An amazing film and a must see for all who plan to travel to China be aware the pollution problem is serious, but Miss Chai brings a message of hope!
I would highly recommend taking the time to watch this lengthy but informative environmental work because it is China's number one problem. If we watch this documentary now I am positive we will be fascinated 10 years from now or even in less time that China will have fixed the problem or made serious significant progress in the reduction of their pollution problem. Being a competitive, populous nation they can make huge progress if the citizens can work quickly to influence the government especially by utilizing the "citizens on patrol with cell phone in hand" plan.
I have to wonder if cell phones had been around in the 70's would not Los Angelenos have done the same and threatened polluting companies and made immediate reports of individual cases making the smog haze disappear much faster. We cannot discount the fact that technological advances can facilitate rapid responses to problems in today's society. China and their people have this advantage now. I am crossing my fingers for them!
Middle school students can certainly be shown a few of "Under the Dome's" episodes (which are broken into 8 parts on YouTube) I would especially recommend episode 8 for middle schoolers. High school students could manage the entire documentary and the subject pertains not only to the history and culture of China but also highlights the economic and political history of the country as well.
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Chai Jing's : "Under The Dome"
05/14/2015 07:48 AM
#1
Chai Jing's : "Under The Dome"
Thanks for sharing this documentary. I found and watched the first segment on youtube and it really was an eye opener. I am talking about population change and the impact on the environment in my AP World History class today. I will definitely be showing it in class. It is shocking the amount of pollution caused in China's major cities and the effects on the people. I am glad her documentary does give a glimmer of hope as this was really depressing to watch...but again insightful.
Film Review:
I have finally watched all 8 segments of this documentary. I would agree that the pollution problem is China is a major issue environmentally and also greatly affects the livelihoods of many people living in China today. I think the the first segment of "Under the Dome," even in the first 10 minutes, you get a better understanding of how people are affected by pollution, whether they are in rural communities, big cities, or even seeing the affects on children throughout the nation. It was difficult to watch the depressing mood, but sometimes that can be eye opening and important for students to see. The fact that Chai Jing had difficulty with her own pregnancy, her child's health early on in life, and then her concern for her daughters health even further into her childhood because of pollution is saddening to watch. The air quality in China on more than half of the days out the year was surprisingly awful. Her daughter sitting at the window asking if she could go outside and not being allowed to seemed like a prison. The fact that when the child was asked if she had ever seen a star in the sky and her reply was "NO" was so sad and depressing to hear. I think that when we think about pollution in an area on the other side of the world there is a disconnect with the affects on peoples' daily lives, and this documentary brings reality to that.
How I will use it in my Classroom:
After watching the 8 segments of this on youtube I can see the benefits of my students watching a portion of this documentary in my class especially the 1st segment, and even the last. In my AP Course one of the final topics that we discuss is population change worldwide and environmental effects. One of the biggest concerns for the environment is population growth. I showed the first 10 minutes of Chai's presentation/documentary in my class just last week. I opened up my class for small to large group discussions and then asked for a reflective essay. I was surprised to read the responses and find how many students did not realize how bad the pollution was, did not know how many people were affected on a daily basis, and also how many students started coming up with ways to solve the issues and prevent this from happening in our own cities. It was interesting to get those responses after the first segment, and then show them some of the hopeful solutions China does have in their future as shown towards the end of the documentary in segment 8.