Languages

Learning about Taiwan

Hello everyone!

    Chinese class this year has changed a lot and it's sometimes hard keeping track of it. Therefore, during the holidays, I made myself a Chinese binder where I can keep all my notes, journal entries, and handouts. This has made it a lot easier for me to keep track of my things. Even though Chinese class isn't a DP course, I really enjoy learning the language.

     Our first Chinese class back from break was really interesting. Our teacher, Ms Fang Yu, brought back a lot of cool things from Taiwan. She showed us two pop-up maps that she brought back. The really cool thing about these maps is that they are backwards. Since Taiwan is on the other side of the world their globes are backwards compared to ours. North and South America are on the right side instead of the left side. This made me think about something that we learned in TOK. Even with maps everything that is published is written based on the perspective of the authors. Perspectives change between individuals, which  makes me wonder if what we know today as facts are actually true facts. What do y'all think?

     Ms. Fang Yu also brought us some souvenirs. She brought us all individual personalized stickers. They all have our Chinese name printed on them. We also got these delicious coffee flavored candies, but I'm not sure if they were from Taiwan. Throughout this past week she has been telling us all about her trip. She's been sharing pictures and stories about her friends and family. Thanks to this we have achieved a better understanding of what Taiwan and its culture is like. Thanks for reading!

- Melissa S