Peter Fredlake: Teaching the Holocaust

The Holocaust as a subject of study is widely taught in Europe and in the United States. Teachers who teach the Holocaust face a unique set of challenges that they must acknowledge and resolve before they step into the classroom. Teachers who do not confront these challenges may teach the Holocaust in a cursory or inaccurate manner, or, because they feel overwhelmed, may choose not to teach it at all.

This session proposes to outline the challenges and propose some strategies for resolving them. We will examine the challenges of: 

·         Selecting from among the wealth of information and resources

·         Meeting unrealistically high expectations

·         Working with non-traditional audiences

·         Managing the disorientation felt by an audience

·         Avoiding the danger of numbers, statistics, and facts

·         Encountering disbelief, skepticism and fatigue

 The presentation will combine lecture and slides with activities and discussion to give teachers and guides some practical strategies to successfully manage the challenges they face in teaching the Holocaust.

Participants will be provided with instructional resources developed by the Education Division of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.