‘Breaking the SEAL’ – Student Engagement with Archives through Learning

This project focuses on connecting second level students to the archival material, primary sources, and collections of the Hardiman Library at NUI Galway. Students will engage with varying media of primary sources, from historic objects to digital sources and in particular their unique potential for experiential learning. Key outcomes for students include the development of critical analysis skills, independent thinking and historical research skills. Currently, no direct structured engagement between school groups and the archival collections of the James Hardiman Library exists.

This project will provide access to archival material from the student’s own locality, the West of Ireland, in a national context. A particularly innovative aspect of the project is the offering of audio-visual source materials for students with learning difficulties. The development of a digital access platform for archival material for classroom-based learning will support on-going engagement. This initiative will offer a tangible, innovative and engaging learning experience for students to the history of the West of Ireland and wider national cultural history with a focus on NUI Galway as the gateway to their future learning.