Teaching about Asian Pacific Americans.TEACHING ABOUT ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICANS By Edith Wen-Chu Omatsu and Glenn Chen Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2006 This collection contains a wealth of lesson plans and activities that can be used in classrooms or workshops. Editors Edith Wen-Chu Omatsu and Glenn Chen structure the lessons they've collected around a political identity of being Asian in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. , and their dedication to representing an Asian experience beyond the food and festivals is evident. Omatsu and Chen boldly include activities that directly speak to stereotypes, in which students discuss whether Asian characters in various scenarios are behaving in individualistic in·di·vid·u·al·ist n. 1. One that asserts individuality by independence of thought and action. 2. An advocate of individualism. in ways, and take a walking tour of a Chinatown in order to explicitly discuss the differences between it and surrounding sur·round tr.v. sur·round·ed, sur·round·ing, sur·rounds 1. To extend on all sides of simultaneously; encircle. 2. To enclose or confine on all sides so as to bar escape or outside communication. n. neighborhoods. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The chapter on "War, Colonialism colonialism Control by one power over a dependent area or people. The purposes of colonialism include economic exploitation of the colony's natural resources, creation of new markets for the colonizer, and extension of the colonizer's way of life beyond its national borders. and Imperialism imperialism, broadly, the extension of rule or influence by one government, nation, or society over another. Early Empires Evidence of the existence of empires dates back to the dawn of written history in Egypt and in Mesopotamia, where local " is particularly strong and covers the experiences of Japanese and Filipino Americans The following is a list of Filipino Americans who are famous, have made significant contributions to the American culture or society politically, artistically or scientifically, or have appeared in the news numerous times. during World War II and Asian and Muslim Americans in the post-9/11 era. The "Community Building" chapter encourages students to study the issues raised by Asian community members. Several of the activities engage with history and current media with a dynamism that is often lacking in classroom learning about "controversial" issues. This volume is strong in its versatility--teachers can easily adapt these lessons to different classroom levels, and few outside resources are required. Some of the lessons included would be a challenge in classrooms with few or no Asian students, but others would be especially useful in that light and provide ideas and language for non-Asian students to address the ways in which Asian identity is constructed. |
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