The approach to History in the Facing the Past project is adapted from the Facing History and Ourselves journey.

In a Facing the Past classroom learners do not only study the facts of history. They engage with the past in order to meaningfully learn more about their own behaviour and choices and how they operate in the world around them.

When teachers and learners embark on Facing the Past, they begin a journey of exploration of history and themselves.

The Journey

The Individual and Society
The journey begins by looking at the complex issues around individual identity, starting with such questions as: Who am I? How do I define myself? How do I define others? Learners examine how identity is linked to decision-making, and discuss the impact that choices made by individuals have on society.

We and They
The journey then broadens to an exploration of identity as it relates to groups and nations. How does a nation define itself? Who decides who belongs and who doesn’t?

The History
With that foundation, learners explore how issues of identity and membership, inclusion and exclusion, play out at one particular moment in history. During this part of the journey, learners engage in a rigorous investigation of both Nazi Germany and the Holocaust and apartheid South Africa and confront the moral questions inherent in these histories and discover that even the smallest choices can, indeed, make a difference.

Judgment, Memory and Legacy
Focusing on the role of the individual in history, learners then consider the question: Who was responsible? Learners explore questions of good and evil, guilt and responsibility, prevention and punishment; and the ways in which we remember the past and how those memories shape the present.

Choosing to Participate

Finally, they reflect on their own roles as citizens in a democracy, and embark on what we hope is a life-long commitment to responsible participation in the world, to continually asking, “How can I make a difference?” It is in this final part of the journey that learners see how they and other are responsible for making the world a better place.

For more information visit Facing History and Ourselves.