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WWII ASIA RESOURCES
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Modules on WWII Asia
In remembrance and education, World War II in Asia is much less known, studied, and commemorated than WWII in Europe. ALPHA Education promotes historical inquiry not only as events, but also to ask questions of the root causes, legacies, and the atrocities of WWII in Asia as important humanity lessons for the present.
If we are to learn lessons from human sufferings caused by war and armed conflict in order to advocate for global peace, it is critical that they are part of the learning experiences of young people in schools, universities, and colleges.
ALPHA Education builds the future by inspiring inquiry about the interconnectedness of the past, present, and future in history-writing as well as history-making.
Digital Archive Publications
This collection from ALPHA Education's Digital Archives Project (DAP) consists of research-based educational material and resources based on primary sources. It features the projects developed, several by our student interns and volunteers. Click on each image to access the resource.
Study Guides for Teachers
50 Years of Silence
Based on a memoir of the same title, "50 Years of Silence" documents the experiences of Jan Ruff-O'Herne as a young girl enslaved under the Japanese military sexual slavery system and the decades of trauma, survivorship, and activism that followed. This discussion paper is suitable for educators and researchers interested in igniting discourse on the complex issues surrounding Japanese Military Sexual Slavery during World War II in Asia.
Iris Chang - The Rape of Nanking
The Rape of Nanking is a feature-length docudrama about Iris Chang's courage and unfaltering conviction to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves, while providing an accurate historical account of the 1937 Nanking Massacre. This theme-based study guide on the docudrama is intended for use internationally within any secondary school system. The guide consists of a list of recommendations on how to use this film in a classroom setting, a suggested list of teachable themes that the film relates to, and Response Questions.
The Apology
A documentary by Tiffany Hsiung, The Apology follows the journeys of three former “comfort women” who were among the 200,000 girls and young women kidnapped and forced into military sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. After decades of living in silence and shame about their past, the three “grandmothers” – Grandma Gil in South Korea, Grandma Cao in China, and Grandma Adela in the Philippines – share their struggles to ensure that this atrocity is not forgotten.
This discussion guide is a tool to engage participants in conversations about reconciliation, trauma, and consequences of war by drawing from the lived experiences of survivors of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery. Created by POV, this collection of resources also includes a lesson plan and a reading list to delve deeper into the issues addressed in the documentary.