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As a humanities teacher, and a PhD student in the field of Holocaust studies, our work is to engage with history’s darkest chapters to illuminate the path toward a more just and humane future. Central to this mission is the study of the Holocaust, as a critical lens for understanding antisemitism, citizenship, ethics, and human rights today.
Our pedagogical approach is inspired by international best practices, such as those outlined in the IHRA Recommendations for Teaching and Learning about the Holocaust, Yad Vashem Educational Guidelines and more. We believe in fostering responsible citizens. Students must confront the complex mechanisms of prejudice, state-sponsored violence, and the erosion of democratic values. Our school integrates interdisciplinary perspectives, combining literature, history, philosophy, and art.
This commitment materializes in elective courses like “Narratives of War — Memory, History, and Reflection.” Here, students engage directly with the voices of the past. Through diaries like Anne Frank’s and testimonies like Primo Levi’s Survival in Auschwitz, they learn facts and encounter individual humanity amidst inhumanity. We make sure victims are remembered as people with lives, hopes, and identities, not just numbers.
The course structure promotes active, critical thinking. Students analyze historical contexts, discuss the roles of perpetrators, bystanders, and rescuers, and are then encouraged to become authors of their own narratives, writing personal journals that connect global events to their local realities. This practice underscores the power of writing as an act of memory and resistance, echoing the “Pages of Testimony” collected by Yad Vashem to reclaim the identities of millions.
A key pillar of our program is combating distortion and fostering accurate remembrance. In an age of online misinformation, we equip students with tools to critically analyze sources, understand the strategies of denial, and uphold historical truth.
Our focus on Holocaust education is foundational to building citizenship. By studying how rights were systematically destroyed, students learn to value and defend them. By analyzing the consequences of indifference, they cultivate empathy and a sense of collective responsibility.
At PEI José Nicolau Pirágine, we are not merely teaching history; we are nurturing guardians of memory and architects of a more dignified future. Through the study of the Holocaust, students emerge with a deeper commitment to human rights, an alertness to injustice, and the conviction that their voices and choices matter in the ongoing pursuit of “Never Again.”