Why Schools Need To Teach Anne Frank
Schools are responsible for teaching students topics ranging from math to the arts. This is why schools need to teach history; in particular the Holocaust. “The Diary of Anne Frank” is a first-person narrative of a 12-year-old girl hiding in a secret annex from the Nazis in World War II. This book should be taught in schools because it diversifies curriculum and Anne Frank is a role model for young adults.
“The Diary of Anne Frank” should be included in middle schools because it diversified the curriculum. The book allows students to have an alternative point of view of the Holocaust. Students from different nationalities may not know how the Holocaust affected the Jews. “A few days ago, Father said we would go into hiding, it would be very hard for us to live, cut off from the rest of the world”. (Goodrich and Hackett 10) This memoir would teach them that innocent people were persecuted for no apparent reason, other than being themselves. ”Because we’re Jewish, father emigrated to Holland”. (Goodrich and Hackett 23) Teaching this book to students will provide them with the knowledge to prevent events like the Holocaust from happening again.
Anne Frank could be a good role model for students. She shows that people in hard times can still be joyful. Anne faces rough and life-threatening situations when she is face to face with death. She also teaches students to be grateful for what they have even though she had almost nothing. When she was living in the annex it was ”...crammed to the ceiling with cardboard boxes, piles of bedding, assorted furniture”. (Goodrich and Hackett 10) Anne Frank believed “people are still good at heart” even when she went through such horrible times. (Goodrich and Hackett 34)
Some teachers may believe that The Diary of Anne Frank is depressing and “a real downer” for students. (Alabama Textbook Committee) It may be true that Anne Frank’s story is disheartening, however, it is a necessary narrative. If people start forgetting about this tragedy it can be repeated. After all, antisemitism is still around. In October 2018 a synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania was targeted.
“The Diary of Anne Frank” is a book about someone who was in the Holocaust and deserves to be remembered. This book should be taught in the middle school curriculum because it shows Anne Frank as a role model, allows students to empathize with Holocaust survivors, and to diversify what is taught in the classroom.
