A classroom with students seated facing a whiteboard and a large screen, where Dr. Ishikawa is teaching.

make history work for the future

My undergraduate and graduate courses develop students’ skills to create and express original voices in a scaffolding approach. Students have learned those skills through a series of individual, collective, and AI-related activities through primary and scholaly sources on Japanese and East Asian history.

  • Vintage illustration of a busy train station with people waiting and boarding a train, featuring a brown train car, passengers in early 20th-century clothing, and a platform.

    Modern Japan

    This undergraduate course explores Japan's transformation from the 18th century to the present with a focus on identities in interregional and international contexts.

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  • A traditional Japanese festival scene with crowds walking through a street lined with two-story wooden stalls decorated with colorful banners. Some people are seated in the stalls, while others walk along the street, carrying umbrellas or wearing traditional attire. Mount Fuji is visible in the background under a blue sky.

    Modern East Asia

    This undergraduate course examines shared and distinct traditional and modern voices in East Asia since ca. 1700.

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  • A traditional Japanese painting depicting three seated men and a small animal, possibly a dog, under a canopy. The men are dressed in traditional attire, with one man in red armor on the left, another in ornate robes on the right, and a third in black robes in the foreground. There are decorative objects and Japanese calligraphy in the background.

    Japanese Civilization

    This undergraduate course traces Japan's ancient, medieval, and early modern periods by emphasizing Japan's sociocultural dynamism.

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  • Black and white portrait of a woman dressed in traditional Japanese attire, seated with her hands resting on her lap, wearing a kimono and an elaborate hairstyle.

    History of Gender and Sexuality in Japan

    This research-intensive undergraduate course employs gender as a form of historical analysis to help write a research paper on Japan's history since 1600.

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  • The Japanese Empire

    This research-intensive undergraduate course engage students with the history of the Japanese empire in their own ways.

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  • A vintage black and white illustration of a girl in a kimono sitting on the floor with a man standing behind her, holding a piece of paper. The girl is smiling and appears to be engaging in a traditional activity. There are books and artwork on the floor nearby, with a window in the background. The caption reads: 'Picture my mother, my brother, my sister — have to give money payday!'

    Women and Gender

    This graduate colloquium discusses the historiography of gender and East Asia since the early modern period.

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Select unsolicited Appreciations

“…Overall this class hass been the best experience despite Covid…helped me develop not only a broader historical understanding of Japan, but it improved my interpretive skills. I have also never had a lecture outdoors which was a truly unique class!””

B. K.

“I wanted to let you know personally that I really enjoyed this class very much. I appreciated how detail-oriented and meaningful the in-class lectures and assignments were, and they were challenging in a good way. The assignments were always focused on helping us learn, and interpret history, and not put us through lots of rote projects. The whole class was arranged very well.”

J. D.

I just wanted take the time to thank you for all you've done to teach us, not just in regards to Modern Japanese history but in how to approach history in general, with open perspective and proper source citing rather than to take things at face value…So I wanted to thank you for teaching us, even through this difficult time, and I'd honestly hope to take another one of your courses in the future, when things get better. I'd be reminisce not to thank you for also being patient with us, and to show understanding to the difficulties of a college lifestyle, let alone during these difficult times, so I thank you for that as well and wish you the best.

C. R.

“I'd like to say thank you for the efforts you've put towards this class which help me considerably…I have a disability which makes classes a bit harder than for others. My ADD means I often can't concentrate for long periods of time, and I also struggle to complete assignments when I don't understand the topic or instructions. Many things in this class that help me with this include the recorded lectures, getting the powerpoints before Thursday discussions, weekly consistent due dates, detailed feedback, and my option to choose topics for written assignments. I was very touched when you offered to allow me to pursue my short post topic for the final essay for this reason..”

K. H.

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