This is a project about the Gaelic Athletic Association: our games, our people, our history, our place in Irish life.
Volunteer
Do you have an interest in history? Are you part of a voluntary organisation or club that is interested in local history? Are you a member of a GAA club who would like to help us tell your story? Are you a student who would like a wide variety of work experience? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, then the GAA Oral History Project is looking for you!
The GAA Oral History Project aims to record the fullest possible picture of what the GAA has meant to the Irish people, in their own words. In order to achieve this aim, the Project will depend on the participation of volunteers and student interns to gather contributions, document information, and generate interest in the Project in their locality.
Volunteers can participate in the Project in the following ways:
- Carrying out recorded interviews
- Distributing questionnaires
- Locating historical materials relevant to the Project
- Carrying out archive and library research
- Assisting in administrative work and cataloguing
- Creating awareness of the Project in their locality
For further information and a volunteer pack, please contact us at:
Email: info@gaahistory.com
Phone: +353 (0)1 662 5055
GAA Oral History Project
Boston College - Ireland
42 St. Stephen’s Green
Dublin 2
We are inviting as many Primary Schools as possible to participate in the Project.
This is a project about the GAA, its games, its people, its history, its place in Irish life. The overall aim of this project is to record the history of the GAA in every community and parish throughout the country through the words of the local people. We are inviting as many primary schools as possible to take part in the Project.
This is a project ideally suited to the work of primary schools and fits neatly into both the Geography and History curricula. The Geography Curriculum places emphasis on “A Sense of Place and Space” and also “Living in the Community.” We are hoping that teachers will incorporate our specifically designed children’s questionnaire into their classroom activities. The questionnaire will facilitate children to voice their opinions on the role of the GAA and the local club, not only in their personal lives but also in the wider community.
In relation to the History Curriculum, there are specific links to the strand units entitled, “Personal and Local History,” “Life, Society, Work and Culture in the Past,” and “Continuity and Change over Time.” The Project also complements the “Story” strand, which appears at all levels in the Primary School Curriculum. Children can benefit greatly by listening to, telling, and retelling stories. It is a natural part of every child’s development and a fundamental part of history. Oral history has unique value as a historical source, and it can be used to make the past real for children.
In addition to the questionnaires, we are encouraging teachers to initiate oral history class projects, whereby pupils interview their older family members on what it was like to support or be involved with their GAA club or county team in the past. Family members or former players could also be invited into the classroom, where the interview may be recorded.
If you require further information or you have any queries, please contact Ben Shorten at:
shorten@gaahistory.com
GAA Oral History Project,
Boston College-Ireland.
42 St. Stephen’s Green,
Dublin 2, Ireland
Phone: +353 (0)1 662 5055
Documents
Leagan Gaeilge
We are inviting as many Secondary Schools as possible to participate in the Project.
This is a project about the Gaelic Athletic Association: our games, our people, our history, our place in Irish life. The aim of the Project is to record the history of the GAA in every parish in the country through the words of local people. It is our ambition that this project will involve as many secondary schools across Ireland as possible. We believe involvement in the Project would be entirely suited to transition-year students, but might also be useful for students in other years. Overall, the Project offers students the potential to engage with history in a real and interesting manner. It also facilitates the development of research, interviewing, writing, administrative, and organisational skills. Interviews conducted by students will be preserved as part of the GAA Oral History Project Archive. Some of the recordings may also be used in a series of radio and television programmes, while some of the quotes from the interviews will be used in an extensive series of books to be published around the project.
Available on this web site for your information are a number of documents, which contain all the details you need to carry out this project in your school. They include:
- A general guide to the project and to oral history in general, including an outline of what each student is asked to do.
- A copy of the questionnaire.
- A copy of the forms which must be completed.
- A letter of introduction to be given to each interviewee.
If you require further information or you have any queries, please contact Ben Shorten at:
shorten@gaahistory.com
GAA Oral History Project,
Boston College-Ireland.
42 St. Stephen’s Green,
Dublin 2, Ireland
Phone: +353 (0)1 662 5055