Zofia Orly: The market of postgraduate studies in the discipline of social sciences is packed with programs that teach business management, human resources management or project management in organizations. Meanwhile, SWPS University’s Faculty of Social Sciences in Warsaw, in collaboration with the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, has created a unique study program focused on the “Roots of the 20th Century Totalitarianism: Auschwitz – Holocaust – Genocide”. Why this topic in social sciences and not history?
Professor Adam Szpaderski First of all, the program responds to a social need, and social needs are the focus of our Faculty. What is this need? Firstly – a gap on the market, because no such program has ever been offered before. Secondly – we live in very turbulent times; the times, which present us with new educational challenges. Auschwitz, various memorial sites and other examples of genocide constitute a very strong educational reference point, which means, we use the history of totalitarianisms, in particular its manifestations and symbols such as Auschwitz, for educational purposes. We wanted to avoid creating an exclusively historical program, which would be mainly associated with yellowed documents, photographs and history, because such programs become very exclusive and academic. Our goal was different. We wanted the program to be very practical and authentic, and to refer to the present with a strong foundation in historical research – these are the core aspects these studies.
If you look closely at the program, one half of the classes, i.e., the first two modules, refer to history because we must know it to create the future. The next two modules refer to the present because this is the philosophy behind the development of the program. The contemporary elements include knowledge about new technologies in education management, about Auschwitz, education at memorial sites, methodology, etc. A detailed program is available on SWPS University’s website.
Is this program for everyone or does it fill an education gap in some sector of public policy, education, or culture and heritage? Who is this program addressed to?
The program has been developed mainly for educators and teachers, museum guides, and other employees of museums and memorial sites, and although the program carries a large educational load, it also provides students with a wide range of skills for anyone, who is interested in this topic and is sensitive to human suffering. Hence, the program under the auspices of the Faculty of Social Sciences in Warsaw.
I am guessing that the methodology for this program has been developed based on the experience gained and research conducted by the Center for Research on the Economics of Memorial Sites, which you are the head of.
Yes, the Center for Research on the Economics of Memorial Sites has been carrying out various projects, which grew from the collaboration with memorial sites and where some aspects of this program were analyzed and proved to be successful. Currently, we are conducting the following research projects:
Firstly: we measure and parametrize management of memorial sites and also other museums, including art and natural science museums, historical residences and heritage open air museums. We try to apply this management methodology wider, simply because we want our methods to be universally tested and used for the benefit of the whole museum and heritage sector.
Secondly, we contribute our expertise to projects focused on the development of management models concerning dispersed martyrdom heritage (i.e. a collection of objects or sties, institutionally unrelated and without a common strategy). For example, places of mass executions in Warsaw and the surrounding areas, which show the scale of genocide perpetrated by Germans during World War II on civilian population. Currently, we are working on a project concerning the so-called “Warsaw Death Ring”, where we have been developing a template model showing how to manage this type of heritage so that it brings socially-relevant results – for example, that on the one hand it contributes to the development of a local community through increased tourism, and on the other hand fulfils the social need of upholding the memory about historical events. We have also been extending the concept to include the crimes committed by Germans during the siege of Warsaw in 1939, the large deportations from the Warsaw ghetto in 1942, the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the forced expulsion of civilian population of Warsaw in 1944-1945, and other crimes committed in the city and the surrounding areas. I would like to emphasize, that in these projects we focus on civilian victims, who in our opinion have been forgotten. Just look what has been happening around the world. It is civilians who bear the brunt of wars and suffer the baggiest harm in conflicts.
Thirdly, managing education about Auschwitz and genocides, using the tools of management and quality studies that we have been developing around the learning outcomes. This means we have been thinking about the results, and not about the ways to get there. The ways are also important, but everything must be focused on the final result that we want to achieve. Furthermore, in this context, the Center for Research on the Economics of Memorial Sites analyzes the use and impact of new technologies in education about Auschwitz, genocides and the Holocaust. We develop education strategies, which include the new technologies component, for memorial sites. We popularize knowledge about these tools. Recently, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, our Center in collaboration with the Faculty of Humanities in Warsaw, organized a symposium devoted to these matters. During the symposium, we presented examples of new technology applications in education about martyrdom, and we discussed opportunities and threats they carry, considering the difficult and sensitive subject and the perennial tension between the sacrum and profanum, where technologies usually are associated with the profanum, but not necessarily. New technologies, which the COVID pandemic has shown, enable us to multiply educational and historical messages generated by memorial sites at unprecedented scale, and they allow us to reach people who in other circumstances would not be able to visit the memorial sites. Thanks to none other but the new technologies, these people can access the sites and tour them online.
To summarize, apart from basic research, the Center for Research on the Economics of Memorial Sites focuses on implementation projects. We are interested in providing solutions to social problems and needs. We believe, that memorial sites are the right and necessary reference point for creating the future.
How does research carried out by the Center enrich the “Roots of the 20th Century Totalitarianism” program?
The study program is an educational extension of our research and our collaboration with the memorial sites sector. First of all, the program has been developed and is delivered in cooperation with Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum – the unquestionable symbol of genocide on the world scale. There is no education without research. Therefore our philosophy is that we first carry out research, then we transfer the results to education, and next, based on the feedback and the needs of students, we expand our research, which once again improves teaching – we follow this kind of a work loop.
I see, so thanks to the experience gained by the Center and methods that you have developed, you can teach not just history, understood as the sequence of events, prominent figures and dates, but rather you concentrate on presenting processes and mechanisms, which enable and support the development and functioning of totalitarianisms. Not only totalitarian regimes such as Nazism, but also Communism, which is particularly important nowadays, considering what is going on right outside of Poland’s eastern border.
Yes. As far as Communism is concerned, we do not focus on that topic too much in our program. There is an introductory lecture on the 20th century totalitarianisms, which provides a comparative perspective on the subject, and students will find information about Communism there. Over the course of study we focus more on the Auschwitz case study, the Holocaust, and other genocides, to show the mechanisms of evil. Evil takes on different forms, including discrimination, ethnic cleansing, genocides – we are dealing here with a certain gradation of hatred. We reflect these mechanisms in our program, which is divided into four modules.
The first module – politics and ideology, where we talk about the historical context, which enabled the rise of anti-Semitism and National Socialism. The second module is a study of various cultures of remembrance.
The next module focuses on the Holocaust, in particular the role of KL Auschwitz and other genocides of the 20th century. The final module concentrates on education at memorial sites. There we talk, among other things, about relationship building an collaboration in education. This is important, because there are numerous memorial sites and together, they have huge potential, which we must harness to spread the message about human rights in the contemporary world. Moreover, we also talk about the use of new technologies in education about Auschwitz, the Holocaust, and genocides.
New technologies are a very interesting aspect of historical education, because one of the groups the program is addressed to are employees of museums and cultural institutions. How these institutions or schools can use technology in teaching, while being respectful to the very serious and tragic topic? Usually, new technologies are associated with computer games, which would lead to trivialization of solemn content that requires the utmost respect and poise.
New technologies encompass a very wide range of tools. Besides games, there is also Virtual Reality (VR). There are also social media and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Of course, they often merge with each other and carry various threats, nevertheless they also provide numerous opportunities and we can take advantage of that. Gamification in the context of remembrance is out of the question, because it may lead to and encourage development of entertainment content derived from the tragic history, and this would be unacceptable, because this is not the goal of this education. Our goal is to pass on the knowledge about historical events, teach respect for the victims, and share information about them as individuals and human beings, but also (and this is included in our program too), providing students with analytical skills to recognize the mechanisms of evil and wrongdoing, which will enable them to resist such processes and not become indifferent bystanders.
Can you give us some actual examples of the use of new technologies in museums and memorial sites?
I will elaborate on the technology, which is currently being developed by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation for the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, in collaboration with Orange and AppsFlyer. What I mean is an online platform enabling online tours of the Museum. This is an excellent tool for schools around the world, because whole classes can participate live in a tour of the Museum by means of a huge screen, even in a movie theatre, when an actual trip to the Museum could be impossible for them due to the distance, cost of travel and other expenses.
This is how it works: museum guides take groups of people on a tour of the museum using a mobile phone with a special app, and they present the particular Memorial Site, of course following the touring paths, because there are several. The whole experience is supplemented with multi-media materials. Finally, there is a Q&A session and tour participants can ask uestions. This is an excellent technology, because it provides many different individuals and groups, who could not visit otherwise, with access to the Museum. We must also remember that every museum has a certain capacity. A few years ago, before the pandemic, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum reached almost 2.3 million visitors a year. This is a huge number, close to the full capacity, while the message of the Memorial Site must reach as many people around the world as possible. Therefore, there was a need for new tools and technologies, which enabled access to the Museum to everyone who wished to visit. And now it is possible.
Obviously, new technologies are very expensive, not only in terms of development and implementation, but also amortization. Over the past 17 years, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, thanks to Director, Piotr M. A. Cywiński’s management skills, has increased its budget nearly by 1,000 percent, which in this case provides opportunities for the development of new technologies in education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust.
I think that this is important especially when the generations who lived through the war, or learned about the experience of the Holocaust from their parents and grandparent, are disappearing. Witnesses passed on the knowledge from generation to generation, but they are gradually departing. Without them, future generations would not know anything about the experience of war, while the new technologies and digital recordings will provide the younger generations, who have never heard about the consequences of totalitarianisms, with access to first-hand knowledge.
Precisely, we have Survivors’ witness statements in the form of video and audio recordings, and other formats, which are priceless. Recently, a new format, which has been widely discussed among professionals in the heritage sector, has become available. I am talking about holograms developed with the use of AI. For example, in the United States in some museums, visitors can interact with holograms of the Survivors, and ask questions.
How are these holograms made?
A Survivor enters a special room, where he or she is surrounded with several dozens of cameras that record an interview. During the recording, the Survivor answers numerous questions, which have been prepared based on the most frequently asked questions posed by museum visitors. And then, a hologram is compiled with the use of advanced technology, including AI. When it is ready, visitors can address their questions directly the hologram of the Survivor, the hologram answers, and a dialogue of sorts develops. And this is another way of preserving memory and first-hand accounts, because the Survivors are very much advanced in age and they gradually pass on. Of course, a hologram is not the same as talking with a real person, but it is another tool, which we can use to multiply and spread the cautionary message about the tragic past. Obviously, holograms are not perfect, they are not free of certain threats, just as other applications of new technologies. However, these imperfections are constantly being eliminated as the technology develops.
I would think so, because after all interacting with a hologram is still a more personal experience than just looking at inanimate pictures or objects. If we cannot meet with a Survivor personally, then this type of a technologically supported interaction is more authentic and helps us believe, empathize and understand better that the victims were real people, who lived through hell. They were not just numbers and statistics.
Yes, we must also remember that real people have their limitations – they get tired, overstimulated, etc. They cannot be present in several places at a time. Here, new technologies that enable us to multiply the message come to the rescue. Of course, we cannot expect that this message will be the same as a message from a living and breathing person, but holograms are still pretty good in that respect. They look very realistic.
Talking about the teaching formats, is this program taught in a traditional way, in a classroom?
There are two teaching tracks, Polish and English. The Polish track is addressed to students living in Poland and is offered in a hybrid form – half of the classes are online and the other half takes place at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Site. The English track is addressed to international students and is offered entirely online.
Why is this program unique? How will graduates apply the newly gained knowledge and skills in their professions as museum employees and educators?
First of all, classes will take place at, and will be streamed from, the authentic and most important Memorial Site in the world – Auschwitz-Birkenau. This is a completely different dimension than learning something in a classroom. During the course of study, students will have an opportunity to learn from professionals and have access to special labs. Please note that the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum offers unique world-class research infrastructure. They will also have access to places, which are off-limits for regular visitors.
Students will have an opportunity to learn from the best specialists in their respective fields. Some lecturers will include employees of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Site. They deal with the subject of our program on daily bases, such as specialists form the research department, which is the number one in the world with respect to research concerning Auschwitz. This, by itself is an excellent recommendation. And this advantage, the trustworthiness and the mark of quality, which are guaranteed by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, the authenticity of the Memorial Site, and by SWPS University, which let me remind you, is one of the leading universities in the region.
It is a very unique postgraduate program. There is no other program like “The Roots of Totalitarianism” anywhere, neither around the world, nor in Poland. The collaboration with the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum provides a guarantee of authenticity and the quality of our program. All this is coupled with a focus on skill development. The majority of classes are in a form of workshops. Practice, practice and once again, practice. Practice with a common denominator – learning to recognize mechanisms of evil and how they work. In other words, how these mechanisms develop, what attitudes we can foster, and what methods we can use to prevent them. These all are practical skills and social competencies, which will be useful in education for all generations.
Is the program in English the same as in Polish, apart from more online classes for the English track, due to the location of students?
Yes, the program is the same – the same content and the same learning outcomes because we want (and this has been our guiding light from the beginning) to provide all students with the same quality of the program. The only difference is in the form of delivery (hybrid, online), which I mentioned earlier.
Georg Hegel said: “History teaches us that man learns nothing from history.” I guess it’s high time to change this and show certain mechanisms, which lead to tragic events and genocides. How can candidates enroll in the postgraduate program “The Roots of 20th Century Totalitarianism: Auschwitz – Holocaust – Genocide”?
All information is available on SWPS University’s website. We welcome all educators, employees of museums and cultural institutions and everyone who would like to learn, in a unique and practical way, how to recognize roots of evil and how to prevent them.
Thank you for your time.
Zofia Orly
Learn more about this program:
Program
The Roots of the 20th Century Totalitarianism:
Auschwitz - Holocaust - Genocides
online
Warsaw
Graduate Certificate Programs
Review
The program is also available in Polish
Head of the "Roots of the 20th Century Totalitarianism" postgraduate study program
Adam Szpaderski
Ph.D. / Associate Professor
Professor Adam Szpaderski specializes in strategic management, international management, management of memorial sites, education management concerning the Auschwitz concentration camp, the Holocaust and genocides as well as parametrization of the cultural heritage sector. He is the Head of the Center for Research on the Economics of Memorial Sites and Dean's Representative and the Chair of the Committee for Internationalization of Education Offer of the Faculty of Social Sciences in Warsaw at SWPS University. Additionally, he holds several positions related to research and education on the economics of memorial sites, such as: Chief Consultant for Strategy and Education Management of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim, Council Chair of the Gross-Rosen Museum in Rogoźnica, Education Strategy Advisor to the Stutthof Museum in Sztutowo, and Senior Consultant for Strategy and Education Management at the Central Museum of Prisoners-of-War. Professor Szpaderski has also been leading various research and implementation projects and received numerous awards for his contribution to management and quality studies as well as initiatives aimed at preservation of national heritage and the memory of victims of totalitarianism.
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