The Week of Winners

This week marked the beginning of the 112th Congress with the election of Representative John Boehner (R-Ohio) as Speaker of the House. Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-Cal), the former Speaker of the House and the first woman elected to that position, turned over the gavel to Boehner in a peaceful transfer of power. The election of November 2010 brought in 96 new members of Congress with 87 being Republicans and 9 Democrats. With this new surge of Republican members, they have now taken control of the leadership positions in the House. The Senate remains in the hands of the Democrats. While we may say “Oh, just another election,” many countries around the world hold us in awe as we transfer power from one party to the next with no violence or threat to life. While our country has many problems, we can rely on a stable, peaceful transition between elections. This political stability is one reason investors like to put their money in the USA. We will have to see if this international confidence in the U.S. holds up as Congress confronts the enormous deficit built up over the past 10 years. As an old-timer, it is hard for me to believe we are in such a situation ten years after President Clinton left office with a surplus and a plan to pay down our debt. How times change!

Closer to home, Governor Chafee was sworn into office in Providence this week along with the other new state officials. He is the first governor in Rhode Island elected as an independent. It appears many citizens were tired of old-time politics and looked to a familiar name, Chafee, that they associate with trust and confidence.

East Asia

This week you received your new syllabus for our unit on East Asia. The syllabus is your guide for the upcoming assignments. It is especially helpful to students who are absent as you can look at the syllabus and see what you have missed. Our first assignment was a text reading that gave you background on China. As you progress through your years of schooling and your careers, background knowledge is essential as it helps you learn new information. If you know nothing about a topic, it is more difficult for your brain to retain new information. This is why general reading, watching the news, and talking with friends about a variety of topics helps you build a store of knowledge that will help you learn new information. We also did a map of the region that you were expected to complete during class time. The region is large in size but has only six countries. The map and notes from your reading became the basis for your quiz. You were able to use your work to help you answer the quiz questions.

To help you see how this region has become known for its manufacturing prowess, we did a “geography of the house” activity. You were given a list of everyday items that you have at home and you had to identify the brand name and country of origin. When you reported back to the class, we quickly saw that much of the electronic equipment we own comes from China and Japan. A quick look at backpacks and sneakers also showed us that many of these items are made in East Asia.

You also worked on an “Is China Rich?” sheet that gave you a list of facts about the region and you had to decide if each aspect was a strength, weakness, threat or opportunity. We had a good discussion as we worked down the list and saw how your position in life affects the way you interpret information. Low wages could be seen as a strength if you own the company but a weakness if you are a worker. Point of view and perspective are especially important for us to recognize when studying Asia, as many Asian philosophies differ from Western perspectives. We will learn more about this as we look at the impact of Confucian thinking on Asia.

I also shared with you a power point on the Tianmen Mountains and the road leading to the summit. While the pictures gave you a sense of geography, they also illustrated the enormous engineering capabilities of China. Next week, I will share with you some of the photos I took on my own trip to China and you will see that this country has a history of accomplishing great things, ranging from the construction of The Great Wall to the 2008 Olympic Village.

On Friday our room was being painted so we had the opportunity to work in the library with Mr. Fontaine on editorial cartoons about this region. Cartoons are a popular and effective way of conveying information about a variety of topics, people, or events. Your assignment was to locate a cartoon that engaged you, write an analysis using your cartoon analysis sheet as a guide and then posting the information on Voicethread.com. After you posted your cartoon and commentary, you looked at the cartoons posted by your fellow students and wrote an additional comment. As Mr. Fontaine told you, collaboration, working together and using the internet to share tasks is what the real work world is all about. I have posted the cartoons on the blog by class period, so take a few minutes and review the postings…a fun way to learn more about this region.

Current Events

A current event from this region is due on Monday January 10 for periods C and D. Periods A, B and E will have their event due on January 11. You have been doing this assignment since September, you have clear expectations, and you have had examples of work meeting or exceeding the standard. By now you should be earning high grades for this assignment. If you are still struggling with it, please come by during Advisory or after school so we can get you on the right track.

We have a winner!

Congratulations to SS who was the 1,000th visitor to the blog. She followed the directions to claim her prize: a pass on the next current event and a guaranteed score of 10 for her status of assignment sheet!