From Perry to the Present : A Survey Course Exploring"Japan and America"

Abstract

About 50 students, mostly in their second or third year of university, enrolled in the "Japan and America"(日本とアメリカ)course during the Spring 2003 semester. This paper provides an overview of the 15-week course, which employed a primarily historical approach in surveying Japan-U.S. relations during the past 150 years. The main content modules were as follows : From Nakahama Manjiro to Commodore Perry ; Niijima Jo and Meiji Japan learn from the West ; Japanese immigration to Hawaii and the U.S. ; Worsening Japan-U.S. relations and total war ; Japanese American internment and redress ; and Japanese Americans in U.S. society today. A wide variety of supplemental materials and multimedia resources were used on a near-weekly basis and are described. Student feedback, examples of which are provided, will be considered in making course improvements for next year.