3 How to use the different tools

3.2 Historical Episodes and Short Movies

3.2.1 Description and goals

The workbooks Let's learn from history were developed by history teachers and deal with the history of democracy through a multiethnic and multicultural approach. Five Historical Episodes were created, inviting pupils to experience history by taking on the role of a person who was present at an important moment in the history of democracy. The topics of these Historical Episodes are:

1. The womens´ march in the French Revolution
2. The fight of women for their right to vote
3. The struggle of Greek citizens for a constitution
4. The integration of ex-slaves into society after their liberation
5. The struggle of Swedish workers for their rights

Pupils learn about the historical context and the situation and empathise with the basic needs of the person they have chosen. At a certain point the story stops and the pupils have to take a decision. Using the given questions, they reflect on constructive or non-constructive strategies in the story and how they have influenced the further course of the story.

In this way, learners experience that human rights and democratic values are not abstract concepts, but a foundation of our coexistence that should not be compromised. Learning from history happens holistically - cognitively and emotionally - and thus sustainably.

The Short Movies were developed by the pupils themselves based on the historical episodes they worked on: they worked out the stories, wrote scripts, built the puppets and props. Afterwards, they all met in the film studio of the PH Steiermark and recorded their puppet plays, standing not only in front of the cameras but also behind them.

The aim of this activity was for the young persons to further engage with the historical episode independently and in a creative way. They were already familiar with the concepts at the time. The result of the activities is available on the project website and can be used as a product in its own right, for example as a teaser for the respective episode.

History is presented in the short movies from many perspectives - from the perspective of the ruling class as well as from the perspective of the oppressed. During their work with the Historical Episodes, the pupils experience both sides by slipping into the respective roles. Through this and because these roles are viewed from the perspective of basic needs, it is possible to bring together seemingly irreconcilable opposites, to build bridges.

Benefits of the approach for the learning community:

• The message does not come from "up" (the experts) to "down" (those who are to learn) but from student to student.
• The fact that the content is created by students ensures a positive impact on the student community.
• The processes that take place during the editing and development of the films in the classroom nurture many of the students' skills and abilities and bring out their talents.

In the further parts of this chapter, you will find the descriptions of the whole process of making the short movies so that you can benefit from the experiences of the project partners. However, you can also implement only parts of it or simply use the finished films available on the website to make your class(es) curious about the Historical Episodes or use them as an introduction to the democracy topic addressed.