No one moved. Many students outside the class asked if they could join. It shows why the people were able to pretend and why they followed him right now i am learning about the holocaust and reading this made me understand why they followed him they followed him to feel like they fit in or were needed what that teacher did was a good way to teach his kids. They were also acknowledged for doing this in a crisp and attentive manner. It concerned a bewilderment at the German populace claiming ignorance and non-involvement in the Nazi movement. This last lesson is perhaps the one of greatest importance. Some of these ethically questionable experiments include the Monster Study, the Third Wave Disaster, Landis' Facial Expressions Experiment, the case of Tony LaMadrid, and the case of David Reimer. The Asch conformity experiments were a series of psychological experiments conducted by Solomon Asch in the 1950s. In the split second of my race back in time Steve sensed my questioning and backed up. In just one week in an ordinary American school, he managed to build Nazism. It was too late to step back. I agree with you that Ron's pedagogical experiment was disastrous and that he did not make enough pedagogical preparation for his simulation of the Nazi totalitarianism with his students. In A Nutshell. The first day, the students acted almost as if it were a game and obeyed the commands of their teacher who they already trusted and respected. Students were rewarded for making an effort at answering or asking questions. He could do something. You will not allow your friends and parents to know that you were willing to give up individual freedom and power for the dictates of order and unseen leaders. First I would have two students stand and call back our motto. While the class sat in stern silence I began to talk lecture sermonize about the value of community. Jones emphasized this main point of the movement . I switched the television set on. It's your job to read this pamphlet and report its entire content to the class before the period ends. How could the German populace claim ignorance of the slaughter of the Jewish people. They would take the ridicule from the brighter students that participated in a measured and cautious way. As Jones (1979, pp. He then apologized to them for how far it all had gone, and played them a film about the Nazi regime to conclude the experiment.[9]. Jones?" Students were issued a member card. Steve will continue to grow and change. The room was empty of sound. Some swirled back to momentarily hold Robert and me. Certain students had started a type of Gestapo and would tell on all those who were breaking the rules, mixing with students from other classes or criticising the movement. Jones named the movement "The Third Wave" as a symbol of strength, referring to the mythical belief that the third in a series of waves is the strongest. How far would you have gone? I told the assembly that a full explanation would take quite a while. "Sit down." We ran into each other quite by accident. I saluted back. The balance between role playing and directed behavior became indistinguishable. Kids were instructed in posture, began each remark with Mr. and saluted. The room sweat and smelt like a locker room. Leler, Robin and Sakuma, Bernice. Then it was time to part. Not a vacant seat could be found. I was following the group dictate as much as I was directing it. The feeling of never acting, never being a part of something, never supporting each other. Jones told his students of the true nature of the movement as an experiment in fascism, and presented to them a short film discussing the actions of Nazi Germany.[9]. If Ron Jones was in fact terminated from the school, it is clearly because humanity is afraid to let go and see what is possible. And they seemed to want more. The Third Wave. Hold them tight. In my view and pedagogical experience, a good pedagogical simulation should involve a sense of ambivalence between real and artificial that promotes an inquiry and reflection among the students. It quickly illuminated a white drop cloth hanging behind the television. He was fired for his outrageous behavior. Despite their protests against the idea that they would themselves be fooled by tyranny in the same way that Hitler Youth and the German people were, the students nevertheless fell for the experiment, and the authority of their tutor led them to fully believe in The Third Wave movementdespite the fact that it was completely made up. In this case it was Steve running down the street shouting "Mr. Jones, Mr. To build a special society. There were the athletes, the social prominents, the student leaders, the loners, the group of kids that always left school early, the bikers, the pseudo hip, a few representatives of the school's dadaist click, and some of the students that hung out at the laundromat. "It's your task to design a Third Wave Banner. On the contrary, they analysed the very specifics of the experiment to come up with a more thorough hypothesis. The room remained in fixed silence but for the first time I could sense people breathing. The Third Wave had become the center of their existence. The visual stench of death camps. Jones added "Strength Through Action" to the chalkboard. I was in his first class after he was hired at Cubberley HS, in Palo Alto, after he graduated from Stanford University. it's right here. "Is it a code or something?" In the final twenty-five minutes of the class I introduced some new rules. [1] The idea that democracy emphasises individuality was considered a drawback, and Jones emphasised this main point of the movement in its motto: "Strength through discipline, strength through community, strength through action, strength through pride. 2008 German Movie "Die Welle". Yesterday I ran into one of those students. However, you wrote, "Our class came up with the motto the "the third wave" and the salute" What else was inaccurate in Ron's account? Some of their faces were relaxed with smiles that come from pleasing the teacher. It was like we were all witness to a birth. "There isn't any leader is there?" They, in fact, believed in change but were easily indoctrinatedif only for those five daysby what they believed was a superior cause. What's his name? We would repeat the mottos in a rotating chorus. Then say goodbye. I marked three of the cards with a red X and informed the recipients that they had a special assignment to report any students not complying to class rules. Simultaneous to this announcement over 1000 youth groups from every part of the country would stand up and display their support for such a movement. set I had in the front of the room. I didn't know the answer. The march of super race. If only he would have raged in anger or simply investigated the situation I could point the students to an example of righteous rebellion. Class expanded from its initial 30 students to a total of 43. Joness students regretted their having followed a tyrannical regime, even though it was fake, and the subjects of Milgrams experiment followed orders because they perceived the experimenter as having some kind of legitimate authority. Where is their curiosity or resistance to this marshal behavior. The Third Wave had ended. With that, I gave the salute followed automatically by two hundred arms stabbing a reply. Hey Felton, many thanks for your comments! More than 200 high school students took part and they had their own custom-made membership cards. It was a silent signal of recognition. Then in dramatic style I informed the class of a special noon rally to take place on Friday. These experimentations require deductive reasoning and analysishypotheses, antitheses and syntheses must be constantly applied. Taken to an extreme we have seen and perhaps felt what these actions will lead to. I discussed the beauty of taking full responsibility for ones action. "Through the experience of the past week we have all tasted what it was like to live and act in Nazi Germany. Other students started joining in and the class now had 43 students involved rather than the usual 30. I lectured about the beauty of discipline. Things were already getting out of control. Immediately the students realised what had happened and some later attested to the fact that they cried. He was polite and condescending. On the third day, Jones began to worry that things were going too far. Milgrams experiment did not, in fact, demonstrate an inherent evil in the ordinary person, blindly and unthinkingly adhering to the demands of a higher authority. Then smiled, and slowly raised a hand in a cupped position. [9], The students all arrived at 11:50 a.m. Jones had convinced a number of his friends to pose as reporters, and asked the students to demonstrate what they had learned in the minutes before the televised address would supposedly begin. Since the devastating events of the Second World War, many people have often asked, with hindsight, how could people have been so blind to the truth?. we each have witnessed something over the past week. "Should we wear white shirts?" You are responsible for stopping any student that is not a Third Wave member from entering this room. In the confusion of the moment I moved slowly toward the television. We spent hours later talking about what he felt and did, but from that moment on Thursday morning I was more concerned with what might be happening at school. You would hear a crash of cafeteria food only to have it followed by two classmates saluting each other. In the study, an . I felt very alone and a little scared. Can I do it Kr. The tension and anticipation was beyond belief. My announcement unleashed a fervor. As abruptly as it started the film froze to a halt on a single written frame. In the four years I taught at Cubberley High School no one ever admitted to attending the Third Wave Rally. The intellectual skills of questioning and reasoning were non existent. Students were expected to sit at attention before the second bell, had to stand up to ask or answer questions and had to do so in three words or fewer, and were required to preface each remark with "Mr. Jones". The behaviour of the Palo Alto students was so similar to that of the Hitler Youth that they had even created their own specific salute which they would use in public and in the corridors of the school to identify one another. Lesson Plan: Directed by David Jeffery, Philip Carr Neel. It can't be destroyed ", In the midst of this crescendo I abruptly changed and lowered my voice to announce the real reason for the Third Wave. While the class sat at attention I gave each person a card. A little boy who lost his penis due to malpractice was given a sex change, so that he could live a normal life. Here I was enacting an authoritarian learning environment and it seemed very productive. At this stage of the game I was debating in my own mind whether to stop the experiment or continue. [9] Jones started a movement called "The Third Wave" and told his students that the movement aimed to eliminate democracy. Lesson Plan, which retold the story of the Third Wave through interviews with the original students and teacher, debuted at the Mill Valley Film Festival in 2010. We did noise drills in which talking was allowed only to be shown as a detraction. Jones began subtly to demonstrate how the population of Nazi Germany were manipulated into submission; it was a history lesson. Given that assurance and smile I couldn't say no. Eventually, Jones entered via the back of the room and walked to the front. It was equally disconcerting to realize that complex and time consuming written homework assignments on German life were being completed and even enlarged on by students. Third Wave Experiment. The entire collection however looked like one force as they sat in perfect attention. I hadn't planned such intensity or compliance. Experiment in Palo Alto, California, proves that what happened in Nazi Germany was not unique to that time or place. Ron's problem is he let it get out of control and that is why he was fired. The plea of ignorance. The ethical question that weighs heavy in the discussion is that of whether or not social experimentation can be morally tenable. I waited for several minutes to let everyone catch up. The authority of Ron Jones acted as a force, a power, similar to that of Eichmann, the difference being that Jones was not motivated by evil, rather the opposite. The television won. He always ate lunch alone. 1981 Todd Strasser (Morton Rhue) Novelization "The Wave". Strength Through Community! Like the Germans, you will have trouble admitting to yourself that you come this far. Ordinary people will rationalise rather than be rational when they are in a threatening or difficult situation, in order to excuse themselves for being part of something that they fundamentally disagree with. In fact I was surprised to find the ideas on discipline enacted at all. Faced with this experiment exploding in one hundred directions, I decided to try an old basketball strategy. Every person focusing on the T.V. These and other controversial experiments led . It was a full page color advertisement in the current issue of Time for some lumber products. They aren't bright, they can't make the athletic teams, and don't strike out for attention. Strength through pride At that time, the Nazi regime was being widely studied, and the world asked itself how such atrocities could have occurred in so-called civilised states. "Strength Through Community." Although . While he taught his students about Nazi Germany during his "Contemporary World History . Each Student had a job and they weren't to . For 50 years, the conclusions of such experiments have indicated a certain interpretation of the banality of evil, which is that in each ordinary person there resides a capacity for committing atrocities when confronted with an authority figure. He was holding on to me and shaking. Thus, their adhesion was more complex than simply wanting to feel included in a group or societythey were engaging in the politics of their country. TIL about the Third Wave experiment. In the case of war criminals such as Adolf Eichmann, he constructed no banal excuses for his actions, and acted according to his own ideals and his own plans, according to those already set up by the Nazi regime. The Third Wave is a true story about a high-school experiment in fascism that spiraled out of control. Embellished or not, this information is in-valuable and clearly possible. 6. If I remember the question. So we become the image. I was only doing my job. These American students did not believe that they would have been so easily tricked, and their teacher set out to prove them wrong. I had to stop for a minute to remember. After 5 days students were informed it was an experiment on how NAZIsm spread. Ron Jones has embellished the story considerably since being kicked out of Cubberley High School way back when. The Hawthorne effect is often a problem found when considering both ethics and fallibility of social experimentation, since the decision to tell the subjects of an experiment that they are being observed will inevitably lead them to change their behaviour. The Third Wave. It's now just a dream, something to remember, no it's something we tried to forget. Instead of allowing them to call him Ron as usual, he insisted that they started to refer to him either as Mr Jones or as Sir. Replace reason with rules. The experiment took place at Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, California, during the first week of April 1967. Apparently not all psychologists were fully convinced about the complete failure of the Milgram experiment, as a study on an . Yes, I had been pushing information at them in an extremely controlled setting but the fact that they found it comfortable and acceptable was startling. I was in pretty bad shape myself. That self training. Across the country teachers like myself have been recruiting and training a youth brigade capable of showing the nation a better society through discipline, community. In ghostly images the history of the Third Reich paraded into the room. As for my part in this exercise, I had nothing but questions. I explained how at noon on Friday a national candidate for president would announce the formation of a Third Wave Youth Program. After a few minutes of waiting, Jones announced that they had been a part of an experiment in fascism and that they all had willingly created a sense of superiority, much as German citizens had done in the period of Nazi Germany. Robert was at my side. It's easier being a teacher. Answers *tarted to stretch out as students usually hesitant to speak found support for their effort. Knowing that one is being monitored changes ones behaviour significantly. Juden, Kommunisten, Zigeuner, Schwarzethere were labels for people according to what kind of offence or threat they posed to the regime so that everyone would know their place in society. This activity we have been doing has been practice for the real thing. Every word seemed to be taken and absorbed. In a high school in Palo Alto, a relatively bourgeois suburb of San Francisco, in Ron Joness history class in 1967, the young students were studying Nazi Germany, when Jones noticed that the students struggled to believe how ordinary people, like the constituents of Hitler Youth, could have allowed tyranny to reign over their country. "[1], Although the experiment was not well documented at the time, it was briefly mentioned in two issues of the Cubberley High School student newspaper, The Cubberley Catamount. Several students had independently created a bodyguard division which physically attacked dissenting students and a reporter for the school newspaper. It was one of the most interesting classes I have ever had. The events of the experiment were adapted into a 1981 US TV special, In 2001, a musical adaptation written by Olaf Pyttlik premiered at the, "The Pride of Lakewood", a 2010 episode of children's animated series. His students where attached to the order. Was this display of obedience a momentary game we were all playing, or was it something else. When you're playing against all the odds the best action to take is to try the unexpected. This is different in the case of the Nazi regime, in which imperatives were serious and real. The high school was well known for its progressive philosophy, but the parents and some of Joness colleagues were angry with the experiment because the students were young and impressionable. The idea for the three came from beach lore that waves travel in chains, the third wave being the last and largest of each series. "Before turning on the national press conference, which begins in five minutes, I want to demonstrate to the press the extent of our training." 'Lesson Plan' is a documentary featuring interviews of the original students and teacher of the 1967 Third Wave experiment. Sort by: best. Jones intended only a one-day experiment.[9]. I sure do, it was one of the most frightening events I ever experienced In the classroom. Not a single student elected to leave the room. To grab quick solution. That is the real meaning behind the banality of evil: when people find rational excuses for atrocities. Community is that bond between individuals who work and struggle together. For a brief moment it all rushed back. Was The Wave Experiment by Ben Ross Succesful. I don't know maybe he just imbelished a little or something. Well, the Third Wave gave Robert a place in school. Milgram himself was an American Jew and came to the conclusion that ordinary people were easily led into situations in which they directly caused harm when there was a presence of perceived legitimate authority telling them to do so. They didnt know where their teacher was, and the doors were guarded by militant student Gestapo. Shereen Lehman, MS. Moving toward the door and the world outside. It felt hard to breathe and even harder to talk. They are lost. No. The only thing that allowed them all to fit was the enforced discipline of sitting in silence at attention. And I daily argued to myself on the benefits of the learning experience. Within this avalanche of reporting one legitimate conspiracy did seem underway . Three women in the class had told their parents all about our classroom activities. Robert was crying. This is the wrong interpretation and the wrong conclusion to make. Don't you feel better.". Evidently, experimentation in the social sciences is different. Only a small minority of students saw through the faade, they were named the breakers who tore down Third Wave posters and replaced them with counter slogans. Everyone was capable and equal. The book (written to illustrate the experiment) The Wave forms part of the essential readings for German college students to this day. The Third Wave was still alive. We would have put on the uniform. "Mr. Jones, have you seen this advertisement in Time magazine? he was a body guard. What was he lying about, in your view? He ended his pedagogical experiment abruptly with humiliation of his students via his lecturing. They included . Throughout the next few days students in the class would exchange this greeting. The advertiser identified his product as the Third Wave. At twelve o'clock sharp I closed the room and placed guards at each door. The experiment continued. This exercise in fascism took place in Palo Alto, California. 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Minute to remember the third wave experiment unethical and the World outside expanded from its initial 30 students to marshal... Complete failure of the class I introduced some new rules this pamphlet and report its entire content the! Directed behavior became indistinguishable their existence some later attested to the chalkboard let it get out of.... Wave '' and told his students about Nazi Germany was not unique to that time or place American. My own mind whether to stop for a minute to remember had become center. Own custom-made membership cards witnessed something over the past week we have and! And report its entire content to the chalkboard interpretation and the wrong conclusion to make closed the sweat... Repeat the mottos in a measured and cautious way were rewarded for making effort... Responsible for stopping any student that is why he was hired at High... A bodyguard division which physically attacked dissenting students and a reporter for the first I... 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