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These 20 inquiry exercises bridge the "understanding gap" between elementary school students' impressions and the reality of China. The exercises involve students in developing relevant understandings about China and the world, as well as in extending their skills in social studies and social education. Arranged alphabetically by title, the exercises include initiatory, developmental, and culminating inquiry into the affective and cognitive domains of learning. In all of the exercises, a possible instructional use is identified, teaching techniques and devices are described, and, when appropriate, teacher comments are also suggested. Students are asked to find the answer to a researchable question. For instance: one exercise involves determining China's place in the world by counting references to China from sources such as newspapers and recording the information in comparison with that for other countries. Students then construct a mental map of the world. Another exercise involves the identification of attitudes toward China through role playing. (Author/JH)

An integrated curriculum allows children's learning in all traditional subject areas to occur primarily through projects that the teachers plan and that reflect children's interests. This paper presents a curriculum web on Chinese festivals, specifically, the Chinese New Year, for kindergarten and first grade levels. The paper first presents a teacher brainstorm of a curriculum web on celebrating Chinese festivals, and then presents the thematic web for the subtopic Chinese New Year, which includes the origin of the festival, things people do, special activities, foods people eat, clothing, greetings, and the animal of the year from the Chinese zodiac. Next, the paper lists the curriculum subject areas and learning activities for the New Year subtopic: reading-listening-speaking; writing; math; science; art; social studies; music; and movement. Key events for the unit are then listed, including book making, field trips, dragon making, dragon parade, display center, and party. A student evaluation checklist for each of the subject areas is included. Two appendices contain a story map and a description of the origins of the Chinese New Year and its customs. (HTH)

Is the United States getting it wrong when it comes to educating tomorrow's innovators in critical fields? It has been known for years that the only way to compete globally in information technology, engineering, nanotechnology, robotics and other fields is to give students the best educational opportunities possible. But do individuals have a successful formula when it comes to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education? In this report, the authors challenge the nation's approach to STEM education and argue that reforms are urgently needed to better match the talents of students, the needs of employers, and its goals. (Contains 19 tables, 42 figures, and 623 endnotes.) [Funding for this paper was provided by the Intel Corporation. For "Refueling the U.S. Innovation Economy: Fresh Approaches to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education. Executive Summary," see ED521736.]

This paper identifies some problems Chinese universities have when they offer English literature as a compulsory course to advanced level English majors. One constructive approach is discussed, and some suggestions on improving literature teaching are put forward.

Located at a meeting place between the West and the East, Hong Kong has been chosen in this comparative investigation to reconfirm a theoretical model of "reciprocal relationship" between mathematics achievement and self-concept using the 8th grade databases from TIMSS and TIMSS-R. During the time between these two projects, Hong Kong experienced a political transition in 1997 to switch from a British colony to a special administrative region (SAR) of China. Pertinent indicators have been selected to reflect key educational changes during the sovereignty handover. Results from this large-scale data analysis may not only help generalize the reciprocal model in a different culture setting, but also facilitate assessment of educational adjustment brought by the political transition. (Contains 4 tables, 1 figure, and 3 notes.)

In this lesson, designed to be taught within a unit on China, primary-grade students will learn about the history of papermaking and its origins in China and even learn how to make their own paper. After learning about Chinese art and culture in the lesson, students will write their own "cinquain" poem about China. The lesson presents an overview; suggests length and grade levels; lists subjects and subtopics; cites intelligences being addressed and dimensions of learning; notes materials needed and teacher resources; and discusses National Standards for Arts Education and other standards. It then cites instructional objectives; lists strategies; and provides a detailed, step-by-step instructional plan for the teacher to follow in the classroom. The lesson also suggests assessment and extension activities. A papermaking and poetry rubric is attached. (NKA)

This unit of study focuses on belief systems from China. It is crucial that students understand there are different ways of viewing the world, all of which may be valid. The 20 lessons in the unit stem from the presumptions that place students in the role of "historian" for the duration of these China studies. The unit is divided into the following sections: "A Note to the Teacher"; "Standards Addressed in This Unit"; "Resources"; "Literacy Connections"; "Historian Tips"; "Essential Questions for Inquiry"; "Document Based Questions"; "Lesson Plans"; and "Resource Packet." The unit contains the following lessons: "Historian Tip 1: What Is a Historian?"; "Historian Tip 2: What We Already Know about China"; "Historian Tip 3: Where Is China?"; "Historian Tip 4: Maps of China";"Historian Tip 5: The Daily Lives of the Ancient Chinese"; "Historian Tip 6: The Chinese Zodiac"; "Historian Tip 7: Oracle Bones"; "Historian Tip 8: The Chinese Writing System"; "Historian Tip 9: Chinese Paper Making"; "Historian Tip 10: Confucian Sayings"; "Historian Tip 11: Chinese Folktales and Confucius"; "Historian Tip 12: Confucian Relationships"; "Historian Tip 13: The Life of Buddha"; "Historian Tip 14: The Four Noble Truths and the Eight Fold Path"; "Historian Tip 15: Karma"; "Historian Tip 16: The Silk Route"; "Historian Tip 17: Daoism"; "Historian Tip 18: Legalism"; "Historian Tip 19: School Rules in 1315 and Today"; and "Historian Tip 20: Gender Stereotypes, China in the 1300s and the U.S. Today." (BT)

The text of a workshop lecture and demonstration focus on the use of instructional materials to enhance the communicative competence of students of English as a Second Language in China. The text of the presentation addresses, in question-and-answer form, seven issues: (1) the varied teaching techniques of teachers in different cultural contexts (in this case, Hungary and Japan); (2) why English should be taught for communication; (3) the nature of communication within and across cultures; (4) the primary goal in teaching students to communicate in English; (5) how teachers can emphasize certain skills to facilitate communication; (6) the kinds of materials useful in teaching communication in English; and (7) how non-native ESL teachers can design communicative language lessons. A lesson is then presented that has workshop participants act as ESL beginners. Materials and classroom procedures are suggested for a lesson on a visit to New York City and a reading lesson. A lesson plan for a workshop activity involving the participants as teachers is also included. Contains 14 references. (MSE)

A National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant funded a study to establish an International Humanities Curriculum that would serve as a model of curricular internationalization upon which interested observers might draw for revision of their own curricula. This curriculum revision project introduced the study of texts, ideas, themes, and issues from China and Japan into the literature curriculum of Robert Morris College. China and Japan seemed obvious choices for enhancing the international dimension of the humanities curriculum at that college. China, which is both the oldest and the largest country in the world promises to exert a major economic and cultural influence upon global affairs in the future, and since rebounding from World War II Japan has become a model of industrial efficiency and success. Goals for this business-focused curriculum included (1) enabling students to gain a deeper understanding of the human experience as it has been lived in two major world cultures; and (2) building a valuable foundation of contextual knowledge for making sense of professional practices, strategies, issues, and obstacles that students will face on an international scale as workers and leaders in business and industry. The study and the interdisciplinary collaboration which was essential to its implementation led to the conclusion that curricular internationalization provides valuable common ground between disciplines traditionally indifferent or hostile towards each other. Participants further concluded that forging meaningful interdisciplinary partnerships not only requires rethinking traditional notions of disciplinary borders, but also requires learning to cross those borders. (Four tables are included.) (SAM)

The eighth in a series of nine career education guides contains six unit plans for grades 7-9. In general each unit presents goals, objectives, measuring devices, activities, instructional materials or resources, careers appropriate to the unit, a multimedia bibliography, and a unit evaluation form for teachers. Part one is a science unit which deals with careers related to nuclear energy. Part two is a mathematics unit which covers probability and statistics for everyday living, and their relationship to various career clusters. Part three is a language arts and communication unit which deals with advertising. Part four is social studies unit which covers career motives. Part five is a life and career arts unit on printing which contains the following mini-course packets: relief printing on paper and fabrics, ceramics printing, imprinted foods, tie-dyeing, and industrial and graphic arts. Part six is a social studies unit on the People's Republic of China. (JR)

This guide, part 1 of a two-part publication, contains resource units on Chinese history and culture which can be used with 9th-grade students. The materials and activities, gathered by American secondary-school teachers who visited China in 1973, are intended to provide a pattern for an elective course or supplementary material for regular social studies courses. Suggested teaching techniques include readings, classroom discussion, media, research, and class reports. The resource units teach the following topics: Three Views of the Recent History of China: The Maoist View, an American (Non-Maoist View), and the Nationalist View; Chinese Revolutionary Art--The Message through the Chinese Picture-Books; The Message through Chinese Paper Cuts; The Message through Revolutionary Opera; The Message through Revolutionary Songs; and The Message through Propaganda Posters. Teacher background material, student objectives, teaching methods, discussion questions, and classroom materials are provided for each unit. Additional print and media resource materials are cited. (Author/RM)

Explores three problems emerging since transfer of Canadian English as second language teaching method to People's Republic of China: (1) assumption that teaching methodologies are exportable and acceptable in same way as modern technology, (2) lack of clarity between scientific and educational theories, and (3) assumption that these teaching methodologies are value-free, and thus, applicable to all teaching situations. (SL)