University of Minnesota
Center for Holocaust & Genocide Studies
chgs@umn.edu
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CHGS

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Curriculum Models

Holocaust & Genocide Denial

Students and researchers should be aware that there is a proliferation of websites operated by Holocaust and genocide deniers that CHGS and others in the academic community consider unreliable.

CHGS encourages all researchers to exercise caution when they use the Internet and any other media (films, books, journals, etc). Our Center, staff, advisory board and experts are here to assist researchers on a case-by-case basis.

We consider it our obligation to orient researchers toward reference materials which, in our opinion, represent the best scholarship in the field of Holocaust and genocide issues.

We recommend that researchers interested in the history, psychology and ideology of Holocaust and genocide denial should begin their investigation with the following resources:

Remembrance and Denial: The Case of the Armenian Genocide by Richard G. Hovannisian. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1999.

Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory by Deborah Lipstadt. New York: The Free Press, 1993.

Assassins of Memory: Essays on the Denial of the Holocaust (European Perspectives: A Series in Social Thought and Cultural Criticism) by Pierre Vidal-Naquet. New York: Columbia University Press, 1993.

This list is NOT exhaustive, and will continue to be updated by the CHGS staff.

Please consult with us if you need more information about what we consider to be reliable versus unreliable sources.

K-12 Educators

CHGS recommends teaching the Holocaust and genocide beginning with grade 6, as students at that level can begin to understand the complexity of these historic events in their proper context.  At the elementary level, students should receive character building lessons that teach empathy, citizenship, the value of diversity and the dangers of prejudice and bias in society.

Establishing Goals

Before teaching about genocide it is essential that educators at all levels establish a rationale for teaching it in their classrooms.  It is important to create a clear set of goals and objectives with an understanding of the historical context in order to connect with your students and aid them in their understanding of the complexities of Holocaust and genocide studies.

Resources for Establishing Goals

Choosing Lessons and Activities

Determining what lessons and activities are suitable for classroom the following should be considered:

  • Make sure the lessons fit within your goals for teaching the Holocaust or other genocides in your classroom.
  • Be sure they are age appropriate and can be easily integrated into your existing curriculum. 
  • Always provide students with the correct historical context and references prior to introducing resources, lessons and activities. 
  • Avoid activities that trivialize events or require students to play the role of the victim.
  • Be sensitive to the emotional nature of the material and use discretion in utilizing graphic images, there are an abundance of source materials that convey the horror and tragic nature of genocide without using photographs of the dead.

Minnesota State Standards

Minnesota Academic Standards
The Academic Standards division is responsible for the development and implementation of the statewide expectations for educational achievement known as the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards.

Undergraduate and Graduate Students