Studying History by Studying People: What You Can't Learn in Textbooks (A Learn and Serve America Subgrantee)

Student quotes:
"It is important that people tell their stories. Older people have stories and we can learn a lot from them that we can’t learn in textbooks…it opens your eyes to things you’re never going to experience." -- Tina Chandler Sophomore Windward High School.
"I used to think that history was a big picture thing. But now I realize that it impacts people differently and when you study history, you are studying people." -- Ryan Greene Sophomore Windward High School.

This May, Windward high school will host a community celebration to release Echoes of History: Lummi and Early Whatcom County History, a bound collection of oral histories from over 25 community members and Lummi elders researched and written by approximately 80 freshmen and sophomore students. The project, spear-headed by English teacher Paul Lewis and U.S. history teachers Adam Goldstein and Katie Ruthford, was modeled after a previous oral history project the teachers had taught. That project had focused on the stories of Ferndale residents during the early part of the twentieth century; it served as a foundation for the teachers’ instructional planning.

"Oral history projects are a great way to have our students experience the history that we are teaching," says Adam.

"The students are also conducting a service by recording stories that will be preserved and that could have otherwise been lost," adds Paul.

Prior to conducting the interviews, the students spent six weeks learning about the relevant history, reading locally produced texts and researching other Lummi oral histories. Working in small groups, the students developed interview questions, worked on interview techniques, and developed an awareness and sensitivity about cultural differences. While the students unanimously described the interview process as "nerve-racking," many also described facts and ideas that they learned from their interviewees, as well as new insights into a culture and group of people who they didn’t know much about.

"It’s so different talking to real people," says sophomore Ryan Greene. "You’re talking to an actual person and hearing how history has impacted them."

Following the interviews, the student teams reviewed their notes and listened to their audio-recordings in order to write up drafts of the oral histories, which were then sent to the interviewees for editing and fact checking. Juanita Jefferson, who works at the Lummi Archives and is a member of the Lummi Nation, was interviewed by a group of Windward students. She agreed to participate because she felt like it was an opportunity for two communities to "get to know one another and develop trust." Referencing a long history of racial tension between the Ferndale community and the Lummi Nation, Juanita says, "Through this project, Windward has taken a proactive approach to get to know the people in the community and not just accept stereotypes."