Zhiwen Zheng’s Peer Review

Suggestions

• Reducing learning outcomes
• Providing more effective ways to help colour-blind students

What we improved or MAY NOT improved

• There are four main essential questions in our project and each question contains 1-2 learning outcomes. In our opinion, all learning outcomes are important and necessary, so we do not reduce any of them finally.
• The main purpose of using different colours in our project is to highlight the key words or sentences. Therefore, in order to help colour-blind students, we also bold all highlighted words or sentences.

Alireza Tahmasebi’s Peer Review

Suggestions

• “Will there be deadlines for formative and summative assessments, or will students complete the activities and assessments at their own pace?”
• “On the pages for topic 2, topic 3, and topic 4, the outcomes differ from the ones that were written on the page for learning outcomes”
• “Make sure you cite any source(s) that you used in the first paragraph for describing experiential learning and list the references at the end of the page” and “ensure that you cite and reference the source(s) you used for describing cognitivism”
• “I recommend trying the Colourblind Web Page Filter, which lets you filter your webpages based on colour filters and helps you make sure that the best colours are chosen for the design of the website”
• The links of learning activities in topic 2, 3, and 4 have been invalid.

What we improved or MAY NOT improved

• Students will complete the learning activities and assessments at their own pace.
• The learning outcomes for topic 2, topic 3, and topic 4 are changed and align with the page for learning outcomes.
• The sources in experiential learning and cognitivism are cited.
• The links of learning activities in topic 2, topic 3, and topic 4 are improved.

Yisi Min’s Peer Review

Suggestions

• “There should have some content or link jump when I click Description & Rationale and Assessment. It looks a little empty now”

What we improved or MAY NOT improved

• We do not change this part because both the “Description & Rationale” and “Assessment” are our primary categories and there are a few secondary categories under the primary categories.

Killian Baron’s Peer Review

Suggestions

• “Topic 4 doesn’t have an assessment, though this may be to give students time for the summative assessment, you may want to consider adding another assessment for this topic”

What we improved or MAY NOT improved

• The assessment for topic 4 is included in the final summative assessment; therefore, we do not change this part.

According to the web article, “Insect Tea, A Wonderful Work in the Chinese Tea Culture”, the authors described “insect tea, listed in the ‘Compendium of Materia Medica’ by Li Shizhen, is not only a traditional drink for the ethnic minority in the southwest China, but also one of China’s traditional export commodities. Insect tea is made of the feces of insects that feed on plants, and characterized by minimal dose, enjoyable tea flavour, few tea residues, and superb transparency” (Li, Pan, et. al., 2013).

For your summative assessment, work in a small group (3-5 people ideally), explore sources from the web about this special type of Chinese tea, and use what you have learned from this online project to answer the following questions:

• What are the main characteristics of insect tea? Why is it so popular in China?
• What are the medical and nutritional values of insect tea? How does it affect Chinese tea culture?
• What are the differences in Chinese tea ceremony between insect tea and other types of Chinese tea? (Choosing one type of Chinese tea as an example to compare with insect tea)

This assignment is worth 50% of your final grade. In the following is the requirements of the assignment:

• All questions above are included
• Academic sources or references from other web are included
• Minimum 600 words

There are multiple online tools you might want to use and organize your group project. Options include Google Docs, Google Slides, or another medium that you find more appropriate. The important thing is that this assignment is easy to access and use for a group work and every person in your group can edit together. After completing this assignment, please reply to this post to share the link or email me your link.

Reference

XU, L., PAN, H., LEI, Q., XIAO, W., PENG, Y., & XIAO, P. (2013). Insect tea, a wonderful work in the chinese tea culture: TEA – FROM BUSHES TO MUGS:COMPOSITION, STABILITY AND HEALTH ASPECTS. Food Research International, 53(2), 629-635.

Individuals will be able to expand their knowledge of Chinese tea culture. 

After participating in and learning from this project, students will be able to…

• Identify the origins, history, and evolution of Chinese tea clearly.
• Explain the importance of tea-drinking in Chinese culture. 
• Discuss how tea works in the body specifically. 
• List and describe the benefits of regular tea consumption.
• Illustrate the main types of tea originated from China. 
• Analyze the technological process of tea producing. 
• Comprehend cultural value of Chinese tea ceremony. 
• Evaluate what occasions people will use Chinese tea ceremony (e.g. formal and informal occasions) and apply it in real life. 

Brief Commentary

Tea is an important and meaningful part of Chinese tradition and culture. As Chinese society developed, the production of tea has played a role in driving economic development while the consumption of tea has remained a practice of daily life (Jiang, 2021). However, when was tea discovered? How did Chinese tea evolve? Why it is so important in Chinese culture? In this sub-topic, it will focus mainly on talking about the three questions. 

In the end of this sub-topic, both the interactive activity (i.e. online discussion) and the assessment (i.e. online quiz) are provided. 

Learning Outcomes

Individuals will be able to expand their knowledge of Chinese tea culture. 

After learning from the first sub-topic, learners will be able to…

• Identify the origins, history, and evolution of Chinese tea clearly. 
• Explain the importance of tea-drinking in Chinese culture specifically. 

The Origins of Chinese Tea

The origin of the use of tea as a beverage is unclear, although references to tea in Chinese literature can go back approximately 5,000 years (Parkinson, 2019). As a result of the biological, ethnic and cultural diversity of China, the origin of tea is highly diverse as well. Tea has been documented in Chinese ancient literature inconsistently. According to the article, “Insect Tea, A Wonderful Work in the Chinese Tea Culture”, the authors used two examples to explain the inconsistent descriptions of tea in Chinese ancient literature. For example, “it is clearly indicated that tea was a sweet-tasting plant in the ‘Odes’, while tea was indicated as a bitter-tasting plant in the ‘Eyra’” (Xu, Pan, et.al., 2013).

Although there are many Chinese literary writings about tea, it is still hard for historians to exactly pinpoint when it was exactly discovered. From the article, “History of Tea in China & How it Spread Across the World”, the author described that “in 1978, Archeologists surprisingly found tea relics in the Tianluo mountains that were estimated to be 7,000 years old”(2015). Then, after a decade of research, the Archeologists published in 2015 that “these roots are about 6,000 years old” (2015). “This confirmed it must have been the Hemudu culture, flourishing in 7,000 BC and 6,000 BC, that started cultivating and brewing tea”(2015). 

The Evolution of Tea in China

From the web article, “Chinese Tea Culture”, Li clearly describes the history and evolution of tea in China (Li, 1993): 

• According to records of pre-Qin period, in remote times, apart from serving as a drink and being used for medical purposes, tea was also used at sacrificial rites.
• In the royal family of Zhou period, there were people charged with the task of tea-related affairs. 
• No tea was grown in the north in the Han dynasty. it was therefore considered a rarity by the imperial court, the nobility and high officials. in Sichuan province during eastern Han, however, tea began to appear as a commodity in the market.
• Tea trading was on constant rise during the Jin dynasty (256-316) and tea-drinking spread far and wide. 
• Vigorous development of Chinese tea culture was witnessed in Sui-Tang and Song dynasties. Chinese tea began to spread overseas during Sui and Tang dynasties. It spread by sea to Korea and Japan to the east and to the south pacific islands, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and India to the south. It spread by land to Persia and Arab countries along the Silk Road. 
• Chinese tea did not reach Europe until trade began between the east and west in the 16th century. 

Nowadays, tea is one of the most popular beverages in the whole world. It is ranked at “a level of being the second nonalcoholic drink after that of water (Qin, Pang, et. al., 2013). 

The YouTube video below provides a brief introduction about the history of tea. 

The Importance of Tea in Chinese Culture

In the past several thousand years, “extensive knowledge has been accumulated in China on tea cultivation, production and consumption, which forms the unique Chinese tea culture” (Xu, Pan, et. al., 2013). Chinese tea culture developed rapidly during the Tang dynasty and has infiltrated Chinese society deeply since then (Xu, Pan, et. al., 2013). Additionally, a number of monographs were published during Tang and Song dynasties. One of the most renowned books on tea is Lu Yu’s. As Li stated, “this book makes a comprehensive and systematic summary of the experiences in tea-growing, tea-processing and tea-drinking and therefore it regarded as the classical work on tea” (Li, 1993). Therefore, it exerts tremendous influence on the development of Chinese tea culture. 

Also, tea has an extremely close relationship to Chinese culture, and its study covers a wide field and has very rich content. As Li described in “Chinese Tea Culture”, Chinese tea culture covers almost all realms of life, both physical and spiritual. “Tea culture is a branch of learning that takes as its subject of study the relationship between tea-marketing and tea-drinking on the one hand and the various aspects of political, economic, and cultural life on the other as well as the influence they exert on each other” (Li, 1993). Therefore, tea plays a quite meaningful and important role in Chinese culture and traditions. 

Interactive Activities 

Online Discussion

• Have you heard any stories about Chinese tea or Chinese tea culture? If yes, please share it with you peers. If not, please find one on the web.
• Please click HERE to participate in the online discussion on this subtopic.

Formative Assessment 

Online Quiz

• After learning from this subtopic, please click HERE to complete the online quiz as a formative assessment.
• NOTE: each question ONLY has one correct answer. Instant feedbacks and grade will be given to you after submitting.

References 

Jiang, F. (2021). Chinese Tea, Discover Chinese Tea Culture and History. Retrieved from: https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-tea/

History of Tea in China & How it Spread Across the World (2015). Retrieved from: https://www.teasenz.com/chinese-tea/tea-history.html

Parkinson, R. (2019). Ancient Chinese Tea History and Fascinating Facts. Retrieved from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/origins-of-chinese-tea-694325

Qin, Z., Pang, X., Chen, D., Cheng, H., Hu, X., & Wu, J. (2013). Evaluation of Chinese tea by the electronic nose and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry: Correlation with sensory properties and classification according to grade level. Food Research International, 53(2), 864-874. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2013.02.005

Teng, S. (2017). The History of Tea. TED-Ed. YouTube. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaLvVc1sS20&ab_channel=TED-Ed

Xiusong, L. (1993). Chinese tea culture. Journal of Popular Culture, 27(2), 75-90.

XU, L., PAN, H., LEI, Q., XIAO, W., PENG, Y., & XIAO, P. (2013). Insect tea, a wonderful work in the chinese tea culture: TEA – FROM BUSHES TO MUGS:COMPOSITION, STABILITY AND HEALTH ASPECTS. Food Research International, 53(2), 629-635.

As an asynchronous online project, the main characteristics of technology that our group chose for are free, open, and easy-to-use. The following technology tools are four major tools that we used in this project, including WordPress, Google Group, Google Docs, and Google Forms.

WordPress

Academic blog posts in relation to the four essential questions and different learning outcomes will be all presented on WordPress (this website). As a fully asynchronous online project, WordPress can provide a much more open, accessible, and flexible platform for people to participate in their learning. There are no restrictions on the learning place, pace, and time for learners as well. Also, a variety of multimedia, such as videos, audios, and images, will be embedded in blog posts, based on different topics; therefore, it will be very informative, effective, and attractive. 

Google Groups

Google Groups is designed for learners to discuss questions in relation to our topic asynchronously. By using Google Group, we, as instructors, can ask questions based on different sub-topics and encourage learners to share their ideas, discuss and answer questions, and ask for help. This online tool will not only help learners interact with each other, but also help instructors determine a learner’s participation in his/her online learning. 

Google Docs

Google Docs is used for learners when writing assignments and group projects are asked. It’s a very effective and useful tool for learners to edit and write papers together. This online tool is used for some of our sub-topics as the part of assessment, in which writing assignments are asked by instructors.

Google Forms

Google Forms is used to make online quizzes for our learners by us. The form of the online quizzes in this project is multiple choice question. This online tool is useful and effective in this project as the part of assessment because both instant feedbacks and grades will be given to learners after they submit the quizzes.

This interactive learning resource is intended for individuals who feel interested in Chinese tea, culture, and history. It will contain four main parts: the origins of Chinese tea, Tea’s nutritional value, types of Chinese tea, and Chinese tea ceremony. In this online project, learners need to learn this topic, participate in activities, and interact with materials by themselves individually. The main purpose of this project is to expand learners’ knowledge of Chinese tea culture. It is based on the subject of Asian Studies. 

The Topic of the Resource

Nowadays, tea is one of the most popular beverages in the whole world. The popularity of tea is attributed to its potential health benefits with attractive and pleasant flavour. Based on the different processing methods, tea can be usually classified as green tea, oolong tea, black tea, white tea, yellow tea, and dark tea in China. Also, “tea-tasting was considered a refined cultural activity and an artistic preoccupation for Chinese literati and officialdom. Tea and tea-related activities have penetrated various aspects of social life and take on unique cultural characteristics” (Li, 1993).

The topic of our group’s interactive learning resource is about the basic knowledge of Chinese tea culture. Specifically as discussed throughout this blog, there are four main parts of this topic, including the origins of Chinese tea, tea’s nutritional value, types of Chinese tea, and Chinese tea ceremony. People will learn about Chinese history, culture, traditions, and characteristics from this topic clearly.

Technology Tools

As a fully asynchronous online project, a variety of social media tools will be applied to help you engage in your learning process, interact with the materials, and achieve success in this project. More specific introduction will be shown in “Rationale for Technology Choices“

Textbook & Required Resources

You are NOT required to purchase a textbook for this project. All readings will either be freely and openly available on the web or will be accessible through the University of Victoria library.

References

Xiousong, L. (1993). Chinese tea culture. Journal of Popular Culture, 27(2), 75-90.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-3840.1993.00075.x