Heritage

Contentsassessment points for peace education based on heritage43Processes and mechanismspa Pedagogical approachWar processes and propaganda strategies do not occur in a historical vacuum. Theyare partly determined and shaped by the context in which they appear. Throughouthistory, they have taken different shapes and forms. Present processes may have similaritieswith past mechanisms, but they will also inevitably differ from them as a resultof the change in context. The past will never repeat itself in exactly the same way.Pupils must be given the opportunity not only to acquire an in-depth understandingof the historical context, but also to see the similarities and differences, and to identifypossible relationships.tlTeaching limitationWhen studying the First World War, we can get lost in a series of dates and details. Tryto keep your story as simple as possible, focusing on the processes and mechanismsthat have current value. For example, what was the impact of propaganda on therecruitment of mariners? What influence does propaganda have in political contextstoday? How was the sinking of ships related in the different media?tt Teaching tipThe First World War was, from the beginning, a war of propaganda. With the riseof the mass media at the end of the nineteenth century, it became clear to manypoliticians that influencing the masses could be ofgreat importance in the development of the war.The main medium was the written press, alongsideposters, government reports, films and newsreels.An interesting activity for secondary schools mightbe to have students compare First World War postersfrom different countries, as well as consider therelationship between news on naval conflicts, includingthe sinking of ships, and these propagandaGoogle and the Google logo are registered trademarksof Google Inc., used with permission