'Many History Teachers in Europe Don't Mention the Holocaust'

by Naama Lansky

As the world marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yad Vashem works hard to improve global Holocaust education • "We know that without ongoing education, the memory of the Holocaust will lose its power," says Yad Vashem chairman.

"Teachers who teach about the Holocaust are often met with resistance," says Manon Wilbrink (right), a Dutch history teacher, seen here with colleague Jorgen Marshall. Photo credit: Courtesy of Yad Vashem

The Auschwitz concentration camp was liberated exactly 68 years ago by the Soviet army. On Sunday, the world marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day; millions made an effort to remember, at least for a little while.

The U.N. General Assembly, which set Jan. 27 as an International Holocaust Remembrance Day, has put a special emphasis on studying the Holocaust. However, according to some sources, not everyone around the world obliges. 

"Many history teachers in Europe don't mention the subject of the Holocaust," said Manon Wilbrink, a Dutch history teacher. "Many classes are multi-cultural, full of immigrants, and [teachers] who teach about the Holocaust are often met with resistance." 

The Yad Vashem International School for Holocaust Studies in Israel has been working hard to remedy this problem. Last year, more than 3,200 educators from around the world participated in conferences and extended seminars on how to teach students about the Holocaust. "We know that in the absence of systematic and ongoing education, the memory of the Holocaust will lose its power and importance," said Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev. 

Shulamit Imber, the pedagogical director of the International School for Holocaust Studies, said, "In many countries, [teachers] teach about Nazism and totalitarianism, but leave out critical topics like anti-Semitism and concentration camps. In most cases, the World War II syllabus barely contains a single chapter on the Holocaust."

Holocaust Studies School Director Dorit Novak believes that multiculturalism can actually present an opportunity. "The high number of immigrants usually gives rise to xenophobia and violence, making Holocaust studies even more valid. Today, more than ever, it is important to understand how people could seek to erase their neighbors from the face of the earth," Novak said. 

"The tens of thousands of educators who come to us don't represent what is really happening in the world," Novak confessed. "But they do represent a special group of people who study here for days on end, cry and fall apart — they undergo a process."

Imber clarified that the educational approach at Yad Vashem was not to focus on atrocities and mind-boggling numbers. 

"Instead, we turn the mounds of ash into people and communities that are full of life," she said. "All the investigations we have conducted indicate that the teachers leave here charged with an immense sense of commitment to teaching about the Holocaust." 

Another Dutch history teacher, Jorgen Marshall, echoed Imber's sentiments, saying, "We have forgotten the faces of those who were exterminated, and all we are left with are statistics. In Israel I learned to teach about life before the war and about the people who struggled, fought and survived." 

Naama Lansky

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=7195

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