` 1. Start with an introductory statement at the beginning of the interview. Note the date and time of the interview, and state the name of the interviewee, their birthdate, location, current rank, etc. 2. Ask the interviewee to state their branch of service, what their rank was at the time of service, their current rank, where they served, and in which conflicts. 3. Ask open-ended questions about the details of their service, such as: • Why did you enlist? • Where were you living at the time of your enlistment/drafting? • Why did you decide to join the Canadian Armed Forces? • What do you remember about your first days in service? What were your attitudes then about serving? 4. Ask specific questions based on what you know about their service and about the conflicts they served in from your research. Tailor your questions to their specific service: what can they tell you that you can’t read in a history textbook? • Tell me about your service: what was the most important part of your service? • Were you deployed overseas? How were you told and what was your reaction? • What was your role? • Tell me about a notable story or experience you had while serving. • Tell me about your experiences as a POW. • What was the transition like when you were released? 5. Ask about their everyday life during service. • Was it difficult to maintain relationships with family and friends back home when you were serving? How did you stay in touch with loved ones? • What type of food did you eat while serving? • What did you and your fellow servicepeople do to entertain yourselves and keep morale up? • Do you have any humorous or memorable moments from your service you’d like to share? • What was your relationship like with the place and the local people where you served? 6. If they are retired, ask questions about their transition to civilian life. • What do you remember about your service ending? • What was your feeling towards your service ending? • Did you pursue another career after your service ended? Tell me about that. 7. Close the interview. This is where you can go back to questions you asked but did not receive enough information on. • Is there anything we did not cover in this interview that you would like to add? • What do you want people to know about military service and take away from this interview/podcast episode? 8. Thank the speaker for sharing their story. Finish recording the interview, discuss next steps with the speaker, and let them know when they can expect to hear the podcast. How to Make an Oral History Podcast A Memory Project Resource Kit Sample Interview Structure 9 Note The questions below are basic examples – use these to build your interview and be sure to include more specific questions tailored to delve into your speaker’s service.
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