Elaine Seavey, Seminole High School, Seminole, OK

A TEAM APPROACH TO ORAL HISTORY

Appropriate for grades 8-10.

OVERVIEW:  This project is a cross-discipline approach to the
study of Oklahoma History and English.  Through the
accomplishments of this project, students will see the
interrelationship of the two disciplines.  Students often do not
link literature and history as interdependent disciplines and tend
to compartmentalize each subject area.  In demonstrating the
relationship these two subjects have with each other, we hope to
provide the kind of learning experience that would help students
tear down these barriers.  The result of this active process will
be a student-written publication of their own community using the
skills obtained in their English classes.

PURPOSE:  The purposes of this project are multiple.  One purpose
is to involve the students activity in the pursuit of history and
to develop an awareness of the interdependence of the various
disciplines.  The skills acquired in English class can be applied
in the exploration of the past.  Another purpose of an oral
history project is a sense of community that evolves in the
students as they begin their quest of a "story."  The students
also develop an appreciation for the people in the community who
are the "living" history.

OBJECTIVES:  Students will be able to:

 1.  Observe the human side of history as revealed through
     personal interviews, newspaper articles, and fictional
     accounts.

 2.  Record the history of various sites and people in the
     Seminole area.

 3.  Follow the process of preparing a manuscript for publication,
     including gathering information, organizing, writing,
     editing, rewriting, and typesetting.

 4.  Appreciate the interrelationship of literature and history.

ACTIVITIES:  The following activities are designed to provide an
outline of the sequence a teacher may want to follow in your own
oral history project:

 1.  The teacher must become acquainted with the use of a tape
     recorder and interviewing techniques.  You may want to first
     do some research in the area of oral history and interview
     individuals about some interesting event.  These tapes could
     also be used as examples for the students.  You may also want
     to arrange for someone to come the classroom for an interview
     and then the class could observe the techniques.

 2.  Introduce the oral history project to the students and
     present some suggestions or examples of what might interest
     them.  Such as childhood memories of the Depression, life in
     an oil camp, some research on a mysterious or unsolved
     murder, or some sinister desperado, etc.  Brainstorming some
     particular topics is always stimulating to the class and
     helps to encourage even the most cynical.

 3.  The class can then be instructed on some interview techniques
     and strategies for obtaining and conducting interviews.  The
     students can then be put in small groups of paired off to
     help each other in formulating sets of questions.  During
     this whole process both the English and history teachers are
     working together in the sharing of their particular skills.

 4.  Students then record, transcribe, and edit their interviews.
     The student help each other with the editing process, with
     final approval from the instructors.  All articles are signed
     by the authors and credits are given to those who
     contributed information for the project.  Many of the
     students received old photographs, old newspaper clippings,
     and other documents to incorporate into their story.  Some
     took photographs of a particular building or area that was
     related to their topic.

 5.  The final copies are entered in the word processor - there
     are always some students who are either typing or in
     computers who happily volunteer.

 6.  Students then participate in the process of typesetting.
     During this time student are encouraged to submit names and
     cover designs for the book.  Remember, it is their book.

 7.  The happy day arrives when the book comes back from the
     printer and distributed to the participants.  It is an
     amazing thing to watch their faces as they see their name in
     print.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS NEEDED:  

     The Oral History Review

     The Foxfire series

     Brown, Cynthia Stokes -- Like It Was:  A Complete Guide to
     Writing Oral History

     Sitton, Thad; McHaffy, George; Davis, O.L., Jr. -- Oral
     History:  A Guide for Teachers

TYING IT ALL TOGETHER:  We were very proud of our students in the
completion of this project.  The inter-disciplinary approach to
this project enabled students in these classes to apply English
skills for a practical purpose, that of actually communicating
with a reading audience.  They gained an appreciation for the
"living" quality of history as they heard stories related by long-
time residents of our town.

In addition to these major objectives, students were exposed to
several other valuable experiences.  They learned interview
techniques, gained an appreciation for those older in the
community who were absolutely essential to the completion of this
project, practiced self-discipline to stay with the task until
completed, and sharpened their proof-reading skills.

This project did not require big funds.  Subject material is very
plentiful and students are involved in the active process of
writing history and creating their own publication and that is the
greatest benefit of all!!!!