For Thursday, March 4, 1999 Drummer Column, Gibbs, 723 words

Two birds

I need to build lesson plans. I have to write this column. I know. I will synthesize the two. Perhaps I'll understand this project better by explaining it to you.

Also, that way I won't actually be working on school beyond my clock-mandated hours. I'll be writing a column. Yes. Good idea.

O.K. So, we are learning about the Holocaust. We are reading Night by Elie Wiesel. I don't want an essay after this book. There would be little to no variety to the tones. It would be too depressing. The Holocaust was a horrible time in history. It should never be repeated. I don't want to read that 70 times over.

This year I decided on a research project instead. I assigned it last week. The title is this: PowerPoint the Atrocity. Students are asked to research closely one aspect of the Holocaust or any other atrocity in human history and create a computerized visual presentation for the class.

Whatever topic they choose, they must gather multimedia -- words, pictures, and sounds and then break that information into five separate chapters (a.k.a. PowerPoint Custom Shows). There's the analysis. They must then combine the five custom shows into one cohesive presentation. There's the synthesis. By using the Internet and PowerPoint we are integrating technology into the classroom.

The Holocaust is one of the bleakest moments in human history. However, I don't want my students to come away believing that the Holocaust is the only atrocity. By opening the project up to all acts of inhumanity I hope we'll gain some valuable if painful perspective about the frequency of human suffering.

Perhaps by examining these atrocities together we will notice similarities in motive and modus operandi. Perhaps we can in some small way learn to prevent such atrocities from reoccurring. Perhaps we will also come away with a better perception of our own place in the world, and a greater appreciation of our present freedoms.

     Our personal freedom is not a gift. It has been earned. We walk on the bones of our ancestors. If our ancestors could speak to us from their graves they would say, "Enjoy, but remember, but enjoy." We are all survivors, and we must accept the moral responsibility of defending human dignity and passing the peace onto our children.

Whew. That's my feeling.

Here's what I am learning so far: Doing research strictly by the Internet is difficult. Information is, if not spotty, hard to find. There is no comprehensive list at any search engine. Misinformation looks just like information. Real encyclopedic information requires a monthly cash fee. Some sites are maintained by renowned historical institutions and others were created by guys named Ed or Jimmy three years ago. Final word on that: Don't give up on the good old-fashioned library.

We will, however, contribute to the maturity of the Internet. When this project ends, we will compile all our gathered web sites together and create a comprehensive list. We'll turn that list into a web page on the Internet and submit the address and keywords to the various search engines.

To give an idea of some of the chosen topics, here are a few of the keywords we might register at the search engines: Kosovo, Serbia, Sarayevo, Bosnia, Armenia, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Stalin, Mussolini, Pol Pot, Attila the Hun, Hitler, Idi Amin, slavery, Wounded Knee, Tiananmen Square, Nanking, Babi Yar, Gardelegen, the Crusades, and on and on. We had no shortage of topics.

This is painful material. Moms and dads of my students need to know that we are moving ahead with care and reverence for all. Topic choices are voluntary and viewing of all presentations is also voluntary. A student can step out at any time. However, I feel it's important not to soften the impact of these events. Dante walked through Hell in order to understand evil and goodness. In the safety of the classroom, together as friends, we will take a similar journey.

A final and favorite reason why I'm enjoying this project so much is a selfish one: I get to keep copies of all the students' projects. Paper projects always go home forever with the students and I'm left without memories or prototypes. Electronic projects we can share. They take up no space, and I can use them all the way into retirement.