PREMIER’S TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP REPORTS
Premier’s Westfield History Scholarship
The value of using oral history to make
lessons relevant and interesting for
students
Carol McKirdy
TAFE NSW – Sydney Institute
Sponsored by
In June and July, 2009 I travelled to the United Kingdom to study oral history. I travelled around
England and Scotland visiting centres of oral history excellence to learn as much as possible
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about oral history; the planning, researching, recording, compiling, transcribing and/or
summarising and use of oral history collections. In preparing for my study tour I sought out oral
history centres that emphasised the application of oral history to education. My experiences as an
Adult Basic Education teacher heightened my fascination with oral history because I could see
the value of using oral history to make lessons for adult Language and Literacy students relevant
and intrinsically interesting. Throughout history people have always been captivated by stories:
telling, listening, remembering, recording, documenting and handing them down. I sought to
learn how to validate the appeal of other people’s experiences and accounts for Adult Basic
Education students and for general school students of history. I chose the United Kingdom for
my study tour because of the UK’s vast collections of oral histories and its commitment to the
preservation of all things historical, including the oral histories of UK citizens from all walks of
life.
Preparations
Before travelling to the UK I did extensive research and preparation for my tour. I learned as
much as I could about oral history. In Australia this is a relatively easy task because oral history
expertise is readily available. The Australian Oral History Association is a generous provider of
help and conducts excellent regular workshops and seminars, both practical and scholarly. I
continued with my membership of the NSW branch of the Oral History society and set up
networks with oral historians. As well I did independent research into current and past oral
history practice. I continued with my hobby of recording own family oral histories and started
recording the histories of my Adult Basic Education students and staff at TAFE NSW
Sutherland College.
I learned as much as I could about web2 technology used in educational settings that would
allow me to distribute oral histories and associated resources easily to my target audience. As a
result I established a TAFE NSW branded wiki website before leaving Australia. I decided upon
a wiki website because wikis are relatively easy for people like me, lacking in traditional website
design knowhow and systems, to set up and maintain. A wiki uses web based technology and no
special knowledge of HTML is necessary; a simplified markup language is used. Wikis are easily
accessed by teachers and students and are very safe. Wikis are collaborative so students and
teachers can contribute to the project – for example, with short written pieces on historical
themes and oral history recordings. Also, TAFE NSW Sydney Institute supports staff in setting
up wiki sites with institute branding that enables the development of a professional website,
outstanding technical support from IT experts and by sustaining costs associated with the wiki.
The wiki is called ‘The TAFE NSW Sydney Institute Sutherland College Oral History Project’
and can be found at:
http://oralhistory.sydneyinstitute.wikispaces.net/ It is also accessible through TaLe.
The project was established to record the remarkable oral histories of students studying Social
Inclusion and Vocational Access courses and teaching and general staff at Sutherland College.
Content of the oral histories is linked to NSW history curriculum and ten histories have been
adapted as comprehensive language and literacy lesson materials. There is a section on
conducting oral history projects and hyperlinks to worldwide relevant oral history websites
providing easy access to thousands of hours of oral history recordings relevant to Australian
curriculum. The oral histories are archived to allow referencing when students use the histories
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as primary resources. Content from the wiki is free and easy to download, either by students or
teachers.
My Tour
In London I listened to oral history audio and video recordings at the London Docklands
Museum, Kensington Palace Museum and the British Library. Listening to the oral histories was
reassuring because I could see that the recordings I had done in Australia are consistent with the
format and procedures adopted by other oral historians. At London Museum renovations had
just begun and only one section was open. However the staff was very helpful and gave me
brochures and educational materials which included excellent ideas for the wiki on applying oral
history to educational resources. They told me about the oral history exhibits at their sister
museum, Docklands. The Oral Histories at Docklands Museum and Kensington Palace Museum
demonstrated using short excerpts on specific themes. This is a particularly appropriate
approach for students seeking very specific information.
At the British Library I did a training course conducted by the UK Oral History Society. It gave
me some great ideas for Language and Literacy lessons. The facilitator demonstrated and taught
how oral history recordings can be used as the basis of performance scripts. I made a particularly
good contact with an American oral historian working in London who is currently building a
community oral history website. I also found out that it is common procedure in the UK for the
interviews to be allocated to a team of volunteers. The project organiser then listens to the
recordings or more commonly reads transcripts of recordings. I actually don’t like this idea; I
prefer to conduct the interviews because it is easier to get a thorough understanding of the
content of the interview.
From London I travelled to Chelmsford and did research at the Essex Sound and Video Archive
Record Office. Gaining access was very rigorous; original documents such as oral recordings are
considered precious and are well protected but the visit was especially worthwhile. I learned the
best way to present information about the content of oral histories. I had never thought to use a
synopsis to highlight the key themes covered in each interview but I think it’s a wonderful idea
because it makes the interviews significantly more accessible for research purposes - especially
for secondary school students.
After Chelmsford I travelled to Northampton. Before leaving Australia I arranged to meet with
team members of the Northamptonshire Black History Association. The work they do with oral
history is inspiring and I especially love the way they have linked their oral history collection to
the UK national curriculum. I met with 3 members of the team and had an enlightening time
discussing the work of the association and going through their set up and resources. It was
lovely as well to talk to practitioners of oral history who are also educators. At NSW Oral
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History Association meetings most members are journalists, radio and television producers,
writers, librarians and archivists. It was satisfying to discuss teaching and learning resource issues.
The NBHA records Black (African, Asian, Caribbean) history and the resources they produce are
designed to engage Northamptonshire students but are also relevant to any student of History in
the UK. Unfortunately we can’t easily listen to their recordings in Australia because mini disc
technology was used and the recordings are not online but some of their excellent education
resources are free to download from their website. I have included the link on the TAFE wiki
website.
I also got a few interview recording hints. For example they discussed the rationale behind not
editing recordings - leave them be as complete historical records. This is something I noticed
about the interviews I listened to in general in England; recordings are not edited or ‘tidied up’.
On the TAFE wiki website I have used minimal editing of the oral history recordings to
encourage listener interaction. All the recordings start as soon as the interview begins and end
when the interview finishes. I have not edited any content whatsoever within the body of the
interview. I think this is a good compromise for oral history interviews in an educational setting
because the interviewee’s content is not altered but irrelevant information at the beginning on
volume level, testing, microphone placement etc is deleted for the online wiki version –
unnecessary information that might stop a student from continuing to listen. Original recordings
are not altered as per standard, international oral history guidelines.
In Norwich at the Norfolk Record Office I was given a guided tour of the vast facilities for
audio and oral history recordings for their region. Security was again very strict; to go to the cafe
to buy a cup of tea required getting a signed pass! The NRO is aiming to have all their
recordings online so we can’t currently access these from Australia but I have included a link to
the site because the NRO website has relevant educational resources for History students. At the
NRO it was good to discuss technical aspects of digital recording and I was given some good
advice on equipment. They also told me they leave “all the bits in” because the focus for the
recording is the recording of history. This validated what I learned earlier in my study tour and
made me somewhat relieved because editing audio files is difficult within the body of an
interview using non-professional equipment. In some of the recordings I made for the TAFE
wiki website I have inadvertently recorded the sounds of passing goods trains (Loftus campus
sits alongside a train line), knocks at the door and occasional verbal interruptions from staff and
students; I have left these in because they cause minimal disturbance to listener satisfaction.
At the Record Office for Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland I listened to some very old reel to
reel recordings. The staff was helpful and persisted in setting up the old sound system. I listened
to a selection of oral recordings including recordings by school children. In the UK all
recordings are valued and sought for inclusion in formal collections. It made me appreciate that
Australian school students would also be excellent volunteer oral historians. I was excited by my
time there because I made a copy of the way they archive the hundreds of collections they hold.
Being able to see how they archive the files was wonderful because even though I’ve been
immersed in oral history for a long time I haven’t seen the means of archiving files until coming
to this office. I learned what to do on the TAFE website in the Oral History Recordings section.
My first visit in Sheffield was to the Weston Park Museum. I researched excerpts from 5 oral
history collections held by the museum: Bungreave Corner Shops (on new communities
established in Sheffield such as Somalian residents), Sheffield during WWII, Working Lives (an
oral history of the last traditional steel grinder in Sheffield), George and Joyce Burton (memories
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of a long term family business) and various people talking about an iconic housing estate at Park
Hill.
I was also able to get the complete Bungreave Voices - Celebrating People and Place; a
community oral history project, an excellent model of a text based oral history project with
internet links and downloadable education pack.
The benefits of combining images with audio was reinforced here. Oral history is enhanced by
the use of historical images and visual aids such as maps and including these on a wiki website is
easy. Also, I learned a technique for converting local slang, idiom and accent into widely
recognisable language. This is particularly useful for the TAFE wiki project second language
interviewees because sometimes an accent is not easily understood, especially when recorded and
without confirmation from body language and facial expressions.
I visited Sheffield Local Studies Library and Sheffield Archives. It was typical of British regional
oral history collections which are often held in the same buildings as the vast collections of
personal, local, legal, building, church, business, hospital, map, and newspaper and image
records. This centre had over 3000 employees and 300 library staff. My visits were very
productive. Highlights included learning more on how to format a transcription, effective
advertising of oral history projects and converting tape recordings to CD. Interviews recorded
on tape and mini disc transfer well to CD which can then be uploaded to the internet.
Manchester City Library Local Studies Archives was another opportunity to access a variety of
collections. Two that stood out were queerupnorth on the establishment of Manchester’s
famous festival and Speaking for Ourselves, on Sikh history. The festival archive included
images, text, art, music and meetings from minutes as well as recordings. This is encouraging
because the TAFE wiki website so far includes songs and artwork from two interviewees; one a
professional musician, another who made her living as a calligrapher. I also checked the length of
recordings in a community intergenerational project and found the audio files ranged from 4
minutes to 9 hours. Most of the sound files on the TAFE wiki website are about an hour long
but I can envisage future interviews that are shorter/ longer so it is good to know precedents
have been established elsewhere for varied interview times.
I was meant to go to Manchester People’s History Museum but building work which should
have been finished was not. Instead I did a course on interviewing for family history at the
University of Manchester. I thought it would give useful information for school students doing
oral history projects which usually involves interviewing family members. One of the trainers
was a BBC journalist and amongst a lot of good hints she explained how BBC journalists keep
interviewees on track - some a little devious!
Also in Manchester I went to the Museum of Science and Industry. Apart from visiting the
archives I spoke with one of the curators who gave me some exciting oral history contacts and
leads.
In Sunderland I went to Living History North East. I was able to speak with the director and her
staff at length and learned about how they set up and collate oral histories. As well as audio
recordings they do video oral histories. Video Oral histories look very effective but I’m not
inclined to use them (as are many oral historians) because of the added technical requirements
such as lighting and added expense. LHNE link relevant collections to the UK curriculum so
their focus is practical application of the historical material they gather. Living History North
East is not connected to a council so it is a relatively small organisation and all their pursuits are
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historical. For example, they do classroom re-enactments with school groups in their offices
which are located in a 1798 fully restored Charity school with attached mistresses’ house. I was
given several published oral history projects, very useful as models.
I stayed in Glasgow at The University of Strathclyde which houses the Scottish Oral History
Centre. I spoke with the director of the centre and gathered material of use to the development
of the TAFE NSW Sutherland Oral History Project. The University of Strathclyde also hosted
the 2009 UK Oral History Conference. I was both an attendee and presenter of a paper, which
was well received. The conference was an amazing opportunity to network, promote the TAFE
project, gather materials and learn. I made many new friends who have a passion for oral history.
The keynote speaker, Professor Stephen High from Canada was inspirational. He promotes the
use and application of oral history recordings. He argues that there is little point in creating
archives of thousands of hours of oral history recordings if they are not used and easily
accessible. I felt validated because the fundamental premise behind the TAFE NSW Sutherland
College Oral History Project is the application of oral history to learning resources for adult
Language and Literacy students and NSW curriculum in an easily accessible format.
Outside Glasgow I did some research at the interestingly named “Here We Are” oral history
project. Cairndow is a village community keeping the history of their community alive through
the use, primarily, of oral history. They provided advice and documents on how they structure
the gathering of information for oral history projects. In many respects Sutherland College is a
small community so the ideas are pertinent.
After Glasgow I went to the North West Sound Archive in Clitheroe. The complex was in the
grounds of Clitheroe Castle built in Norman times. The director and staff were lovely, helpful
and encouraging. I bought 2 of their “theme packs”; on Christmas and Easter and I hope to use
the ideas for lesson materials for ABE students – linked to the wiki website. I learned about their
training methods and they kindly gave me their training manual used for anyone who wants to
learn about interviewing. As well I was given a copy of their summary sheet. Sharing resources
helps build professional products. I showed them how to use a digital pen to help with
summaries of recordings and they appreciated it as a valid new technology.
In Redruth in Cornwall I did research at the Cornish and Visual Archive. They have an extensive
collection on World War 2 reminiscences. One of the interesting things I have noticed in
England is that the general population often alludes to this war; it remains in people’s minds. I
gathered some very good resources here which will help with archiving the oral histories in
Sutherland’s wiki website.
Reflections
Oral history has embraced and benefits from digitisation
The first oral histories were recorded in the memories of listeners and passed on in perpetuity
by the spoken word. Since then oral histories have been recorded on reel to reel machines, with
tape recorders, mini disc recorders and so on; whatever the recording equipment of the era. We
live in a digital age so oral historians are moving or have moved to embrace digital technology.
As an educator I determined to follow ‘best practice’ so using digital technology in oral history
aligns with education’s use of contemporary technology to provide the best possible learning
experience for students. Digital oral history recording allows interviewees to easily tell their
unique histories to audiences that benefit from an additional view of history and ensures that
ordinary people can record what happened from their perspective. The internet is a suitable
repository for oral histories because World Wide Web applications encourage people to have
their say.
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Oral history is inherently valuable but even more important when it is applied to a
specific purpose such as education
Recording someone’s history validates the interviewee’s experiences and is therefore important
but to give an additional purpose such as linking oral histories to educational curriculum ensures
the histories are listened to and extremely useful because they add to what we know about an
historical event. Oral history complements mainstream history. Oral history is especially
important because it encourages empathy. This is significant for younger students because it
helps them identify with historical events outside their understanding and experience. For
example, the interviewee, Tina Kuiper in the TAFE oral history project, recalls asking her
mother during Holland’s occupation in WW II about the people she used to see with stars
pinned to their clothing. This helps students to grasp what it must have been like because even a
young child was aware of the implications of what came to be known as the holocaust.
The complete scholarship experience shaped the development of the wiki website – The TAFE
NSW Sydney Institute Oral History Project, and gave me a structure and foundation for the
collection and educational application of oral history. I will be forever grateful to my sponsors
for an amazing experience.
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