Guidelines for National History Day Interviews Taken from http://www.dceverest.org/srhigh/socialstudies/histday/Process/oral_histroy_process.htm Oral History Process What are Oral Histories? An “oral history” is the recorded story of a person’s life, which often focuses on a special happening during a person’s life. Some examples are: · Migration to the United States · Involvement in a war or conflict such as WWII, Korea and Vietnam · Experiences during the Great Depression · Local history of one’s community The goal is to gather stories not just about experiences of that time, but how those experiences have influenced people’s lives since then. According to Dr. Bret Eyon, author of How To Do An Oral History About The Impact of The Vietnam Era, says, “Oral histories convey a dramatic, first-hand view of history, with a storytelling approach and a sense of personal experience. Conducting interviews with family and community members illuminates the ways historic developments affect everyday life.” He goes on to say, “ Sometimes we assume that first person testimony represents the absolute truth, it is more important to approach oral history as a form of memory – an individual’s way of interpreting and narrating their experience of a particular event or period. Oral memoirs can help us understand the crucial role of perspective and interpretation in history.” Oral histories are important because they often record specific details about events in history that have never been recorded. In addition, the oral histories portray important events in history from the viewpoint of the common person. Conducting an oral history can be a rewarding experience, but it is hard work! The entire Oral History process is very complex and requires several stages of work. In the following pages this process will be broken down into practical steps. Step 1: The Pre-Interview Stage * 1. Get Background Information: Before doing an interview always familiarize yourself with the history of the topic being interviewed about. Hopefully your teacher will provide class time and readings so that you have at least a general background on the topic. Your interview will be much better if you know about the chronology, themes, people, and key issues of the period. * 2. Determine who should be interviewed: Only interviews with people who have First-hand knowledge of an event, such as eyewitnesses or participants, count as primary sources. History professors or other scholars or descendants may be helpful because they provide different perspectives or insights into the event or topic being studied. These are excellent secondary sources, but should not be considered to be oral history. Following are some suggestions from NHD on how to find people to interview. If their experiences are appropriate for the topic, older family members, neighbors, or family friends could make suitable interviewees. · For specialized topics, your students could check with special-interest organizations. Local historical societies or museums are often good places to go for referrals; their staffs usually have extensive local connections and a good idea of who would be willing to help. For military-related topics, students could ask the local VFW or American Legion Posts for names of members who might be willing to be interviewed. · Try asking the reference librarian at the local public library for ideas about who to interview. · Ask people you meet in the course of doing your research that might be willing to be interviewed. · Find historians at nearby universities to interview as secondary sources. Many universities have names and phone numbers listed by department on school web pages. * 3. Practice Interviewing: Writing good questions, listening well, and being a flexible interviewer takes practice. Another practice activity would be to divide the class into pairs and ask them to write a brief paper explaining a major turning point in their partner’s life. Have them write questions and then interview each other, basing their papers on the interviews. Ask them to list what other sources they might be able to find about this topic (interviews with other people, family letters, diaries, photographs, church or school records, newspaper stories, etc.) Step 2: Preparing for the Interview * 1. Setting Up the Interview: If you are the person setting up the interview, make sure you explain who you are and the purpose for the interview (e.g. my name is Bob Jones and I am a student at Central High School. I am researching life during the Great Depression and would like to interview you about your experiences in the CCC camps in Montana.) If you are going to the person’s home make sure you write down the address and a description of the house. Double check the address and the time of the interview at the end of the phone call. Let the person know in advance if you will be taking photographs. Please schedule the interview one to two weeks in advance. * 2. Time and Setting: Most interviews will run between 1/2 and a full hour. Be sure to set up a minimum of 45 minutes with your interviewee. If the interview goes longer than 90 minutes, stop and reschedule a second interview. Setting is also important and we suggest that the best place to conduct the interview is in the person’s home where they are most comfortable. It is important to be in a quiet area. * 3. Questions: To get things moving we suggest that you ask the interviewee to tell their story. This is a good way to get them talking. Also remember open-ended questions are much better than questions that can be answered with a yes or no. Use questions like “”What is your most difficult memory from your World War II experience?” Don’t ask for exact dates or chronologies because it often breaks the continuity of the interview, as the interviewee may not remember those specific dates. The best questions often emerge during the interview, and therefore cannot be anticipated. Some of the most effective questions are follow-ups. Simple questions like, “Can you tell me more about that?” or "How did you feel when that happened?” * 4. Gather materials and equipment: Get all of your equipment and materials ready at least a day before. Make sure all of the equipment is in working order (practice with the microphone and volume controls). Be sure to take the following: · Two tape recorders · Two blank 90 minute tapes · A lavaliere microphone · Extension cord · Notepad and pen · Your list of questions · Consent form · Any necessary props · Camera Step 3: Conducting the Interview * 1. Set the feeling tone for the interview: When you meet the person you will be interviewing so introduce yourself and thank the person for agreeing to do the interview. Explain the purpose of the interview and how you plan to use it. Try to make the interviewee as comfortable as possible. Having good sensitivity in the interview is very important. Be prepared to deal with painful moments with humanity and sensitivity and also be thoughtful and caring during the interview. * 2. Set up Equipment: Don’t make a big deal about the equipment. Get it set up and test it by asking the interviewee to state their name and address into the microphone. We suggest using clip on lavaliere mikes vs. stand up mikes. Be sure that the mike is turned on and the tape recorder volume is set properly. It is wise to bring a partner or friend along to keep track of the equipment while you concentrate on the interview. Common sense dictates that you bring a second person along to interview someone in his or her home. * 3. Prepare the Person: Say the following to the person you are interviewing “Please just share your story with us today. Share any memories you may have. The more you talk, the better. I’ll ask questions at the end.” * 4. Start the Tape Recorders: When you are ready to start the interview, make sure the tape recorders are turned on and the cassette tapes are recording. Use two recorders in case one fails. Start out the interview by saying, “I’m talking with ______ who is going to be sharing his/her experiences during (name of event).” Stop and play the tape to make sure it is operating and the voice is loud and clear. * 5. Let the Interviewee Talk: Let the person talk. Remember that the interviewee should do most of the talking. It is extremely important that you show interest in what the person is saying. Your body language needs to show interest. You can do this with eye contact and nodding your head. Do not be afraid of occasional silences. Give the interviewee think time. Do not fill the silences with another question. Keep a moderate pace and allow interviewees to completely finish answering a question before asking another. Also, make sure you ask follow up questions. Use your outline of questions, but remain flexible. Always remain unbiased during the interview. * 6. Get Consent: Either at the start or at the end of the interview, go over the “Interview Consent Form”. Getting this form signed by the interviewee is critical because it gives you the right to use the interview in your project. The consent form also informs the interviewee about how you will be using the interview. * 7. Word/Name list: Consider asking the interviewee to help you with spelling keywords, locations, and names. Also inquire about any additional materials such as photographs and diaries that might help you in your History Day research. Step 4: After the Interview * 1. Label the Tape: Immediately after the interview, label the tape with the person’s name, your name, the date and an assigned number. By using a double tape system, one can be stored in a file cabinet, while the other is taken home for transcribing. In the end this will also allow you to return one tape copy to the interviewee. Don’t forget to send a thank you note to the interviewee. * 2. Transcribing: After turning in one tape, consent form and borrowed equipment, you are ready to check out a transcriber. This is when the hard work really begins. Usually one hour of tape takes approximately 4-6 hours to transcribe. If you do not have access to a transcriber, a tape recorder with a pause button will have to do. You must listen carefully when making a transcript. Transcribing can be challenging because oral speech is so much different than written speech. Use common sense when editing while transcribing. Take out the umm’s and ahh’s and do modest amounts of editing to facilitate the reading of the transcript. * 3. Corroborate Evidence: Check the reliability of the interviewee’s information by comparing it to information you have gathered from other sources. Interview Consent Form This interview is being conducted as part of National History Day program. You will be asked a number of questions about your experiences in (e.g., Secret Wars for Laos, World War II, Vietnam War). This interview will be transcribed using the Oral History Association Guidelines. It is possible that this interview could: become part of a booklet for distribution to libraries, museums, schools, and the general public; be featured as part of a newspaper story; become part of a publicly accessible archive in which the audio tape is made available for listening; become part of an Internet web page. If you are willing to participate in this interview and allow your interview and photograph to be used as stated above, please sign and date the form below. I have read the above information and give my consent to participate in this project. ____________________________________ _________________ Signature Date Please print the following: Name: _____________________________________________________ Address: ___________________________________________________ Phone: ____________________________ Interviewer's Name: ___________________________________________ Interview Tips Introduce yourself. When you meet the person you will be interviewing, introduce yourself and thank the person for agreeing to do the interview. Request consent. Go over the " Interview Consent Form" with the interviewee. This form is extremely important. Explain the ways the recorded and transcribed interview could possibly be used in the future. The interviewee must sign the form if he or she agrees to allow the interview to be used. Prepare the person. Read the following statement to the person you are interviewing. This opening will give that person some specific directions. Thank you for participating in this interview. I'd like you to share your stories and memories about your World War II experience. The more specific you can be about details, the better. Please do most of the talking. I will only ask occasional questions. Please speak loudly enough so the recorder can pick up your voice. Start the tape recorder. When you are ready to start the interview, MAKE SURE THE TAPE RECORDER IS TURNED ON AND THE TAPE IS RUNNING. (If you are using two tape recorders, make sure both of them are running.) It is sometimes beneficial to have a friend go along to the interview. Then he or she can keep an eye on the recorders, so you can focus on listening and asking questions. Set the tape recorder close to the person who is talking. Record an opening statement about whom. Begin the interview by saying, "I'm speaking with who is going to share his/her experiences from (e.g., Secret Wars from Laos, World War II, Vietnam War). Let the interviewee talk. Remember, the interviewee should do most of the talking. You should mostly be listening. Show interest. Make sure to show you are interested in what the person is saying. Sometimes the person might talk for a long time, and your body language needs to indicate your interest. You can do this by giving eye contact and nodding your head occasionally. Ask questions. When the interviewee stops talking, you can ask a few "open-ended questions" to prompt the person to provide further information. Show respect and empathy. Remember, you are asking the interviewee to talk about a topic that may be sensitive to him or her. It is extremely important to be sensitive and respectful at all times. Try to put yourself in the person's shoes, and think about how difficult the experience must have been. Ask this final question. Do you have a message for young people today? Complete the information sheet. After the interview is over, complete the "Interviewee Information Sheet" with the person. Shoot a picture. Take two pictures of the person after the interview. (Take the pictures from the shoulders up.) Thank the person. Express your appreciation for the time and energy the person gave as well as for his or her willingness to share personal information. Transcribing Directions 1. When you listen to the tapes, type exactly what you hear on the tapes. 2. You may omit things like "hmm" and "ahh." 3. If you can't hear or understand, rewind a few times and try to get what you can. 4. If they say something that you don't understand, spell it out phonetically and put (sp?) after it to designate you're not sure about the spelling. 5. Put the person's name at the top of the transcript. Then write the names of the people who conducted the interview and then write your name. See example. Veteran: John Malinowski Interviewers: Shannon Whitman, Cory Thomas Transcriber: Kazoua Vang 6. Use Times Roman font - 12 point. 7. Put what the interviewers said in italics, then skip a line in between what the interviewer says and what the veterans says. See example. Do you still have any friends from the war? Yes, I still have two friends who I talk with about once a year. It's so good to just talk about old time with them. 8. Save the transcribing in at least two different places. 9. Every time you finish, print out a hard copy. That way if the saved version gets lost, we can still retype the transcribing from the hard copy.