Preservation
of Oral Tradition
A
Practical Experience
Aileen
Hooi-Ai Khoo
Why
We Do It!
Why
Oral History Project:
People
are frail and dying – documents can wait to be preserved.
Facts
are cold. Stories are warm. Facts are less important than stories.
Every
time a church member, and especially a church leader dies, a library of
information dies too.
In
a perpetual race against the clock we at the Archives strive to record
the stories before time catches up with us.
1994,
Bishop Emeritus Rev. Dr. Denis Dutton, when he was the presiding Bishop,
encouraged all churches to record the oral history of senior members “before
their memories fade away.”
Luke
1:1-4
Many
have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled
among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first
were eyewitnesses and servants fo the word. Therefore, since I myself
have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good
also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,
so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
I
John 1:1
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen
with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – this
we proclaim concerning the Word of life.
“Once
upon a time….”
Lang-ting-tang
man
Griot
Heilsgeschichte
Salvation
history
Psalm
105
v.
5 Remember the wonders God has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he
pronounced.
v.
8 God remembers his covenant forever,
the word he commanded, for a thousand
generations.
The
Story of a Saving Nation
Psalms
106 and 136
Psalm
145:4, 11-12
One
generation will commend your works to another;
They
will tell of your mighty acts.
They
will tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
so
that all men may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Psalm
48:12-14
Walk
about Zion, go around her,
Count
her towers,
Consider
well her ramparts,
View
her citadels,
That
you may tell of them to the next generation.
For
this God is our God for ever and ever;
He
will be our guide even to the end.
Deuteronomy
32:7
Remember
the days of old;
Consider
the generations long past.
Ask
your father and he will tell you,
Your
elders, and they will explain to you.
Exodus
13 – the priestly writers define the ordinance for remembering
v.
14 In days to come, when your son asks
you, “What does this mean?” say to
him…..
Exodus
15:1-21
A
memory that sustained the people of Israel
“Gratitude
is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies.”
C.E. Jefferson
“Gratitude is the memory of the heart.”
E. Pelletier
“Our gladness is complete when we show our gratitude. It is expressed
verbally, through correspondence and by readiness to return kindness.
Remembrance of God’s mercies to us makes us grateful people…but gratitude
to the Almighty when things go wrong is worth more than a thousand thanks
when things are agreeable to our inclination or favorable to us.
It reveals our maturity to accept the pleasant and unpleasant situations
in life.” Dominic Mathews
If
I live to be a hundred, I’ll never forget…..
Personal
or family histories
Shared
heritage
Moves
the family has made, pets, interesting members
Funny
and embarrassing moments
Successes
and achievements
Who
Are We?
Board
of Archives & History
Trinity
Annual Conference
Methodist
Church in Malaysia
When
Did We Start?
4
years ago, in 2000
How
We Did It!
Boon
Lin and May Lian coordinated
Oral
History Project
Churches identified interested and suitable persons for training
Sent SOS via email
Books
and Resources from:
-
Singapore National Archives, Malaysian National Archives
Planned
a training workshop from scratch.
-
Obtained help from Dr. Jean-Paul Weist
in Hong Kong through email.
Workshop on Oral History 31 August 2002 Trinity Methodist Church Petaling Jaya
Purpose
-
To inform local church representatives of the importance of Oral History
-
To conduct interviews
-
To process and disseminate
information collected
Identified some key persons / leaders and assigned the members of the Board of Archives & History to do the interview.
What
We Did!
Pre-interview
Preparation:
Research
on the background of the interviewee if not familiar.
Prepare
questions.
Make
appointment for first visit to explain what Oral History Interview
is all about.
Fix
location of interview
Visits:
Initial:
Introduce
self
Explain
what Oral History is about and how the taped interview will be used.
Go
through questions that will be asked at interview.
Talk
about transcript
Go
through the contents of Gift Certificate.
Set
dates for oral interview and timeline
Equipment
The
tape recorder:
Set
the counter at 0
Allow
for 5-10 counts before taping
Speed
control – set as neutral
Record
time set at normal unless running out of
tape, then set at double.
VOR
– voice activated recording set at L (Low)
or H (High)
Volume
is for play back only
Use
Pause button instead of Stop button to
decrease noise.
Battery
light will flicker when weak
Carry
enough batteries and tapes
Use
90-minute tape.
Interview(s)
Oral
Interview – 2-3 one-hour time frame.
Setting:
Home is best –
Informal and relaxed
Familiar surroundings
Have
a sound proof or semi-sound proof room with comfortable chairs.
Have
a glass of water on hand
No
dogs, no phones, no visitors, no cooking.
Data
Sheet Interview Agreement
Filling
in of data
Signing
Processing
of Recorded Tape
Duplicate
taped interview for Researchers
Break
tab of tape
Label
tape
Transcribe
the interview.
Go
through transcript with interviewee.
Editing
by interviewee.
Check
for spelling of proper names, towns, etc. with interviewee.
Leave
a copy of transcript with interviewee.
Correct
transcript for final draft.
Send
interviewee a copy for final approval.
Gift
certificate
Go
through content of Gift Certificate again.
Sign
the certificate
Documenting
and Disseminating
Complete
cataloging data sheet
Introduction
(Synopsis)
Interview
History
Index
Contents
Cataloging
Registering
accession
Transcript
bound
Duplication
of the copy to be given to the interviewee.
Binding
of the transcript and document items.
Example:
TRANSCRIPT
BINDING FORMAT
The Cover:
AN
INTERVIEW WITH THE
REVEREND
(DR.) PETER SIMON
The
Title Page:
TRANSCRIPT
OF
AN
INTERVIEW WITH
REVEREND
(DR.) PETER SIMON, B.A., M.A., Ph D.
Conducted
by
David
Low
The
Archives, TRAC of the Methodist Church, Malaysia
Obstacles
Interviewee
– fearful
Interviewer
– anxious
Interviewee’s
Fear
Things
recorded cannot be undone.
What
he/she tells is going to be in tomorrow’s news.
Doesn’t
want to offend
Afraid
of one’s own voice (too husky)
Language
inadequate
Not
a public speaker
Nervous
about speaking into a tape recorder
Memory
lapses
Interviewer’s
Anxiety
Afraid
to ask wrong questions
Doesn’t
know how to phrase questions
Clumsy
with electronics
Interviewee
goes off, hard to bring him/her back
Jumbling
up orderly sequences of questions prepared
So…
Explain
purpose and assure interviewee of confidentiality
Statutes
of limitation
Play
back the recording after 5 minutes to check
Have
interviewee write down thoughts in point form
Have
lots of patience
Plan
for unrushed interview
For
Interviewer
Formulate
questions
Look
at CNN Talk Asia
Have
check-list ready and set everything in order before interview
Have
pencil ready to tick off questions answered by interviewee
Conclusion
You
need a team, a support group
Start
small, do not be ambitious
It
is possible to start cheap
Start
now – don’t wait – learn and improve as you go.
We made a lot of mistakes.
We broke a lot of rules.