Introduction

My name is Derek Taranto, an 18 year old senior at Westborough High School. Now that I have finished the semester long course Facing History and Ourselves, I can truly say it has changed my perspective on life. The course is based around the Holocaust, but teaches about much, much more. It shows the horrible effects of incredible hatred and ultimate inhumanity towards fellow human beings. The course reveals the roles associated with perpetrators, victims, and bystanders involved in the Holocaust. It provides the pupil with enough information and perspective to completely understand all aspects of the Holocaust; letting the students discover for themselves answers to the most complex and broad questions, such as how and why this happened. This method, called Civic Agency, gives the student insight enough to completely picture what Nazi Germany was truly like. I chose to take this course because I knew the teacher of it would be Mr. Greg Gallagher. He is, without question, the most sincere and respectful person I have ever met. Learning such powerful lessons can be an intense personal experience but Mr. Gallagher creates a comfortable and easy environment which helped me absorb so much more than I ever thought I could. The course consists mostly of films and class discussions, which is a great means to express the human emotion associated with the class. The course brought up so many important moral issues, creating a very personal experience for me. I urge you to continue reading onto my essay so that you can learn the influence this course had on me and hopefully realized the potential it presents for yourself.