Fading memories of the Second World War in a socio-educational and cultural perspective. A research report from Poland

Memories of World War II (WW2) have a deeply cultural dimension and therefore are interesting for intercultural studies. This paper is based on an interpretative analysis of some field and desk research data, carried out in Poland by an interdisciplinary team of social scientists, educators and historians in 2018–2020. It is focused on socio-educational factors in the transfer of knowledge and memory of WW2. The researchers try to distinguish socio-educational factors responsible for the preservation of this memory across a range of age cohorts. Sources of knowledge, school curricula and socio-demographic aspects are set against the measured levels of historic facts concerning WW2. The data sets derive from questionnaires, telephone interviews and in-depth interviews with diverse groups of respondents along with a review of teaching history curricula in 1946–2020. On the basis of the findings, it is argued that a successful transfer of memory and knowledge of WW2 goes beyond teaching history at schools and beyond the contemporary political agenda. This article is meant to serve as a barometer of social changes in respect to fading memories of WW2.