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Wednesday, December 18, 2013

That funny Chinese homework assignment... now with context!

That funny Chinese homework assignment... now with context!:

angry asian man

THAT FUNNY CHINESE HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT... NOW WITH CONTEXT!

Turns out, it was supposed to be written in Chinese



This blog has recently received a spate of traffic from a Distractify list, 38 Test Answers That Are 100% Wrong But Totally Genius At The Same Time, which links back to this amusing November 2010 post, featuring a viral photo of a grade school homework assignment that a student seemingly took quite literally.

According to the assignment: "You are to assume the role of a Chinese immigrant in 1870 and write a letter home describing your experiences. Your letter should include the following: your contributions and experiences in the West." What folks found funny is that the student went the extra mile and wrote out the letter in Chinese -- just like an 1870s immigrant would.

But it turns out, that's exactly what the student was supposed to do.

I just heard from Anna Janssen, the former elementary teacher who came up with this assignment, circa spring 2008, for an English/Chinese dual language class. Owing to the language disparity in the class -- some were new immigrants from China with no English proficiency, while others were raised in America with minimal written