General provisions

The Hugo Valentin Centre, Uppsala University, is responsible for the course. The course was approved by the board of Hugo Valentin Centre 2010-10-12.

Entry requirements

General entrance requirements for Master courses or Master programmes or B.A. in the Disciplinary Domain of Humanities and Social Sciences. Special requirement is a good result on international tests such as TOEFL (internet based 92 points, computer based 237 points, and written test 580 points), IELTS (6.5 points, not less than 6.0)

Learning outcomes

Teaching about genocide and other instances of large-scale mass murder present pedagogic challenges for teachers at all levels quite different from most other subjects. The aim for this course will be to begin to equip the student who seeks to teach the subject (s) to meet some unique challenges, and to take advantage of the pedagogic opportunities also present.

In using what can be labelled a "progressive pedagogy" of teaching about the Holocaust, the course will also aim to equip the student with the critical skills to understand when the history and memory of the Holocaust and other genocides are being misused for political and other (potentially) nationalistic uses. Different national pedagogic strategies in different countries will be identified and discussed.

Additional aims and discussions in the course will be about when should these subjects either begin to be taught, and/or at what age and educational level are they best taught. The effective use of pedagogic tools such as both scholarly texts and primary source documents (sometimes labelled "from the archive to the classroom"), as well as other pedagogic tools such as film, art, literature, poetry, etc. will also be a goal of the course.

Learning Outcomes

The student will gain:

a) A firm understanding of the basic streams of progressive pedagogy which characterises the contemporary teaching of the Holocaust and other episodes of genocide and/or mass murder.

b) An understanding of the theoretical and practical goals of teaching about the Holocaust and other genocides.

c) An ability to recognised and critically discuss instances when pedagogical content and "theories" are being misused for political or other subjective gains.

d) An ability to utilise both conventional and non-conventional techniques for an Understanding the vast variety of sources and perspectives—national, (larger) collectives of individuals (regional, local), and individual—upon which the historiography of the Holocaust is built.

Competences

The student will have obtained:

e) An ability to distinguish between different types of empirical evidence and theoretical perspectives in progressive Holocaust pedagogy and to apply them effectively in the classroom.

f) The theoretical skills which will enable to student to conduct comparative analyses of a variety of pedagogic methods and tools, and to apply those most effective for the age- group/class level where teaching is occurring.

Content

The course will consist of lectures, seminars, and the composition of essays, including but not limited to the final exam essay.

Instruction

Study of literature, active participation in seminars, as well as writing and discussing papers.

Assessment

Examination includes active participation in seminars and (short) seminar papers. A final essay on a topic decided by the student in discussion with the instructor will make up the bulk of the grade.

Grades will be given in accordance with the Swedish grading system. The following grades will be used: Välgodkänd (VG), Godkänd (G), Underkänd (U).