Preparations for the Day of German Unity

Each year on the third of October, Germans celebrate “German Unity Day”, which is fast approaching. Unfortunately, IGS will not be able to organise an actual event on the school’s campus this year as we are still affected by the ongoing Covid restrictions.

Consequently, the History Department has compiled a digital learning programme for grades 5 to 10 in order to jointly assess and emphasise the significance of this day. In the course of the upcoming week, the students are going to explore the backstory of the West-East division and its effects on German society in small teams. They are going to examine ways in which public perceptions of unity in Germany are still affected by these West-East categories and to what extent this way of thinking has been overcome.

Our classes are also going to find out how this historic event is also related to very personal experiences of former Vietnamese contract labourers in the former GDR. At the end of the week, the students are going to create a digital guest book in order to share their results and thoughts with each other.

Being a German school in Vietnam, one of the goals is to enhance the students’ perspective with regard to significant events of German history. It is also the goal to show that there are many aspects of our history which connect German and Vietnamese experiences, even though this might not always be obvious. Moreover, students are going to improve their skills in being aware of divergent perspectives.
The History Department really wishes to arouse the student’s curiosity in terms of their own history, which is supposed to offer a pedagogically enriching alternative to the ordinary school routine.