Peer Review

China in the Red

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Reviewed:: Jan 9, 2010 by Business

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Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:: "China in the Red" begins in 1998, when the mood was both fearful and optimistic. This module includes well-captured videos, roundtable discussions with four noted experts, a feature of how a rock star is born in China, and a section that gives an American a view of how ordinary Chinese live. "China in the Red" was filmed over the course of three turbulent years. This two-hour documentary reveals the stories of 10 Chinese individuals ranging from factory workers, rural villagers, to a millionaire entrepreneur. Their fears, hopes, and their optimism of the future are captured against the backdrop of China's dramatic, ongoing effort to modernize its economy. China has grown over the past decade and is an economically strong country. This material may not be very relevant today but it provides a very good historical perspective.
Type of Material:: Video Documentary
Recommended Uses:: This material is recommended for use in class to understand the way of life in China, and for corporate trainings for both individuals and teams that are expatriating to China for business. But maybe a bit outdated as it is almost 10 years old.
Technical Requirements:: These modules are best viewed with the following browsers: • Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher • Mozilla Firefox 1.6 or higher Windows Media or Real Player is required to view the videos.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: These modules give the viewer/reader a very good glimpse of life in China in the late 90s.
Target Student Population:: Business Seniors, Graduate classes, and corporate training
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Basic Web Browsing skills

Content Quality

Rating:
Strengths:: The module is very clear. It provides an excellent view of life in China in the late 90s and early years of this decade. The videos are very good and there is an element of pathos to the whole viewing as it describes the hardships of ordinary Chinese people living with fear and a sense of optimism. The discussions are very well documented and the participants are experts in the field, This module is very good study material that has documented real people and their lives that is spread over a complete cross section of people from the poor to mega rich.
Concerns:: The biggest concern is the relevance of the topic to today’s China. China has evolved very quickly over the last decade, opening up its doors to businesses, the hosting of the Olympic games and projecting steady economic growth. As regards to flexibility, this module is a historical depiction and relates to a specific period in time hence cannot be termed flexible. The matter provided in this module is real life experiences captured at an earlier period and they tend to change over time. Today’s perspective is a China growing very fast to become a leading industrial and economic powerhouse in the world. Hence present relevance could be in question.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:
Strengths:: This module provides a very good historical perspective on life in China at the beginning of this decade. True videos captured of real life are very intriguing and depicts real feelings of people. It is a good tool to learn about life in China, how the people’s hopes and optimism has sustained through the economic change that has taken place in China over the last couple of decades. The knowledge is very good for understanding China behind the limelight and is very touching. Assignments could be written to help understand China’s culture and have discussions on how global economic changes has made an impact and helped change the people’s optimism.
Concerns:: none

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:
Strengths:: The videos are very well captured and are in separate files and easy to view. They are very engaging as they captured the life of real people. The PBS website is of very high quality and this module is visually very appealing with each section arranged around a star. The background in red clearly depicts China’s favorite color, being a communist country.
Concerns:: none

Other Issues and Comments:: The PBS site hosts these modules but the PBS website is blocked in China as stated in the web site. It maybe good to know if China still blocks PBS web sites.
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