At the end of my WWII unit with my freshman World History class, I have a two-day project which launches us into the Nuremberg Trials and the legal ramifications of the trials on international law and medical ethics. We started with watching the scene from HBO's "Band of Brothers" miniseries where Easy Company discovers and liberates a concentration camp. We talked about the potential emotions of Allied troops who witness the devastation of Hitler's attempts to conquer Europe through the Final Solution, treatment of prisoners of war and political dissidents, and the cities devastated by bombings. Briefly we discussed issues with trying those held responsible; where should the trial be held? Who could possibly serve on a jury or as judges? On what charges can they be indicted? Is "murder" strong enough? Which country has the right to prosecute? How do we handle the different languages?
Students were randomly assigned one of the 22 defendants accused of War Crimes. We went to the computer lab for two days. They used a tutorial I created on Sophia.org:
Students were randomly assigned one of the 22 defendants accused of War Crimes. We went to the computer lab for two days. They used a tutorial I created on Sophia.org:
They first read a brief synopsis of the trials and answered a few quiz questions within the tutorial. Then they watched a short YouTube video showing newsreel highlights from the trials. They then downloaded a worksheet with questions to guide their research and a list of sources. We spent one whole class period researching individual defendants, focusing on their job during WWII as part of the Third Reich, the charges brought against them, their defense, and the verdict and sentencing. On day two, they summarized their findings into a one-page biography. They must include a works cited page with MLA citations, and papers must be free from errors and written clearly.
Students really enjoyed this mini-paper. I heard lots of, "Wow, my guy did..." or "Mrs. Hoham, did you know...?" When we return at the end of the week to further discuss the ramifications of the Nuremberg Trials, I ask them to divide by who got prison, who got acquitted, and who was hanged. There is a spirited discussion over whether or not someone deserved life in prison, and shock over those who committed suicide in prison. I teach them about studies like the Milgram Experiment (1963) as we discuss whether or not the defense "Befehl ist befehl" ("orders are orders") was a valid defense. Our middle school does a full Holocaust unit, and students learn frequently about Pearl Harbor and the A-bomb, but rarely do they know anything about the Nuremberg Trials.
Students really enjoyed this mini-paper. I heard lots of, "Wow, my guy did..." or "Mrs. Hoham, did you know...?" When we return at the end of the week to further discuss the ramifications of the Nuremberg Trials, I ask them to divide by who got prison, who got acquitted, and who was hanged. There is a spirited discussion over whether or not someone deserved life in prison, and shock over those who committed suicide in prison. I teach them about studies like the Milgram Experiment (1963) as we discuss whether or not the defense "Befehl ist befehl" ("orders are orders") was a valid defense. Our middle school does a full Holocaust unit, and students learn frequently about Pearl Harbor and the A-bomb, but rarely do they know anything about the Nuremberg Trials.
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