Why teach the Holocaust?
We believe that teaching and learning about the Holocaust and Global Citizenship have a symbiotic and mutually inclusive relationship. This relationship should be reciprocal: teaching and learning about the Holocaust should be a key element of Global Citizenship, while the rights based approach of Global Citizenship should be how Holocaust Education is framed. This will be the key focus of our joint Bitesize Holocaust Education twilight Professional Learning session with WOSDEC on the 8th December, funded by the Scottish Government as part of the ‘Global Citizenship in Scotland’ programme.
Firstly, there is much research that supports the positive contribution of teaching and learning about the Holocaust to Global Citizenship (see Cowan and Maitles 2018 for a summary)1. This has focused mainly on pupil awareness, knowledge of human rights and indeed abuses of human rights. Within this, a study of the Holocaust shows the impact that abuses of human rights can lead to. That the policies of the Nazis were a terrible attack on the citizenship rights of the Jews (and indeed of others, including many non-Jewish Europeans) is undeniable. And that there was a serious infringement of the human rights of the Jews and tens of millions of other individuals is equally clear. Holocaust Education through a Global Citizenship programme can thus provide a suitable context for learning in many key areas such as human rights, the need for mutual respect, tolerance and understanding of a diverse and multi-cultural, multi-ethnic society and crucially the dangers of racism and antisemitism – all significant elements of Global Citizenship.
Secondly, Global Citizenship is an area of the curriculum that has the development of knowledge, critical skills and values as well as activism as key parts of the democratic citizen. The role of Holocaust Education is valuable, explaining how the role of the bystander in the circumstances can be hugely problematic. Most researchers maintain that if taught correctly, teaching and learning about the Holocaust can highlight the potential dangers of scapegoating, ‘othering’ and the international dimension to preventing genocide and the requirement for bodies such as the UN.
Thirdly, Holocaust Education can be a central part of any educational setting. Recently, Vision Schools has been approached for advice and support by a school specialising in education for pupils with severe additional support needs and a school with 80% of its student population Muslim, with the events in Gaza impinging on the confidence of teachers.
Teaching and learning about the Holocaust has relevance in schools and classrooms irrespective of the cultural or religious composition of the group of students and irrespective of the political situation at any one time. The Holocaust has universal lessons for all students (indeed all people). The ideas embedded cut across all boundaries and are relevant to all cultures and identities. Indeed, we would claim that this kind of learning can lead to intercultural and transcultural competence.
Finally, our experience through Vision Schools suggests that Holocaust Education is best if put in an interdisciplinary or cross curricular model that crucially draws in aspects of Religious Studies and History, as well as potentially Geography, Social Studies, Science, Art, Music, English and more. In our network we also have Science and Home Economics teachers. Although learning about the Holocaust in History and learning from the Holocaust in RME can be valuable, Holocaust Education is at its most effective when the school students learn both about and from, giving a much more rounded view of the event and its lessons for today.
Gaza
In our work in schools, we find that the events in Israel/ Palestine have placed additional pressures on some teachers to either link the events in Palestine/Israel to the Holocaust or to ignore completely. Clearly the interest shown by students can lead to ‘teachable moments’ where the interest and concern of students is something that should not be shut down. However – in line with other difficult and contentious issues the complexities cannot be discussed as a 20-minute add-on to a lesson on the Holocaust. Vision Schools Scotland advice is that teachers should not conflate the current Palestinian/ Israeli conflict with the Holocaust. However, if teachers decide to engage with this, our advice is for intellectual honesty. Teachers might want to approach this through a discussion about the formation of Israel and its policies and Palestinian response in a more detailed and nuanced way. Clearly this is a very complex undertaking. However, it is crucial for VSS that any such discussion is not included as part of Holocaust lessons.
Vision Schools Scotland (VSS)
The establishment in 2017 of VSS, a programme whose aims are to identify and reward schools that embed teaching and learning about the Holocaust in the curriculum, provides a network for teachers to share best practice and promote continuous professional development and for teachers to build confidence and knowledge in the area. (UWS 2023).
This programme has grown from three schools in 2017 to a network of around 110 schools. The VSS Programme requires schools to appoint a lead teacher in teaching and learning about the Holocaust, evidence of support from the school’s SMT to teaching and learning about the Holocaust and the school’s sustainability in TLH over a minimum of two years. Schools are awarded VSS status for three years, after which they are required to complete renewal documentation.
