With the support of the Association for Jewish-Lacaunian Friendship and the Foundation for the Memory of the Holocaust
HOLOCAUST REMEMBRANCE TRIPS
Call for Papers: 6th Lacaunian Symposium (September 17-18, 2011)
In 2007, a group of sociologists from the Training and Research University Center carried out a statistical survey involving 1301 highschool students. It aimed at measuring the knowledge and improving the understanding of highschool students opinions at a time when research publications about the difficulties teachers face when dealing with the Holocaust in class were beginning to be published. This symposium takes place in the extension of the five previous international ones held in Lacaune.1
Time has come apparently to take stock of this pedagogical action meant to enable the young to go to the very places where the tragical facts took place and to directly and personally face the material aspects of the Holocaust. Such trips, which have considerably increased in number in France during the last few years, and, for being organized by generous and well- meaning initiatives, nonetheless appear more spontaneous than really well-thought out, little coordinated as they are, and their effects not being really studied. Therefore, some twenty-five years after the first initiatives and before any more developments or possible questionings occur, the success as well as and the difficulties those remembrance trips encounter make it necessary for the organizers to appeal to a real body of references available for assessment as well as for analysis.
To proceed to such assessment and analysis, a national and even international gathering appears necessary: given that such trips do not take place in France only, but also and even more often in such countries as Great Britain, Germany, Italy, the Scandinavian countries and Israel, both assessment and reflexion should be extended to those countries. Knowing about the situation in the countries of origin of the trips is a good thing, as relevant is increased knowledge about the host country, such as Poland, where institutions like the Auschwitz Museum or the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation play a major part, comparable with the one played in France by the Foundation for the Memory of the Holocaust, after the Jewish Contemporary Documentation Center (CDJC). To these trips to the concentration camps, we suggest to add, in France, the trips (more and more frequent) to the deported children, Maison d’Izieu, as well as to the internment camps such as those in Loiret, Rivesaltes, Les Milles in Aix-en-Provence.
Numerous institutions are involved in the organization of these school trips: Regional
Councils, General Councils, Town Councils, associations, teachers and schools. Independent from one another, all of them usually have very few opportunities to exchange their
experiences. The Symposium will thus provide an adequate place for such encounters concerning France as well as other European countries and Israel.
1 For informations about the books resulting from these symposia see : http://ajl.celeonet.fr/
Among many themes of study, the participants could debate about the question of the beginning, development and extension of such trips. As for the present situation, they could deal with the number of classes, the fund raising and the organization involved.
Another type of questions relates to the school children concerned: what age seems most adequate? What kinds of problems may in some cases arise?
The way the young are prepared to such trips can also be inquired into, for if obviously a good preparation guarantees efficiency, the way to optimize it remains nonetheless debatable.
Another problem is to be dealt with: what kind of accompanying adults? Teachers? Guides?
Witnesses?
A last point remains to be assessed: the students behaviors at different stages of the trip and its effects, compared to the organizers expectations, as far as actual benefits as well as
difficulties faced are concerned.
On the one hand, there will be lectures delivered by the persons directly involved in the remembrance trips
- in France : deportees/witnesses; teachers; local communities; memorial associations and institutions; administration.
- in Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Scandinavian countries, Poland, Israel
On the other hand, the researchers will present their studies about various aspects of this pedagogical activity, falling within different approaches. Thus will be favored a debate with the field people.
Each Round Table will gather four contributors, each speaking for twenty minutes. Then a twenty minutesdebate will take place. Finally, there will be a twenty minutes exchange with the audience.
The languages used will be French or English.
The call for papers will end on January 31, 2011.
S C H E D U L E Saturday September 10 Round Table I
10 a.m.-12: remembrance trips : history and state of affairs in France and other European countries.
Round Table II
2-4 p.m.: for what kinds of students are remembrance trips suitable?
Round Table III
4-6 p.m.: the preparation of remembrance trips.
Sunday September 11 Round Table IV
10 a.m.-12: remembrance trips: organization, supervision, behaviors.
Round Table V
2-4 p.m.: remembrance trips: effects, benefits, difficulties.
The program will be finalized by January 31, 2011.
Send proposals to : Jacques Fikalkow ( jfijalko at univ-tlse2.fr )
· Contributors last and first names
· Position
· Service attached to
· number of Round Table(s) chosen (several are possible, but only one will be retained)
· abstract of paper
· language used
