Listen and Learn: Examining the Role of Schools Radio Broadcasting in Scotland's Classrooms

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The project will examine the historical role that schools radio broadcasting in Scotland played in the formulation of ideas of national identity, citizenship, internationalism and environmentalism for a young listening audience. Dedicated radio programming for Scottish schools was conceived by the BBC in 1926, first broadcast in 1928, and continued to be a regular scheduling feature into the 1990s. Listening to radio programmes was an activity steadily integrated into the learning experiences of generations of Scottish schoolchildren, and for many proved an enjoyable and memorable part of their education. For school-teachers, BBC radio broadcasts, along with supporting print pamphlets and preparatory notes, were a valued resource that came to be depended upon. For much of the twentieth-century, at set times of the day or week, the wireless radio receiver became the defining feature of the school classroom, emitting voices, sounds, language and songs that transported young listeners across space and time. Radio invited children to 'think geographically' about, variously: past landscapes, local studies, the ages of discovery and empire, global trade, industrialisation, urbanisation, resource use, and nature conservation. All as a means to make sense of Scotland's place in the world. Through a combination of archival inquiries and oral histories, this research will include the following questions: 1. With the popularisation of radio, how was "listening-as-learning" introduced as a new educational medium and teaching technique, both in the broadcasting studio and the school classroom? 2. Over time, how did the content of BBC schools radio broadcasting and publishing represent versions of Scotland's past, present, places, politics and processes of social change? 3. In what ways can the intangible heritage of BBC schools radio broadcasting be shared as a cultural and educational asset connecting communities and generations in today's digitally-mediated world?