continues his support of Amtrak, and infrastructure in general, I find looking at the tranportaton opportunities and priorities in other countries useful.  While the vast size and geography of the US make cross country plane travel more appealing, China is a large country with difficult terrain.  Their train system can serve as a model for the US.  Any improvements we make in the availability of energy efficient public transporation will help the economy and the environment. Here in Seattle we deal with ferries across Puget Sound and a slow-growing light rail that we could have used 30 years ago.  In 2024 we will be able to take light rail from Redmond (home of Microsoft) to downtown and the airport.  While I don't want a communist government, the ability to more efficently direct resources is something I admire. 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I also found it interesting how the capital changed location with each new dynastry. I don't recall anything similar in European history. Rome was Rome and all roads led there, no matter who was emperor.  In Washington, we learn about how a group of determined civic leaders had an election, possibly fraudulent, and moved the county seat of Snohomish country from Snohomish to  Everett, where it is today.  I think my students would like to compare this to the current debate about DC statehood.  What is the importance of a capital? Why does it need to be separate from the states? Does it have to be separate? How has the history of those living within its boundaries shaped the attitudes of those who support and oppose DC statehood?

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I too enjoyed the shirt with exam answers, and I found the Princeton encylopedia article enlighting in two ways, First, it was clear that the examinations were on classical materials, and not necessary specific skills or knowledge needed for the job.  Was there a math section? Did students have to demonstrate knowledge of current laws and regulations?  Demonstrate the ability to interact with the public?  While I support a liberal arts education that is tied to thinking skills, logic, general knowledge, and writing, I wonder what kind of on the job training was required for those in the civil service.  Second, I find the idea of the "eight-legged" essay similar to the five paragraph essay we teach in early writing classes.  While I don't ask my students to write poetically or require a certain number of syllables or lines, it is a somewhat rigid structure that we try to move beyond.  I wonder how much of this writing style is still present in Chinese education. My students from China are usually very good and logically organizing information but style and creativity are lacking, even when they are comfortable with academic English.  Our standardized tests often include an essay prompt about writing to the school board, or convincing parents of something, and making up answers on the spot is often difficult for them. 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

While I agree that it doesn't matter if Marco Polo went to China, the debate is fascinating.  My students take Marco Polo as fact (and consider him the founder of the most annoying swimming game ever) but I think reading his descriptions as travel fiction could be an interesting way to combine history with literature. My classes are blocked LA/SS together, and this could a combined lesson. What elements do we know must be exaggerated or invented?  What rings true based on other sources?  Where are his European sensibilities clouding his interpretation of what he saw  or was told about?  How do we as humans deal with cultures that seem completely unknown?  I also like science fiction as a comparison for this. Science fiction challenges us to look at what it means to be human. What assumptions about do Klingons have about honor? How are those different than ours?  If we examine China not as an "exotic" destination but as a large, well functioning civilization that was in many ways more advanced than Europe, can we look at our own culture more critically?

While the comparison to Shakespeare is an obvious choice, I'm tempted to compare it to the historic? Jesus. Probably not a good idea in a public school.

 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

Both the description of the Yangzhou massacre and the casebook once again highlight the reality of women throughout history.  First, women are carried off as spoils of war, or simply assaulted in the street during battle.  The husband knew what might happen to his wife, and encouraged her to commit suicide if the soldiers got to close.  In the casebook, the man is upset because he didn't just sell his younger daughter in the first place.  Women are drugged and then raped.  Women are commodities to be used and dismissed.  The casualness, especially of the man selling his daughter, is especially disturbing.  We spend a lot of time in history trying to share womens' stories and not just center mens' experiences, but these two documents highlight the reality for many.  

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

My students will LOVE reading the letter from Emperor Quianlong.  As we try to combat a Eurocentric world history curriculum, anything that shows another perspective is welcome.  Phrases like "parktake the benefits of our civilisation" and "have no use your for country's manufactures" demonstrate that the European way of being wasn't universally accepted.  The idea that the Chinese accepted silver in trade for silk, tea and porcelein because they didn't really want any European goods will be an excellent discussion starter.  This letter also sets up our lessons on the Opium War.  Having heard about the dangers of drugs since birth, my students find the idea of Europeans forcing open trade with opium both sad and hilarious.  

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I found the readings and lecture about the introduction of Buddhism to Japan extrememly interesting, especially the discussion of how many people can follow both Buddhism and Shinto.  When we teach European history, the differences between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism seem very stark, as do the divisions with Islam and Christianity.  The idea that separation between religious belief doesn't have to be so defined will be interesting to my students.  My class doesn't "start" until the Industrial Revolution, so I will rexamine the readings and look for ideas about modern Japanese religious practice that I can use with my students. 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I agree that diversifying the curriculum is important.  In the English department we are trying to introduce more literature that reflects our growning Asian student population. We want all students to see themselves in the literature.  From this class I have been especially appreciative of ideas of how to incorporate art and poetry into the curriculum.  Our history textbooks have a lot of pictures of Greek and Roman art, but not much from China or Japan.  We practice reading pictures as texts, and many of these examples will be useful.

 

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

My favorite line from the reading about courtly tastes: "Although life’s uncertainties would remain a persistent theme in Japanese literature, corpses were avoided as the subject of poetry."  While I am not an expert in poetry,  I don't think corpses are a common theme in poetry at all. That being said, I found the acknowledgement of the uncertainties of life a useful theme for teaching. I teach a blocked English/history class and every we tweak the themes we focus on across genres and history. Those that cross, like this one, are especially valuable in helping students see commonalities across the human experience.  I image students examining, over the entire year, how industry, politics, and governance are influenced by the uncertainties of life. How diseases and child mortality rates change and how that affects people's attitudes. How characters, from Macbeth to Persepolis, face mortality.  

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