Tian’anmen Square

Saturday was a day of seeing some  of the sites that Beijing is so famous for: Tian’anmen Square, the Forbidden City and The Great Wall. It was a picture perfect day weather wise. It can, at times, be hazy due to smog and pollution, but this day was cool temperatures and blue skies. There is very high security at Tian’anmen Square and thousands of people everywhere. Tian’anmen Square is the largest public square in the world. I suspect there is not a close second!  We were told not to take photos of protestors if there were any, but we did not see any. Chairman Mao Memorial Hall (see photo) is there along with several other important public buildings.  One thing I was not prepared for was the line of thousands of Chinese people in line to view the remains of Chairman Mao.  Our guide said that there is this line every day and they are not allowed to stop the line at any time. The line is to move forward continuously at a steady pace. Even with that rule, the line is continuous all day every day. (See photo although it is hard to capture the long snaking line.) He died in 1976 and it is amazing to me to see this level of devotion among people of younger generations. See little boy in photo. His young parents were about to get in line. His parents may not even have been alive in 1976, but the respect is there. We learned at the school the other day that many children wear red scarves denoting the Young Pioneer, then become Young Cadets if they are nominated as good students. Then eventually Communist Party Members are selected from this group of Young Cadets. It seems there are many advantages and privileges to becoming a Communist Party Member in this society.

Recess

 On a quest for my grandson, Sahaas, to find out what Chinese kids do at recess.  On Friday we were at an elementary school, so that was my first opportunity to check it out. When we first arrived at the school they were about to start recess.  See pictures of the students heading to the playground with enthusiasm! They played games a lot like American kids do. They had some playground  equipment, some kids played basketball, some played something like dodgeball. Many just ran! They played for 10 minutes and then back in. We found out that they have a 10 minute recess between their classes. All of their teachers teach just one subject, so they are not in a class with the same teacher all day. The teachers move to them. After school some students have special interest activities. See the dance group practicing in the photo as an example of that.

Culinary Adventure

We had dinner at Qianmen Quanjudt Beijing Roast Duck Restaurant.  I will write more detail on that experience later, but wanted to share just this one detail. Yes, I consumed a scorpion! Yes, we also had a shot of fire water! Crunchy and a little salty. It was the sensation of the legs that affected me most.  In the photos, you will see the original dish, the lovely specimen itself and our delegation leader and me popping the tasty morsel into our mouths! Since it was a science group we wondered if their living specimen provider was Carolina Biological!

School Visit

Today we visited the Beijing Normal University which is a teacher preparation university. We met with several professors this morning and then visited the Beijing Normal University Experimental Primary School this afternoon. We observed a 5^th grade science lesson and then met with the teachers and principal. The class had 42 students, 26 boys and 16 girls. They attend school 40 weeks during a school year  which, of course, is 4 weeks more than we do in the United States. They go five days a week and are in school from 8-3.  The hours may vary a bit in the rural areas. The lesson was a typical hands-on lesson on sound generation.  The lesson was sequenced very well and students were very engaged and attentive. About half if this student population is children of university faculty and staff. The students were very friendly and excited to see us. Science is taught by 4 full time science teachers with the guidance of a master teahcer. They only teach science as all elementary teachers do teach only one subject.

Lunch on Thursday

We went to lunch at a typical Chinese restaurant called Tongfulin Restaurant.  It was a great experience where we were able to try many items. All served family style from a large lazy susan in center of table See photos of mushrooms and bok choy and the table for an idea. There were so many different dishes to try and I pretty much tried everything. Working on my chopsticks technique which is coming slowly.  

The custom is to be served two glasses of either water, coke, fanta, or beer with your meal at no extra charge in addition to the tea, of course. The beer was excellent and very smooth.

China Association of Children’s Science Instructors

Today was our first professional session. It was a seminar format with 8 Chinese science educators who represented the China Association of Children’s Science Instructors (Like our NSTA), the China Research Institute for Science Popularization, the Youth’s Science and Technology Museum, and Beijing Normal University. The focus topics were professional development for teachers, STEM education and environmental education. 


 I participated on the panel to share about STEM initiatives. They were very interested in the Corridor Stem Initiative in Iowa. It was interesting to me to hear how they are concerned with many of the same issues we are in the states. I guess I thought they might be more complacent since they lead the world in so many STEM areas. They are trying to promote the popularization of science through a national initiative. It stresses innovation, thinking and solving authentic  problems, and creativity and especially targets the rural kids. 


The whole process of working with an interpreter was a new one for me. When I was speaking during the panel, it was a little hard to maintain my train of thought, while I spoke, then paused for the interpreter, then spoke etc. I was amazed at how our guide would listen to the speakers, take some notes while they spoke and then in a matter of seconds would translate!  

Tomorrow we visit the campus of the Beijing Normal University as well as their Primary Experiemental School where we will observe a classroom. Our leader today said we’d be observing in a similar way as the Japanese Lesson Study model, so I am very interested in that. Stay Tuned!

Customs

When we arrived in Beijing, we went through customs and noted the very cute little characters as we approached baggage claim. Each character has a meaning and in totality their message translates to Beijing Welcomes You. They were promoting their 2008 Olymiad games and kept them, I guess.