Smeared Type

By Jian Ping

I just attended a two-day “Online Research” seminar at the Summer Institute for Teachers that was run by the Chicago Humanity Festival (CHF) at DePaul University’s downtown campus. Attendees were primarily teachers from private and public schools in the greater Chicago area. Since I had been giving talks to students at a number of schools and had attended the summer writing seminar offered by the same institute the year before, I received the invitation from CHF to apply. I did.

Paula Dempsey, Coordinator of Reference Services at DePaul University, was the instructor. She was truly wonderful—clear, patient, knowledgeable, and related to our group’s needs and level very well. With a smile on her face, she made the few approaches she selected to demonstrate for online research comprehensible to those of us who were technically challenged, to say the least. She emphasized using Google as a tool, not a source, distinguished research goals of “speculation and investigation,” and compared the differences and values of “traditional” research vs. digital. She showed us how to use Zotero, a powerful program for online research, how to use +/- to weed out unwanted sites and utilize “scholar” and advanced search to limit searches to site:org or site: gov or filetype:pdf  for more reliable resources. She also showed us how to use Chicago Public Library’s database—wonderfully organized, paid information at our finger tips, only if we know how to get access to them!

I walked away feeling thrilled and empowered. I could hardly wait to get on my computer and use the skills I just learned.  

I want to give my heartfelt thanks to Julia and the staff at CHF for putting together such a productive and well-organized program. And of course, a big applause to Paula, who, with grace and efficiency, showed us the basic tools to untangle the overwhelming information in the cyberspace.  I’m sure many students will benefit from the tools their teachers have learned to use.  

By Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China. Visit www.moraquest.com or www.mulberrychild.com.

by Jian Ping

I gave a talk to Dr. Lucy Xing Lu’s Asian Culture and Communication class at DePaul University yesterday. The moment I stepped onto the Lincoln Park Campus, I felt the dynamics and energy unique to university—students rushing to their classes, chatting in groups, or riding their bicycles to get to their destinations. It was an atmosphere of youth and learning.

I barely made it on time to the classroom and started my talk immediately after Dr. Lu’s introduction. I knew the students had just read Confucius’ Analects and the focus of the class was on Asian philosophy, religion, and cultures. I put the emphasis of my talk on Confucian values, especially “filial piety,” using anecdotes from Mulberry Child to illustrate my points. I like the classroom setting and encouraged the students to raise questions at any time. They did—this group of 20 students was very engaging and asked many good questions. I planned to talk for 45 minutes, plus 10 or 15 minutes for questions. But we got into animated discussions and Dr. Lu graciously gave us the time to continue—letting us take over her planned readings on Taoism/Buddhism for the day. We ended up using up the entire period of class, and afterward, a few students stayed behind and continued our conversation. I was quite impressed by their interest and participation.

Of course, being a Chinese parent, I couldn’t help but finish my talk by encouraging them to excel in their studies—“the love of learning” (好学), as Confucius stated in his Analects.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: a Memoir of China. www.mulberrychild.com, www.moraquest.com

I had lunch with Professor Ling Arenson before talking to her history class at 1:30 PM yesterday. I filled her in on the content of my presentation, and she informed me that her students had covered the contemporary history of China all the way to the 1990s. I agreed to focus my talk on my personal experiences of growing up during China’s Cultural Revolution and conducting a two-way discussion with the students.

I was impressed that nearly all of the 40 students in her class were seated by the time we got to the classroom. I started my talk after a brief introduction by Professor Arenson. I liked the classroom setting—small enough for me to observe closely the students’ reaction and engagement. The focus and attention they demonstrated encouraged me to move on, spontaneously expanding the details of events. I didn’t realize an hour had passed until Professor Arenson reminded me of the time. I was shocked and embarrassed—I had been carried away in my talk and hadn’t even opened the floor for discussion! Only half an hour left for the class. I quickly wrapped up the talk, but delayed the discussion for another ten minutes—I wanted to read a brief excerpt from the book to give the students an example of a real life experience during the chaotic time.

When so many students raised their hands to ask questions, I regretted not having managed my appearance in a different manner—I should have invited them joined me in a discussion format to start with! One after another, I addressed their questions in record speed. Their questions were well-thought and in-depth. There were still many hands raised in the air when 3 o’clock struck. Another class was scheduled to start right away. As I signed a few copies of Mulberry Child for students, Professor Arenson helped put my papers away and disconnect the flash drive that contained the visuals of my presentation. We rushed out of the room as a professor for the next class started writing on the board.

I told Professor Arenson how impressed I was by the students—their interest in China, their engagement in class and their questions. “I’ll sit among them and have the entire session for discussion next year when you teach China history again!” I promised.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China. www.mulberrychild.com