Research Area:

Universität Graz/Centrum für Jüdische Studien, Universität Wien/Institut für Geschichte, Arbeitsbereich: Didaktik der Gedichte

Project name:

Remembering in the classroom. Multidirectional memory in Graz’ schools (Sparkling-Science-Project)

Project team:

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Gerald Lamprecht
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Georg Marschnig

Melanie Göttfried, MEd BEd
Maria Pasaricek MEd BA BEd
Esraa Shehata, BEd

Project description:

Since 2022, the so-called “Historiker:innenstreit 2.0” has been discussing whether the culture of remembrance with a focus on the Holocaust still corresponds to the realities of a society shaped by migration. The Sparkling Science project “The Memory of the Classroom”, funded by the Bundesministerium für Wissenschaft und Forschung, is investigating the question of whether the central historical narratives in schools and society reflect the diverse backgrounds of experience of all people living in Austria. Is the Holocaust still a central part of the historical consciousness and historical narratives of all citizens living in the country, or are other (colonial) experiences of violence as present?  Which stories are told in history lessons - and which are not? What (educational) consequences arise from possible differences between public and private memory?

In order to find answers to these questions we are analyzing curricula, textbooks and conducting interviews with teachers at six schools in Graz. The project focuses on the students’ research work, in which they investigate their own family histories through oral history interviews. The results are then incorporated into a traveling exhibition, a book publication and didactic materials. The aim is to develop recommendations for contemporary education and history didactics.

Further information about the project: https://gedaechtnis-im-klassenzimmer.uni-graz.at 

Click here to get to the Sparkling Science website: www.sparklingscience.at 

Click here to get to the website of the Ministry of Education, Science and Research: www.bmbwf.gv.at