Dump ideology, bring history back into the classroom
It seems to be a kneejerk response to something that recently has become a problem, spurred by the war in the Middle East and manifest, first, in serious criminal activity and, second, less seriously, in mouthing slogans at demonstrations. Perhaps in the latter case the underlying cause is pure ignorance.
In my teaching days I had direct experience of a whole class of 15-year-olds knowing absolutely nothing about the Holocaust.
I first encountered this back in the 1980s. I had a simple solution. I showed them the Genocide episode from The World at War series narrated by Laurence Olivier to enlighten them. Today it probably would be against the law to show them some of that footage without some sort of warning.
I have never had a class quieten down so quickly. They were gobsmacked. However, what really appalled me, other than the fact they had no idea that this had happened, was the sort of questions they asked me afterwards.
“Miss, why didn’t Americans do something?” Eh? Of course, I had to point out that these all-rescuing Americans (like Private Ryan) were fighting a great big war in Europe. You know, World War II? No. They didn’t.
At this point, rather than trying to introduce some form of divisive and possibly ideological stuff, it might be a good idea if adolescents simply had to do history. If they all had to study the rise of Nazism and even briefly World War II, then perhaps I would have been spared their profound ignorance.
Some kids today still study history – as an elective. It is rarely compulsory. If it were, the Australian population would not be so ignorant as to be letting anti-Semitism and a lot of other antis flourish too.
However, there is a great danger that if specific anti-Semitism education is introduced, it simply will be yet more ideological stuff being crammed into an already overcrowded curriculum and, kids being kids, a contrary, immature lot, it would be ignored or encourage even more classroom division.
By all means, teenagers should be taken to the Holocaust memorials but, even more important, they must learn about what was happening in the world in these relatively modern times.
They must learn how and why it was that one of the most civilised nations in Europe, the nation that could produce some of the greatest writers, philosophers, musicians and scientists in the world, was overtaken by an ideology that perpetrated such a barbarity as the Holocaust.
As a teacher of history, I can understand why some kids questioned the relevance of the Peloponnesian wars, but if they had to study any history kids might have to look more deeply into the reasons for many current world conflicts and problems, not just the war in the Middle East.
If they understood the origins of World War I and the tensions that ensued after that terrible conflict, they might be more discerning about the war in Ukraine as not just a fight between the “goodies” personified by Volodymyr Zelensky and the “baddies” personified by Vladimir Putin. Unfortunately, I have realised from experience that many kids now don’t even know about the break-up of the Soviet empire, let alone the Hapsburg one.
An example closer to home is Anthony Albanese’s John Curtin Oration last weekend. It has been greeted with some criticism from various commentators, not only because of what the Prime Minister said about Curtin’s decision to look to the Americans for our defence in World War II but also because of what he was saying about our relationship with the US now, particularly as we tread a fine line in the Pacific with China.
But ask any young person, even a 30-year-old, if they know any historical facts about that time, the war, the alliance or even who Curtin was, and it would be a fair bet that they don’t.
I once had a student at a class I was taking at a university who didn’t know there were two world wars. As for Australia after the war, unless you grew up in Bathurst, NSW, you wouldn’t know who Joseph Benedict Chifley was either.
So where does this leave trying to quell the outburst of anti-Semitism? First, trying to counter this, the government must look at its origins. Is it really a huge Australia-wide social problem? Is it any worse than the antipathy many people feel towards Middle Eastern non-Jews, especially Muslims?
Judging from comments on my previous columns, it isn’t. However, the worst thing about the latest outrages, especially with the attacks on synagogues, restaurants and car torching, is that they have been perpetrated deliberately by professional agitators who have online networks spread all over the world.
All the campus demonstrations from New York to Melbourne appear to have been co-ordinated by agitators, the main reason the University of Melbourne intervened in the campus demonstrations.
However, much of the street protests and the vehemently anti-Israeli feeling at demonstrations is not necessarily antipathy towards Jews. The young especially are prompted by idealism, empathy and understandable horror at the suffering of the people of Gaza.
However, with virtually nil understanding or knowledge about the Middle East, particularly the origins of the state of Israel, it is easy to see how opposition to Israeli policy in Gaza can lead to anger against the Jewish state and be extrapolated to Jews in general. That is anti-Semitism born of plain historical ignorance.
So instead of having morality shoved down their throats and being told their opinions are wrong and worthless, we would do better for young people to point out the salient facts of history, even if you don’t like Israel’s policies, which, in a democracy you have every right to oppose.
Sorry, Lord, there’s no way I’m loving my old neighbours
Right now, we live in a strata of six. It is a world of sympathy, co-operation and bonhomie. But you can move from having good neighbours to the entire cast of homicidal maniacs inhabiting Shakespeare’s plays.
China cannot change who we are
The Prime Minister must devote more time and effort to the US relationship. Regardless of Australia’s current warmer relationship with China, the latter’s strategic ambitions in Asia are fundamentally different from Australia’s view.
It was reported this week that federal Education Minister Jason Clare wants to introduce anti-Semitism into the school curriculum, although how this is to be done is a mystery.