UCDSB to hold first ever Holocaust education week

The Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) will be recognizing UCDSB Holocaust Education Week later this month.

The school board has partnered with the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) for Holocaust education, which has provided resources for educators to enhance their classroom teachings.

The board said the initiative is in response to Grade 6 curriculum changes by the Ministry of Education and is a part of ongoing efforts to ensure students see themselves in the curriculum.

It also aligns with the Ministry’s recent announcement that expanded Holocaust education will be mandatory for Grade 10 students starting in 2025.

UCDSB Holocaust Education Week will run from Nov. 27-Dec. 1, 2023.

Additionally, the school board will be welcoming the Tour for Humanity to 10 secondary schools this year.

The Tour for Humanity is a 30-seat, wheelchair-accessible, technologically advanced, mobile human rights education classroom.

It’s organized and run by the FSWC and teaches students and educators about the Holocaust, genocide and Canada’s human rights history through a variety of workshops.

“Although we are having our first Holocaust Education Week this year, the UCDSB believes human rights education from all aspects needs to happen all year long, not just in designated weeks or months,” said says Dan McRae, Principal of Equity and Inclusion. “This partnership with the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center has allowed us to do that and enhance Holocaust education across our system for all students.”