Learning how to interview a person  is a valuable and useful experience for all students.  Communication skills, along with historical research, documentation, and production of the results cover a wide range of learning opportunities.   Oral interviews teach students the basic historical method of inquiry. Their participation takes them "into the field." They create historical documentation that may become a valuable reference source.  Because students are producing a useful product, the assignments are more than just exercises.

    Oral history is more than just one person with a tape recorder talking to another person. Trying to capture a lifetime, or just a small segment of experience in a short interview requires careful planning and preparation on the part of the interviewer.  Gathering as much background information as possible allows the interviewer to frame questions that will yield the maximum amount of vital information.  Well planned questions give structure to the narrator's answers and will help to prevent wandering and disconnected responses.  Adequate preparation also aids the interviewer during the interview session in crafting effective follow-up questions to encourage additional recall.