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01 / 05
Lesson Plan: Hangzhou (Paper Money)

Blog Post | Human Development

Lesson Plan: Hangzhou (Paper Money)

In this lesson, students will learn about a commercial innovation that originated in China and has now spread all over the world: paper currency.

You can find a PDF of this lesson plan here.

Lesson Overview

Featured article: Centers Progress, Pt. 12: Hangzhou (Paper Money) by Chelsea Follett

Despite China having the second biggest economy in the world and being the nation with the world’s largest population today, many students know surprisingly little about the country’s history. Even students that know a bit about China have probably never heard of the city of Hangzhou, one of the ancient capitals of China and now its fourth-largest metropolitan area with a population of over 20 million.

This article will give students a glimpse into the fascinating history of Hangzhou during its “golden age” and relates many of the innovations that made the city one of the most influential centers of progress in world history. In particular, students will learn about one commercial innovation that originated in China and has now spread all over the world: paper currency.

Warm-up

Imagine that paper money, electronic payments, and credit and debit cards disappeared tomorrow. In this alternate reality, the only way to pay for things would be by using small metal coins.

How would this change affect you, your family, and your friends?

  • Take a few minutes to reflect on how life would be different if you could use only coins to make purchases.
    • How would you feel? Do you think the transition would be easy?
    • Do you think using only coins to pay for things would be an impossible task? What would be the biggest challenges for you and your family?
    • Would there be any advantages to this old style of payment?
  • Write a paragraph describing how this change would affect your life.
  • Share your paragraph with a partner. Reflect and discuss together:
    • In what ways would you and your community be worse off with only the use of coins?
    • Would you want to live this way for a day, a month, or even a year?
    • Do you think it is possible or desirable for your town or city to flourish without the use of paper money?
  • Today you will learn about the origin of paper money in China. Before we begin, answer these questions:
    • Why do you think paper money was invented in the first place? What were the advantages of paper money over the types of money used previously?
    • What technology do you think had to be developed in order for paper money to be introduced?
    • Make a prediction: Do you think paper money originated with a central government or as an innovation of private businesspeople?

Questions for reading, writing, and discussion

Read the article, and then answer the following questions:

  • What were some of the characteristics of the economy of Hangzhou during the Song dynasty? List at least three.
  • The article mentions two advantages of using paper currency over coins. What were these advantages?
  • What role does Hangzhou play in the economic life of China today? Why is it still one of the most important cities in China?
  • According to the article, at what point did Hangzhou become the most important city in China?
  • What critical piece of infrastructure first built during the 600s CE allowed Hangzhou to be connected to the cities of northern China?
  • What technological innovation allowed for the mass production of books, documents, and banknotes during the Song dynasty? Be specific. What was the critical invention devised by Bi Sheng?
  • Despite Hangzhou being forward-thinking in many respects, what notable practice now seen as inhumane and cruel towards a particular group arose during the Song Dynasty?
  • What were some of the cultural milestones of the Song dynasty in each area of achievement? How did these innovations improve the lives of many ordinary Chinese people living in cities like Hangzhou? Fill in the chart below.
What were the achievements during the Song dynasty?How were the lives of ordinary Chinese people improved as a result?
Culture (including clothing, literature and poetry, cuisine, and architecture)
Technology
Economics
  • How did paper currency evolve? Write a short description of its origin and development from the Tang dynasty through the Song dynasty.
  • What were some of the features of the banknotes printed by the Chinese central government in Hangzhou beginning in 1265 CE? Why did the Chinese people ascribe value to this form of currency?
  • If not managed correctly, what is one of the dangers of using paper currency in an economy? What are the consequences for ordinary people of this type of fiscal mismanagement?

Extension Activity/Homework

Watch and Learn from a China Scholar

Dr. Valerie Hansen teaches Chinese history at Yale University. She is a well-known expert on one of the most famous Chinese paintings, a masterpiece known as the “Qing Ming Scroll,” which was commissioned by a Song dynasty emperor. Although the cityscape depicted in the scroll is a fictional rendition of an “ideal” Chinese urban area during the Song dynasty, it provides extensive evidence of the technological sophistication and economic innovations that were present in Hangzhou at the time. Watch the video of Dr. Hansen describing the entire scroll in detail. As you watch, find specific evidence in the scroll that exemplifies Chinese society during the Song dynasty.

Examples in the Qingming Scroll
Social organization
Politics and governance
Interactions with the environment
Cultural developments
Economic systems
Technology

Create a Virtual Tour of Hangzhou

Imagine that you are a tour operator in the modern city of Hangzhou. Your job is to promote your area to foreign visitors. Create a virtual tour of modern Hangzhou city using Google Presentation or PowerPoint and present it to your potential clients. What types of places would you like to show visitors to the city? How would you make Hangzhou appealing to them?

Find information on popular tourist sites in Hangzhou, such as:

  • West Lake
  • The Grand Canal
  • Leifeng Pagoda
  • Lingyin Temple
  • Jingci Temple
  • Yue Fei Temple
  • Longjing Tea Farms
  • Xixi National Wetland Park
  • Qinghefang Ancient Street
  • Wuzhen Water Village

On a Google Presentation or PowerPoint, create a slide for each site you wish to include in your presentation. Include images of each site, its location on a map of Hangzhou, and its importance to the history of the city. Make your slideshow as interesting as possible to entice potential visitors to visit Hangzhou.

Our World in Data | Financial Market Development

There Are Half a Billion Mobile Money Accounts in the World

“In 2010, there were just 13 million mobile money accounts in the world, fewer than the population of my home country, the Netherlands. By 2023, this had reached more than 640 million. That’s more than twice the total number of Netflix subscriptions worldwide…

What’s immediately obvious is how much of this growth has come from Sub-Saharan Africa; it’s home to more than half of the world’s accounts. In 2023, there were over 330 million active mobile money accounts in the region; more than one mobile money account for every four people.

What’s changed? One of the obvious drivers of this growth has been the widespread adoption of mobile phones, not just in the richest countries but across the globe. Mobile subscriptions have surged in nearly every region.

But the total number of mobile money accounts doesn’t tell us what percentage of people use mobile money. A small portion of people could each have many accounts. So instead of examining absolute numbers, let’s look at the share of people with mobile money accounts in Sub-Saharan Africa.

As the chart below illustrates, the percentage of people in Sub-Saharan Africa with a mobile money account grew rapidly, from 12% in 2014 to 33% by 2021.”

From Our World in Data.

World Bank | Quality of Government

Côte D’Ivoire’s Land Reforms Are Unlocking Jobs and Growth

“Secure land tenure transforms dormant assets into active capital—unlocking access to credit, encouraging investment, and spurring entrepreneurship. These are the building blocks of job creation and economic growth.

When landowners have secure property rights, they invest more in their land. Existing data shows that with secure property rights, agricultural output increases by 40% on average. Efficient land rental markets also significantly boost productivity, with up to 60% productivity gains and 25% welfare improvements for tenants…

Building on a long-term partnership with the World Bank, the Government of Côte d’Ivoire has dramatically accelerated delivery of formal land records to customary landholders in rural areas by implementing legal, regulatory, and institutional reforms and digitizing the customary rural land registration process, which is led by the Rural Land Agency (Agence Foncière Rurale – AFOR).

This has enabled a five-fold increase in the number of land certificates delivered in just five years compared to the previous 20 years.”

From World Bank.

World Economic Forum | Financial Market Development

How the Rise of AI in Indonesia Is Expanding Financial Inclusion

“Indonesia is at a pivotal moment in its digital transformation. With over 280 million people spread across 17,504 islands and over 180 million smartphones, connectivity has never been higher.

Internet penetration approached 79% in 2024, reflecting the nation’s swift embrace of online platforms. Only a decade ago, nearly half of Indonesia’s adult population remained unbanked. Thanks to rapid advancements in financial technology, the financial inclusion index has climbed to almost 84%. Had AI been as pervasive 10 years ago, this transformation could have been even faster.

Though digital adoption is a global trend, Indonesia’s trajectory is distinct, shaped by supportive government policies, a vibrant fintech sector and a surging digital economy.

Over the past decade, these factors have converged to accelerate financial inclusion – from 49% in 2014 to around 83% in 2023. This remarkable leap is equivalent to adding the population of Switzerland seven times to Indonesia’s banking system.”

From World Economic Forum.

Our World in Data | Financial Market Development

Mobile Money Accounts Are Surging Globally

“Mobile phones and the Internet have enabled the growth of mobile money accounts in regions with limited banking infrastructure. These accounts provide simple financial services like deposits, transfers, and payments to hundreds of millions of people.

As this chart shows, the number of active mobile money accounts globally has grown from 13 million in 2010 to more than 640 million in 2023. This is based on data published by the GSM Association.

While the adoption of mobile banking was almost exclusive to Sub-Saharan Africa in the early 2010s, Asian countries have seen significant growth in recent years.”

From Our World in Data.