Qualitative Analysis

       The participant group demonstrated, through the authorship of a series of extensive essays, that they possess the cognitive, affective and methodological knowledge necessary to implement such instruction.  The next step of this assessment process seeks to determine the specific content knowledge participants identified as most important to successful Holocaust/genocide curriculum construction and instruction.
            To accomplish this end, three members of the evaluation team conducted an extensive qualitative analysis of the sets of thirteen essays written by the participants.  The essays were open coded, categorized, diagrammed and axially coded.  From these results assertions were generated.

 Research Question, Open Coding, Axial Coding, Axial Coding and Generation of Assertions
            A concise research question, condensed from the seminar learning objectives, was constructed to guide the analysis: 

What key issues/concepts and corresponding methods/sources did participants identify for successful Holocaust/genocide instruction – grades 4-12?

            Answers from all fourteen sets of thirteen essays were open coded and categorized.  Open coding is "the process of breaking down, examining, comparing, conceptualizing and categorizing data" (Straus and Corbin, 1990, 61).  Following the directions of Glesne and Peshkin (1992) we posted our research question, cut from copies of the essays those segments of the text that were germane and then pasted these cuttings onto 5”x 8” index cards (p 128-9). Reference numbers were written on each card. Many hours later we literally shuffled our formidable stacks of cards and then sorted them into piles of like concepts, issues, methods and sources.
            Often we had difficulties differentiating between the attributes between two piles of cards.  When this occurred we assigned category labels often using phraseology from one or more of the cards.  Once the stack was labeled we listed properties/exemplars from that stack so as to further define its category.   For example: 

In the end we constructed schematic diagrams of the concepts, issues, methods and sources in each stack of cards thereby summarizing the corpus of information within.
            Strauss & Corbin (1990) define axial coding as "a set of procedures whereby data are put back together in new ways after open coding, by making connections between categories (p.96).”  Prior to generating assertions, we juxtaposed schematic diagrams of each of our categories to determine interrelationships and relationships between each category.  Having thus “put back together” the essential content of the essays as a whole we utilized the "leap to narration" method (Ericson 1986, 151) to construct the following assertions.

Four Assertions:  The key issues/concepts and corresponding methods/sources the  participants identified for successful Holocaust/genocide instruction – grades 4-12

            Assertion One:  Students must learn the scope of the Nazi plan for murder.  They must also develop personal connections with the real people that each of the documented names, numbers and groups represent.   Furthermore, students must understand the roles assumed by those who persecuted as well as those who suffered. Student understanding of how each individual was selected for persecution, and of how others choose to either become resisters, persecutors or bystanders, has implications for students’ current day roles with their fellows.
            Assertion Two:  From studying the history and literature of Holocaust and other genocide from text, survivors, and/or video, students must learn of humanity in the darkest of times, of the banality of goodness as well as the banality of evil.  They must learn that the consequences of these times live in the hearts and souls of survivors and their families for the rest of their lives.
             Assertion Three: An understanding of the mutual process of remembrance, of the role of the teller as well as listener, has the potential to add depth to student comprehension of literature, history and language.  In so doing students may learn that remembering the stories and history of this time provides context for the angst, courage and joy they experience in their own lives.
             Assertion Four:  Students must learn the role of the media as a primary tool for perpetuation and reinforcement of the apathy and hatred needed for complicity with atrocity.  Such understanding has implications for young people as citizens in a media-centric society like our own.
                
            Time and space do not allow a careful weaving of quotations into a narrative that would properly elaborate on the assertions.  However, participant quotations are provided below to ground each of the assertions in the words of the participants.  Quotes are attributed to individuals by noting the writer’s ID# as well the page number of the essay from which the quotation was drawn.  (For example: 1:4 is teacher ID# one, fourth page of submitted essays).