Views of Omani social studies teachers about using oral history in the classroom

The aim of this study was to investigate the views of Omani social studies teachers about using oral history in the classroom. Data was collected using a questionnaire that was distributed to 315 randomly selected social studies teachers from urban and rural areas, with 135 male and 180 female teachers included in the study. The results showed that social studies teachers believe strongly in the importance of oral history in the classroom and think that it can be applied in several ways. Teachers also believe, however, that there are a number of obstacles to the use of oral history in Omani schools and they suggest, first, that teachers should be given training to overcome these, and second, that the social studies curriculum be developed so that it will be easier to include oral history in the courses. The survey also revealed that teachers’ views are affected by their gender and experience, with female and older teachers believing more strongly in the importance of oral history than male and younger teachers.