| Using Technology To Encourage an Open-Minded Palate |
 |
 |
 |
|
So, as I drove home from work today, looking forward to heating up some left-over Indian food for my dinner, I reflected on how diverse my school’s student population is, but how . . . un-diverse? non-diverse? limited? . . . some of the students’ epicurean experiences are likely to have been. For example, one of my all-time favorite cuisines is Ethiopian. In case you don’t read my blog much, you may not know that I am a white American of British and Irish ancestry. I grew up in New Jersey, where Italian food was the most common ethnic cuisine, and Chinese food would be perhaps considered exotic. (I was in high school before I had ever had Chinese food. I know! Right?) But now I live in California, in the San Francisco Bay Area, and one thing moving here has done is opened my eyes to a world of new and exciting foods. I had never tasted avocado or artichoke before moving here. (I love both.) I had only eaten Indian food in England when visiting family. I was not very adventurous in trying new foods. It took moving across a continent, developing some self-confidence, and making new friends to expand my culinary horizons. So, back to my students. Many of them are Americans of Asian descent: Chinese, Taiwanese, Vietnamese, Korean, Indian, Filipino, etc. They’re all very familiar with their own cuisines, and perhaps the cuisines of some of their friends. But there’s a whole world of food out there they may have never tried. We live in California, so most of them have had Mexican food (not counting Taco Bell here). So I got an idea. I love Yelp. I use it on my iPhone and laptop to find restaurants whenever I travel. I think I might offer my students an extra credit opportunity that goes a little something like this: Expand your horizons! Try new things! Use technology to help you! Using www.yelp.com, get together with your parents to find a restaurant to visit together. Find one that sounds good and has gotten good ratings. The one requirement is that it has to be an ethnic cuisine that none of you has ever tried before. (Or at least that the kids in the family have never tried before.) Read the reviews to find out what sounds good, and see if there is a link to the menu and/or the website for the restaurant. Have in mind what you think you might order when you go. Take some pictures if you can at dinner. After your meal, write your own review (for me), and include pictures of your food, plus a flag of the country or some other symbol of the country represented by the restaurant’s cuisine. In your review, answer the following questions:
Image by Flickr user DavidDennisPhotos.com, some rights
reserved, Creative Commons.
Comments (6)
...
written by Rachelle, February 18, 2010
As most kids are passionate about playstation and PC games, could the same idea be applied to writing reviews on new games? Maybe compare it to reviews in gaming magazines.
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Votes: +1
...
written by Sandy, February 15, 2010
What a great way to get students to apply their knowledge in a real-life situation! I, too, live in a community with a non-diverse population. I might also add that it is a small, rural community which requires at least a thirty minute drive to a town that was listed in Yelp. I also would like to use your idea to help my students expand their horizons. Do you know of a similar website for smaller, rural areas? Do you ever meet any resistance from families that do not allow/provide opportunities for their students to do any homework (even extra credit) requiring connection to the Internet from home? Whenever I am able to use your idea, I am going to add one question to your excellent list: Why did you decide on this restaurant? I would be curious to hear the reasoning behind their decision.
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Votes: +1
Share it
written by John, February 03, 2010
Excellent idea and so difficult to get kids to venture out of their narrow comfort zone. How about sharing the reviews via a class Epicurean Blog or shared Google doc? Parents and community members should get kick out of it.
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Votes: +1
Agreed!
written by Vo, February 02, 2010
You would think the 4th grade "Rancho" Day in celebration of ending the Social Studies chapter on Spanish colonization in "California" land would be a hit. I went to buy tacos from Taco Bell. Taco Bell!! Less than half of the kids in my class wanted some free tacos. Free Taco Bell! They were scared to eat it because they had never had it. While it is there is diversity in the school, it is mainly one demographic.
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Votes: +1
... written by Lisa, February 02, 2010
GREAT idea!! This could be the incentive kids need to branch out and try new things. I'm amazed at how limited some kids palates are--even with all the diversity out here. Maybe you should require the kids to bring you some leftovers, too!
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Votes: +1
Write comment
            |
I love food.
Subscribe to this comment's feed
I love this idea. I wish I would have thought of it for my project for 700. I teach seniors Multicultural Literature and I offer an extra credit assignment where students may visit a restaurant and sample a cuisine they have never tried before. They have Thai, Indian, Afghani, etc. I always have them take a photo of their food and write about their experience, but they never get to share the information/experience with the rest of the class--now I have a good way to do it!! Do you mind if I use this idea?? It's perfect for my class!!
By the way, I've been to Ethiopia and learned how to make Doro Wat, Injera and many other dishes! I luuuuv spicy foods.