What are things we are going to look for/think about as we listen to ethnic studies oral histories?

    1. What is a road-map (overarching) for the story?

    2. 4 Is of Oppression (how/where do they show up?)

    3. Timeline of her story, but also the historical context of what was happening in society.

    4. What historical moments can contextualize her story?

    5. Milestones/significant life changes/pivotal moments

    6. Pivotal moments can be conceived as a time when you learned something, read something, or experienced something that shifted your understanding.

    7. Thinking through layers (empirical things one knows because they experience them, events, that they may or may not experience, and underlying causes)

    1. A process to use (Curriculum-Thinking Tool)

    2. What was the teacher’s approach?

    3. How can this be defined as and act as a “local” version of the history curriculum?

    4. How can we help students to “theorize” and “interpret” some of the tougher pieces that are mentioned through oral histories? (Helping them unpack concepts that might not be articulated explicitly)

    1. Key concepts/terms (ex: intersectionality)

    2. What from the oral history can be used? (excerpts)

    3. How to make it “digestible?”

    4. How to use some of the tools already created? (analytical summary paragraph)

    5. What other lessons could supplement this oral history?

    6. What other primary sources could we use to give historical context to different “moments” of the oral history?

    7. What connections can we make with TODAY! (ex: Dr. Weber as the author of the reparations bill)

    8. Classroom implications (ex: pedagogy)

  • Demographics and the home cultures of the students

  • Variety in the “timing” of the oral histories

  • Native, local oral histories (building knowledge of local tribes as part of a larger story)

  • Considerations of students’ neurodivergence, communication style, and understanding of language

  • Finding connections between local Ethnic Studies Oral Histories and Movements (action-oriented).

What should drive your decision in choosing a local ethnic studies oral history?

  • Building on Students’ current knowledge.

  • Topics that are applicable to current social change.

  • Stories that encourage discovering the unknown.

  • Balancing local and global stories.

  • Focusing on the struggle of justice, potential positive impact, self actualization, and their relationship with oppression.

We created a Notetaking Guide to help you with Analyzing Oral Histories.

Our partners at UCSD’s Race and Oral History Project have created a collection of stories from San Diegans that focus on topics related to race, culture, and immigration.

Introductory Ethnic Studies Oral History Excerpt Analysis Tool

We created a four-step process to help you analyze your chosen oral history.

  1. Paste the excerpt (or page #s) of the ethnic studies oral history you are analyzing.

  2. React. What are you noticing?

  3. What Ethnic Studies concepts or themes can be identified?  

  4. What connections do you see between the Ethnic Studies concepts/themes you identified and units of study you teach? 

Analytic Summary Paragraph Template

If a summary represents a brief representation of a text, experience, event or other phenomenon, then you can think of an analytical summary as both a representation of the text or phenomenon and your analysis of it. An Ethnic Studies analytical summary uses an analytic lens grounded in Ethnic Studies themes/ concepts/ perspectives such as race/ism, ethnicity, intersectionality, oppression, resistance, and/or liberation. It might also include an analysis of perspective, make historical and present-day connections, attempt to unearth underlying causes and acts of agency, or explore personal relevance. 

Sample Structure for an Analytical Summary

Sentence One:

Introduces the text (oral history) and makes an assertion about what the interviewee helps listeners to understand.

Sentences Two-Three:

Provides a summary of the major points or events expressed in the oral history and provides illustrations/examples.

Sentences Four-Five:

Uses an Ethnic Studies lens to analyze the points or events summarized above.

Sentence Six:

Connects the summary and analysis back to the assertion.

Analytic Summary Sentence Starters

    1. In the _________ oral history from 20__, _______ discusses ______, which…..

    1. ________ speaks about _________________. One example of this is when…..

    2. _________ illustrates ________ when describing…..

    3. Listeners learn that…….

    1. _______’s experience is similar to …….

    2. _______’s description sheds light on ……..

    3. Manifestations of racism are depicted when………..

    4. In _______’s oral history, listeners hear _______, which could have been caused by…..

    5. Despite…..

    1. ______’s story provides ______ and illustrates……..

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