ERIC Number: EJ1102165
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0046-760X
EISSN: N/A
Dusting the Archives of Childhood: Child Welfare Records as Historical Sources
Vehkalahti, Kaisa
History of Education, v45 n4 p430-445 2016
Using administrative sources in the history of education and childhood involves a range of methodological and ethical considerations. This article discusses these problems, as well as the role of archives and archival policies in preserving history and shaping our understanding of past childhoods. Using Finnish child welfare archives from the post-war period (1945-1970) as an example, the article shows how the institutional gaze of administrative archives, together with various screening practices, has limited the research possibilities. Nevertheless, administrative records do offer important perspectives on the lives of marginalised children and young people that cannot be reached through other sources. The article closes with a critical discussion on the tightening research ethical regulations, and argues for the historian's right to access original sources. Researchers' rights should be ensured in forthcoming archival practices and legislation, and contested research topics should not be avoided because of research ethical uneasiness.
Descriptors: Archives, Child Welfare, Case Records, Information Sources, Historical Interpretation, Educational History, Children, Disadvantaged Youth, Research Methodology, Qualitative Research, Ethics, Social Work, Research Problems, Social Science Research, Biographies, Foreign Countries
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A