Registration Deadline for
Factory Girls: Then and Now
An Online Course Linking Book Discussion and Current Issues in China
JANUARY 25-MARCH 13, 2020
The National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA) at the Program for Teaching East Asia, University of Colorado Boulder, invites applications for this new online offering tying a contemporary classic to contemporary issues.
Overview: Factory Girls explores the lives of young factory workers in China as part of what has been called the “largest migration in human history.” A groundbreaking work and New York Times Notable Book when it was published in 2008, Factory Girls has new relevance in 2020 in the context of China's slowing economy and U.S.-China trade frictions. In this NCTA course, we will delve into stories of China’s migrant factory workers and consider how domestic and global factors impact the lives of China’s industrial workforce. The book discussion will be organized around three themes—rural to urban migration, labor rights and manufacturing economies, and women’s rights. For each theme, selections from the book will be paired with relevant current news stories from China.
Online Format and Expectations: The course will be conducted through three asynchronous online modules. Participants may buy the book Factory Girls, by Leslie Chang (available in paperback and Kindle). Additional readings linking Chang’s accounts to current events will be provided on the course site. Teachers who wish to receive full benefits must contribute substantively to all three module discussions and submit an evaluation and a four-page Classroom Implementation Plan (CIP) describing ways to use the course content in their teaching.
Eligibility and Selection: Open to secondary school literature, social studies, history, and Chinese language teachers. Admission is selective, with priority given to grade 9-12 contract teachers whose required curriculum in one of these subject areas includes 21st-century China and who are not enrolling in another winter NCTA course through the NCTA national site at TEA, University of Colorado.
Book Group Dates: This seven-week course begins with online introductions January 25 and continues with three two-week modules: February 1-14; February 15-29; and February 29-March 13. Curriculum Implementation Plans are due April 10, 2020.
Participation is free, with the following benefits for full participation, as outlined above:
• Certificate of Completion for 16 professional development contact hours.
• $50 Amazon gift card as completion stipend.
Apply online at http://www.colorado.edu/ptea/factorygirls beginning November 22. Registration is limited to 20 eligible teachers and closes January 10, 2020, or when the course fills. For more information, e-mail parisi@colorado.edu.