As teachers at Bay Bridge High School, we have developed a thematic unit of the Western Pacific Rim in order to enhance the cultural awareness amongst our student body. The Western Pacific Rim is a region that is often overlooked in many aspects of education. Home to numerous cultures, arts, and diverse populations, the Western Pacific Rim offers many educational topics of interest. Through the study of this unit, students will engage in activities that will enhance their learning experience by associating popular culture into the curriculum.

We also find that through the use of associating popular culture into our curriculum, students will be able to actively engage and associate with many of the academic concepts that our content areas cover. Often through conversation, many of our students find that there is little coverage of Asian and Pacific Island influence in popular culture. On the contrary, there have been numerous aspects of cultural exchange throughout popular culture. Through this unit, students will be able to see how popular culture influences both the Western Pacific Rim and in the United States.