Project “Konstytucja”

Throughout the last 8 months, two groups of second-year students from 2 SLO IB and Batory high school took part in a historical project. The students were disputing whether the constitution passed on the 3rd of May 1791 should have been written based on the one that the Jacobins wrote, as well as whether king Stanislaw August Poniatowski lead to the fall and partitioning of the Polish country. In June, during the last term, the students took part in a debate concerning the first mentioned topic. However, the debate was only a part of the project. On Monday, 29.11.2021, under the guidance of a phenomenal history teacher, Agnieszka Tosia Siatkowska, the students finished off the project with a mock trial, where the students of 2SLO IB played the role of the prosecutors accusing the last king of Poland of betrayal and playing a deciding role in the fall of our country. To witness this ordeal, the whole of pre-DP2 came assisted by a few teachers. Due to the pandemic and health concerns associated with it, students of Batory high school joined the trial online. Despite a few technical problems, everything went according to plan. Our students have done a marvelous job in presenting their line of arguments, forcing the witnesses to uncover the whole truth about Stanislaw August Poniatowski. The jury consisted of 12 people, 6 from our school – 2SLO IB and 6 from Batory high school. Unfortunately, this resulted in an imbalance in the final verdict. The jurors could not come to an agreement when it came to the decision, therefore, there were no charges pressed against Poniatowski. Despite, the result our students have showcased to have incredible historical knowledge as well as a great involvement in the project.  After the mock trial, the actors who played the interrogated witnesses performed a play regarding the Constitution of 3 May and the infamous painting by Jan Matejko. It was definitely a busy and exciting day.

Everyone is extremely happy with how the project turned out, and we’ll certainly miss it. It has taught our students a lot but most importantly it was enjoyable for all parties involved.