[Josephine Tambunan]

I have always admired the Japanese culture. As a Type A personality and borderline OCD, Japan is the ultimate haven for order, structure and precision. All of my encounters with anything Japanese have demonstrated precision and great attention to detail. Everything and anything they do, even down to “Spring Cleaning” they do with great detail, care and attention.

It was interesting to learn how modern Japan became this highly structured and orderly country. The Tokugawa order was so organized and regulated that brothels had a hierarchy. The level of order was to the extreme, to the point where warriors had to apply and register to be allowed to carry out a vendetta, and if the warriors could not complete the vendetta, they had to be released by the magistrates. Although the desire for the older ways before the Tokugawa controlled society was present, the people followed the order, and that orderly system is still seen today in modern Japanese culture.

[Josephine Tambunan]

The short excerpt of When My Name Was Keoko illustrates what happens when culture, country and identity are threatened by another. The story shares how Sun-hee, her family and the rest of the Korean population had to change their Korean names and take Japanese names. The excerpt also included the true life event of the Korean Olympian who won the marathon under the Japanese flag and name. Sun-hee’s uncle was outraged by the fact that the marathon runner was acknowledged by his forced Japanese name.

Many countries have similar histories where a group of people are robbed of their identity by an invading group of outsiders, unwanted guests, or by a government that simply does not recognize individuals due to their immigration status/history. What really resonated are not the social oppressors themselves, but the bystanders. The whole world and the Olympic association either was not aware or accepted the fact that the marathon runner was acknowledged by his oppressor’s name, not his own, completely erasing the Korean name and culture. Sun-hee’s friend also exemplifies the many bystanders in events of oppression. Tomo, who is Japanese, doesn’t understand the need for a name change and is also frustrated by having to adjust to everyone’s new name. Yet the only thing he can do or say is how “It’s such a nuisance.” Sun-hee recognized that it is his way of apologizing for the name change. Many people do not question or wonder why such laws that threaten another culture and identity are implemented, and if they do, they are not equipped or feel unequipped to do anything about it. This story is so relevant with current events with the vote of ending DACA and moves to remove a group of people who have identified as Americans, but not recognized as such.

I am captivated by this story. I plan on buying the book to learn more about the Japanese invasion of Korea through the eyes of the oppressed.  

[Josephine Tambunan]

I know very little about the East Asian history, and as a person who identifies as an Asian American (Southeast Asian to be specific), I am a bit embarrassed to admit how little I know about the Asian history and culture. I am excited to learn about China, Korea and Japan, and see connections and similarities between these countries, and how their history cross paths with the Indonesian history.

 

The presentation on demography and geography of the different Asian countries was enlightening. I never realized how large China and Japan are. I have always thought (and the maps I’ve seen) that Japan was relatively small compared to the United States. It may be the American egocentric thinking, but the US always seemed large in size compared to other countries. The images with the countries superimposed on the United States map gave a great comparison of size (of the geographical space) and population. I’ve always known that China has a large population, but seeing how many different countries make up the population of China gave me a different and clearer perspective.

 

As a science teacher, I knew that it would be more difficult to find ways to incorporate what we are learning in these sessions in my lessons. However, this particular lesson on geography hits one of the crosscutting concepts of the Next Generations Science Standards (NGSS). With NGSS rolling out in the next following school year, I am trying to find ways to hit the seven different crosscutting concepts in all the lessons and activities. One of the concept is scale, proportion, and quantity. Students must recognize what is relevant at different measures of size, time and energy, and recognize how changes in scale, proportion, or quantity affect a system’s structure or performance. Scale and proportion is a concept my students constantly struggle with. Providing superimposed visuals would give my students a greater understanding of this concept, and, hopefully, they would refer to it throughout their learning. I would use the China/Japan superimposed on the US map as an example to teach this particular concept.

[Josephine Tambunan]

Hello. My name is Josephine Tambunan, but I go by Josie. I teach at Nava College Preparatory Academy pilot school on the Jefferson High School Campus. I currently teach 11th grade Chemistry and Leadership. This is my 8th year teaching, 4th year with NCPA.

 

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