Rudyard Kipling wrote "The Road to Mandalay" in 1892 when Burma was a British colony and Queen Victoria was the Empress of India. In the poem, Mandalay is a city some 500 miles along the Irrawaddy River from the capital, Rangoon. British troops stationed in Burma were transported on the river by paddle steamers. The picture painted of…

The legacy of crimes committed during the Second World War in East Asia is still a stumbling block for reconciliation and trustful cultural relations between South Korea, China and Japan. The presentation of this issue in history school books is in the focus of a heated public and academic debate. This book written by historians and pedagogues…

This dissertation research examines Asian history covered within a world history course in American high schools. I pose fundamental questions regarding the nature of what world history teachers classify under the category of Asian history. I research on what teachers teach as part of world history and how they instruct the Asian section of their…

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations (UN), this paper examines the contributions of the UN to the area of South Asia. The paper focuses on regional conditions in South Asia that affect the achievement or denial of basic needs essential for peacebuilding. These needs include equal opportunity, education,…

The past and the present interweave in contemporary India. To understand India, one must know of the traditional stories. Two short pocket books make them accessible and acceptable to students: 1) The Dance of Shiva and Other Tales from India by Oroon Ghosh, published by the New American Library in New York; and, 2) Gods, Demons, and Others by R.…

The primary objective of the guide or introduction is to present approaches to providing a well balanced course or unit on China, India, and Japan. In the study of Asian cultures it is necessary to stress historic facts and the richness of the culture; an exclusive attention to economic growth, modernization, and the social and political problems…

This unit introduces students to the diversity of rice culture and rice-based farming systems in Asia and the Pacific. Students examine issues related to the needs of the future global population. Six rice-producing countries are under study: Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, and Thailand. The lessons include: (1) "Rice in…

The author outlines an introductory undergraduate course in Indian Studies constructed on the configuration of a social science cluster built around a central disciplinary core of political science. The objective of the course is to build an understanding of contemporary India. As a matter of convenience and organization the course is divided into…

In this grade 6 interdisciplinary language arts and social studies unit, students are required to assume the role of a team and describe their country's participation in trade along the Silk Road. Countries represented in the unit include Egypt, Italy, Iraq, India, Israel, and China. The team is asked to create a display showing artifacts, journal…

Tracks the intermittent appearances and variations of the historical concept of a "Pacific Age" from the 1890s to the present. Discusses the social, economic, and historical conditions that resulted in the term's heralding of either economic optimism or racist peril. Suggests these interpretations come in cycles. (MJP)