Honouring Holocaust Memorial Day with a student-led College exhibition 

We understand how important it is to honour Holocaust Memorial Day here at South Devon College and this year it took the form of a week-long immersive and emotive exhibition created by students, featuring artworks, photography and the written word. 

‘For a Better Future’ was the theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day and to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp complex, and the 30th anniversary of the genocide in Bosnia, A-level students organised displays to raise awareness amongst staff and students. 

The students researched and compiled content for the exhibition, which included exhibits on pre-war Jewish life and culture, through the Nazi’s rise to power, anti-Semitic acts and laws and culminated in events from the Holocaust.  

The exhibition, led by History teacher Katie Watkins, was arranged as a timeline of the Holocaust. The pre-war Jewish life section displayed a range of photographs depicting the ordinary, normal lives of people prior to the rise of the Nazis and the Holocaust.  

Dave Wildman, Programme Coordinator of A Levels and History Lecturer at South Devon College, said: “The idea was to rehumanise those who became victims in the Holocaust, showing them at the beach, or in school uniform, rather than just seeing them in an awful atrocity image or simply as a statistic.” 

The second section focused on the rise of the Nazis, with propaganda posters and quotations as to why the Nazis and Hitler become so popular, and why they focused their hatred on Jewish people.  

The third section provided a timeline of antisemitic legislation in the 1930s, with German Jews being denied the right to work in certain places, as well as having their citizenship status revoked.  

Student Mark Aldridge said: “My time spent at Auschwitz on a school trip presented me with a unique time to reflect upon, and better understand, the horrors of the Holocaust. Being there helped personalise the experiences of Jewish victims who are often treated collectively through numbers and statistics. This really emphasised the tragedy of Auschwitz, as well as the importance of educating future generations, as surviving testimonies become less available, to ensure discrimination of any scale doesn’t go unnoticed again.”  

The fourth and final section outlined the key developments in the Holocaust during the Second World War, with a focus on different images of life in the death camps, such as Auschwitz. 

Student Serena Turk, 17, who is studying A levels in History, English and Biology, said: “I feel proud to have had a part in bringing the exhibition to students, whilst experiencing a greater understanding of the Holocaust. Its importance continues through to the present day.” 

Students also had the opportunity to visit a reflection area, with a range of quotations from Holocaust survivors as to why it is important to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day. They also had the chance to upload their own reflective thoughts via an interactive element. 

In addition, on Holocaust Memorial Day itself on 27 January, the College’s Hi-Tech & Digital Centre was illuminated in purple lights in commemoration. 

Dave Wildman concluded: “By putting together the exhibit, we hope to highlight and combat prejudice and discrimination in order to help build a more positive future for young people and our community.”