Schools in the Past - An Introduction

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How do we know what schools were like in the past?

History helps us to answer questions about the past. It helps us to see how some things have stayed the same and how some things have changed. We are now going to find out about schools in the past by looking at evidence.

What kind of evidence is there?


 

.................Visual Evidence

.................Written evidence

.................Oral evidence 

Oral Evidence

Oral Evidence is when people tell about something they have experienced. When a person's own experience is written down we call it an autobiography or a memoir. An autobiography is a history or account of a person's life written by that person or written with a professional writer. Memoirs are less structured than an autobiography. They are often about part of a life, and often a public part of someone's life, rather than their whole life.

 

.................Artefacts

You can find different types of evidence in museums like The National Museum in Kildare Street, Dublin. They have collections for example of items used by the Vikings and also lots of archaeological and historical findings about Ireland. We can view precious decorative art and history pieces at Collins Barracks in Dublin. In the Museum of Country Life in Castlebar, Co. Mayo we can find out about how ordinary people lived in the past by examining evidence such as clothing, furniture and tools.
 

Bunratty Folk Park in Co. Clare and the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum in Co. Down have old schools which you can visit. There is also a school museum with a model classroom in The Plunkett Museum of Irish Education in Rathmines in Dublin. You will see examples of pictures from some of these places in this unit.

Flash

So, first take the evidence test!

So, first take the evidence test!