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Studying History from the people that lived it

Studying History at A Level can be fun, but have you considered the impact that studying History can have on elderly people?  This is a question that Franklin student Tom Near is trying to answer through the outstanding volunteer work that he is completing at Cranwell Court care home on Cambridge Road in Grimsby.

Tom is completing a research project into the life and career of local RAF hero and World War Two serviceman George Butler. To enable him to do this Tom has been conducting a series of interviews with George’s wife, Betty Butler, 96, who lives at Cranwell Court.

The interviews and meetings have proven invaluable, both to Tom who is hoping to study History at University with a view to going into teaching, and for Betty, who has enjoyed having the opportunity to talk about her late husband and his achievements. Betty is particularly pleased to see how young people at Franklin are so responsive and passionate about History.

Research projects and outreach work like this are certainly an exciting way of keeping our links to the past open and also help us preserve the memory of veterans who lived the area.

Off the back of Tom’s success, the Humanities Department is now planning to set up an ‘Oral History Project’ that will launch next half term. The OHP will see Franklin students visit local care homes on a regular basis to work with residents on preserving our links to the past. Our students are certainly looking forward to learning from wealth of experiences that the residents can share.

Well done Tom on a very worthwhile project!