School: Yuan Dou jurnior high school ,Chang-hua,Taiwan
    Chang-hua, other, Taiwan

11 students, ages 12-13 worked together to complete this CyberFair project on March 11, 2003. They have participated in CyberFair in the following year(s): no

Classes and Teachers: Chauo,Chien wen Zheng, Shi-min Tsao, Jian-wen

E-Mail contact:

Our School's Web Site: http://www.ydjh.chc.edu.tw/

1. Description of Our Community

Er-lin is located in the southwest part of Chang-hua county in Taiwan. It used to produce rice as the main profit produce. However, there was a surplus of rice, which made farmers there substitute grapes for rice. Thanks to the government’s help and support, Er-lin farmers successfully changed their main profit produce from rice to grapes. As a result, one of the most famous produce at Er-lin, Golden Muscatel—the major materials for brewing white wine—earned more than NT$ 4,000,000,00 for Er-lin. Er-lin residents were also known for the first farmers’ move ever happened in Taiwan—the Er-lin sugar cane event, which took place at the time when Taiwan was still governed by the Japanese government. This event symbolized a big step Taiwanese took toward democracy under Japanese government. It played an essential role in Taiwan’s history of democracy development.

2. Summary of Our Project

Our hometown Er-lin used to be the main area for growing Golden Muscatel (which are mostly used to brew wine) in Taiwan. In addition to the largest growing area, it was also noted for its astonishingly unbeatable production in grapes. Yet, with the vast change in our society, our grape species can not help but alter with the trend. Waves of newly developed grape species come one after another. We younger generations generally are not familiar with every detail of grapes any more. Nevertheless, with every change, we do find our parents under more pressure. They have to moderate their growing skills as well as facilities to meet the needs of new grape species. Gradually, Er-lin loses its crown in grape planting. To save Er-lin’s golden time from being forgotten, we would like to devote ourselves into the study of grape industry in Er-lin. Little by little we make clear the development of the legendary village of grape—Er-lin. The following are some of the aspects we would like to look into through this study: (1)The background of grape industry at Er-lin (2)The development and success of grape industry at Er-lin (3)Related information about grape industry at Er-lin, such as species, brewing process, etc. (4)The status quo and difficulty of grape industry at Er-lin (5)Potential development of grape industry at Er-lin

3. Our Computer and Internet Access

A. Percentage of students using the Internet at home:less than 20

B. Number of workstations with Internet access in the classroom:none

C. Connection speed used in the classroom:not sure

D. Number of years our classroom has been connected to the Internet:1

E. Additional comments concerning your computer and/or Internet access (Optional):

We don't have any computer in our classroom.

4. Problems We Had To Overcome

(1)Timing Problem: The deadline of this project was soon after the news of the project was released. What’s worse, we were generally occupied during weekdays. We could only study the project on weekends. So it was a pity we had only a month to work on our research.

(2)Problem about Experiences of Research and Info-technology Application: To be honest, we were not very experienced in researching, since this was our first time to take part in such a competition. Moreover, because of the rural environment around our school and the lack of training in info-technology application, we did not have many students qualified to do the study. We could not help but research and learn at the same time. Fortunately, our team members got more and more used to equipment and software application as the project was approaching to an end.

(3)Workload Division Problem: At first, we divided our group members according to grades. The first and second graders worked on different topics. However, the fact that first-graders could not keep up with the schedule indicated the division was a problem. It was indeed a big challenge for us if we stuck to an absolute division of the workload. As a result, we abandoned the original division and broke the limits of grades among group members. With the instruction from higher-graders, lower-graders improved gradually. Finally the progress made up the delay in the initial stage. We were glad we could present our fruit to the public.

5. Our Project Sound Bite

The investigation of our hometown strengthens our tie to the land. True knowledge comes from action. This project fully integrates ourselves into our school and neighborhood, the relationship between teachers and students being more intimate.

6. How did your activities and research for this CyberFair Project support standards, required coursework and curriculum standards?

The ideal of school education lies not only in enhancing students’ acknowledgement of their neighborhood but also in cultivating positive attitude toward their cultures. Students should experience and even take part in any social activity in their neighborhood. Our researching process does offer an authentic chance for us to make the ideal come true. We assert that this project offers the following lessons for us: (1)It offers us the chance to experience Er-lin’s natural, social, and industrial characteristics.

(2)The reaching process offers us the chance to recognize the differences in Er-lin residents’ understanding and feeling about their hometown. This recognition forces us to analyze the underlying factors of these differences. We can therefore have a deeper feeling about our hometown.

(3)The study of grape industry offers us a chance to further analyze the interaction between Er-lin’s natural features and its people, and how the interaction influences Er-lin residents’ life style. We find there is an inter-independence between Er-lin’s people and natural environment.

(4)During the interviews of different subjects, we gain come opportunities to compare ways people from different backgrounds use to describe different experiences. We absorb the ability to appreciate the variety of cultures and an object attitude toward different conclusions. Besides, expressing and communicating abilities are something we learn from the interviews as well.

(5)The application of info-technology is an important means to success in learning. Technological applications like the storage, classification, and arrangement of information, and the completion of web page are examples of info-technology being integrated into teaching and learning.

(6)The exploring of ups and downs of Er-lin grape industry presents a chance for us to witness how rapidly our society changes. It stimulates us to think about our future and the prospection of our grape industry.

1) What information tools & technologies did you used to complete your CyberFair project?

(1)Telephone (2)Digital camera (3)Scanner (4)Tape recorder (5)Computer software (6)Library (7)Books and magazines (8)Oral interviews

The tools mentioned above are sponsored by our school. They aid us in collecting related materials and documents thoroughly, which guarantees the completion of our web page. We could not have our report done without the equipment.

Among them, digital camera and tape recorder are most helpful. It is because we mostly present the history of Er-lin’s grape industry through first-hand materials. With the help of digital camera, we could faithfully present the procedure. Tape recorder, on the other hand, fills up the gap note-taking might leave during every interview. It also guarantees us a true recording of every interviewee’s thought. Thus, our report is everything but the collection and reconstruction of hackneyed documents.

2) In what ways did you act as "ambassadors" and spokespersons for your CyberFair project both on-line and in person.

This project suggests us the idea to study our hometown. Lucky as us to live in a place so “country,” we strongly experience the hospitality and down-to-earth air of those countrymen. Our team leader Yi-ting and vice leader Chen-yu are responsible for finding interviewees. Through a face-to-face interaction, interviewed farmers are always surprised at their poised and sincere attitude. They are always wondering, is it likely that these junior high school students really want to know their hometown, to care about their land and environment? Those kids’ humbleness during each interview and their ninety degree bows at the end move everyone present. However, some interviews with formal organizations are done through the support of guided teachers.

3) What has been the impact of your project on your community?

(1)For our school: This project is our maiden work. Having been working in a small school whose students transfer to other schools one after another, we’ve been thinking what we can give to our students. We’ve been trying very hard to convince our students that they are no worse than kids in the city, as long as they work hard. We are gratified that all the team members realize the fact that their own neighborhood is one of the most important learning environments. It even cheers us that our principal is very supportive when it comes to kids’ study. Thanks to this research, confidence resides on kids’ mind at Yuan-tow junior high school. The completion of the research also makes teachers here believe it is possible for kids to absorb knowledge and train their living ability at the same time. What’s more inspiring, we gain several accesses to public as well as private organizations outside school. Numerous practical plans would soon be put into practice, like the training of agricultural experts in our neighborhood, school education about career planning, development and interaction of clubs, and so on.

(2)For students’ parents: Coming face to face with students’ parents, we make them understand what on earth educational reform is.

(3)For Er-lin: Because of the project, we realize a fact that Er-lin lacks a document recording the integration of its people and natural environment. The completion of our research serves a role which thoroughly integrates Er-lin’s history and its agricultural development, the grape industry, especially.

4) How did your project involve other members of your community as helpers and volunteers?

The local residents, in addition to being our interviewees, also play an important role in our attempt to link to other resources. Most grape farmers are relatives or friends of our team members. We change our interviewees according to specific topics. No matter what, they are always willing to tell us their experiences in growing grapes and afterthoughts about their work. So far as the farmers’ association is concerned, it gives us official information related to the development in Er-lin’s grape industry. It has promised to cooperate with us in helping all our students gain a better idea about everything related to grape development at Er-lin. Finally, we did not find the strong link between Nan-tou brewery and Er-lin’s grape industry until this investigation. Our visit to Nan-tou brewery assures us an insight into the past the future of Er-lin’s grape industry.

5) Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises (Optional)

On one hand, this project offers an opportunity for us to look into the natural, historical, and social features of our hometown. We are grateful for this chance, for even the textbooks cannot describe them so vividly. On the other hand, since many Er-lin residents used to live on growing grapes, we may even conclude that grapes are the origin of many later developments at Er-lin. Knowing how tough farmers’ life used to be makes us cherish what we have now. And the realization assigns us confidence in our future. Most important of all, through this research, we would like to give people a real look of Er-lin in the most effective way, showing its beauty to the public.