Reflective Blog #9: Critical Thinking....in the Nazi Mindset

This week's blog focuses on how my project(s) can increase a student's problem solving/critical thinking skills.

I think studying the Nazi Volksgemeinschaft can certainly increase students ability to think about history critically. Students often get a very one-sided (albeit accurate) interpretation of Nazism. Said interpretation often involves focusing on the evil deeds of Nazism and their racist ideology. However, the Volksgemeinschaft provides a very different interpretation of Nazism.

The Volksgemeinschaft shows a Nazism with purpose, not destruction. The Nazis are attempting to create an ideal German utopia that will continue to perpetuate itself generation after generation. Such an ideology shows that the Nazis were not solely rabid street thugs. The Nazis did not view themselves as such, but rather as the bearers of true German history; a history destined for something incredible.

That being said students can view the Volksgemeinschaft itself critically because it will evolve into a vision of genocide and war. However, the students can view the genocide and war with the Volksgemeinschaft in mind. These two conflicting, but true narratives will make students more open to thinking critically about various historical narratives. Once a student thinks critically about historical narratives, they are less likely to take arguments at face value. Seeing both the good and evil intentions of Nazism can open students to seeing such intentions in numerous arguments. The most important skill we can impart on students is being able to think for themselves.

Additionally, the project that involves students taking on a role in Nazi Germany can open their eyes to how any person can be compelled to accept evil if enough good is presented to cover it. Responsible citizens should be able to realize the good and bad of any decision they make. Ultimate History is a catalog of good and bad decisions made with arguments that had both good and bad intentions. If a generation of students can think critically and use history as a tool for their own decision making, then I think we Historians have done our jobs. I think my project(s) operate within this spirit.

Until Next Time!

Derrick Angermeier

Blog #8: Information Literacy

This weeks blog is supposed to reflect on how my present project will help with information literacy.

I fear my project may not be the best for encouraging Information Literacy. I am providing students with a great deal of the material, as opposed to having them hunt down the information themselves. As such, they are certainly gaining a more sophisticated knowledge of Nazism, but they are not finding the material themselves.
Now, I have been thinking about developing the project I will theoretically implement with Dr. Soper and develop the parameters of the role playing project for my citizens project. I can forsee the role playing project definitely increasing the information literacy of the students. Each student, having been given a goal, will have to do research on their own. I can provide them with a few places to look, but they will have to find sources, both primary and secondary, separate from my suggestions. In this way they can get familiar with scouring the web, libraries, archives, etc.

In my own course on European history or Nazism, I would definitely implement both the flipped Volksgemeinschaft classroom and the role playing (reacting to history). I feel both have the potential of reaching out to students, engaging them in a different way with controversial and complex material, and hopefully create responsible citizens in the process- not to mention boost their Information Literacy....

Until Next Time,

Derrick Angermeier

Reflective Blog #7: Process vs. Content vs. Face to Face v. Independence vs. Control vs. EVERYTHING

For this blog we were to read a chapter of Supporting Learning with Technology and reflect on whether it would benefit our project. 

To update briefly on my project, it has changed format after my initial proposal to Dr. Soper. The original parameters of the project, Dr. Soper pointed out, run like a full-blown reacting to the past. Such a format would exceed the parameters of HIST 2302 ad put an undue burden on the students. Thus, we have modified the project to still incorporate posts on ELC and a video to maintain the flipped format. Dr. Soper is also interested in using some of the documents I have assembled. Thus, students will enter the breakout with a considerable amount of knowledge ahead of time making discussion that much richer.

That being said, the project as it is does not lend itself to very much student autonomy. I still feel that my students will get much more material with this format, but the learning and tasks will be content heavy. Additionally, the students will have to interact with technology in a different way and change up the format of their breakout. In that regard I am very excited about this project.

I would like to give the students more autonomy in this project, but as the course is Dr. Soper's and not my own I will take a back seat. Someday, in a Nazism class I could envision doing the original project and having the students take on the role of a German citizen. In this way they would have to keep up with the information I provide and do research on their own. I would have slight control over how the project goes, but students would shape their own project according to their desire/interest. I envision also canceling a class session or two to set up personal meetings in my office so the students have face to face time to discuss their project with me. I think that in this way I can provide a great deal of content, while not hindering the process that students need in order to learn.

In a way I think the process will be more important to me than the content. In studying something as controversial as Nazism I want students to search through the complexities on their own, with occasional guidance and information from me. I think a student that comes across something on their own and forms their own interpretation of that item will internalize the information much better than something I tell them. In this way students can do their own research (with a content foundation I provide) that will hopefully stick with them long after my class. 

Those are my thoughts for now. Over the break I am going to work on my Cool Tools demos and prep all of the materials for the Flipped Breakout to show Dr. Soper the following week...who said Spring Break was about a break?

Until next time!

Derrick