Contemporary English Interpretations of Traditional Russian Folk Tales. Issue 2 (1st January 2011)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Cooper, Hilary
• Is Part Of: History education research journal. Volume 9:Issue 2(2010)
• Page Start: 25
• Page End: 30
• Publication Date: 2011-01-01
• Subjects: ATTITUDES -- BELIEFS -- BEHAVIOURS -- CASE STUDY -- CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION -- CULTURAL TRANSMISSION -- FOLK TALES -- IDENTITY -- MORAL EDUCATION -- ORACY -- ORAL HISTORY -- PRIMARY -- RUSSIA -- RUSSIAN HISTORY -- STORY -- STORY TELLING -- VALUES; History -- Study and teaching -- Periodicals; History -- Research -- Periodicals; 907
• DOI: 10.18546/HERJ.09.2.04
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2631-9713

Abstract

Abstract : Oral transmission of cultural values, beliefs and attitudes to children occurs mainly through story, often in the form of folk tales. Oral history in many societies was [and can still be] the only form of history. Oral history through story encodes moral, social, political, religious and cultural understanding - values, beliefs, concepts, attitudes and behaviours. As such it provides 'models' that influence the development of personal, familial and social identity. Russia is one society where folk tales have played a major role for all classes, particularly within the contexts of family and local community. This paper, through case-study research, explores how three groups of English children respectively aged 7 - 8, 8 - 9 and 9 - 10 responded to three traditional Russian folk tales. The children were told the stories and then represented their cultural messages and what they had learnt from them in their own interpretations of the tales. The children presented their ideas to their peers. Analysis of pupil responses revealed that they were able to assimilate the moral messages within their own cultural contexts: the two older groups [8 - 9, 9 - 10 ] within their own imaginatively created stories. Our tentative conclusions are that the youngest children [7 - 8], possibly for coincidental reasons, related the story very much to their personal experience. And it was interesting that the youngest group created a story which was kinder, more optimistic and insightful than the original. Third, families were at the heart of all the stories and what children most feared losing was their home and family and that this is what is most precious to all of them. Fourth their wishes were surprisingly non-materialistic.