Personal Memory or Shared Memory, Lesson 2
Lesson 2: Fact-Finding Exercise
Focus: How do real-world cases highlight the tensions between memory and history?
Suggested length: 1 hour
Learning Objectives:
- Analyze real-world examples where personal memory and shared historical records conflict or align.
- Explore how different societies remember the same events differently.
- Deepen students understanding of reliability, power, and bias.
| Critical Thinking Concepts | TOK Concepts | Reflection Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Confronting Biases and Assumptions: Identify historical bias and challenging the objectivity of History. Exploring Contexts: Analyze source credibility and cross-cultural perspectives. Responsiveness and Flexibility of Thought: Recognize emotional vs. rational appeals and comparing conflicting narratives. Extrapolation & Reapplication of Principles: Apply historical context to modern debates, building media literacy, and developing media literacy. | Perspectives: What factors contribute to the differing interpretations and memories of the same historical event among various societies? Bias: How do cultural, political, or ideological biases impact the formation and preservation of both personal and collective memories? Power: How do dominant groups shape history through textbooks, laws, and media representations? Justification: Should all historical narratives be preserved in their entirety, or are there some that warrant reconsideration and potential revision? | How does this case shape your understanding of the reliability of memory and history? Are certain types of knowledge (e.g., personal memory or official history) always more trustworthy? How should societies handle conflicting narratives? Can you connect the cases to TOK concepts: bias, power, perspectives, justification, and responsibility? |
Resources and Preparation
- Slides, attached below.
- Students will need access to their Kialo discussions from Lesson 1.
- Ensure students complete the homework preparation task.
- Additional resources accompany the case-study of your choosing in the homework preparation task.
Homework Preparation Task
| Case Study Task Divide students into small groups and assign each group a case study relating to memory and history. There are suggestions listed below. Groups explore their assigned case using provided resources (articles, videos, or curated primary sources). Students prepare a short (5–10 min) presentation in response to the following questions:
Case Study Options: The Partition of India (1947):
Holocaust Denial and Memory Preservation:
Removal of Confederate Statues in the U.S.:
Australia’s “Stolen Generations”:
Mandela Effect (False Collective Memory):
|
Introduction
Introduction: Recap and Frame the Task
Recap the key points from the debate:
- What makes memory reliable or unreliable?
- How do power structures influence history?
Bridge to Lesson 2
Explain that students will use their case studies on examples of contested memories and histories to deepen their understanding of reliability and bias.
Main Activity
Presentations:
Students present their case studies to the class.
Students should take note of any useful points from other groups’ presentations to use in the Kialo discussion.
Recording Findings in a Kialo Discussion:
Students use their case study and their peers’ presentations to update and substantiate their arguments in their Kialo discussion: Which is more reliable: personal memory or official history? from the previous session, focusing on:
- The conflict or alignment between memory and history.
- Examples of power and bias at play.
- Key takeaways about reliability and justification.
Students can use the sunburst view on Kialo to identify and address any gaps in knowledge.
Reflection Activity
Class Discussion and Reflection : Discuss the following reflection questions in open discussion or exit ticket format:
- How does this case shape your understanding of the reliability of memory and history?
- Are certain types of knowledge (e.g., personal memory or official history) always more trustworthy?
- How should societies handle conflicting narratives?
- Connect the cases to TOK concepts: bias, power, perspectives, justification, and responsibility.
