Heritage

Contentsassessment points for peace education based on heritage61‘For me, the most powerful moment of reconciliation I personally witnessed was duringthe 50th anniversary of the attack on 7 December 1991. As one of the archaeologistswho had worked on the sunken Arizona, I participated in interviews withAmerican and Japanese veterans of the battle who had come together in Hawaii forwhat was to be the last great gathering of those who had fought in the skies and season that day five decades earlier. I saw old men remembering they had all once beenyoung, fighting for their respective countries, not necessarily ideologies, losing friendsand comrades on that terrible day and in the years of brutal combat that followed. Isaw them reminiscing, sharing stories and sadness, autographing each other’s copies ofthe history books, and standing together as flowers were dropped into the dark watersthat swirl over the rusting wreckage of USS Arizona.’Suggested student exercise• Discuss with your students the importance of the World Wars and their aftermathin fostering peace movements (even if countered by nationalist movements).• Could the First World War be understood as a moment in history when theworld became global and international? Have students describe the history ofpeace movements and their point of origin.• What value does reconciliation have in this sense and what is true reconciliationin a war? In our everyday life?• What role does heritage play in reconciliation?tt Teaching tipFor students in the higher years of secondary school, Universal Human Rights offer anopportunity to view society in a positive light. Here are several assignments in this regard.1. Imagine the following. A group of historians is building a giant cellar. In this cellar,they bring together all kinds of objects, including books, tools, drawings and otherobjects that provide a picture of our current way of life. The historians hope thatpeople in the future will open the cellar and gain an image of the way we live.The class is now asked to bring things into the cellar that say something about the wayin which people today cope with fundamental human rights.• What would you bring to the cellar?• Why did you choose these objects?