Inquiry hears of challenges faced teaching young about the Holocaust
The head of the Holocaust Educational Trust has told a Government inquiry about the challenges of teaching young people about the Nazi genocide.
Addressing an Education Select Committee on Tuesday, HET’s Chief Executive Karen Pollock said the platform was a “welcome opportunity to discuss what we can do to improve the quality and impact of Holocaust education in schools across the UK”.
She added: “We work with thousands of students and teachers each year but we are aware there are more we need to reach; with the right support, we will ensure that no young person is ignorant of this period of history.”
The Trust’s Lessons from Auschwitz Project, which receives government funding and enables around 3,000 students and teachers a year to visit Auschwitz-Birkenau, was highlighted as a crucial educational element.
Recognising the difficulty teachers face, there was discussion about the stage at which Holocaust education should take place to ensure students are “emotionally and educationally prepared” for the subject matter.
Other witnesses giving evidence included Sir Eric Pickles MP and Paul Salmons, director of the Centre for Holocaust Education.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
