Strategies for Effective Interviewing

1. Strategies for Effective Interviewing Eng III

2. Decide on a subject • Pick someone who may have a unique perspective on The American Dream • Seek stories that are based in experience • Think about what kind of information your subject may be able to provide • Choose someone you are comfortable with • Choose someone it will be easy to coordinate with (scheduling)

3. Ideas for Subjects • People of a different generation may have a unique perspective from your own • Immigration stories? • Success stories? • People you may consider to be “living The Dream?” • People who may be left out of your ideas of “The American Dream?”

4. Compose Questions • 10 are required • Give your questions a few sentences of context • Have some broad and some specific questions • Be prepared to rephrase your questions if the subject seems unsure (know why you are asking each question)

5. Examples of questions Specific questions What does “The American Dream” mean to you? Based on your own life experience, do you think college education is needed to achieve The American Dream? Broad questions

6. Examples of questions with context Benefit Hi Grammy. I know that our family immigrated from Poland around 1904. Can you tell me who was first in our family to come to America, and why they came? The subject will have some specific stories to tell, not just facts or general answers Question:

7. Examples of Questions Background Demographics question Inquire about what a person has done, or is doing Asks for relevant information about the subject’s education, work or family history, age BE CAREFUL to only ask relevant questions Behavior questions

8. Set up the interview • Have 2 or 3 timeslots in mind • Explain why you need the information • Give a brief idea explanation of what the interview will be about • Be clear about how long the interview will take • Be clear about your deadline. • Be gracious if your intended subject declines.

9. Conducting the interview • Listening is more important than writing • Start out by warming up to your subject (explain what you’ve been doing in class) • Be upfront about why you chose the person • Be SENSITIVE to how your subject will perceive your questions • Let the conversation flow, but be sure to get enough information about the topic

10. Follow up questions • These typically get the most results! • Use these to steer your subject into more relevant, interesting, or specific stories • You may compose these in advance, but typically they are in response to what your subject is saying

11. Taking notes • Avoid excessive writing during the interview – you will lose the personal connection • Ask to record, but don’t push it • Take lots of notes after the interview • Record impressions you got from body language, tone, and other impressions as well as stories • Try to get some of the exact language your subject used

12. At the end of the interview • Be aware of your subject’s busy life • Be clear when the interview is over (“Thanks so much. I think I got everything I needed for the assignment. This helps a lot.”) • Thank your subject (even – or especially?- if it’s your mom!) • Follow up later with a note or card

13. Expectations for class • You will hand in • TEN interview questions • Notes taken during/after interview • A developed paragraph summarizing your findings DUE (hard copy, in class) APRIL 15/16