Posted By: Janine Brill
Posted On: December 12, 2017
Written by Janine Brill, 8th Grade ELA and Science, 7th and 8th Grade U.S. History, Mary Queen of Apostles School, New Kensington, PA
The Social Fabric of Japan: Case Studies of Selected Minority Groups is a SPICE (Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education) curriculum unit developed by Selena Lai. This self-contained unit is designed for use as a supplement to social studies, history, and global studies courses for grades 8-12. The unit is comprised of three lessons, each requiring 3-4 class periods.
Lesson 1, "Notions of Identity," focuses on factors that define each of us as individuals and as members of a group. Students partake in a simulation activity over four class periods. The unit provides specific instructions and guidelines for conducting the simulation where the teacher acts as a facilitator. This part of the lesson is exceptionally well-explained, and debriefing is crucial to the success of the students attaining the learning objectives. Students collaborate in four small groups for each of the three parts of the lesson: observers, a majority group, a minority group of 25% of the class, and a minority group of 15% of the class. The last part of Lesson 1 will provide the teacher with students' perceptions of Japanese culture, and give students an overview of minority groups in Japan. Before proceeding to Lesson 2, the students should clearly identify the differences between their perceptions of Japanese minorities and the reality of discrimination of minority groups in Japan. Students could also compare their perceptions with those of other minority groups in the United States. What factors influence such perceptions, and how do they or others react to such perceptions? How have perceptions of minority groups changed over the course of the United States' history?
Lesson Two, "The Burakumin," is divided into two parts over four class periods. In part one, which is quite personal and may be sensitive for some students, students compare their personal identities to how society identifies them, making connections between identity and discrimination. Each student receives one set of twenty identifier cards, each card has a specific aspect of identity such as race, money, weight, education, age, and place of residence. Using the cards, students discuss their definition of discrimination and refer back to Lesson 1. Cards are ranked according to how the student feels, and each reflects the way he/she is identified by others. Because of the sensitive nature of part one, the facilitator may choose to require written responses rather oral discussion. Part two introduces the students to Japan's largest minority group, the burakumin. Students begin with individual reading assignments about the burakumin and move into three group activities. The second group activity places students into three different groups in which each assesses a particular situation of the burakumin and shares their perspective based on their group's identity. In the last activity, students are challenged to educate others about discrimination. This particular activity could even be modified for a history class that focuses on the suffragist movement or the civil rights era in the United States. It is an enlightening activity for the students because they are responsible for designing a way to educate others.
Lesson 3, "The Ainu, Okinawans, and Koreans in Japan," provides three culminating sections that can be completed within three class periods. Prior to part one, students must have prior knowledge of minority groups in a historical context, i.e., how historical events are often related to other world events. Students will understand what nationalism is, and make inferences about the presence of Europeans in 19th Century Asia. Because of the large content embedded in part three, a "jigsaw" approach is used for gleaning information about the three featured ethnic groups. If time permits, part two could be extended to additional class periods so that every student is focused on the same group of people during the same class session. There are several videos available online that provide additional information or summarize each group of people. Debriefing is required for the beginning of part three. In this final culminating activity, students work independently to reevaluate their own perceptions from Lesson 1, and write an essay addressing diversity and how it shapes individual and collective identities.