Teachers invited to Symposium on East Asian History and Culture

LA GRANDE, Oregon — Educators in K-12 schools in Oregon, Washington and Idaho are invited to attend a symposium in March where they will learn how to introduce their students to the history and culture of China, Japan and Korea.

Photo by Dr. Marilyn Levine / A Shinto temple Dr.
Levine visited during her travels in Japan.

A symposium on East Asian History and Culture will take place March 9-10, April 20-21 and May 11-12 at Eastern Oregon University. Registration is limited to 20 teachers and the application deadline is Friday, February 16. Attendees will receive $900 worth of stipends, curricular materials and materials for their schools. Participants also may enroll for credit.

Attendees also can sign up for an event during the second weekend of the course that will give them a closer look at the Chinese cultural heritage found in eastern Oregon. Specialized lectures, discussions, readings and visits to the Chinese cemetery in Baker City and possibly to the Kam Wah Chung Museum in John Day will be included.

Dr. Marilyn Levine, dean of the College of Arts and Science at EOU, and Dr. Matthew Wells, assistant professor of history at EOU, will teach the course. This is the second symposium on East Asia Levine has presented at EOU and she believes that education about Asia is critical to people in the United States.

"Oregonians already understand that Asia is flourishing, not just in their economy, but in advancing Asian modernity in culture and standards of living. When you see Starbucks and McDonalds in small Asian towns, you know that we are living in a global culture," Levine said.

"During the next decade, there is no question that Asia will emerge even stronger on the world stage and we need to educate our young people about Asian history and culture for them to be able to understand and respond to these changing economic and political dynamics," she said.

Levine has a doctorate from the University of Chicago in modern Chinese history and a master's degree from the University of Hawaii in Vietnamese history. Her research interests include both modern China and Vietnam with a major focus on Asian politics in Europe and the theory and practice of biography.

Wells earned his doctorate in Chinese from the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at the University of Oregon. He holds a master's degree in Asian studies from the U of O and received a bachelor's degree in European history from the University of Washington. His research is on early Chinese autobiography and biography, histiography, narratology and intellectual history.

The symposium at EOU is funded by the Freeman Foundation and is part of the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia at the East Asia Resource Center at the University of Washington. The center is one of five in the country participating in the national initiative to encourage and facilitate teaching and learning about East Asia in K-12 classrooms.

For more information or to register for the symposium call Gretchen Jolly at (541) 962-3555 or e-mail gjolly@eou.edu. The application form can be downloaded at www.eou.edu/artsci/events/nctasia.html.

EOU Home   |   University Advancement