Asian Studies Program Grant uri icon

abstract

  • Given that Asia is a dynamic source of the emerging world culture, generating economic and political impacts as well as international flows of cultural ideas and human contacts, understanding its contributions to the new global culture is imperative. Recognizing the phenomenal appeal of Asian culture in its own right and as a crucial yet often unfathomed part of the new global culture, East Carolina University (ECU) proposes to create a multidisciplinary Asian Studies Program. This program will explore, from the perspectives of various disciplines, a variety of Asian cultures. While focusing on India, China, and Japan, the program seeks to expand coverage of Asian culture into the politically sensitive regions of Central Asia, South Asia, and East Asia. ECU is proposing to achieve the goals of the multidisciplinary Asian Studies Program through curriculum enhancement, faculty development and ECU community outreach. Curriculum Enhancement: ECU makes possible the designing of majors comprising a number of disciplines through its Multidisciplinary Studies Program. We will propose templates for Asian Studies concentrations for the Multidisciplinary Studies Major. Within this major, students may decide to focus on East Asia, Central Asia or South Asia. We propose to expand the courses available for inclusion in this concentration by creating six new Asian Studies content courses. We are particularly interested in adding courses on Central Asian topics, including those related to the independent states of the former Soviet Union, the India sub-continent, and China. Another area in which development is sought is Northeast Asia, especially Japan and Korea. In addition to the required core courses, students selecting the Asian Studies multidisciplinary major must select six courses from a list of appropriate courses. We also plan to add at least six courses revised with new Asian Studies units to this list. Many students at ECU complete a minor as well as their major. Two years ago an interdisciplinary Asian Studies minor was approved and is currently enrolling students. The expansion of Asian content courses or courses with Asian Studies units will enhance this minor. The new courses and course modules in Asian Studies will also enhance the increasingly popular International Studies minor. We will also establish at least two undergraduate studies abroad or exchange opportunities in Asia, particularly in China, the independent states of the former Soviet Union, India, and Japan. We will solidify the Japanese language and literature program with the hiring of a full-time faculty member. We will add Chinese to the Asian language offerings by hiring a part-time faculty member in Chinese language and literature. We will tie this first year of Chinese to an intensive Chinese language program at Fudan University in Shanghai, China, so that student can continue their Chinese language studies in an immersion setting. We will establish an e-learning consortium with at least two other UNC institutions to distribute Japanese and Chinese language and culture courses. We will link our Asian Studies program to our flourishing Russian Studies program through courses, etc., involving the central Asian independent states of the former Soviet Union. We will establish a digitized database of images (particularly photos and slides) provided by faculty members that will be made available to all those who teach Asian Studies courses or units, or would like to include material on Asia in their classes. We will select and procure appropriate research and instructional materials for our language lab and library, including computer software and films. Faculty Development We will expand our Asian Studies Advisory Board to include representatives of all the departments, colleges and grant projects involved in Asian Studies. This board will bring together all those

date/time interval

  • July 2007 - June 2009

contributor