AABC Distance Education: Oral History: From Theory to Practice

Oral History: From Theory to Practice

Registration closes: August 31, 2023

Course duration: September 11 - November 20, 2023

Oral history is undergoing a resurgence, thanks to the digital environment and the Internet.  What are the components of an oral history program? How should an oral history interview be conducted? What documentation is required to ensure that an archives has acquired the rights to ownership and use of the interviews? 

Using the publications Curating Oral Histories and The Oral History Reader,  students will be introduced to the theory and practice of conducting a successful oral history program in seven modules.

Topics for the modules include:

Module 1.   Introducing Oral History

Module 2.   Administration

Module 3.   The Interview

Module 4.   Description and Transcription

Module 5.   Technology and Preservation

Module 6.   Public Outreach

Module 7.   Case Studies

Students will also receive, by electronic mail, a self-study guide which includes instructions, supplementary reading (where applicable), self-study questions, and in most modules, a practical project. The self-study questions and projects will be submitted to the Instructor for evaluation. Upon completing all the projects within the allotted time, students will receive a certificate of completion at the end of the course.

Students can expect to work about 10-12 hours per week on readings and assignments for the duration of the course.

Instructor: Lisa Glandt, AABC Education and Advisory Services Coordinator

Cost: AABC members $350.00 (CAD) / Non-member $500.00 (CAD); plus the cost of the course textbooks

Textbooks:   

*Students have the option of purchasing print textbooks or eBooks for both publications. 

Nancy Mackay. Curating Oral Histories (Routledge, 2nd ed; 2016) 

Robert Perks and Alistair Thomson, eds. The Oral History Reader (Routledge, 3rd ed; 2016)