Rosenstrasse and Holocaust Education: Roleplaying as a Counter to Student Alienation

Contemporary conditions in the classroom have led to a community of students who are often alienated from one another and from the instructor. Teaching students about the complex emotional realities of the Holocaust becomes difficult under these circumstances, as students’ closed-off instincts prevent them from deeply accessing challenging material. In this article, the author describes the use of a story-based roleplaying game, Rosenstrasse , about intermarried couples experiencing Nazi oppression to stimulate student engagement, emotional connection and deeper historical understanding. The author argues that taking pedagogical risks is resistance and an affirmation of history and education’s power.