This serial issue is devoted to the theme "China and Japan" and contains six articles that focus on educational, political, and cultural issues in the two Asian countries. In the first article, "China and Japan: A New Era in Relations with the United States," Henry Kiernan and John Pyne provide a brief overview of the history of United States' relations with China and Japan and frame the subsequent articles on issues in the social studies. In the second article, "Acceptance Speech of the Andrew Allen Liberty Award," Fang Lizhi discusses the pursuit of democracy in China. The third article, "China in the Social Studies Curriculum," by Benjamin A. Elman, explores themes of Chinese history prior to 1900 and how they relate to China in the 20th century. The next article by Charles Von Loewenfeldt, "Some Reflections on Building Bridges of Understanding," highlights the impact of former participants in the NCSS fellowship program to Japan on bringing about greater international awareness and understanding in North America and in Japan. In the fifth article, "Resources for Teaching about Japan," Linda S. Wojtan provides information on educational resources available on Japan. The final article by Jane Plenge and Nancy Stephan, "Building an Integrated Curriculum: The Japanese Festival," explains the process of developing an integrated curriculum. A list of New Jersey Council for the Social Studies board of directors for 1993-1994 concludes the issue. (CK)