The pupil is 14, and asks, Is a Nazi a German soldier? Not always, I reply, and explain about the Nazi party and Hitler. He knows that Hitler was a Nazi. Why were we fighting Hitler? To explain the origins of hostility with Germany, I go back to Trafalgar, and the effect of the victory on British dominance over large stretches of the world, leading to an explanation of German frustration at not getting its share, the first world war, reparations - which were finally paid off this September - and then the second. Does he know about Nelson? Nelson Mandela? He replies. I tell him a little about Nelson. What about Napoleon? I've heard the name...To illustrate British colonialism, I call up the famous Canadian stamp of 1898, with much of the world coloured red, and then call up a better map of the world (still Mercator). I point to Africa - What continent is that? - I'm not very good on continents. I point to Australia. Is it Spain?
There's nothing new in this picture - George Orwell's fictional teachers found the same thing. What is second nature to an educated person might as well not exist for those whose experience is limited to their immediate surroundings. But what of progress to the 21st century, and the national curriculum? Should we still have young people who can't pick out something as big as Africa, and who think Australia is Spain?
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