For more on my teaching, connect with me on Twitter: @ShaneMarkowitz The East Asia region is a dynamic one that can help draw out central themes of world and human geography in the areas of population demographics, urbanization, political patterns, cultural patterns, economic development, and environmental issues.
This set of lessons (prepared for my 11th and 12th grade high school World Geography, Human Geography, and International Relations courses) engages with some of these themes through a variety of select case studies that focus on China and Japan. The packet can consequently serve to supplement, through specific activities and assignments, a more comprehensive examination of the region.
In addition to texts and video resources from reputable media organizations and accompanying worksheets, the packet also includes active and experiential learning-oriented activities (e.g. political cartoons, storyboards, memes, song writing, debates, editorial writing, problem solving design/planning) and space for ethical reflection (e.g. is it ethical to purchase goods made in China in light of the plight of the Uyghurs/Tibet/Hong Kong) and critical thinking (e.g. comparison of social credit in China to forms of credit in the West).
Table of Contents
China: Unnatural selection (One/Two-Child Policy)
Big data meets Big Brother as China moves to rate its citizens (Social Credit/Surveillance/Control)
A tale of two political systems (Chinese political system)
Tokyo
The packet can all be found here. The lesson plans for the social credit system, the plight of the Uyghurs, and the Belt and Road Initiative have been fully elaborated on (with suggestions for warm-up and post-assignment activities) and explained elsewhere on the blog. For more on my teaching, connect with me on Twitter: @ShaneMarkowitz
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