Treaty+of+Versailles

Usha's comments in Blue.

Your name: Marcel Thach

**Initial Reading and Assessment of Textbook Treatment of the Topic**
Name of Gr. 10 Textbook examined: Canada: A Nation Unfolding

Name of more "scholarly" source examined: Peacemakers: Six Months that Changed the World; The Paris Peace Conference and its Attempt to End War by Margaret MacMillan

__Your Initial Thoughts:__ As a student in Canadian history, I remember spending at least an entire lesson on the Treaty of Versailles. I was, thus, shocked to see how my old textbook dealt with this most important topic in history. The book devoted two pages to the subject and one page simply had a gigantic map of Europe in 1919. It was an extremely brief and merely factual view of the Paris Peace Conference. There was no mention at all of Woodrow Wilson or his Fourteen Points. It was tremendously lacking in detail and did not really allow students to understand why and how Borden could participate in the conference and how Canada developed as a result of its participation at Paris in 1919.

In order, then, to supplement this reading, I would bring in my academic source, Peacemakers. It is likely the definitive work on the topic, given how often I was referred to it in my postgraduate career. Moreover, it is extremely readable and filled with personal anecdotes which may allow students to see how the Peacemakers themselves related to one another and drafted the treaty with regards to Germany. Perhaps photocopying 3-5 pages of critical passages from the book and assigning them to groups might be the best way for students to not only have a taste of (accessible) historical scholarship, but also to better understand the interpersonal complexities of the negotiations in Paris.

Thanks for your comments, Marcel. We will certainly talk about how to select resources that are appropriate but challenging for students and how to scaffold students' reading of them so they can be successful.

__Critical Challenge:__ In your groups, discuss the Allies' treatment of Germany and Austria-Hungary at the Paris Peace Conference. Was it fair? If so, why? If not, how would you have dealt with the defeated powers in 1919? You have a few pieces to this question. I think the core of your question (was the allies treatment of... fair?) is excellent and is clearly a "critique the piece". The second part of your question is clearly a "rework" the piece. My only question would be about your own assessment of this question: if you firmly stand on one side of this debate (e.g. you think it wasn't at all fair) then, you may be in danger of crafting a lesson that leads them to a particular answer. In which case, you won't have invited critical thinking. However, if you truly believe there is enough evidence to argue either side of the issue than you have a strong challenge here. Let me know what you think.

I wholeheartedly believe that there is enough evidence (and evidence that is easily explained to a Gr 10 class) to argue either side of the issue. Throughout my undergraduate, I believed that it wasn't very fair, but, having studied it slightly more thoroughly (and directly) during my MSc, I have since come around to believe that the Allies meted out a just treaty to the defeated Central Powers. Of course, my opinion is irrelevant for the purposes of class discussion, since I'd rather the students do the thinking rather than argue my two cents. Good - just wanted to make sure!

** Lesson Design – Initial Planning Stages ** **//Identify Key Learning / “Big Idea” / Learning Target//** (Written as a statement of understanding that students will walk away with i.e. “Students will understand that…”)

By the end of the unit, students will understand that the Treaty of Versailles continues to divide opinion as to its effectiveness and its fairness and that, even today, blame for the First World War continues to be controversial. Very well framed.

__Frame Critical Challenge__ __(The central question or task students will grapple with)__

Were Germany and Austria-Hungary dealt with fairly at the Paris Peace Conference? If not, how would you have dealt with the Central Powers in 1919? Nicely done - clearly critical challenges.

__How will this lesson help students build skills they will need for the summative assessment task for the unit? (What skill or ability will you help them develop?__

Students will learn how to to balance various arguments for and against a particular argument and, weighing the evidence, will deliver a judgement on the success of the Paris Peace Conference taking into account its aim and its ultimate result. Students will have to assess who they believe was ultimately to blame for the War and if that blame justifies the treatment of the Central Powers in Paris.

Students could write a letter to an editor of an International newspaper (such as the Times of London or the Berliner Tageblatt) expressing their opinion on how their country acted during the Paris Peace Conference and what should have been done differently. Yes, or if you're worried that they might not have enough time to actually write the letter in a single lesson, you could simply let them know that crafting an argument and supporting it with evidence is crucial to the process of writing a letter to the editor... They don't actually have to complete a part of the summative in the lesson (although they could if there's time). They could just build a necessary skill, or plan the letter, etc.

__What dimension of Historical Thinking will students actively engage in during this lesson?__

Students will engage in historical perspective taking as well as the moral dimension. In looking at who started the war, students may also consider the historical significance of certain events leading up to 1914. Yes, you're right that all 3 are at play. The issue of fairness seems to highlight the moral dimension but if they are going to look at the issue from different perspectives during the lesson (e.g. from the perspective of different countries involved), then historical perspective seems to be key. I would just choose 1 - keep it manageable.


 * //Intellectual Tools//**

__Background Knowledge__


 * Students will explain the causes of World War I
 * Students will evaluate how international political trends of events have contributed to poiltical challenges facing Canada
 * Students will formulate different types of questions eg. factual, causal, comparative, speculative when researchign historical topics, issues and events
 * Distinguish between primary and secnodary sources of information
 * Formulate and use a thesis statement when researching a historical topic of issue
 * Analyse information, employing concepts and theories appropriate to historical inquiry
 * Identify different viewpoints and explicity biases when interpreting information for research or when participating in a discussion
 * Draw conclusions and make resaonsed generalisation or appropriate predictions on the basis of relevant and sufficient supporting evidence
 * Express ideas, arguments, and conclusions, as approrpriate for the audience and purpose, using a variety of styles and forms.

Students will also need to learn the course of the negotiations in Paris and the ultimate outcome and parameters of the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Students should already be familiar with the Causes of the First World War as well as the course of the war.

__Criteria for Judgement__

Students will have the judge what fair means and, by extension (or drawing on past lessons) on who caused the war. Students will also have to establish criterea for a reasoned argument. They will need criteria for what makes a decision "fair". You may have them come up with criteria by looking at simpler issues of fairness (e.g. a school fight and which kids got blamed or punished; a broken lamp at home and which of the 3 children got sent to their room...) in order to have them consider the word before they have to grapple with the content. You do need to think about what criteria you are hoping they come up with (they might come up with better criteria but you should at least have a backup plan/starting point in case they're not really getting it).So, consider finishing this sentence to see if it clarifies: "A decision is fair when it..." - -  - __Habit of Mind__

The habit of mind focussed on in this activity is fair-mindedness.

__Thinking Strategies__

Some thinking strategies could include a chart listing what the defeated powers were responsible for in one column and in the other, their punishment.

__Critical Thinking Vocabulary__

Fair (adj).Treating all sides in a similar fashion without preference for one’s own feelings or interests. Impartial or unbiased.

__Primary Sources to Look at__

= = =[|Treaty of Versailles: Articles 231-247 and Annexes]=

=[|Report of Commission to Determine War Guilt, 6 May 1919]= __[|Ludendorff on Being 'Stabbed in the Back']__