Two $1000 Grand Prizes Announced for 2015 Lesson Plan Contest

The 1990 Institute is delighted to announce two Grand Prize winners of the Margaret Liu-Collins Excellence in Teaching Award from the 2015 CHINA NOW For Teachers Lesson Plan Contest — Ms. Sarah Bremer from Bishop O’Dowd School in Oakland, CA and Ms. Bonnie Christensen from Punahou School in Honolulu, HI.

Ms. Sarah Bremer’s lesson plan is on “Using Infographics to Understand China’s Pollution Challenges”. The lesson plan includes a rich mix of U.S. and international resources, critical thinking exercises, and student-centered activities.

Ms. Bonnie Christensen’s lesson plan is on “The Uigher Debate”. The lesson is to be carried out in debate format and includes references to international and Chinese resources, differentiations for diverse grade and student capabilities, as well as assignments that improve the students’ abilities to organize and do public speaking.

Generously sponsored by Margaret Liu-Collins, a 1990 Institute Board Member, the Lesson Plan Contest is a program within the Institute’s CHINA NOW for Teachers initiatives designed to close the gap on the teaching of modern China in our secondary schools.

These outstanding winners exceeded the expectations of the judging committee. “It was a joy to read through these lesson plans. They greatly exceeded my expectations. The two teachers have indeed prepared diligently and researched thoroughly the topics of their focus for this contest. These outstanding lesson plans will motivate students to enjoy learning in depth , as well as exercising critical thinking skills, in their studies.”, commented Margaret Liu-Collins, after reviewing the awarded lesson plans.

Each winner will receive $1000 for her winning lesson plan.

These lesson plans will be published on this website shortly. To receive notification when they are published, please make sure you have registered with this website.

 

Bonnie C working-replace

Bonnie Christensen, right, at 2015 Teachers Workshop