Educating Children on the British Home Front, 1939-1945: Oral History, Memory and Personal Narratives
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Emma Lautman [1]
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[1] University of Nottingham
University of Nottingham
Reino Unido
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- Localización: History of education researcher, ISSN 1740-2433, Nº. 95, 2015, págs. 13-26
- Idioma: inglés
- Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
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Resumen
Historians of childhood have frequently suggested that the Second World War disrupted the education system to the point of uselessness. This article re-examines the school system during this period from the perspective of two wartime children. It contends that a close analysis of oral history accounts can provide a detailed comprehension of both the lived experience of a particular era, and the ways that memories surrounding it have been formulated. In doing so, the article addresses methodological issues, in particular the different ways wartime education is remembered from the vantage point of adulthood and how far these recollections are impacted by the dominant cultural narratives of a conflict which has proved resilient in British popular memory. Ultimately, the article demonstrates the importance of the method by offering insights into education that are not available in documentary sources.
