South Africa in 1994
Open the map in 1994 and find South Africa. Namibia, to the north-west, had become independent from South Africa in 1990. Ask the atlas: "Why did F. W. de Klerk decide to end apartheid?"
Open this view on the mapTwentieth century · 1990-1994
Mandela and the end of apartheid
On 11 February 1990 Nelson Mandela walked out of prison after 27 years. Four years of talks, violence and hope followed, and on 27 April 1994 South Africans of all races voted together for the first time. Students follow the road from prison to presidency and ask how a divided country made peace.
- Length
- 50 minutes
- Ages
- 12–15
- On the map
- 3 steps, AD 1994
- Live lesson
- 7 rounds, 3 on the map
- Worksheet
- Two A4 pages, with Classroom
- You need
- A projector; phones for live
Live lesson · new in Classroom
Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.
Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.
€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.
- 7 rounds
- 3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
- About 15 minutes
- Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
- A report
- Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
Introduction
5 minRead aloud
On 11 February 1990 Nelson Mandela walked out of prison after 27 years. Four years of talks, violence and hope followed, and on 27 April 1994 South Africans of all races voted together for the first time. Students follow the road from prison to presidency and ask how a divided country made peace.
By the end of the lesson, students can
- Explain why the South African government released Mandela and legalized the ANC in 1990.
- Locate the key places of 1990-1994: Paarl, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Pretoria.
- Explain how South Africa avoided civil war and what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission tried to do.
Explore the map
15 minProject the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.
Walking free
Zoom in on the Cape. Find Paarl, where Mandela was held in his last years, and Cape Town, where he spoke to a huge crowd the same evening. How far did he travel that day?
Open this view on the mapThe vote
Zoom out over the whole country. On 27 April 1994 people queued for hours at polling stations everywhere. Ask the atlas: "What were the results of the 1994 election in South Africa?"
Open this view on the mapClass discussion
15 minPick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.
- By the late 1980s South Africa faced boycotts, sanctions and unrest. Which of these pressures do you think mattered most to the government?
- Mandela came out of prison without bitterness and talked with the people who had jailed him. Why was that so important?
- Between 1990 and 1994 thousands died in political violence. Why was the road to the election so dangerous?
- Mandela and de Klerk shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993. Did both deserve it?
- The Truth and Reconciliation Commission let people confess crimes in exchange for amnesty. Is truth more important than punishment?
Game round
10 minPlay one round of Rule History as Abraham Lincoln, who tried to bind up a nation's wounds after a civil war. Then compare: how did Mandela try to unite South Africa after apartheid, and what did he ask of both Black and white South Africans?
Open Rule HistoryWorksheet
5 minThis worksheet comes with Classroom
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