Causes and the road to genocide
Colonial identity cards, decades of discrimination and propaganda, and the failure to act.
Planned. This module is part of the plan and is not written yet.Handled with care: read the note under Practicalities before using this module.
Why it matters
The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi did not happen suddenly: it was planned, and decades of division and hateful words made it possible. Understanding how helps every learner recognise and refuse hate speech wherever they live.
Draft outline · in review- For
- Level 10–12 · SSS 1 to SSS 3 (WASSCE)
- Inside
- 6 lessons and a test · about 110 minutes
- Topic
- The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi · core, 2 of 4
Inside the module.
6 lessons in order, about 110 minutes in all, then a short test. Learners go at their own pace; the minutes are a guide, not a timetable.
Draft outline · in review
Lesson 1: Rwanda before colonial rule
The kingdom of Rwanda, where people shared one language, Kinyarwanda, and the groups Hutu, Tutsi and Twa were more flexible than they later became.
Explain15 min, from minute 0
Lesson 2: Colonial rule and identity cards
How German and then Belgian rulers treated the groups as separate races, favoured some chiefs over others, and from the 1930s recorded each person's group on an identity card.
Explain20 min, from minute 15
Lesson 3: Exile and discrimination
From 1959, waves of violence and exclusion drove many Tutsi into exile; after independence in 1962, governments limited Tutsi access to schools and jobs. We build the timeline up to 1990.
Investigate20 min, from minute 35
Lesson 4: Propaganda and the road to genocide
The war that began in 1990, the Arusha peace agreement of 1993, and how extremist newspapers and the radio station RTLM spread hatred, until extremist leaders began the genocide on 7 April 1994. We study how propaganda works without repeating its words.
Investigate20 min, from minute 55
Lesson 5: Warnings and the failure to act
Led by the facilitator: the UN peacekeeping mission in Rwanda sent warnings months before April 1994, yet the world did not act. What should others have done, and what does it ask of us? Anyone may opt out.
Discussion25 min, from minute 75
Lesson 6: Review
Mixed questions on causes, chronology and sources, with feedback on each.
Review10 min, from minute 100
End-of-module test
Explain how colonial rule, discrimination and propaganda led to the genocide, put the key events in order, and explain why the warnings went unheeded.
Mastered at 85% or more. Retake it until you pass; nothing is lost, and each try gives feedback.
Already know it? A Challenge Test (planned) clears the whole module: 90% overall, no objective below 75%.
Last stageafter about 110 min
Practicalities
Draft outline · in reviewHandle with care
For facilitators: this module is age-gated, and its discussions are led by you in person, not left to the screen. Some learners' families may have lived through these events. Anyone may opt out of a discussion without giving a reason; check in with them quietly afterwards and offer support.The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi: mass killing. Taught soberly, without graphic detail; learners may be affected. Not shown below Level 10. Will come with a facilitator note. To be reviewed by people from the communities concerned.
Built to run offline
Planned to run on the Lantern's own computer, with no internet needed.
Beyond the screen
With the facilitator
Languages
Planned first in English; every module aims to reach all of the Lantern's languages.
Try a question.
One question from the module, as a learner would meet it. Have a go, then open the worked solution a step at a time.
Draft outline · in review
Put these events in the order they happened.
- AA: The Arusha peace agreement is signed.
- BB: Belgian colonial rulers record each person's group on an identity card.
- CC: Rwanda becomes independent.
- DD: The genocide against the Tutsi begins.
Particulars
Where it sits
History · Country pack: Rwanda · The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi
What a learner can do after it
- Explain how colonial rule turned flexible social groups into fixed, recorded identities, and why that mattered later.
- Build a chronology from the 1930s to April 1994 that shows how discrimination and propaganda grew.
- Explain how propaganda, especially radio, was used to spread hatred, studying sources critically without repeating their messages.
- Explain why the United Nations and other countries failed to prevent the genocide, using evidence of the warnings they received.
Needs first
This module has no prerequisites of its own. Like every first step, it assumes the Digital skills gateway: the first module on using a computer, which a Challenge Test clears in minutes.
Unlocks
Nothing requires this module yet.
Level
Level 10–12 · SSS 1 to SSS 3 (WASSCE)
Level mappings are approximate. A qualified teacher or lecturer in each country must check them before they appear in the app.
Difficulty for its level
2 of 4 · Core
Time
About 110 minutes
Alignments
None drafted yet.
Alignment in review until a qualified teacher or lecturer checks it. No exam body, university or vendor endorses us; learners still sit the real exam.
Challenge Test
Planned: a Challenge Test to prove you know it and skip it. Pass at 90% overall, with no objective below 75%.
University courses it previews
History, Peace and Conflict Studies
The route here.
Everything this module builds on, drawn as a route from its foundations. Solid lanes must be mastered first, or cleared by a Challenge Test; dashed lanes are suggestions that never lock anything.
This module has no prerequisites of its own. Like every first step, it assumes the Digital skills gateway: the first module on using a computer, which a Challenge Test clears in minutes.
Help light the room where this is learned.
Every route on this map starts in a classroom with 24 stations, a tutor that works offline and a facilitator upstairs. Four are planned and waiting for light.