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ABSTRACT
This study examines how a museum-led professional development workshop impacts preservice teachers' perceived preparedness to teach the Holocaust. Utilizing an instructional model of historical empathy, researchers designed a virtual Holocaust education workshop for preservice teachers. Teacher candidates at three large universities were invited to attend. Survey findings demonstrate that participants' preparedness to teach difficult history improved. Results highlight the power of partnerships between teacher educators and museum educators and the power of eyewitness testimony to evoke empathy.
According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), antisemitic incidents in the LTnited States reached an all-time high in 2021, with over 2700 incidents of assault, harassment, or vandalism reported-the highest rate since 1979, when the ADL began conducting annual audits (ADL, 2022). While antisemitism levels are high in the LTnited States, Holocaust knowledge and awareness are low. The Claims Conference, an international nonprofit organization supporting Holocaust survivors, hired a consulting group to conduct a national study of Holocaust education in the LTnited States. Researchers conducted over 10,000 interviews of Americans ages 18-29-at least 200 per state. Results demonstrate a shocking lack of basic Holocaust knowledge across the 50 states (Claims Conference, 2020). Sixty-three percent of respondents did not know that six million Jews were murdered; 48% could not name one concentration camp, death camp, or ghetto. Gideon Taylor, President of the Claims Conference, stated that while these results are disturbing, "we need to understand why we aren't doing better in educating a younger generation about the Holocaust and the lessons of the past. This needs to serve as a wake-up call to us all, and as a road map of where government officials need to act" (Claims Conference, 2020).
A lack of Holocaust knowledge may be exacerbated by the fact that teachers report feeling unprepared to teach the Holocaust and other traumatic events, broadly (Allgood & Shah, 2021; Rich, 2019). In a 2004 national survey conducted by the LTnited States Holocaust Memorial Museum (LTSHMM), 52% of teachers cited their own high school coursework as their primary source of Holocaust knowledge, compared with 23% citing professional development (Donnelly, 2006). Museums and historic sites can serve as valuable resources for teachers who are grappling with difficult topics in history (Marcus et al., 2012). Difficult history is defined as past...