From June 24 to June 27, 2024, educators from diverse backgrounds and regions participated in the virtual East Asia Summer Institute for Middle School Teachers, hosted by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) in collaboration with the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA). Designed specifically for middle school teachers, this year’s institute provided an overview of East Asian geography, cultures, religions, history, literature, and arts, as well as an introduction to the Asian diaspora in the United States and the diversity of the Asian American experience.

The four-day institute featured daily synchronous sessions with lectures from distinguished guest speakers, curriculum demonstrations from SPICE staff, and small group discussions, all designed to deepen participants’ understanding of East Asia and the Asian American experience, equip them with valuable instructional materials, and foster a community of learners committed to integrating Asian and Asian American studies into their curricula. Throughout the institute, participants also completed pre-assigned readings, shared resources, and contributed to collaborative discussions.

The agenda for each day featured insightful presentations as well as hands-on activities. The first day focused on the Silk Road and featured a guest lecture from Dr. Clayton Dube of the University of Southern California and a curriculum demonstration on the Silk Road by SPICE’s Naomi Funahashi and Rylan Sekiguchi.

The second day focused on religions and philosophies of East Asia, with a presentation by Dr. Julia Cross from Stanford University, followed by a curriculum demonstration of the SPICE curriculum unit Religions and Philosophies in China: Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism by SPICE’s Jonas Edman.

On the third day, attendees delved into Japan during the feudal period, starting with a lecture on Tokugawa Japan by Dr. Ethan Segal of Michigan State University. Karen Tiegel, Middle School Division Head at The Nueva School, then led a curriculum demonstration on the SPICE curriculum unit, Japanese Art in the Edo Period, which was followed by a group discussion.

The final day, titled “Asian Voices and Asian American Experiences,” featured a panel of authors—SPICE’s Waka T. Brown, Van Hoang, and Takami Nieda—who shared their perspectives on Asian and Asian American narratives and identities. The day concluded with a SPICE resource-sharing session, covering curricular titles such as Angel Island, Chinese American Voices, and the Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project.

At the end of the institute, each participant developed and shared an original lesson plan inspired by the knowledge and resources gained throughout the seminar.

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SPICE’s collaboration with the NCTA is one of several teacher professional development seminars that SPICE offers. 

The fourth year of the Stanford/SPICE East Asia Seminars for Teachers in Hawaiʻi (“Stanford SEAS Hawai‘i”) culminated in a stimulating three-day in-person summer institute that took place from July 10th to July 12th at the East-West Center. This year’s cohort included 20 public and private high school teachers—Stanford/Freeman SEAS Hawai‘i Fellows—from across Hawai‘i.

The institute began with welcoming comments from Dr. Mary Hattori, Director of the Pacific Islands Development Program, East-West Center. In her comments, Hattori also extended greetings from the East-West Center President Suzanne Vares-Lum. Each day focused primarily on a specific East Asian country (China, Japan, and Korea) and the Fellows explored key historical events and themes through lectures by professors at the University of Hawai‘i and local community leaders. Coupled with the content knowledge from the lectures, SPICE staff introduced SPICE curricula and resources on East Asia so that teachers can readily incorporate the content knowledge in their classroom teaching in engaging and varied ways. This year’s summer institute also included the history of East Asian and Southeast Asian migration to Hawai‘i.

Below are the names of the 2024 Stanford/Freeman SEAS Hawai‘i Fellows:

Jody K. Africa Aguilar, Maui High School (Maui)
Haunani Akina, Kaʻu High and Pahala Elementary School (Hawai‘i)
Joshua Cawley, Island School (Kaua‘i)
Jodie Chock, Kalāheo High School (O‘ahu)
Julyne Clarke, St. Joseph High School (Hawai‘i)
Rachael Denessen, Kamehameha Schools Maui (Maui)
Pinochio Dulig, Kaʻu High and Pahala Elementary School (Hawai‘i)
Pinky Grace Francisco, Kaʻu High and Pahala Elementary School (Hawai‘i)
Scott Gruzinsky, Leilehua High School (O‘ahu)
Karina Hernandez, Konawaena High School (Hawai‘i)
Michael Ida, Kalani High School (O‘ahu)
Gloria Ilagan, Kealakehe High School (Hawai‘i)
Sarah Kalawe, Hilo High School (Hawai‘i)
Johana Kamelamela, Keaʻau High School (Hawai‘i)
Dorothy Morris-Ross, Leilehua High School (O‘ahu)
Kealii Mossman, Kamehameha Schools Maui (Maui)
Daniella O’Malley, Island School (Kaua‘i)
Athena Tsakos, Kealakehe High School (Hawai‘i)
Patricia Tupinio, Leilehua High School (O‘ahu)
Carl (David) Wright, Jr., Kapolei High School (O‘ahu)

Multiple perspectives and awareness of biases

The themes of “multiple perspectives” and “awareness of biases” in studying history and analyzing historical sources featured strongly during the summer institute. The Fellows had a chance to hear from scholars and community leaders on the analyses of key historical events as well as detailed accounts of lesser-known histories of East Asian countries and their relations with the United States.

For example, on Day One, Professor Emeritus Ken Ito led teachers through “Two Stories from 1946: Survival and Atrocity” about ordinary Japanese citizens’ lived experiences after the U.S. atomic bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Through a presentation of the documentary film Removed by Force by local community leaders Carole Hayashino, Ryan Kawamoto, and William Kaneko, teachers also learned about a little-known chapter of local World War II history— the story of the 1,500 Americans of Japanese ancestry who were forcibly removed from their homes in Hawai‘i but not incarcerated. The Fellows were encouraged to consider layers of history and varying perspectives that may not have been featured prominently in history books, particularly through a curriculum demonstration led by Rylan Sekiguchi of the SPICE unit Divided Memories: Comparing History Textbooks. By analyzing textbooks from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the United States, teachers assessed the biases in presenting historical narratives and how to teach students to use critical thinking skills to analyze history and historical perspectives.

Day Two of the summer institute focused on Korea. The Fellows reviewed key episodes of 20th-century Korean history through a lecture by Professor Harrison Kim and explored Korean American identity and community from the perspective of Dr. Stephanie Han, who also shared many of her own personal experiences. Following the talks, teachers engaged in an interactive debate activity, which I led, during a curriculum demonstration of the SPICE unit Inter-Korean Relations, where they argued for or against the unification of North and South Korea based on their analysis of the economic merits. They also took a closer look at the lived experiences of a North Korean teenage refugee in South Korea through a graphic novel, which provides a glimpse into the processes and challenges of fleeing North Korea and settling in South Korea. In a reflective discussion, many teachers commented that some of their students, especially immigrant students, also experience similar challenges in their own schools and that they would be able to empathize with the North Korean teenage refugee’s struggles.

On Day Three, teachers delved deeply into U.S.–China relations spanning more than 100 years through a lecture by Professor Shana Brown, followed by an analysis of the history of East and Southeast Asian immigration to Hawai‘i—and the socio-economic status of diasporas from these countries in contemporary Hawai‘i—by Professor Emeritus Jonathan Okamura. The Fellows had a chance to reflect on the diverse groups of students in their classrooms and schools and the ways in which to teach them about the history of immigration to Hawai‘i. A curriculum demonstration on Chinese American history delivered by Jonas Edman provided an avenue for teachers to think about immigration further. Teachers also exchanged numerous teaching resources with one another, sharing best practices and their own experience of what worked well in the classroom.

History as a collection of lived experiences

Throughout the summer institute, teachers surveyed the richness of East Asian history through lived experiences of individuals, not only through key watershed events. They examined and reflected on the consequences of events in history and how they shaped the lives of ordinary people whom students seldom learn about in school. Many Fellows shared how they appreciated learning about these stories, facts, and narratives that are often omitted in American secondary school curricula or overshadowed by the master narrative in history books. Dr. Gary Mukai, Director of SPICE, recognized and lauded the Fellows as he reflected on each Fellow’s contribution to the institute during his closing remarks.

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The institute also included a reception. Special guests included Graeme Freeman (photo above), President of the Freeman Foundation, which generously supports Stanford SEAS Hawaiʻi. Graeme spoke about the Freeman Foundation’s mission of helping to enhance the teaching of East Asia through programs such as the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia and Stanford SEAS Hawaiʻi and expressed his gratitude to the Teacher Fellows for the tremendous impact their learning has on their students. Graeme was joined by Director of Operations and Programs Shereen Goto and Office Manager Robin Sato, both of the Freeman Foundation.

In the month following the institute’s conclusion, each Fellow created an original lesson plan that incorporates content that was introduced during Stanford SEAS Hawaiʻi. The SPICE staff awaits in anticipation of seeing how content from the seminar will reach hundreds of secondary school students throughout the Hawaiian Islands.

Rylan Sekiguchi, Manager of Stanford SEAS Hawaiʻi, and Sabrina Ishimatsu, SPICE Event Coordinator, organized the institute, which was facilitated by Sekiguchi. SPICE is grateful to East-West Center President Suzanne Vares-Lum for her continued support of Stanford SEAS Hawai‘i and SPICE’s efforts to support teachers throughout Hawai‘i.

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The year 2024 is a milestone year for Kawasaki City as the city celebrates its 100th anniversary. Mayor Norihiko Fukuda kindly shared the following comment about the Stanford e-Kawasaki Program on this special occasion. (Photo below: 100th Anniversary Commemorative Ceremony at MUZA Kawasaki Symphony Hall on July 1, 2024; photo courtesy City of Kawasaki.)

Stanford e-Kawasaki, jointly offered by Kawasaki City and the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) at Stanford University, aims to empower the youth in Kawasaki City to take on a new challenge towards their dreams and goals. Given that Kawasaki City’s remarkable growth has been driven by diversity and entrepreneurship, students in this course learn about these two important topics in depth. July 1, 2024, marks Kawasaki’s 100th anniversary, and I believe that diversity and entrepreneurship will continue to be the key to Kawasaki City’s further progress. It is my hope that Stanford e-Kawasaki will continue to equip students with knowledge and skills, and help them grow to become agents of change. I look forward to our continued cooperation with SPICE to achieve this goal.

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As reflected in Mayor Fukuda’s comment, Kawasaki City highly values diversity. The city’s logo uses the Chinese character for 川 or “kawa” (river) for 川崎 (Kawasaki), and it is colored in red, green, and blue, symbolizing the commitment of Kawasaki City to creating new values, opportunities, and possibilities by embracing diversity. 

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I have visited this vibrant city to see my relatives and friends who live there, but I never knew why Kawasaki places such an importance on diversity. This made me curious about the city’s history.

Kawasaki first became an important place in the 17th century as a station on the Tokaido route connecting Kyoto with Tokyo (then “Edo”) where people from near and far gathered. Later in 1924, Kawasaki City was born with a population of approximately 50,000. Although the city suffered extensive destruction during World War II due to heavy air raids by the U.S. military targeting industrial facilities, Kawasaki developed rapidly after the war as one of the major industrial cities in Japan, attracting people not only from across the country but also from overseas. Today, its population is over 1.55 million, making it Japan’s sixth most populous city. Its neighboring city, Tokyo, is the most populous. Kawasaki is also one of Japan’s most ethnically diverse cities. More than 50,000 foreign residents live in Kawasaki, making up 3.3 percent of the city’s population.

With people constantly coming from across and outside of Japan, it is not hard to imagine what Kawasaki has experienced in terms of both the benefits and challenges of diversity. I admire Mayor Fukuda’s commitment to valuing diversity as the city’s strength and his efforts to encourage young people in Kawasaki to learn about this core value. I feel honored to support this important mission through the Stanford e-Kawasaki Program. As I prepare for the sixth year of the program, I took another look at my students’ reflections from last year’s course. Two students noted the following:

When I wrote my thoughts on the discussion board, other students who had the same or opposite opinions gave me some comments. It was very rewarding for me because some comments had the power to change my opinion or make my thinking deeper.

I still remember the time we talked on the discussion board. We talked about many topics, and I can’t count how many times I was impressed and inspired by my friends. I enjoyed the moment every time.

Every year students surprise me with how willing they are to share their thoughts and listen to different opinions. Although conformity is often described as a central feature of Japanese society, I learned from e-Kawasaki students that they feel joy and excitement when they learn something new. As one of my colleagues, Mia Kimura, mentioned in her article on e-Hiroshima, students are hungry for diversity. Therefore, one of my goals in this program continues to be providing a space where students see each other as unique individuals and feel encouraged to express themselves. Like the logo of Kawasaki City, I look forward to what shades of color each student will bring to future courses, and how they will change as they influence and learn from each other.

Two other students described their feelings at the end of last year’s course as follows.

‘I feel in my heart / That it’s the start of something new.’ This is a line from the song ‘Start of Something New’ in High School Musical. I feel that I can unlock my potential thanks to this program!

Thanks to the Stanford e-Kawasaki program, I realized that the future is hopeful, and we are free to take on a challenge and achieve our dreams to make a better world!!!!!

I hope that Stanford e-Kawasaki will continue to help empower students who will build the next 100 years of Kawasaki City.

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On June 17, 2024, 29 Stanford e-Fukuoka students gathered at the American Center, a division of the U.S. Consulate in Fukuoka, to engage in a Q & A session with U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel. The Japanese high school students were curious: “What challenges did you face as Mayor of Chicago?” “Did you study abroad when you were a student?” “How can I find a job in international relations?” They also wanted to know more about the works of art that were, until recently, exhibited at his residence and at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo. 

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The 18 pieces of art were created by Japanese and Japanese American artists during their imprisonment in U.S. incarceration camps during World War II. The paintings (reproductions) are part of the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) collection and were exhibited as an acknowledgement of the past, a way of learning from our mistakes, and a means to build a more inclusive future. They were loaned to the U.S. Consulate in Fukuoka earlier this year, thanks to Chie Inuzuka, Director of the American Center. I had the opportunity to incorporate them into my Stanford e-Fukuoka course this past spring, for a lesson on U.S.–Japan relations through an art history lens. (Photo above courtesy U.S. Consulate Fukuoka.) 

Using digital images and outside resources, my students and I explored the artwork in our virtual classroom. For many, this was their first time to look at art closely and critically. It was refreshing to see them express themselves knowing that there was no right or wrong way to look at art and that there could be infinite interpretations of a given work. The paintings were a prompt to practice critical thinking and communications skills by sharing observations, asking questions, and exploring perspectives made by others. 

Upon arriving in Fukuoka, I worked with Inuzuka-san and contractors to install the exhibit in the atrium of ACROS Fukuoka (a cultural center and exhibition space in downtown Fukuoka City). On the exhibit’s opening day, each student selected a painting that resonated with them. They stepped out of their comfort zones and stepped into the shoes of the artists and the Japanese and Japanese American subjects of the paintings. Visitors paused to take a look at the artwork and listened to the impassioned high school students describing the works in English. The following are comments that my students shared with the public or made later during class. Their comments addressed themes of empathy, resilience, and gratitude and reflected the power of art in self-reflection and cross-cultural understanding. (Photo below courtesy Kasumi Yamashita.)

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Empathy

Many students were drawn to a painting by Henry Yuzuru Sugimoto (1900–90) titled “Fresh Air Break from Fresno to Jerome Camp.” In the foreground, military police point guns at men, women, and children en route to a concentration camp in rural Arkansas, nearly 2,000 miles away. Family members, young and old, step off the train to stretch in a fenced area along the tracks. A locomotive pulling a load of coal and passenger cars stands still, momentarily, in the background. The colors are sandy and somber.

“I was inspired by this painting. We see many children and adults resting while under the watch of the armed guards. I used to think that wartime conditions were different, but I realize that they were similar to ours: they exercised, played catch, and jumped rope just like us. Now, I feel closer to them more than ever because I can imagine their pain. Before seeing this picture, I thought that paintings by Japanese American artists only showed the tragedy of war. However, this picture changed my view. I think that wars limit possibilities, which is very sad. I'll continue studying Japanese American history because it is our history and it’s necessary to build better relationships between our two countries.”  —Aoi

“Seeing this painting, I felt that we must not forget that it is not only the people who fight, but the everyday people who are affected by war. There are many innocent people who are deprived of their freedoms and their lives. I think that I shouldn’t look away from these facts and should be thankful that we can live our daily lives in a safe environment.”  —Kano

Resilience

Students interpreted the artwork in many ways. Some reacted to the colors on an emotional level while others identified with the subjects of the paintings. Some explored underlying narratives while others questioned their assumptions and offered alternate readings. One student described how art leveraged a “soft power” and had the potential to move the public and influence the world.

In “Study,” Hisako Hibi (1907–1991) painted a young girl of four or five with a short bob and trimmed bangs. She rests her head on her arm, outstretched over a table, and grips a pencil with her other hand. Her eyebrows are slightly furrowed as she gazes upon a large, blank piece of paper. 

“At first, I wasn’t sure why I was interested in this picture. Now, I think there are two reasons for my interest. First, I feel that the girl in the painting looks like me. Her hair, her round face, and her expression when she is studying really looks like me! Second, I felt the importance of studying. Even in tough situations, we can always improve ourselves. I was impressed that her parents made her study in the camp.”  —Yuna

Tokio Ueyama (1889–1954) painted his wife gently leaning back on a folding chair. She is knitting and biding time. Her back faces a doorway to the outside where tar paper barracks of the Santa Anita Assembly Center stand in rows. Curtains, tied back, are all that separate her from the dusty ground and scorching heat. 

“I was surprised when I found out that even though the Japanese Americans in the camps lived hard lives, they found small joys and pleasures and found the hope to live. In other words, they lived their lives without losing their humanity. We can express our thoughts to people through art as well as through literature and music. Today, science and technology are popular, but I’m sure that ‘soft power’ such as art is an important tool to connect people all over the world.” —Nanako

“Looking at this picture, I imagine that this woman does not enjoy knitting. Is she trying to make something, or is she just keeping busy? I paid attention to the contrast between the outside scenery and the atmosphere inside the house. The woman’s facial expression shows that she doesn’t care about the sunny weather. I thought the painter of this picture wanted to express how the Japanese Americans lived their lives, without any big changes, and how they entertained themselves as much as they could.”  —Ayame

“This painting is not a scene from a home but from an American incarceration camp. The woman is knitting. It’s a scene that could be found anywhere, but it is interesting because the artist chose this one. Why was he trying to record this daily activity? Was he afraid that the routine would soon disappear? The more I look at this picture, the less I think I know what the artist was thinking.” —Niko 

The Power of Art

Stanford e-Fukuoka students experienced the transformative power of art. Taking the time to explore the 18 works of art in depth gave them space to understand and empathize with people in contexts very different from their own. It allowed them to acknowledge common ground in light of cultural differences and historical conflicts.

“I think art is a common language because it can teach us about a lot of things without using any words. We don’t learn about these things in school but students in Japan should know about this. I would like to tell my family and friends about learning about history through art.” —Mai

“Looking at the art in ACROS Fukuoka changed my view of art quite significantly. It made me think about the stories behind art pieces. Art is such a wonderful and powerful way of sending a message.”  —Tomoyuki

“These stories must be told to future generations. I want to tell my classmates and my family to imagine that time. This class was so important for me to learn about immigration history and about Japanese American people.” —Shunya

Gratitude

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Students found abstract concepts like “U.S.–Japan relations” easier to understand and more meaningful through an art history lens. The idea of diplomacy through culture and soft power broadened their understanding of the responsibilities of governments and the role of ambassadors. Stanford e-Fukuoka students sent letters to Ambassador Emanuel to thank him for his visit to Fukuoka and for encouraging them to make “new discoveries.” (Photo above courtesy U.S. Consulate Fukuoka.)

“Dear Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, thank you for sending the paintings to Fukuoka. This exhibition was very shocking to me, and I felt that we should learn about the history of Japanese Americans. The picture that impressed me most was of the child studying (“Study” by Hisako Hibi). It was very hard to imagine children younger than us studying diligently even though they probably didn’t understand the changes that were taking place in the world during the war. I think it’s important to understand what’s happening in the world. After all, we often don’t have the opportunity to learn about wartime history and about people’s lives from perspectives other than our own. There were a lot of new discoveries for me in this exhibition. Thank you very much!” —Sota

Stanford e-Fukuoka was launched in spring 2022 and is made possible through a partnership between Stanford University, the U.S. Consulate Fukuoka, and the Fukuoka Prefectural Government. I would like to extend my gratitude to the Honorable Seitaro Hattori (Governor, Fukuoka Prefecture), Akie Omagari (Deputy Governor, Fukuoka Prefecture), and Chie Inuzuka (Director, Fukuoka American Center) for their collaboration and support in making Stanford e-Fukuoka possible. Special thanks to Inuzuka-san for arranging my students to meet with Ambassador Emanuel. This course offers students throughout the prefecture with an opportunity to learn about U.S.–Japan relations, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and entrepreneurship. Stanford e-Fukuoka is one of SPICE’s local student programs in Japan.

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Applications are now open for the Fall 2024 session of the Stanford University Scholars Program for Japanese High School Students (also known as “Stanford e-Japan”). The course will run from the end of September 2024 through the end of February 2025, with an application deadline of August 11, 2024.

Stanford e-Japan
Fall 2024 session (September 2024 to February 2025)
Application period: June 26 to August 11, 2024

All applications must be submitted at https://spicestanford.smapply.io/prog/stanford_e-japan/ via the SurveyMonkey Apply platform. Applicants and recommenders will need to create a SurveyMonkey Apply account to proceed. Students who are interested in applying to the online course are encouraged to begin their applications early.

Accepted applicants will engage in an intensive study of U.S. society and culture and U.S.–Japan relations. Government officials, leading scholars, and experts from Stanford University and across the United States provide web-based lectures and engage students in live discussion sessions.

Stanford e-Japan is offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), Stanford University. Stanford e-Japan is generously supported by the Yanai Tadashi Foundation, Tokyo, Japan.

For more information about Stanford e-Japan, please visit stanfordejapan.org.

Stanford e-Japan is one of several online courses for high school students offered by SPICE, including the Reischauer Scholars Program, the China Scholars Program, the Sejong Korea Scholars Program, Stanford e-China, Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan, as well as numerous local student programs in Japan.

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The following is a guest article written by Snow Gai, a student from China studying at Waseda University in Japan. Snow enrolled in the SPICE/Stanford–Waseda Intensive Course on Diversity and Global Citizenship, which was organized by SPICE and Waseda’s School of Social Sciences and taught by Meiko Kotani. Students from China, Indonesia, Mongolia, and Japan brought diverse perspectives to the course.

At a time when governments, mass media, and dominant ethnic groups hold sway over the prevailing narrative of global society, local communities and minorities in various countries and regions are trying to fight for more space and freedom. This silent yet brutal competition extends from the realm of culture and history to the real-life living environment of society. In addition, this continuous evolution of historical narratives and power declarations is also an epochal and subversive reshaping of the public’s perception of the cultural diversity of mankind.

In the late winter and early spring, when the air was still a bit chilly, I was honoured to be selected, along with several other students from the School of Social Science, to participate in an intensive course on diversity and global citizenship, jointly organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences of Waseda University and the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education. The lectures on history and diversity provided by renowned professors from the two schools enriched and broadened our perspectives on history and our understanding of diversity.

Due to space constraints, I would like to present my gains and impressions by extracting two of the lessons that impressed me the most.

The opening lecture was given by the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Waseda University on the evolution of historical perspectives and peacebuilding. As a student who grew up in and was immersed in the Chinese educational environment, I am certain from my personal experience that the history of World War II in the Pacific region, and in particular the history of China’s “War of Resistance against Japan,” is one of the most important aspects of modern history education in China. However, not only in Japan but also in China, the interpretation of this history has been changing over time. Even without considering the historical context of East Asia, we can also observe that such dynamic changes in historical perspectives occur frequently across different countries and regions around the world. Behind these changes lies the role of history education in shaping collective memories and narratives, and in supporting the legitimacy of regimes—a factor that cannot be ignored. Facing up to these roles of historical narratives is crucial for promoting an independent and objective reading of history by individuals, for deepening understanding of the diversity of values and worldviews, and even for finding windows of dialogue between groups in conflict and for building peace between regions and peoples.

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Related to this somewhat abstract and theoretical content, and the lecture that resonated with me the most, was a brief history of East Asian immigration to North America, presented by Dr. Gary Mukai from Stanford, whose own family history made this different interpretation of ethnicity and history particularly meaningful. As one of the most silent and humble peoples in North America, East Asian immigrants have had a profound relationship with the development of this land. Whether it was the Trans-America Railway built by Chinese immigrant labourers, the immigration gate on Angel Island that accepted and rejected countless visitors from the other side of the Pacific, or the incarceration camps for Japanese Americans during of the Second World War, Asian immigrants have unfortunately not been selected to be crowned and extolled by the mainstream of history despite the remarkable impact they made on the history of this land. In addition to a little bit of indignation and sadness, the other students and I could not help but marvel at the magnitude of the real past outside of the history textbooks.

As someone who has studied for long in the field of peacebuilding and conflict resolution, I am acutely aware of the importance of deepening the public’s understanding of the diversity of historical narratives and the importance of marginalised groups in the work of national reconciliation and peacebuilding. Through this colourful short-term experience I was fortunate to have the opportunity to stop briefly in the midst of a multitude of official news and narratives, and go behind the scenes of the history stage with my peers, tracing back and witnessing the true and great role of the general public in the river of time.

At the end, I would like to thank once again the staff from the Faculty of Social Sciences and other departments at Waseda University, as well as the instructors and professors from SPICE, and the lovely students from across the ocean who made video calls with us and expressed together their empathy for life. We ourselves are the creators of a truly diverse society and the meaning of our existence, and this valuing of diversity will benefit the wider community and our future.

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Through the generous support of the Chao Minami Family Fund, SPICE has recently launched a new webpage, “Visual Arts and Documentary Film.” Through this resource, SPICE seeks to connect documentary filmmakers with educators across the world.

Harvard professor Howard Gardner—in his book, Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences (1983)—put forth the idea that people have “multiple intelligences,” which include linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, and intrapersonal intelligences. In terms of “spatial” intelligence, visual imagery plays an important role in the visual/spatial student’s learning process.

Recognizing the role of multiple intelligences and how all learners can benefit from different approaches to content learning, SPICE has partnered with numerous filmmakers to develop curricula to accompany their films. Recent collaborations include teacher’s guides for Far West: The Hidden History, with co-directors Mathilde Damoisel and Tomas van Houtryve (Catchlight Films); and U.S. POWs and the A-Bomb, with director Sachiko Kato (Hiroshima Television Corporation). One of the U.S. POWs who died from the atomic bombing of Hiroshima was Normand Brissette (photo above). Curricula for Baseball Behind Barbed Wire, with Yumiko Gamo Romer (Flying Carp Productions); and The Partition (Project Dastaan and Catchlight Films) will also become available in the near future.

Through this new resource, educators who wish to access upcoming films and guides can complete the Educator Interest Form. Filmmakers who wish to collaborate with SPICE to create teacher’s guides for their documentaries can also do so through the Documentary Filmmaker Form.

Educators can continue to access Free Multimedia Resources through the SPICE website as well. 

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