Curriculum Transformation
I find myself fascinated with all aspects of genocide, specifically the causes, and the roles of power (abuse), propaganda and the general pubic (bystanders). I would ideally like to teach a course that centers around the subjects of Genocide and the Holocaust and how social, political and economical issues ignite its occurrence. Linda M. Woolf, Ph.D. is a professor of Psychology at Webster University; she is incredibly interested in, and knowledgeable about the Holocaust, Genocide and Human Rights. Her analysis regarding the Holocaust and Genocide Studies evaluates the importance of teaching these concepts as part of the curriculum:
“It is imperative that a greater understanding of the psychological, cultural, political, and societal roots of human cruelty, mass violence, and genocide be developed. We need to continue to examine the factors which enable individuals collectively and individually to perpetrate evil/genocide and the impact of apathetic bystanders as fuel for human violence. While an exact predictive model for mass violence/human cruelty is beyond the scope of human capability, we have an obligation to develop a model that highlights the warning signs and predisposing factors for human violence and genocide. With such information, we can develop policies, strategies, and programs designed to counteract these atrocities”.
In regards to understanding the true monstrosity of Genocide and the Holocaust, students need to be provided with factual, realistic and graphic information that identifies the positions taken by each individual and country involved and delivered without bias. Students also need to use a self-inquiry process in order to fully explore, discover, connect and grasp the magnitude of these concepts. This will enable students to make future connections to genocides and ethnocide that have occurred since the end of World War II.
Students need to be taught a general timeline and the history behind Jewish persecution. Jewish Persecution | Timeline of Judaism | History of AntiSemitism: the Lesser Known Highlights of Jewish International Relations in the Common Era is an authentic website for students to explore. Mini research and presentation projects can emphasize important events in history including the Black Plague, and the Spanish Inquisition, to guide students’ comprehension on Hitler’s “undisputed scapegoat”. Because, especially at freshman level, students enter my classroom not truly understanding the purpose of the Holocaust, and the other cultures targeted, it is important to utilize these concepts to kindle the unit. I enjoy my Article Share Assignment: Read, Explore the Web and Create a Product, and would like to keep it as part of the curriculum. Students have individual roles: identify a specific (guided choice) culture or concept they are interested in learning more about (physically and mentally handicapped, medical experiments (identical twins/scientific advancement vs. war strategy), homosexuals, gypsies, the Sonnderkommando, and the death of Hitler), read the selected article, take active notes, write questions they want to research (using the articles as inspiration) and then explore the web. Students then create groups, using the same article they read, to discuss their findings and create a product. This product must include the summary of the article, their questions and answers, as well as an analogy of what the group (individually and collectively) inferred from the project and their approach to the project. Written documentation needs to address how and why each culture was targeted by the Nazis (the Death of Hitler article must include different conspiracies) and be complete with a digital montage.
The combination of these two research presentations supplies students with a wide range of perspectives. Each presentation stretches out over the course of the unit, and is delivered when appropriate, and conducive to the lessons within the unit. Each article introduces and evaluates the necessary concepts students need in order to obtain well rounded information about the Holocaust. While reading about the physically and mentally handicapped, students learn about the Nuremberg Laws, Marriage Laws, Berlin Olympics, as well as the classification and eventual annihilation of those with birth defects. As students start to move past the what, and understand the why and how, [they begin to grasp the concept of Eugenics], and the perfection of the Aryan Race (students associate the Aryan Race with blond hair and blue eyes only, but do not understand anything more about the purpose and mastery of it).
Through research, presentation and (pre/post presentation) discussion, students connect Eugenics and the Nuremberg Laws to the medical experiments (thorough analysis; not just for graphic purposes, but to understand its application to the Aryan Race (immortality) their roles in society/medicine today, and the United States’ hiring of Nazi doctors following the second World War). Without over detailing (yet), each article and conversation spills into the next, and eventually, students have exposure to historical and cultural issues. This will help them become more globally informed because they develop empathy, and an awareness of other culture’s backgrounds and experiences, before stepping in to the melting pot/salad bowl society themselves. Students are exposed to the past of a society dominated by Caucasians, but need to be mindful of other cultures, and make connections across human nature and human existence. As students form literature circles, and select novels and texts that contain subject matter related to the topics they are interested in, they will be enthusiastic to read because their interest and passion will have been ignited, and provided with enough fuel to continue to burn. Students will also have identified and found purpose in what they are learning. There are several novels that I can use to teach the concepts I am looking to achieve. The variety of texts will target a large range of learners, and students can make choices according to their interests and abilities.
Students are fascinated with genocide and are shocked and awed by its existence. The process of self inquiry provides a sense of ownership that gives students drive and purpose in their educations. Utilizing self inquiry, students can be exposed to multiple genocides that have taken place since the Holocaust (see course objectives) and analyze the causes, goals and effects in comparison.
Internet and literary sources, in combination with visual media and popular culture, is a necessary step in order for students to visualize the true scale of the Holocaust and genocide. Clips from several movies including Schindler’s List, The Diary of Anne Frank/Anne Frank Remembered and the miniseries Band of Brothers help students comprehend the Final Solution, the processing, conditions and functions of Ghettos, Transit Camps, Labor Camps, Death Camps, and other Concentration Camps, as well as their locations and statistics. Clips from Good-bye Children, The Holocaust, Band of Brothers, and Our Voices provide students with personal stories of a variety of cultural victims in order to benefit from multiple perspectives. Images supporting Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, and the persecution of specific cultures during and preceding the Holocaust will emphasize and clarify the role of propaganda. These are only a few of the resources that magnify necessary information for students to obtain.
In regards to preparing for this curriculum, I need to educate myself (with much greater detail) about genocides that have occurred between 1945 and the present, confirm which ones I want to include in my course, and then create lesson plans and select the resources to include them in my curriculum. I want to analyze the causes, purposes as well as evaluate global reaction and reasons for intervention (if any). I want to incorporate at least two or three other genocides (combined with ethnocide) in significant detail, and leave others for student inquiry (research and presentation). With only one, twelve week trimester, this number seems to be the most conducive. While researching and creating my lesson plans, I need to evaluate which lessons currently (that are preexisting) meet specific content standards, and be sure to ‘align’ the remaining (nonexistent) lessons with the remainder. This is not an area that is stressful. A solid curriculum typically addresses the specific components of reading, writing, speaking and listening.
In order to meet existing course expectations and make this curriculum a reality, I am sure that each step will take bravery, audacity and will. As of right now, the rumor is that trimesters are supposed to (eventually) offer room for new courses to be introduced (we currently created an ACT prep course for next year; much more valuable than my course about genocide). I know that there is a form that can be retrieved through the Curriculum Director at the administration building that asks to specifically outline the course and course expectations, including many components addressed in this paper.
“It is imperative that a greater understanding of the psychological, cultural, political, and societal roots of human cruelty, mass violence, and genocide be developed. We need to continue to examine the factors which enable individuals collectively and individually to perpetrate evil/genocide and the impact of apathetic bystanders as fuel for human violence. While an exact predictive model for mass violence/human cruelty is beyond the scope of human capability, we have an obligation to develop a model that highlights the warning signs and predisposing factors for human violence and genocide. With such information, we can develop policies, strategies, and programs designed to counteract these atrocities”.
In regards to understanding the true monstrosity of Genocide and the Holocaust, students need to be provided with factual, realistic and graphic information that identifies the positions taken by each individual and country involved and delivered without bias. Students also need to use a self-inquiry process in order to fully explore, discover, connect and grasp the magnitude of these concepts. This will enable students to make future connections to genocides and ethnocide that have occurred since the end of World War II.
Students need to be taught a general timeline and the history behind Jewish persecution. Jewish Persecution | Timeline of Judaism | History of AntiSemitism: the Lesser Known Highlights of Jewish International Relations in the Common Era is an authentic website for students to explore. Mini research and presentation projects can emphasize important events in history including the Black Plague, and the Spanish Inquisition, to guide students’ comprehension on Hitler’s “undisputed scapegoat”. Because, especially at freshman level, students enter my classroom not truly understanding the purpose of the Holocaust, and the other cultures targeted, it is important to utilize these concepts to kindle the unit. I enjoy my Article Share Assignment: Read, Explore the Web and Create a Product, and would like to keep it as part of the curriculum. Students have individual roles: identify a specific (guided choice) culture or concept they are interested in learning more about (physically and mentally handicapped, medical experiments (identical twins/scientific advancement vs. war strategy), homosexuals, gypsies, the Sonnderkommando, and the death of Hitler), read the selected article, take active notes, write questions they want to research (using the articles as inspiration) and then explore the web. Students then create groups, using the same article they read, to discuss their findings and create a product. This product must include the summary of the article, their questions and answers, as well as an analogy of what the group (individually and collectively) inferred from the project and their approach to the project. Written documentation needs to address how and why each culture was targeted by the Nazis (the Death of Hitler article must include different conspiracies) and be complete with a digital montage.
The combination of these two research presentations supplies students with a wide range of perspectives. Each presentation stretches out over the course of the unit, and is delivered when appropriate, and conducive to the lessons within the unit. Each article introduces and evaluates the necessary concepts students need in order to obtain well rounded information about the Holocaust. While reading about the physically and mentally handicapped, students learn about the Nuremberg Laws, Marriage Laws, Berlin Olympics, as well as the classification and eventual annihilation of those with birth defects. As students start to move past the what, and understand the why and how, [they begin to grasp the concept of Eugenics], and the perfection of the Aryan Race (students associate the Aryan Race with blond hair and blue eyes only, but do not understand anything more about the purpose and mastery of it).
Through research, presentation and (pre/post presentation) discussion, students connect Eugenics and the Nuremberg Laws to the medical experiments (thorough analysis; not just for graphic purposes, but to understand its application to the Aryan Race (immortality) their roles in society/medicine today, and the United States’ hiring of Nazi doctors following the second World War). Without over detailing (yet), each article and conversation spills into the next, and eventually, students have exposure to historical and cultural issues. This will help them become more globally informed because they develop empathy, and an awareness of other culture’s backgrounds and experiences, before stepping in to the melting pot/salad bowl society themselves. Students are exposed to the past of a society dominated by Caucasians, but need to be mindful of other cultures, and make connections across human nature and human existence. As students form literature circles, and select novels and texts that contain subject matter related to the topics they are interested in, they will be enthusiastic to read because their interest and passion will have been ignited, and provided with enough fuel to continue to burn. Students will also have identified and found purpose in what they are learning. There are several novels that I can use to teach the concepts I am looking to achieve. The variety of texts will target a large range of learners, and students can make choices according to their interests and abilities.
Students are fascinated with genocide and are shocked and awed by its existence. The process of self inquiry provides a sense of ownership that gives students drive and purpose in their educations. Utilizing self inquiry, students can be exposed to multiple genocides that have taken place since the Holocaust (see course objectives) and analyze the causes, goals and effects in comparison.
Internet and literary sources, in combination with visual media and popular culture, is a necessary step in order for students to visualize the true scale of the Holocaust and genocide. Clips from several movies including Schindler’s List, The Diary of Anne Frank/Anne Frank Remembered and the miniseries Band of Brothers help students comprehend the Final Solution, the processing, conditions and functions of Ghettos, Transit Camps, Labor Camps, Death Camps, and other Concentration Camps, as well as their locations and statistics. Clips from Good-bye Children, The Holocaust, Band of Brothers, and Our Voices provide students with personal stories of a variety of cultural victims in order to benefit from multiple perspectives. Images supporting Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, and the persecution of specific cultures during and preceding the Holocaust will emphasize and clarify the role of propaganda. These are only a few of the resources that magnify necessary information for students to obtain.
In regards to preparing for this curriculum, I need to educate myself (with much greater detail) about genocides that have occurred between 1945 and the present, confirm which ones I want to include in my course, and then create lesson plans and select the resources to include them in my curriculum. I want to analyze the causes, purposes as well as evaluate global reaction and reasons for intervention (if any). I want to incorporate at least two or three other genocides (combined with ethnocide) in significant detail, and leave others for student inquiry (research and presentation). With only one, twelve week trimester, this number seems to be the most conducive. While researching and creating my lesson plans, I need to evaluate which lessons currently (that are preexisting) meet specific content standards, and be sure to ‘align’ the remaining (nonexistent) lessons with the remainder. This is not an area that is stressful. A solid curriculum typically addresses the specific components of reading, writing, speaking and listening.
In order to meet existing course expectations and make this curriculum a reality, I am sure that each step will take bravery, audacity and will. As of right now, the rumor is that trimesters are supposed to (eventually) offer room for new courses to be introduced (we currently created an ACT prep course for next year; much more valuable than my course about genocide). I know that there is a form that can be retrieved through the Curriculum Director at the administration building that asks to specifically outline the course and course expectations, including many components addressed in this paper.
