Oral History Workshop 2011
As part of the statewide Legacy partnership between Minnesota Historical Society and Minnesota's 12 regional public library systems, Barbara Sommer, author of "The Oral History Manual*" will present three ORAL HISTORY WORKSHOPS in the LARL region. The workshops cover the steps involved in carrying out an oral history project and are geared toward researchers, historians, staff from local historical societies and museums, genealogists, college history departments, townships, schools/school reunions and others interested in oral history.
- Event Dates, Locations and Attendance at each individual event:
05/09/2011 - Moorhead Library - 18
05/10/2011 - Crookston Library - 19
05/11/2011 - Detroit Lakes Library - 15
52 people attended the Activity programs.
- Partner Organization(s):Minnesota Historical Society
- Partner Organization(s) Contribution/Role in the Program:The program is part of the statewide Legacy partnership between the Minnesota Historical Society and Minnesota's 12 regional public library systems.
Measurable Outcomes may be collected by survey, anecdotal responses, pre-test/post-test, observations; Describe proposed end user change in Behavior, Attitude, Skills, Knowledge, Condition and/or Status.
- Attendees will learn the steps involved in carrying out an oral history project.
A summary of survey results:Please rate the quality of this program: (Using 1-5 scale, with 5 being excellent and 1 being poor)
- Not rated - (0), 1- (0), 2 - (0), 3 ~ (2), 4 - (8), 5 - (38), Average (4.75)
What did you like best about the program?
- Basic how to applied to many different applications
- Clear explanation
- It was very practical regarding preparation, process, etc
- All
- All the info on how to do an oral history
- Barbara really knew her stuff; very good oral history workshop (2)
- Very informative
- How to interview for Oral History
- Presentation
- Very educational - covered a lot of ground - probably the best handouts accompanying a workshop I've attended in years
- Covered all aspects of designing & implementing an oral history project using the best practices
- The depth of information provided
- Planning, legal & ethical agents
- Good overview of subject!
- Explained what oral history is, how to set it up, how to record, etc.Then how to use information you have gotten.
- Presenters knowledge & experience on subject
- Learning proper procedure of oral history
- Barbara was a wealth of information and the group members also had a bunch of experience
- The interactive style, and the worksheets
- Interactive format of workshops; questions & answers from everyone helped
- Interaction w/others in class
- The sharing of stories and excellent outline of interview techniques
- I thought I knew quite a bit about oral history but I really learned a lot today, particularly about prep & transcribing & copyright
- Good practical information
- Open discussion - very knowledgeable presenter
- Barbara is an excellent presenter and was very capable of fielding all the questions - she's a master at her craft
- Specifies & classroom interaction; was wonderful that powerpoint didn't work!
- Information
- Personal stories & examples
- Very informative!
- The questions and answers; they addressed real issues that man of us have
- Practical advice on equipment & discussions based on questions from the group
- Great info, lady really knows her stuff
- We had such a close and well engaged group; we fed off each other with the guidance and awesome expertise of Ms. Sommer
- Presenter - down to earth; full of info; listened, responded - great handouts
- Excellent facilitator - down to earth, approachable and knowledgeable
- Learning about the oral history kits, available through LARL
- All of it!
- Detailed information & to the point
- Well organized and presented; she was very easy to listen to and visit with
- Materials provided, organization, hands on; least liked - room too small and discussion got bogged down w/veterans issues
- I always enjoy hands on
- Barbara knew her subject very well & easy to listen to; she was interesting!
- Conversational; able to ask questions & get answers
What did you expect to experience or learn from this presentation? Were your expectations met?
- Yes (25)
- Basic how to what would be different to be more useful?Have this program in the evening when historical volunteers might have attended.
- Exactly what it is
- Info
- I expected what I got
- My expectations were met (5)
- I wasn't sure it w/b except the historical aspect.It more than met expectations.
- To learn how to do an oral interview (5)
- Best methods to use for oral interviews for family history and possible city history
- Needed to know how to go about recording info to pass along to family members (things they may want to know in the future)
- I have rural history projects in process; wanted tips
- How to do it, tips, etc
- Wanted to learn how to do oral history interviews, got so much more
- Liked very much; good experience from all attendees - helpful to put myself & experiences into perspective
- Expect to enhance my interview skills
- My expectations weren't nearly as high as the quality of the day; this was great! Great people & interactions!
- Hands on training & practical advice
- Wasn't sure what to expect - learned so much was in class with mostly those who already do oral history projects - from museums, historical societies, etc.Great discussion
- Tips on organizing oral histories - expectations were met and exceeded
- Didn't know what to expect - very good info very enjoyable
- An overview of how to develop and conduct an oral history; my expectations were exceeded by the breadth of information presented
- Project design & equipment
- Basics
- I was hoping to learn the process of recording oral history; my expectations were met!; I would have like more time to explore the kits
- Exactly what I got
- Wasn't sure I'd learn a lot, but I did!
- Basics of oral history interviews, programming, etc. (2)
- Learned more than expected
- To get guidelines for interviewing (2)
- How to conduct an oral interview and how to use it afterwards
- Advise, tips
What other programs would you like to see offered at the library?
- Programs that work in each locale, time, subject, audience
- More hands on; music for children
- Historical authors
- Antiques; art history; teen reading
- Visual arts programs
- Real authors to discuss their books - a writers seminar
- Crafts; MN authors, how to do projects - history
- More history, genealogy, rural culture
- Cultural shifts in how people gather, share and preserve information/history; how does society respond on prepare for the change
- Andrew Shurka's Alaska Yukon Expedition (www.andrewskurka.com)
- More of the same
- Videography skills
- Follow-up Oral history projects in progress
- More of these practical types of classes
- Anything regarding writing/authors; grant writing
- I think even a hands on taping of interviews or workshops on using equipment
- Writing workshop
- Copyright(3)
- Archival theory, museum preservation, metadata education
- I love speakers who gather together nonprofits in the community; The library is such a great place to have these nonprofits in our community to network!
- This was right on - more!
- Visual arts (2)
- More on history! (2)
- How to do literacy programs; tips on planning, presenting cultural programs, ideas for promoting, announcing programs
- Tech
Prior to this program, have you ever attended a program at the library or sponsored by the library? Yes (35) - No (13) How did you hear about the program?Program flier - 4Information/poster at the library - 10Information/poster in the community - 2Library newsletter - 3Library web site - 16Newspaper/magazine - 5Radio - 1Television - 3From library staff - 21From another person - 18 Check your age range: Birth to 5 (0), 6-17 (0), 18-54 (14), 55 and over (34) What is your zip code? 56523 (2) - 56621 (5) - 58581 (1)- 56542 (2) - 56592 (2) - 56728 (1) - 56716 (5) - 56634 (1) - 56549 (2) - 56557 (1) - 56578 (1) - 56570 (1) - 56556 (1) - 56528 (1) - 56601 (5) - 56560 (4) - 56520 (2) - 58102 (3) - 56510 (2) - 58105 (1) - 58104 (2) - 58103 (1) Do you have a current library card? Yes - 43 No - 5 # of evaluations received: 48