Spring 2021 course offerings with East Asian content now available on EASC website

The East Asian Studies Center compiles lists of East Asian language and area studies courses being offered across the university each semester. The lists include courses with at least 25% East Asian content. EASC provides these lists as a service to the community; however, students are responsible for determining whether courses meet specific degree requirements. Spring 2021 course lists can be accessed on the EASC website. Additions or corrections to the list may be sent to easc@osu.edu.

Aiko Takeuchi-Demirci to present on the Eugenic Protection Law on November 12

The Institute for Japanese Studies will present a lecture by Aiko Takeuchi-Demirci, Koç University, on Thursday, November 12 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. online (registration required). Professor Takeuchi-Demirci will present "The Eugenic Protection Law and the Promotion of Eugenic Marriages in Postwar Japan"

Abstract: The Eugenic Protection Law (EPL) was enacted in 1948 with the aim of “protecting the birth of unfit offspring while protecting the health of the maternal body.” The immediate purpose of the EPL was to control the rapid increase of population in the postwar years by providing women with easier access to abortion and birth control. The broader significance of the law for the lawmakers was that it reinforced the eugenic sterilization policy that had been laid out by the wartime eugenics law. This lecture explains the rhetoric that national leaders in Japan used to promote “eugenic marriages” to the broad Japanese public in order to recover the nation from the devastating effects of war. In this process, eugenic reproduction and sterilization were normalized for the good of the nation. The lecture further connects these postwar events and discussions to the recent lawsuits against the Japanese government by victims of forced sterilization under the EPL.

Don Wyatt to present on foreign enslavement in China on November 13

The Institute for Chinese Studies will present a lecture by Don Wyatt, Middlebury College, on Friday, November 13 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. online (registration required). Professor Wyatt will present "China's Uneasy History of Foreign Enslavement"

Abstract: The origins of slavery in China are indisputably ancient, dating back to the earliest cultural beginnings of the nation as a civilization. Consequently, the record of slavery in China is exceptionally long, spanning uninterrupted from prehistory up until late imperial times and arguably persisting well beyond its outlawing in the early twentieth century of our Common Era. Throughout its duration, well known is the fact that the Chinese were enslavers of their own indigenous populations, which routinely included members of what emerged as the dominant Han ethnic majority itself. Yet, largely unknown is that, throughout the imperial past, untold numbers of non-Chinese peoples were also consigned to enslavement. In offering answers to how they might ever have come to suffer this fate, this talk endeavors to illuminate crucial aspects of the bondage of these foreigners, framed in relation to the evolving Chinese practice of slavery overall.

OATJ to hold annual fall conference on November 14

The Ohio Association of Teachers of Japanese (OATJ), with support from the East Asian Studies Center, will present the OATJ Annual Fall Conference 2020 featuring Rebecca Allen, Dublin City Schools, on Saturday, November 14 from 12:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. EST online (registration required). Ms. Allen will present two sessions: "Supporting Students with Learning Disabilities in the Inclusive Japanese Classroom" and "Designing a Kanji Curriculum Using Radicals."

Session I: Supporting Students with Learning Disabilities in the Inclusive Japanese Classroom
During the past 20 years, awareness of and support for students with a wide variety of learning disabilities has dramatically expanded in the United States, making Japanese classes available to many who in the past would not have been able to participate in these courses. Laws impacting how we support these students have changed dramatically as well. In this session, we will take a look at some of the most common learning disabilities, how they impact students' work in Japanese learning, and how we can support them. We will also review students' legal rights to academic support and our role in that process.

Session 2: Designing a Kanji Curriculum Using Radicals
There are several options available for selecting and sequencing the kanji that we introduce to learners, arranged with varying goals. In this session, we will compare kanji lists published by three sources, consider the goals of each, and discuss how to create a long-term kanji curriculum based on your program's specific needs. A logical sequence built on students' understanding of the ways in which kanji are composed will support learners in developing skills that allow them to acquire new kanji more easily in a way that is not tied too closely to any one textbook.

Graduate readings course in Chinese history to be offered in Spring 2021

The Department of History will offer "Studies in Modern Chinese History" in Spring 2021. This graduate readings course will survey a range of topics in modern Chinese history, defined for Spring 2021 as the 19th & 20th centuries up through mid-century, as seen through comparative, national, and local studies. Readings will include both classics in the field and newer historical works. Students are welcome to suggest book- or article-length readings for inclusion in the shared reading, but should do so by emailing the professor prior to mid-November 2020.

Course: History 7411: "Studies in Modern Chinese History"
Call Number: 33117
Time: Tues, 2:15 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. via Zoom
Instructor: Christopher Reed
Assignments: Book presentations & discussion-leading, final paper
Assigned Readings: Current & classic monographs and/or articles (see comment about suggestions above)
Prerequisites and Special Comments: Graduate standing or permission of the instructor. Knowledge of the Chinese language is desirable but not required. Students who have not read Wakeman’s Fall of Imperial China and Bianco’s Origins of the Chinese Revolution should do so before the first meeting. In addition, every student is urged to familiarize him/herself with a standard textbook account of the period (Ebrey & Walthall; Schirokauer; Fairbank Reischauer & Craig; Murphey; Spence; or Hsu).

Students may register for the course via Buckeye Link.

NSEP accepting applications for Boren scholarships, fellowships

JET Program application open, info sessions scheduled for October, November