AP Human Geography – Japan Case Studies

Janine MagidmanWSCSS Convention 2011

AP Human Geography and Japan – Case Studies for chapters in The Cultural Landscape: Introduction to Human Geography

by Rubenstein

• Chapter 2 – Population

– Ageing Population – NY Times Article “In a Graying Japan, Lower Shelves and Wider Aisles.” 2006

– Dr. Robert Pekkanen – EARC talk and population pyramids in motion (PowerPoint)

Chapter 3 – Migration

– News articles: Japanese Brazilian Returnees, Japanese Brazilian Immigrants, Mitsui immigrant schools

– “The Many Faces of Citizenship” Japan Times 2008

Chapter 4 – Folk and Popular Culture

– Culture Clash? “Mr. Baseball”, http://www.projectilearts.org/kokoyakyu/high_school_baseball.html

– “Kokoyaku” film http://www.pbs.org/pov/kokoyakyu/

– Halloween – folk or popular culture? (PowerPoint)– Food, Architecture (PowerPoint)– Videos “Ramen Girl” “Lost in Translation”

Chapter 5 – Language

– Where is Japan on the world languages tree?

Chapter 6 – Religion

– Shinto and Buddhism co-existing– Sacred Spaces Images – Visual Thinking Strategy –

What do you see happening? What in the image makes you say that?

• (PowerPoint of Images)

Chapter 7 – Ethnicity

– Japan’s Nationality Debates– “Foreigners in Japanese Baths”

– (Articles)

Chapter 8 – Political Geography

– Japan as a classic Nation-State?–Boundary disputes in the Kuril Islands

Chapter 9 – Development

– UN Human Development Index – Japan #11– Women’s roles – UN Gender Development Index• How women fare compared to men in measurements

of life expectance, literacy, income, schooling• Gender Empowerment Measures – women in upper

levels of business, government• Now called the Gender Inequality Index – Japan #11

– Article: Japan Debates Depiction of Young Girls in comics

– Japan as a donor nation

Chapter 10 – Agriculture

– Farming as a system – Rice farming• Handout and link to Annenberg Media Power of Place

– Rice Farming in Japan and communal society• References in Menton textbook

Chapter 11 – Industry

– Post-war boom!– Rising auto industry – great manga excerpt in

Menton text on rise of Japanese auto industry and the loss of jobs in Detroit

Chapters 12 & 13 – Services and Urban Geography

Transportation systems – Metro (Tokyo subway map – OMG!)

– Shinkansen – Bullet trains