Creative Teaching and Learning

Confronting Anti-Jewish Racism In The Classroom

With anti-Jewish racism on the rise in the UK, it is more important than ever to educate young people about it. Mark Rusling, Director of Learning at the National Holocaust Museum, shares examples of best practice for citizenship teachers.
Anti-Jewish graffiti on a brick wall.

Summary

2023 saw the highest number of incidents of antisemitism ever recorded in the UK. This highlights a need for citizenship teachers to educate students on anti-Jewish racism as part of modern life.

To enact this change, teachers may wish to draw upon a pedagogy developed through the National Holocaust Museum’s Racism Response Unit. This method of anti-racism education draws links between the anti-Jewish tropes and conspiracy theories of the pre-Nazi, Nazi and contemporary eras. Teachers should also interrogate the codes used by anti-Jewish racists of the far-left and far-right, and be open to a sensitive discussion of the ways in which illegitimate criticism of Israel fuels much contemporary online anti-Jewish racism.

The best practice cited here should be of interest to anyone working in a British primary or secondary school today.

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