JeShana Jones

Oral History Interview Reflection:

This was the first oral history interview that I’ve ever had to conduct so I wasn’t completely sure what to expect. I can definitely say that the technical aspect of this project taught me that this is a tedious process that requires much critical thinking. The parts that I found most challenging with this assignment was forming questions I thought would be good enough and figuring out how I would record the call since it wasn’t able to be done face to face. The most enjoyable aspect was getting to talk to an old family friend about a topic that I found interesting. I believe that conducting this oral history taught me much and gave me insight on what it was like living during the time of segregation. I honestly can’t remember discussing this topics such as these two in school. I feel as if reading Frank Senso’s Ask More helped me prepare greatly for this interview. It gave me good tips on how I should create my interview questions. When I finally conducted the oral history I can say that I was very nervous because I hadn’t done anything like it before. I just wanted to make sure I created something that myself and others could be proud of. I feel as if I don’t have any recommendations, because Ms.Sias provided us with the proper material to guarantee that we would do well and understand this assignment. If I were to talk to future FYS students about this assignment I would definitely tell them to take it serious and start early. Starting early and being prepared will definitely ensure that you do well. I would also say to make sure you’re thinking critically and outside of the box when thinking of questions to ask. Lastly, I would tell them to have fun with the assignment and choose a topic that’s interesting to them.

Oral History Interview StoryCorps URL: https://archive.storycorps.org/?post_type=interviews&p=2332516