Lecture 29: Interviewing

Module 12Dr. Jessica Laccetti

Outline

Analysis of an Interview

Your Turn

Who is Alison Redford

14th Premier of Alberta

Assumed office on 7th of October 2011

Born 7th of March, 1965 = 46

Born in Kitimat, B.C.

Studied at University of Saskatchewan

Profession: Lawyer

Canada’s 8th female premier

With a Partner

Read the article

In a blog comment note: Direct and indirect quotes, including partial quotes Generate a list of questions you imagine the

reporters asked to get these quotes. How do you think the reporters, Josh Wingrove and Steven Chase, got the Premier talking? How did the reports get Alison Redford to provide the information and quotations?

Be ready to share your questions with the class

15 minutes

Alberta Premier on path to push province toward its potentialhttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/alberta-premier-on-path-to-push-province-toward-its-potential/article2242260/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=

2242260

Ms. Redford this week crisscrossed the continent, visiting Washington, New York, Toronto, Ottawa and home to Alberta with a message: Alberta must stop turning a deaf ear to critics of Alberta’s oil sands and petroleum extraction but include them in decisions.

She said the province “can’t shy away from criticism and disagreement” because “too often we speak past each other and refuse to engage with those that see things differently.”

With praise for the Ontario government’s support of wind and solar energy, Ms. Redford introduced the potential for interprovincial co-operation on matters from health care to energy. She invited Ontario, in economic disrepair because of the retreat of its manufacturing base, to adopt a new destiny and become a global energy leader along with Alberta.

She went further, saying no single source of energy across Canada – from Alberta to Quebec’s hydro power – is better than any other.

“It’s not Alberta’s job to go to the table, pounding the fist and saying, ‘We demand anything because we’re Alberta,” Ms. Redford said in an interview. “What I will say is Alberta wants to be much more present than we have in the past.”

She is not without problems – the province has a soaring budget deficit, and Ms. Redford has been accused of breaking promises made during her successful leadership campaign in the early fall, raising questions about whether she can deliver on her ambitious national agenda. And at home in Alberta, Ms. Redford will face an election within six months.

With a Partner

Brainstorm at least five questions you would ask Premier Redford

Tweet @JessL with a question you would ask

10 min.

Tips for Interview Questions

Research: Read and obtain background info. About the subject, source or topic

Ask simple questions: Questions should be short & focused

Use open-ended questions: Why, how, tell me about, how does that make you feel?

Ask follow-up questions: listen to the answers

Be conversational: be informal, refrain from being overly scripted

Your Turn

Find a partner

One person will be the interviewer, the other will be the interviewee

Topic: Social media use in the undergraduate classroom

You will have 5 min. to generate your questions

5 min. to conduct your interview

10 min. to write it and post it on a google doc, share the link on the blog (remember to make your doc accessible)