Gjenopplivingen i arkivet

Abstract

Abstract This article describes a didactic development project between the University of Stavanger and National Archives of Norway related to the education of teachers (5th–10th grade). In an introductory seminar the students were introduced to core subjects in archival theory and practice. Thereafter they were presented to incidents in the lives of three persons, documented in open accessible archival sources at the State Archives of Stavanger. Based on one of these incidents documented, they were supposed to make their own narrative. In addition they should present a short critical essay on the method used. The students worked in groups of two to five students. Narratives are highly profiled in the curriculum for the elementary school, and the pupils are expected to be able to create narratives about persons from different contemporary and past societies. The pupils are even expected to be able to reflect upon historical and societal challenges based upon information from digitally borne and paper-based sources. They should also by themselves have gained experience in how narratives can be made from documentation of real incidents, and be trained in reflecting about the validity of the sources and the credibility of the narratives. In order to realize these goals narrative polyphony was developed as a didactic approach. Through the narratives made by the students on basis of the provided sources, persons from the past were made alive. The individuals were visualized in various ways in the different narratives, and their portraits were so clear and nuanced that different possible sides of a specific person emerged.