Stanford University to offer online education in Japanese History
Pretty cool news for high school students who are interested in Japan:
High school seniors and juniors can now take a course at the prestigious (and pricey) Stanford University, thanks to an innovative program designed to pique their interest in Japanese history.
And they don’t even have to leave the comfort of their homes, much less pay massive college tuition.
Sponsored by the United States-Japan Foundation and the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), the Reischauer Scholars Program is a distance-learning course that utilizes the modern technology of the Internet to captivate a select number of students who log into virtual classrooms and participate in moderated discussion boards.
The program was named in honor of former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Edwin O. Reischauer, a scholar on Japanese history and culture.
Some 20 or so exceptional students from across the United States are selected to participate in the course, which gives a broad overview of Japanese history, literature, religion, art, politics and economics — with a special focus on the U.S.-Japan relationship.
Top scholars and leading diplomats provide Web-based lectures on subjects such as Japanese religions, Japan’s economy, elementary education in Japan and contemporary Japanese society. There are also heavier lectures such as “Japanese Colonialism and Its Legacy in Korea,” “Japanese Perspectives on Pearl Harbor,” and “The Atomic Bombings Reconsidered,” as well as the more light-hearted “Japanese Manga and Pop Culture.”
