Topic: Let's do what we do! Attitudes of Poles under partitions

Target group

7th‑grade students of elementary school

Core curriculum

XXII. January Uprising. Pupil:

4) characterizes the forms of post‑uprising repressions.

XXIV. Polish lands under the partitions in the second half of the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Pupil:

1) explains the objectives and describes the methods of the partitioners' actions towards the inhabitants of the former Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth - Russification, Germanization (Kulturkampf), Galician autonomy;

2) describes the attitudes of Polish society in relation to the invaders - trilality, organic work, cooperative movement;

3) describes the formation of a modern national consciousness of Poles.

General aim of education

The student will learn how the Poles tried to preserve Polish culture and identity during the partitions.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• to describe the consequences of the Poles' struggle against the invaders;

• to characterize what russification and germanization were and how they manifested;

• to indicate which partition had the Poles most freedoms in;

• to describe the ways and actions of Poles against the policy of denationalization;

• to list the outstanding personages of the 19th century Poland.

Methods/techniques

• activating

  • discussion.

• expository

  • talk.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• notebook and crayons/felt‑tip pens;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

1. The teacher asks students to recall what forms of repression and restrictions the partitioning countries used against Poles after unsuccessful uprisings and rebellions.

Introduction

1. The teacher states the subject of the lesson, explains the aim of the lesson and together with students determines the success criteria to be achieved.

2. The teacher asks what attitudes Poles could take in the 19th century, taking into account the policy of the partitioning powers against them. Students should mention armed struggles (uprising), passive resistance and loyalty – submission.

3. The teacher writes down three attitudes: fight – passive resistance – submission, and then asks students what actions and methods can be assigned to them.

Realization

1. The teacher begins a lecture in which he outlines the situation in the three partitions after the January Uprising. He should highlight the similarities and differences of each partition.

2. Focusing on the policy of germanization and russification, the teacher asks the students to follow Task 1 and Exercise 1. Continuing, he gives other examples of passive resistance (Drzymała and his wagon, a school strike from 1906) and exploiting loopholes in opposing the germanisation, adding that the brutality of the German power was protested against not only by Poles but also by the world (Lew Tolstoy, Henryk Sienkiewicz). Then, he gives examples of russification and the forms of passive resistance used by Poles (undeground education, wearing patriotic jewellery, political allusions). Students perform Exercise 2. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly performed and provides feedback.

3. The teacher presents selected figures who, despite repression and persecution, sought to maintain and cultivate national traditions. Students perform Exercise 3. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly performed and provides feedback.

4. A unique place to live at that time was the Galician autonomy in the Austrian Partition. The teacher presents the unusual, in comparison to the Prussian and Russian partitions, character. He states that Poles in the Austro‑Hungarian government served even as prime ministers (Alfred Potocki and Kazimierz Badeni). Students perform Exercise 4.

Summary

1. The teacher asks the students: In which partition did Poles live the best and why? What policy did the partitioners use in the Polish territories under the Prussian and Russian partitions? How did the Poles try to oppose this policy?.

2. To summarize the topic, students do the Exercise 5. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly performed and provides feedback.

Homework

1. Why was the Austro‑Hungarian policy towards Poles completely different from that in the Prussian and Russian partitions? What events led to this and what caused them?.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Let's do what we do! Attitudes of Poles under partitions

Under the partitions Poles caused numerous armed uprisings in which they died. But most of them tried to survive. They learnt and worked. Based on organic work, so the economic development of the country and the citizens. A large number of educational, scientific and cultural organizations and institutions were created in spite of situation in Poland. The self‑government spirit developed the most in Greater Poland (in the Prussian Partition). In the Prussian partition, Poles fought to progress germanization. The symbol of resistance were the children from the school in Wrzesnia and peasant Michal Drzymala.