Accompanying Research
Analogue and digital learning – testimonies of Holocaust survivors in education
The issue addressed by the accompanying research project “Analogue and digital learning – testimonies of Holocaust survivors in education” is twofold: On the one hand, in order to investigate the effect of contemporary witness conversations on students, Holocaust survivor Abba Naor is accompanied when he is visiting schools. On the other hand, aiming at evaluating the media effectiveness of interactive three-dimensional testimonies, these testimonies are implemented for students’ learning processes. Therefore, the research project is located at the intersection of analogue testimonies and their digital transformations. This intersection is especially important at the transition from the “living testimony” to the “third generation testimony”. The expected outcomes of this research project affect the mediation of (contemporary) historical knowledge, the communicative interpretation of biographical testimonies as well as the role of media in mediation processes. Awareness for opportunities and challenges of narrated life stories for learning and teaching processes is raised, and media competence requirements in dealing with digital interactive media are framed.
Multiperspectivity is shaping the present research design. By employing questionnaires and interviews and by participant observation, secondary education teachers’ and students’ points of view and knowledge are examined. The outcomes of the interrogation of the teachers lead to a guideline for planning and conducting contemporary witness conversations. Considering the student cohort, knowledge of the Nazi era, media competence, values and attitudes are examined. The expected outcomes of the interviews and questionnaires serve to develop learning materials focusing on contemporary witness conversations. From this, “10 principles of remembrance and future” showing how to learn from and with life history are derived and put in front of the learning materials as an excerpt.
Contact:
Duration: January 2020 to January 2021
Funding: Sparkassen Stiftung, own resources
