History Dialogic 2025

On Friday, 31 October 2025, the ACJC Humanities Department proudly hosted the latest instalment of DIALOGIC: The ACJC Distinguished Guest Lecture in History. The event brought together approximately 190 students and educators from five colleges for an afternoon of deep historical inquiry and intellectual exchange.

Our distinguished guest speaker, Dr Jennifer Yip, Assistant Professor in the Department of History at the National University of Singapore (NUS), delivered a compelling lecture on how China’s wartime military strategies fundamentally reshaped civilian lives.

The session offered a unique lens on the Second Sino-Japanese War, moving beyond high-level military tactics to explore:

• The Civilian Lynchpin: How ordinary men, women, and children became essential to China’s "protracted war" and its joint efforts with the United States in the Pacific Theatre.

• Historical Memory: How the trauma and triumphs of the war are remembered today, particularly through the lens of modern online discourse in East Asia.

The lecture served as a vital academic bridge for students across two key disciplines:

• For History Students: The session provided essential context for H1 and H2 History syllabuses, illustrating how the legacy of WWII dictated China's post-war domestic trajectory and foreign policy.

• For China Studies in English Students: As 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in WWII, the lecture offered critical insights into how historical memory continues to complicate contemporary China-Japan relations.

The event concluded with a dynamic Q&A session, where students engaged directly with Dr Yip to clarify nuances of the conflict and the enduring power of historical narratives.