Past programs

Online Book Club, “Convenience Store Woman”

Program Start Date: Apr 23 2020

Location: Online

This program was an online discussion of the book Convenience Store Woman, a novel by the best-selling Japanese author Sayaka Murata. This brilliant, quirky, sweet gem of a book transported participants into the life of Keiko, a long-term convenience store employee. Perhaps Pulitzer Prize winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen described it best: “A darkly comic, deeply unsettling

Study Sessions: The Chinese Exclusion Act

Program Start Date: Apr 22 2020

Location: Kent, WA

“The Chinese Exclusion Act” was the second event of Study Sessions, a new NCTA series led by Mary Roberts. These three-hour sessions take various forms to provide supportive, non-lecture collaborative group learning formats to study Asian and Asian American topics. Each study session gives educators multiple ways to evaluate teaching resources to extend their learning. On April

China 2020: Understanding a Rising Power

Program Start Date: Mar 11 2020

Location: Various

With its rapid economic development since Mao’s death in 1976, China has become an increasingly complex and dynamic society. What does the rise of China mean for the US? How can we integrate 21st century China into our teaching and situate China in a global context? How can we explore global themes such as environmental degradation/climate

Write About Asia Winter 2020

Program Start Date: Mar 7 2020

Location: Seattle, WA

Write about Asia was offered by the East Asia Resource Center at the University of Washington in conjunction with the Seattle Asian Art Museum’s Gardner Center for Asian Art and Ideas.  This series was titled “What is Precious?” and explored arts that revealed ideas of what is precious, as well as precious ephemera and areas of

Study Session: Japanese American WWII Incarceration

Program Start Date: Mar 3 2020

Location: Everett, WA

We are pleased to announce Study Sessions, a new NCTA series led by Mary Roberts. These three-hour sessions take various forms to provide supportive, non-lecture collaborative group learning formats to study Asian and Asian American topics. Each study session gives educators multiple ways to evaluate teaching resources to extend their learning. On March 3, 2020, experts

Japan During the Meiji (1868-1912) and Showa (1913-1989) Eras

Program Start Date: Jan 27 2020

Location: Boise, ID

The NCTA seminar “Japan During the Meiji (1868-1912) and Showa (1913-1989) Eras” explored Japan’s emergence as a global economic and military power. From the seeds of the Edo social transformation, Meiji Japan became the first non-Western power to industrialize. This transformation took place within a remarkable three decades, during which Japan’s economic growth was matched

Edo Avant Garde: How Japan Invented Modern Art – Workshop at SAM

Program Start Date: Jan 20 2020

Location: Seattle, WA

On Monday, January 20, 2020, participants attended a screening of Edo Avant Garde: How Japan Invented Modern Art with director Linda Hoaglund. Following the screening, art historian Melanie King and Linda led a workshop for K-12 teachers, which covered strategies for using the material presented in the film and Japanese art into usable curriculum materials for

Write About Asia Fall 2019

Program Start Date: Jan 11 2020

Location: Seattle, WA

“Camel caravans on the network of Eurasian trade routes known as the Silk Road are a somewhat misleading cliché. But the mixing of different cultures, religions, and languages through multiple networks of both overland and maritime trade still fascinates and inspires. ” — excerpt from the Gardner Center website. Write about Asia was offered by the East

North Korea Book Club

Program Start Date: Dec 5 2019

Location: Various

The Great Successor: The Divinely Perfect Destiny of Brilliant Comrade Kim Jong Un  by Anna Fifield How can we begin to understand the complex history of North Korea and its leader? This program dived deeper into this question by engaging in a dynamic discussion with other educators, exploring contemporary challenges facing North Korean society, and sharing

Catching Your Students with Pokemon: Japanese Popular Culture in the Classroom using NCTA Curriculum

Program Start Date: Nov 25 2019

Location: Missoula, MT

Kids of all ages love Pokemon, Totoro and Hello Kitty. This workshop showed teachers how to use students’ fascination with Japan’s vibrant pop culture as a gateway to learning about the history and culture of Japan and other Asian countries. Professor Brian Dowdle led a lecture about Japanese popular culture and an introduction on resources from the