The Fundamentals of Change
Ten Stages of Change is a dynamic multimedia project and series designed for teaching and learning about genocide. The focus is on the non-linear, complex process that leads to atrocity. In a series of case studies, readers and listeners explore stories that align with Gregory Stanton’s ‘Ten Stages of Genocide’ framework. They are immersed in compelling narratives from eyewitnesses and victims as well as bystanders and even rescuers.
Each story is enriched by archival documents and historical materials. Educators can leverage these resources to ignite engaging classroom discussions about difficult topics, and teacher guides are provided for those who doubt their ability to teach emotionally challenging topics. Access lesson plans, discussion guides, and audio and print resources to help educators and learners reflect, discuss, and take steps to change the narrative of genocide from inaction and passivity to actionable prevention and hope.
An Interdisciplinary Approach
1
Follow the stages.
Each post unpacks a stage of genocide with rigor and raw humanity, combining literary nonfiction with scholarly insight. It presents sensitive, emotionally challenging accounts that show how each stage historically unfolded in genocides and mass atrocities.
2
Listen to the stories.
Read the articles and listen to their audio versions, which provide high‑quality, emotional, powerful retellings of each article and its stage. The retellings often include authentic, unedited speech excerpts, and the transcripts, testimony, and speeches that create an absorbing experience beyond the page.
3
Teach the material.
Every blog post provides its audio, artifacts, references, and action steps. Educators can download detailed lesson plans and select plans for any stage, anchored on age-appropriate versions of the case‑study article. Critical thinking is woven into interdisciplinary, inquiry‑based learning, meeting the highest standards of Holocaust and genocide education.
4
Take action.
Each post, though heavy and devastating at times, ends with an overall message of promise through specific, actionable step that can be taken immediately. They help resist each stage’s influence on the community and affect personal mindset and, ultimately, the world. Actions are focused on civic engagement and student choice and discernment rather than advocating for a political cause.
The role of Media Literacy
Media literacy (or lack thereof) is one of the most significant problems facing adults and our youth. The next generation were born into a world with answers a click away. However, they lack the trained skill to decipher good information from bad information.
As a result, antisemitism, conspiracy theories, Holocaust distortion, and denial have increased. False equivalencies and trivialization of genocide have also grown. The use of increasingly inflammatory rhetoric has become the norm as polarization worsens.
Ignoring the problem does not make it go away. Learn research-based strategies to address media literacy in the classroom.
“Genocide is a process that develops in ten stages that are predictable but not inexorable. At each stage, preventive measures can stop it. The process is not linear. Stages occur simultaneously. Each stage is itself a process. “
— Gregory Stanton, Ten Stages of Genocide
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