BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE

The City University of New York

 

HOLOCAUST    

Images of Victimization and Resistance

 disk009_12615.gif

AGENDA | PARTICIPANTS | LINKS

 

Introduction: 

The Holocaust stands out as a terrible landmark of the 20' Century and a touchstone for explorations into man's capacity for inhumanity.  The power and importance of this story has evoked response from artists, filmmakers, and musicians, as well as scholars and those concerned with an understanding of morality and human nature. 

Goals: 

Deepening our understanding of the experience of Holocaust victims and resisters.  Examining and interrogating images of victimization and resistance as historical evidence.  Comparing artistic and photographic images.  Using the World Wide Web to enhance interdisciplinary education. 

Resources:  

"A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust" web site, particularly

The Timeline:

http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/timeline/timeline.htm

And the Gallery of images:

http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/resource/gallery/gaIlery.htm

Activity: (60 minutes, total):

Step One (15 minutes) Select a partner and briefly review the instructions for this activity.  Then, working with your partner, skim the Timeline sections (of the Teachers' Guide to the Holocaust Web site) entitled The Ghettos (1939- 1941), The Camps (1941-1942) and Resistance (1942-1944). http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/timeline/timeline.htm

(For even more information, you could read other Timeline entries and entries in the People section of the site. http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/people/people.htm)

Step Two (25 minutes)   With your partner, go to Gallery I, a selection of images on this site  (http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/resource/gallery/gallery.htm)

Browse the photographs in the sections entitled The Warsaw Ghetto, I, The Warsaw Ghetto, 2 and The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.  Then browse the David Olere paintings in the section titled, Life as a Sonderkommando. 

Step Three (20 minutes) Working individually, choose the three photographs from the Warsaw Ghetto and the three David Olere art images that you find the most powerful.  Then write, explaining why you chose each of six images (a few sentences for each image).  Think about these questions: What was it about the content, style, and technique of the images that you found particularly powerful?  Which had the greatest impact--the photographs or the artwork of David Olere?  The images of victimization or those of resistance?  What do these images add to your understanding of this historical period?  Explain. 

Optional Step Four (If time): Review the background information and work of other artists available through the section of the site entitled "The Arts," to see what further insights it provides. http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/Holocaust/arts/arts.htm

Small Group Discussion: (45 minutes total)

Meet with others who did this activity and briefly share your selections.  Then discuss the activity, using the following questions as prompts. 

  1. What could students learn from this activity about the Holocaust?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of using visual resources like these to teach about the Holocaust?  What other kinds of information would you want to include?  What other kinds of writing or presentation outcomes could this activity support?

  2. What do you see as the strengths and weaknesses of the activity?  Is it a good vehicle for developing student skills in inquiry, the exploration of primary sources, and the construction of meaning?  How could it be strengthened?

  3. How would you describe the pedagogy that informs this activity?  What aspects of the activity help to make it effective?  What skills and modes of thinking does this activity support?  Do the electronic materials being engaged suit the assignment's pedagogy and methodological goals?  What can we learn from this activity about the kinds of inquiry assignments that work best when using new media resources?

  4. How does the inquiry approach used in this activity compare with inquiry approaches you have used in your classes?  What is similar?  Different?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of inquiry learning, in your experience?  Where does it fit in the repertoire of teaching in your field?

 

Activity developed by Bill Seto, American Social History Project.  

 

back to AGENDA