The Urgency of Fostering Student Agency in Genocide Education

Abstract:While we teach with the assumptive belief that there is an inherent value in genocide education, there has been little discussion about what “good” genocide education looks like, let alone whether it is effective in diminishing the stereotypes, prejudice, and discriminatory behaviors that underlie genocidal policies and practices. This article argues that genocide education has the potential (albeit mostly untapped) to have a transformative influence on our students and the worlds in which they live. To tap that potential, though, involves us, as educators in genocide studies, recognizing the urgency of fostering student agency. We must practice genocide education in a way that nurtures and promotes a sense of agency in our students. To foster student agency through genocide education requires us to think about our classrooms notjustasbackward-lookingportalstothepastbutasagenticspacesattunedtotheurgentneedsofthe present and our future.