Berlin Museum On Tour

Over one million children and young people have visited the Jewish Museum Berlin since it opened in 2001. In order to reach more young people, the Museum has been going "on.tour" in Germany since June 2007. "on tour" has now been to all 16 federal states, visiting over 80 schools and the juvenile prison in Berlin. Due to popular demand by the schools, the bus will revisit nine federal states this year: Berlin, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Rhineland Palatinate, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, and Hessen. In the classrooms and out in the schoolyard, the guides will invite secondary school pupils of all school types to discuss German-Jewish history in workshops and consider Jewish identity in Germany.

By visiting schools, the Museum aims to encourage teachers to cover aspects of German-Jewish history beyond the Nazi era in their lessons. W. Michael Blumenthal expressed a further aim of "on.tour – The JMB Tours Schools" as follows: "Every school pupil in Germany should have visited the Jewish Museum Berlin at least once before they leave school."

Since the first tour in summer 2007, the mobile education project has been as popular with pupils as with teachers. "We have encountered inquisitive and open-minded young people as well as bored and skeptical ones. Almost without exception, we were able to arouse interest in Jewish history, culture, and religion in Germany through the workshops and the mobile exhibition," Tanja Petersen, head of the Education Department, summarizes the experiences of two years of tours through all 16 federal states. "All questions are permitted – there are no taboos" is the introductory statement that often stimulates communication with the young people.

Furthermore, "on.tour – The JMB Tours Schools" will also participate in the "didacta" education trade fair in February in Hanover, World Children's Day, and German Federal Government open day and is celebrating as winner of the "Selected Place 2009" award by the "Land of Ideas" – an initiative of the German government and economy under the patronage of Federal President Horst Kohler – its 100th school visit at a Berlin school. -- www.juedisches-museum-berlin.de