https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/2586 2026-05-14T09:12:32Z 2026-05-14T09:12:32Z Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel Saurombe, Nampombe https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31821 2024-10-23T10:34:19Z 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z

Advocacy of the oral history projects: processes that should occur to create public awareness in the project undertaken by Gauteng Provincial Archives Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel; Saurombe, Nampombe In March 2023, Veritas College in Springs, Ekurhuleni, undertook a fun history lesson where the Grade 4 learners were required to acknowledge and celebrate influential historical figures. Several of the children selected individuals such as Dr Chris Barnard, Dr Martin Luther King, Princess Diana, Nelson Mandela and one learner identified para-Olympic swimmer Natalie du Toit. The object of this class exercise was for learners to see that they too could have a positive impact on the world and strive to be leaders who can make their world a better place (Veritas College Facebook page, 2023). In March 2023, the United States National Archives hosted an exhibition showcasing their archives that focussed on women in baseball. These collections included video footage and oral testimonies from women who had participated in baseball and simultaneously created a National Baseball Hall of Fame (US National Archives Facebook page, 2023). These two examples are how the Gauteng Provincial Archives could take the oral history project to the people of Gauteng and inform learners of the unsung sporting heroes that were neglected under the apartheid dispensation. This paper will adopt a postmodernist approach by undertaking an investigation to see how other archives around the world market and promote their collections, particularly oral history collections, both to school-going learners and the general public. The intention of this paper is to formulate a framework that the Gauteng Provincial Archives could consider when marketing the oral history project related to unsung sporting heroes.

2024-01-01T00:00:00Z Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31820 2024-10-23T10:29:14Z 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z

Accessing collective memory: case study of a South African nature conservation institution Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel As a government body, South African National Parks (SANParks) is responsible for nature conservation, tourism and socio-economic development of communities neighbouring the national game reserves. Government bodies, like SANParks, fall within the scope of public entities that must comply with the South African national archive legislation. According to Sections 3(a) and (b) of the National Archives and Records Service Act, No. 43 of 1996, two of the objectives of the National Archives are to preserve public and non-public records with enduring value for use by the public and the State; and to make such records accessible, while promoting their public use. Section 12(1) of the National Archives and Records Service Act requires public records that are regarded as having enduring value to be made available to the public, when the period of 20 years has elapsed, since the end of the year in which the records have come into existence. SANParks has a wealth of information stored in its archives, which should be made available to interested members of the public. As remarked by Ngoepe (2019), SANParks has the capability of enabling the South African National Archives to build an inclusive archive in South Africa by participating and opening their collections for public access. Apart from discussing the challenges associated with accessing such archival collections and the lack of interest in assisting SANParks in ensuring the availability of their collections, this paper proposes potential solutions to make valuable collections, including oral history collections, housed by South African government bodies available to interested members of the public.

2024-01-01T00:00:00Z Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31819 2024-10-23T10:24:16Z 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z

History, a compulsory component of basic education in South Africa from 2023 – Are South African archivists ready? Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel History helps society understand its past and its influence on the present and future. South Africa is a country with a unique history, comprising of varying accounts from the different people that make up its ‘rainbow’ nation. In 2018, South Africa’s Department of Basic Education; announced that history would be a compulsory subject for learners from Grades 10–12 starting from 2023. Changes would include a revised curriculum, teacher training and other issues. Expectedly archives would also be factored into this transformation process, as they are integral to history. Therefore, this study investigated the involvement and readiness of archivists in South African public archival repositories to support this development. Nineteen (19) archivists from the National Archives and Records Service of South Africa and the nine (9) Provincial Archives participated in an online survey. The findings indicate that there was minimal involvement of archivists. Nevertheless, the archivists were confident that they had the content and skills, to some extent, to support the revised curriculum. The study recommends that archivists be more proactive in raising awareness about the archives and linking various stakeholders, such as the Department of Basic Education, with these valuable records.

2024-01-01T00:00:00Z Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel Saurombe, Nampombe https://ir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/31815 2024-10-23T09:20:58Z 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z

Development of Open Education Resources to Teach Oral History: Perspectives of a Sports Heritage-Engaged Scholarship Initiative in Gauteng, South Africa Schellnack-Kelly, Isabel; Saurombe, Nampombe Gaps exist in archival practices, and developments are in progress to decolonise and transform archives by supplementing existing archival collections with oral history accounts. This is a recent development in the archival field, requiring archivists and records managers to become aware of how oral history collections should be undertaken to preserve testimonies related to socio-economic, sociopolitical, and cultural events not yet captured by South African public archivists. An open educational resource (OER) was developed in 2022 as part of an engaged scholarship initiative to instruct archivists on oral history research techniques and how to apply research ethics when undertaking such projects. The research paradigm for this study was a postmodernist qualitative study. Action-based research was used in the research design. Action research is a flexible methodology uniquely suited to research and support change. It integrates social research with exploratory actions to promote development. Action research outcomes are both practical and theoretical. The knowledge it generates directly and continuously impacts the changing practices of the participants. Data from participants were collected through recorded project workshops and meetings. The content for the OER was developed from observing online videos showcasing oral history interviews, consulting literature on OER development, and discussions with archivists and heritage collectors at the South African National Film, Video and Sound Archives, the South African National Parks Board, and the Gauteng Provincial Archives. The OER was developed to enable collaboration to ensure that the oral narratives of postcolonial Africa, particularly post-apartheid South Africa, are not lost but captured by the public archives’ services for the benefit of South Africans and other interested stakeholders.

2024-01-01T00:00:00Z