Worksheet for the video, Former Stasi Agents Defend Their Deeds. Includes answers.

Worksheet to accompany a 9-minute 2009 news item from Deutsche Welle television on efforts by the German Ministry of Information to piece together destroyed East German Stasi files and to allow citizens to access their files. Excellent resource for the teaching of the text, Stasiland.

Former East German rocker, Klaus Renft stands apart from the other characters interviewed by Anna Funder. He has found peace with his treatment by the Stasi and has his Stasi file as a means of reminding him of his younger days, not to explain how the Stasi meddled in his personal life. Is his contentment a product of alcoholism or something else? This set of activities includes background information, passages from the text and an analysis of Klaus’ character and history.

Hagen Koch was a Stasi officer who marked out where the Berlin Wall was to be built. But when the state began to interfere in his own family life, Hagen took a stand to resist. The decision resulted in retribution against him and his family. This set of activities includes background information on the character of Hagen Koch, passages from the text and questions related to his character, influence of the state on hi upbringing and the reasons behind his decision to resign from the Stasi.

Ezine article from ZD Net on internet surveillance by the government of the United States . Article supports the teaching of the text, Stasiland. Activity asks students to analyse the article to identify hoe this surveillance takes place and where in the world surveillance occurs.

The Stasi established a surveillance network in East Germany that monitored and reported upon all aspects of life. This resource provides background details in this surveillance network, passages from the text and student activities focused around the nature and extent of the network and the impact of surveillance on the lives of the characters in the text.

Analysis of a book review on Romulus, My Father.

The Stasi used imprisonment and the threat of imprisonment to silence the people of East Germany. This set of activities includes information on imprisonment in East Germany, extracts from the text and an activity requiring students to make a mind map from the information provided.

Karl-Eduard von Schnitzler was the compere on The Black Channel, a program on East German television until 1989. He is a true believer in the Communist cause and the methods the Stasi used to silence critics. Anna Funder interviews him in her search for how the activities of the Stasi affected the lives of ordinary East Germans. This set of activities includes background information, a passage from the text and a blank Stasi file for students to complete on von Schnitzler’s background,personal details and beliefs.

This activity involves students examining quotes from the text, Stasiland, and attributing them to the correct characters. Page references are provided.

Unit of work on Raimond Gaita’s memoir of his father, Romulus, My Father. This unit includes: Activities for Chapters 1-6 Activities for Chapters 7-13 Discussion assessment task Analysis of book review Analysis of visual images Setting Newspaper article - Profile: Raimond Gaita Sequence the events Metalanguage activity Close study of a passage: Frogmore Australia in the 1950s Character profile: Romulus Gaita Character profile: Raimond Gaita Character profile: Christine Gaita Character profile: Vacek Vilkovikas Character profile: Hora Character profile: Mitru Who Said? Quotes activity Word Search Information report assessment on selected themes Raimond Gaita’s memoir Romulus My Father a portrait of love - book review Understanding the “-isms” in Romulus, My Father From Frogmore, Victoria ezine article Theme: The relationship between animals and people Theme: Childhood trauma Theme: Discrimination against New Australians Which chapter is that? 3 Cloze activities Who am I? True or false? Crack the Code revision activity Intertextuality and Romulus, My Father

Assessment task on Raimond Gaita’s biography, Romulus My Father. The topic is: ‘Romulus’s life is marked by tragedy and chaos. Nevertheless, he never loses his passion for living.’ Discuss. The resource includes guidance for students including structure and language features of a discussion and a marking guide (rubric) to the question. The resource is designed for Australian Stage 6 students studying the VCE/HSC

An ordinary citizen who claims she has no story to tell the interviewer, Julia is a victim of Stasi oppression. The nature of the surveillance, control of her life and interrogations have a deep impact on Julia. The activities in this resource include analysing a variety of passages relating to Julia and completing a timeline of her life from Chapters 9-11.

Torture and its impact on people is a recurrent theme in Stasiland. This resource provides background information on what constitutes torture, reasons for torture, the legal status of torture, its impact on individuals and on whole societies. The resource provides photographs from the Hohenschönhausen Prison Museum and extracts from the text as a means to examine the impact of physical and psychological torture on characters in the text.

Assessment task for the text Stasiland: It is not only the subject matter but also the use of different perspectives that makes Stasiland confronting. Discuss this statement making detailed reference to your prescribed text. (2017 Higher School Certificate). Included is an overview of the Discussion Text Type, how to answer a discussion question using correct language features and structure and a marking guide (rubric) to the task. The task is designed for Australian Stage 6 students of the VCE/HSC.

This set of activities examine closely the passage in Chapter 13 where Anna Funder interviews Karl-Eduard von Schnitzler. Student activities relate to the subtle use of words and phrases to mean very different things by the interviewee and the interviewer, the way in which Funder interprets body language and tone of voice, the language used to indicate the interviewee genuinely believed in the values of the East German state and Funder’s views as explicitly expressed and suggested in the language used.

Herr Winz is a former-Stasi counter-espionage operative who is living in the past when his power and authority was significantly greater than that of his life in the re-united Germany of the 1990s. This activity includes background information and extracts from the text relating to his physical attributes and personality. Students are asked to use this information to write their own description of him.

Word Search on the text, Stasiland.

3 Cloze activities on Stasiland: Biography Anna Funder Investigative Journalism Theme: Resilience

Ezine article from Spiegel Online, East German Snitching Went Far Beyond the Stasi. the Article supports the teaching of the text, Stasiland, by providing examples of West Germans who reported to the East German Stasi and how information in Stasi files on children and young people could impact on their post-school options.