Re: emerging "ham-sap" classroom culture

nate (schmolze who-is-at students.wisc.edu)
Tue, 14 Sep 1999 06:31:01 -0500

Angel,

Awhile ago Mike posted this site which seems like it might be useful.

Center for Media Literacy
http://www.medialit.org/

----- Original Message -----
From: Angel Lin
To: xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu
Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 1999 12:49 AM
Subject: emerging "ham-sap" classroom culture

Dear xmca friends,

I'm trying to gather ideas for a teacher-researcher who's found himself
having to deal with an emerging "ham-sap" (a Chinese word for sleazy)
culture in his Form 4 (Grade 10) classroom in a boys's school in HK; added
to his difficulty (or perhaps his asset) is that he has come from a
different culture from the students' (he's from the U.S. and doesn't speak
or read the students' L1, which is Cantonese/Chinese; he teaches them
English language arts). Could you share your experience in dealing with
these issues with adolescent boys in a grade 10 class, or suggest some
practical classroom activities/ways of helping students to develop some
critical literacy skills towards the mass media, especially towards the
sexist and racist elements? Thanks.

Angel L

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-
Bob, that's really a concern--the sexist and racist aspects of pop culture
in Hong Kong--I think it might be worth trying to get students to become
more critically aware of the sexist nature of the women-commodifying
commercial culture of Hong Kong; need to find some reading which is
appropriate for this purpose--which raises students' critical literacy
skills: to be able to critiqe the mass media and pop culture; for instance,
getting students to debate whether it's women-degrading to hold beauty
contests in the way that Hong Kong TV is doing (e.g., by comparing how
that's done in other places; e.g., the U.S. beauty contests require the
candidates to answer serious questions about current social and political
affairs whereas in HK the candidates are asked embarrassing sexist
questions); it might be a good idea to look for things said by Christine
Loh in the papers too; she seems to have said something to critique the
ways women are treated in Hong Kong. But it's not just a woman-thing;
distorting the proper relationship between members of the opposite sexes
(i.e., simplifiying the man-woman relationship to one that's focused on
mainly the physical aspects) is dehumanizing both to men and women and
depriving them of a proper fulfilling relationship. Perhaps do more
research on these topics and try to find some educational ways of
developing their critical literacy skills towards the mass media (e.g.,
through guided debates, reading newspaper commentaries, projects that
involve writing letters to the editors to voice against the media/TV sexist
and racist practices, discussing the different positions/opinions voiced in
the society about censorship of the press--e.g., the recent debate on
whether newspapers should be censored by govt. to prevent their violation
of privacy rights; to get them to debate on whether public figures' privacy
should be respected... Good luck! Angel

At 09:59 PM 9/8/99 +0800, you wrote:
>
>Angel.
>
>Thanks for your emails. I'll get in touch with Ken H.
>
>I hope to read through my students letters over the weekend and then I
>should have a better idea of what they are expecting. Most seem to be
>responding well to my research so far. The photographs were a big hit and
>one student brought in his camera to take my picture.
>
>I am still concerned about the Arts class and I have noticed that a "ham
>sap" (that is Chinese -- I don't know if there is an English equivalent)
>culture is fast emerging. Students seem most interested in magazines like
>East Touch and programmes like South Park. The role plays they have been
>doing are filled with sexual references. I would like, of course, to keep
>the seedier elements of the local culture out of the classroom so that my
>dissertation does not need a category III rating, but I am not sure how
that
>can be done in a place like Hong Kong. I could try to address some of
these
>issues head on (ie sex education, pornography) so that I could have some
>control over how these topics are discussed in the classroom. But I think
I
>will need to look at ways of limiting the harmful aspects of the students
>culture and building on the more desirable aspects.
>
>I know that you must be terribly busy now. I don't really need any answers
>now, I am just trying to keep you up to date and trying to help set an
>agenda for when we do have a chance to meet.
>
>Best,
>Bob
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------

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*************************************************************** Angel Lin, Ph.D.(Toronto) Assistant Professor Department of English City University of Hong Kong Tat Chee Ave., Kowloon, Hong Kong Fax: (852) 2788-8894; phone: (852) 2788-8122 E-Mail: enangel who-is-at cityu.edu.hk