Professor Hirano is very knowledgeable about the material and an excellent lecturer. The class consisted of two weekly lectures and a discussion. There were reflections due before every lecture graded for completion, two graded papers, and no exam. The class was structured thematically rather than chronologically, which was a fresh way to learn history. I would definitely recommend this class to anyone, whether you're looking for a GE, trying to satisfy a major requirement, or just want to learn about Japanese history!

Professor Hirano is a really engaging lecturer, and I really enjoyed the way he structured his class. He makes you examine the themes in history which allows you to see history in a different lens. The class is not a lot of work just a biweekly assignment for completion and two essays. I really recommend taking this class with him.

Class:
This class is about themes, for example, examining how myths were created and utilized by different governments to achieve their goals, not chronology/historical events. The discussion sections complemented the lectures well and helped us understand the readings better. I would definitely take this class again and I think it's a pretty easy GE.

Professor:
Very engaging lectures, fun to listen to. I feel that I probably could have gotten a decent-ish essay grade without listening to the lectures but doing the readings + looking at lecture slides which Kats uploaded while we wrote our essays + going to my TAs office hours. But the lectures do help you understand the overarching ideas and break down the essay prompts and formulate a thesis.

Grade breakdown:
Weekly assignments: 17 points
The weekly assignments were basically a one page response paper based on the readings due at the start of every lecture. Graded based on completion.
Section discussion: 9 points
These points were based on attendance and 'participation' in the discussions.
1st paper: 34 points
2nd paper: 40 points
Extra credit: We got 3 points extra credit for going to and writing about a symposium and a film screening that complemented our course work, which were extremely meaningful. 8 students also got extra credit because their essay prompts were chosen.

Class:
This class is about themes, for example, examining how myths were created and utilized by different governments to achieve their goals, not chronology/historical events. The discussion sections complemented the lectures well and helped us understand the readings better. I would definitely take this class again and I think it's a pretty easy GE.

Professor:
Very engaging lectures, fun to listen to. I feel that I probably could have gotten a decent-ish essay grade without listening to the lectures but doing the readings + looking at lecture slides which Kats uploaded while we wrote our essays + going to my TAs office hours. But the lectures do help you understand the overarching ideas and break down the essay prompts and formulate a thesis.

Grade breakdown:
Weekly assignments: 17 points
The weekly assignments were basically a one page response paper based on the readings due at the start of every lecture. Graded based on completion.
Section discussion: 9 points
These points were based on attendance and 'participation' in the discussions.
1st paper: 34 points
2nd paper: 40 points
Extra credit: We got 3 points extra credit for going to and writing about a symposium and a film screening that complemented our course work, which were extremely meaningful. 8 students also got extra credit because their essay prompts were chosen.

Kats is really cool and smart. However, this class isn't very well structured and you don't end up coming away with much. You jump around history constantly in a way that doesn't really make sense. You have to do weekly vocab write ups which are graded on completion so it's just busy work. If you're interested in Japanese history take the class, it can offer a lot if you want it to. Otherwise you just don't gain that much. There are easier GEs too.

This was an amazing class! Professor Hirano is such a great and engaging lecturer and I looked forward to his classes. He gave such great insight and though this is a rather unconventional history class, I enjoyed it. Grade is basically participation and 2 essays, so it is very heavily dependent on TA. Shoutout to Xiaowen, who was absolutely amazing!! Would definitely recommend this GE!

Japan history is no longer a dull subject thanks to Professor Hirano and my best TAs!

BTW, here shows how the grades calculated for this course:

15% Weekly assignments (one-page, double-spaced reading response each week)
20% Participation (as long as you attend the discussions and make meaningful points)
30% Midterm Paper
35% Final Paper

I highly recommend this for a GE! Professor Hirano is super nice, but lectures aren't mandatory so I never went. Your grade is basically based off discussion participation (basically just show up to discussion), weekly one page double spaced responses, and a midterm and final essay (no tests). All you really need to do for this class is go to discussion and skim the weekly readings to write a one page response since they're only graded for completion. Lectures aren't super important because you go over material in the discussion and you can write the papers solely off the readings. The TAs are also super nice and helpful. Take this class!!!

Maybe it was just me but this class was a lot harder than expected. Yes, it was good to have only a paper for the midterm and final but the prompts are convoluted. If you bomb one, then you kind of already bomb the class. Had a really good TA and he was incredibly nice and helpful so go to discussion to understand what's going on. He doesn't take attendance anymore in lecture but go to lecture to get the gist of the class for the essay.

This class is fairly easy. The class is out of 100 points. 40 points are weekly assignments and discussion, but you're practically guaranteed full points if you attend and just do the assignment, which is two paragraphs per week. There are three essays, about 4-5 pages each. Hirano discourages memorization, so there are no midterms or finals. They're not harsh graders, so it is fairly easy to get an A. If you really need help, go to the history writing center, but make sure to schedule an appointment early or else they get booked quickly.
Hirano is passionate about the subject, which makes it nice. He does take attendance each lecture and discussion. His syllabus states if you miss a discussion, you automatically get a F. Not sure how true that is. Overall, it's an easy GE and fulfills the diversity requirement.