A lecturer at one of the nation’s top-ranked universities has been causing a frenzy on campus by using Japanese comic books to teach theories of international politics and economics.
In the course entitled “Using Comics to Explore Japan” at National Chengchi University, Tsai Zheng-jia (蔡增家) teaches 120 students about Japanese politics and economics using slides featuring black and white comic strips.
Due to the course’s popularity, students wishing to get a seat in the classroom have to compete with more than 1,000 peers to sign up for the elective course.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
One student only succeeded in registering for the course in his senior year after having been unable to do so for the first three years.
Each class begins with students giving presentations on current affairs from Japan, during which Tsai elaborates on certain points to better inform his students’ about one of the nation’s major allies.
Speaking about his reasons for starting the course, Tsai said that as a specialist in Japan’s political and economic system, as well as international finance, he had attempted in the past to offer courses relevant to his areas of expertise. However, none were well received by students.
“I had a course on Japan’s politics and economy, but less than 20 students took it each semester,” Tsai said, adding that he was disheartened by the course’s unpopularity.
Tsai then thought of his favorite childhood pastime — Japanese manga — and decided to use comics in the classroom to motivate students.
Tsai began the “Using Comics to Explore Japan” course in 2007 and has since sought to teach students about Japan’s politics, educational system and foreign policy through a number of famous Japanese comic books, such as Sanctuary, Kachou Kousaku Shima and Dragon Zakura, among others.
Saying that Japan is one of a few nations that could be understood using comic books, Tsai said that although there are various genres of Japanese manga, several are educational and oriented toward current affairs.
Tsai added that about 13 manga series feature in his four-month course and there are more than 70 comic books listed as reference materials.
However, it is not as easy to pass the course as it might seem.
Tsai conducts a roll call at the beginning of each class, after which students have to offer in-depth analysis of the plots and characters.
Despite the relatively heavy demands of the course, Tsai’s methods have greatly enhanced students’ knowledge and learning.
“Some of the theories that used to be Greek to me when they were in textbooks suddenly make sense now when they are illustrated in comic books,” Tsai quoted one of his students as saying.
Chu Yuan-ting (朱原廷), a junior studying public finance, hailed Tsai’s course, saying that the weekly presentations by students contributed to the lively atmosphere of the course.
“The course has also influenced my choice of comic books. Among Tsai’s recommended books, I found The Star of Prefectural Government particularly interesting and learned that bureaucratic corruption is not only common in Taiwan, but also in Japan,” Chu said.
Tseng Yi-an (曾怡安), a freshman in the Department of Political Science, said she was one of the lucky few that managed to sign up for the course in her freshman year.
“Tsai always teaches in a lighthearted and amusing manner. His lectures and teaching aids have not only allowed me to better grasp Japan’s political and economic system, but have also encouraged me to keep abreast of international news,” Tseng said.
In light of the course’s success, Tsai recently applied similar teaching techniques to a new course, “Movies and International Relations,” which is also extremely popular among students.
In an effort to draw students’ attention toward international relations and shake off stereotypes created by Hollywood movies, Tsai screens an array of international and alternative movies in the class.
“The purpose of teaching is to pass on knowledge to future generations and the key to fulfilling that purpose lies in the tools employed in teaching,” Tsai said.
“Whatever approaches educators use, they must attract students’ attention, before they can eventually instill knowledge in them,” he added.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai