Do you have an interview project in mind but don’t quite know where to begin or how to proceed? The Vermont Folklife Center is offering Interviewing for Oral History and Ethnography to help you explore the art of interviewing and help move your project forward. Join us on Saturday, November 20 from 10:00 am to 2:30 pm at the Old North End (ONE) Community Center, 20 Allen Street in Burlington, VT. This is an in-person workshop.
From the perspective of ethnographic research (a method of understanding what it means to be human by focusing on individual lived experience), an interview offers the opportunity to see the world through the eyes of another person. The premise of our interview methodology is that everyone is the foremost authority on their own life, and an interview offers the opportunity to record a person’s experience in their own words and on their own terms.
Interviewing for Oral History and Ethnography combines discussion of the theories and methods that inform oral history and ethnographic research with practical, hands-on training in interview techniques. The workshop includes listening exercises, a demonstration interview, and a brief introduction to recording technology (for those looking for in-depth instruction on recording audio for interviews consider attending this companion workshop on Dec. 4!)
This workshop will help participants develop a plan for an interview-based project, and will offer a forum for brainstorming ideas for public outreach and education based on interview findings. Workshop attendees will also have access to Vermont Folklife Center staff for consultation as they later undertake their own oral history, ethnographic, or community-based research projects.
Workshop instructors: Kate Haughey, PhD, VFC Executive Director and Mary Wesley, Host and Producer of VFC’s podcast, VT Untapped™.
Interviewing for Oral History and Ethnography will be held at the Old North End (ONE) Community Center, 20 Allen St. in Burlington. Registration fee is offered on a sliding scale. You may also register by calling the Vermont Folklife Center at (802) 388-4964.
Suitable for students, community members, staff members of non-profit cultural, community and social-service agencies, as well as professional researchers interested in learning more about interviewing.