Teachers learn from students at annual Holocaust workshop

High school students, teachers, student teachers and college professors from across Rhode Island gathered at Rhode Island College on Nov. 11 for the Holocaust Education and Resource Center of Rhode Island’s annual workshop for teachers. 

Teens from Cranston High School East, East Greenwich High School, William E. Tolman Senior High School, Mount Saint Charles Academy and the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex spent the morning discussing the Holocaust and the impact that Holocaust and genocide education has had on their lives and views.

With teachers acting as moderators, the students then split into four teams, each tasked with having an in-depth discussion on a topic related to the Holocaust. 

As the educators and aspiring educators observed, the students delved into these topics: “The Holocaust: Lessons Learned, Lessons Not,” “The Holocaust: What We Know and Where We Need to Go,” “Current Events: Mirrors of the Holocaust,” and “Then and Now: 70 Years Later – What Part Can It Play in Our Personal Lives?”

After their roundtable discussions, the students shared the most prevalent threads and conclusions to come from their group with the student teachers and educators.   

The students spoke of things like the importance of staying informed and being an educated voter, not being a bystander when witnessing injustice, celebrating individual differences, and the absolute necessity of Holocaust and genocide education as a way to help prevent future atrocities.  

In addition to valuable information and insights gained from observing the students, those in attendance also received written guides and resources for teaching about the Holocaust and genocide as well as advice and direction from experienced Holocaust educators. 

SARA ECKHOFF is an HERCRI intern.