In August of 2018, a group of teenagers from Beijing and Chicago debate the thought of education reformer John Dewey. What is the most important thing to learn? Should students be allowed to question the State? Can education really impact class disparities? A century earlier, John Dewey gave a series of lectures from Beijing to Nanjing on learning by doing and the role of education in a democracy that left a lasting impact, yet his role in shaping Chinese education was later erased or disguised under the Mao regime. Even today, Chinese academics speak in coded terms of Dewey’s legacy, and the ways in which his philosophy is as necessary as ever. "Learning by Dewey in China" is the story of twelve students, eight from elite schools in Chicago and Beijing, and four from a typical charter school on Chicago’s southside, as they recreate Dewey’s journey across China to make a documentary. An invigorating dive into Dewey’s thought, a portrait of youth finding their voice, and grassroots lessons on how to negotiate difference across cultures, this 40 minute documentary will stimulate conversation amongst teachers and students, while providing adaptable models for travel and pedagogy.