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European Pack for Visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau Taking groups of students to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum is a heavy European pack for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum responsibility, but it is a major contribution to citizenship if it fosters understanding of what Auschwitz stands for, particularly when the last survivors are at the end of their lives. It comes with certain risks, however. This pack is designed for teachers wishing to organise student visits to authentic places of remembrance, and for the guides, academics and others who work every day with young people at Auschwitz. There is nothing magical about visiting an authentic place of remembrance, and it calls for a carefully thought-out approach. To avoid the risk of inappropriate reactions or the failure to benefit from a large investment in travel and accommodation, considerable preparation and discussion is necessary before the visit and serious reflection afte- rwards. Teachers must prepare students for a form of learning they may never have met before. This pack offers insights into the complexities of human behaviour so that students can have a better understanding of what it means to be a citizen. How are they concerned by what happened at Auschwitz? Is the unprecedented process of exclusion that was practised in the Holocaust still going on in Europe today? In what sense is it different from present-day racism and anti-Semitism? The young people who visit Auschwitz in the next few years will be witnesses of the last witnesses, links in the chain of memory. Their generation will be the last to hear the survivors speaking on the spot. The Council of Europe, the Polish Ministry of Education and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum are jointly sponsoring this project aimed at preventing crimes Guidelines for teachers and educators against humanity through Holocaust remembrance teaching. European pack for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau www.coe.int Memorial and Museum The Council of Europe has 47 member states, covering virtually the entire continent of Europe. It seeks to develop common democratic and legal principles based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals. Ever since it was founded Guidelines for teachers and educators in 1949, in the aftermath of the Second World War, the Council of Europe has symbolised reconciliation. Council of Europe Publishing ISBN 978-92-871-6794-1 http://book.coe.int e25/$US50 Council of Europe Publishing European pack for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum Guidelines for teachers and educators Editors: Alicja Białecka, Krystyna Oleksy, Fabienne Regard and Piotr Trojan´ski Council of Europe Publishing The opinions expressed in this publication are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Council of Europe. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated, reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic (CD-Rom, Internet, etc.) or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the Public Information Division, Directorate of Communication (F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex or [email protected]). Cover design and layout: Documents and Publications Production Department (SPDP), Council of Europe Cover photo courtesy of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum Council of Europe Publishing F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex http://book.coe.int ISBN 978-92-871-6794-1 © Polish Ministry of Education, Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and Council of Europe, December 2010 Printed at the Council of Europe Contents Preamble and acknowledgements .................................................................... 7 Auschwitz – The European dimension Fabienne Regard ............................................................................................... 9 The symbolism of Auschwitz and its universal message Teresa S´wiebocka ........................................................................................... 15 1. Before the visit ....................................................21 1.1. What preparations need to be made for visiting Auschwitz and why? 3 Fabienne Regard ...................................................................................... 23 1.2. The problem of age and coping with emotion as a visitor to Auschwitz Fabienne Regard ...................................................................................... 27 1.3. What do students need to know before the visit? Fabienne Regard ...................................................................................... 33 1.4. Organising workshops to prepare students for the visit Fabienne Regard ...................................................................................... 35 1.5. Meeting a survivor as part of the preparatory process Fabienne Regard ...................................................................................... 37 1.6. Visiting Cracow and Os´wie¸cim as a way of learning more about the culture of Polish Jews in the context of Polish history Mirosław Obstarczyk ................................................................................ 41 European pack for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum 1.7. How should you plan a visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum? Antoni Stan´czyk ....................................................................................... 51 1.8. Activity – How could people create such a fate for others? Małgorzata Tracz, Alicja Białecka .............................................................. 55 1.9. Activity – Functions of “Auschwitz Concentration Camp” Małgorzata Tracz, Alicja Białecka .............................................................. 69 1.10. Activity – Individual and collective meaning of a visit to Auschwitz Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 87 1.11. Activity – Coping with emotions at Auschwitz Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 91 1.12. Activity – Photographs of Auschwitz Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 99 1.13. Activity – Documentary films about Auschwitz 4 Fabienne Regard .................................................................................. 121 2. During the visit .................................................127 2.1. Who created the museum, and why? Teresa S´wiebocka .................................................................................. 129 2.2. Educational work and programmes offered by the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Os´wie¸cim Andrzej Kacorzyk ................................................................................... 137 2.3. A brief description of the exhibits at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Os´wie¸cim Mirosław Obstarczyk .............................................................................. 145 2.4. Visiting the museum Antoni Stan´czyk ..................................................................................... 153 Contents 2.5. What is appropriate behaviour while visiting Auschwitz? Andrzej Kacorzyk ................................................................................... 157 2.6. What are the main difficulties faced during visits to Auschwitz? Mirosław Obstarczyk .............................................................................. 163 2.7. International youth meetings in Os´wie¸cim Andrzej Kacorzyk ................................................................................... 169 2.8. Programmes offered by other Os´wie¸cim-based institutions dealing with education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust Jacek Lech ............................................................................................ 173 3. After the visit ....................................................185 3.1. How to evaluate the visit Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 187 3.2. Getting back to normality after a visit to Auschwitz 5 Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 191 3.3. Various activities for students after their visit to Auschwitz Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 195 3.4. Suggestions for interdisciplinary projects on the relationship between Auschwitz and the present day Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 199 3.5. Meeting a survivor Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 207 3.6. Activity – “There is a station they reach, from wherever they came…” Wiesława Młynarczyk, Alicja Białecka ..................................................... 209 3.7. Activity – What to do with what we learn in Auschwitz Fabienne Regard .................................................................................... 227 European pack for visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum 3.8. Activity – The fate of individual victims of Auschwitz in documents, testimonies and photographs Małgorzata Tracz, Alicja Białecka ........................................................... 231 Editors’ and authors’ biographies ............................................................. 277 6 Preamble and acknowledgements This project came into being following a European training
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