Presented By:

In Partnership with

The Certificate Program in Holocaust & Genocide Education – History & Pedagogy provides intensive training in Holocaust history and sound pedagogical methods and strategies for teaching about the Holocaust. The program also introduces participants to specific examples of genocide and the warning signs that have emerged over time. Participants will utilize reputable archives and primary source materials that promote the skills of historical inquiry. Additionally, participants will incorporate best teaching practices that align with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s (USHMM) Guidelines for Teaching about the Holocaust, write their own rationale, and gain tools that enable them to responsibly select historically accurate, age-appropriate resources for their classroom. This program will assist teachers to effectively meet state and national educational standards, including the new MN standards in Holocaust and genocide education.

Program Model: The program’s design is based on extensive research about contemporary Holocaust education as well as decades of real-world experience in the field of professional teacher training in the United States and internationally. Based on this background research, this program focuses on Pedagogy and a back-to-the-basics approach to examine history, providing concise yet thorough historical content and context.

Pedagogy: This program will cover how theories and methods for teaching about the Holocaust have changed over time, including the development of an entire field of pedagogical research dedicated to teaching about difficult histories and traumatic topics. This program incorporates the USHMM Guidelines for Teaching about the Holocaust, introduces best practices, and assists teachers in writing their rationale while providing tools to effectively select classroom resources that are historically accurate and age appropriate.

History: These sessions and online resource library focus on the power of historical thinking and the value of interpreting history from primary sources. Participants will spend time delving deeper into the history of the Holocaust era, raising questions about possible gaps in our own historical knowledge, and discussing ways to ensure historical accuracy for and with student learners.

At the conclusion of the program, participants will:

• Demonstrate a firm grasp of Holocaust history
• Work effectively and comfortably with primary sources, archives, and artifacts that apply the skills of historical inquiry while creating a lesson or module that enhances their unit of study for students
• Apply sound pedagogical practices to their unit of study on Holocaust and genocide education, with USHMM Guidelines for Teaching as a foundational approach
• Demonstrate an understanding of basic history and beliefs of Judaism, including the long history of persecution towards Jews manifesting in historical and contemporary variants of antisemitism
• Develop their own classroom specific rational, learning goals, and lesson or module that will be immediately applicable in their teaching
• Utilize program-provided tools to select historically accurate, age-appropriate classroom resources for their unity of study
• Distinguish warning signs as we examine how and why the Holocaust happened as well as examples of genocide
• Demonstrate an understanding of at least two examples of genocide (as legally defined and declared) that can be incorporated into your teaching

Certificate Program Participant Expectations:

• Attend all content and pedagogy sessions
• Successfully complete final project assignment (create a lesson or module for your classroom that utilizes archival primary sources and incorporates USHMM Guidelines)
• Write your rationale for teaching about the Holocaust and genocide
  Select historically accurate and age-appropriate classroom resources that will assist you in meeting your goals and objectives as outlined in your rationale

For More Information