Social 9: Humans of Holy Cross Project

Background:
The lived experiences of immigration will vary for individual to individual; it is important in the discussion of
immigration to recognize and reflect on the overall impact political, economic, and social factors have on citizens’
quality of life when they choose to live in Canada. Opening up to the challenges and opportunities that
immigration have brought to individuals within our community can give us greater appreciation for the impacts
immigration has around us.

Critical/Essential Questions:
What are the most important issues facing immigration (process and/or people) in Canada?

Task:
In groups of 2-3, you will edit one page on a class google site by:
• Conducting an interview with a person in the Holy Cross community about their immigration story by:
o Generating precise questions for the interview that are planned in addition to organic, intentional
follow up questions to extract more information (see graphic organizer below)
o Permission must be attained by all interviewees prior to the interview and submitted with your
rubric (see Acknowledgement of Consent below)
o Collect relevant data – notes, pictures (of interviewee and/or relevant artifacts)
• Consolidating and presenting the information on the google site in the style of a photoblog (c.f., Humans
of New York, Humans of UCalgary). Each blog entry should include:
o A picture of the individual (if consent is given) and/or pictures of relevant artifacts that enhance
the aesthetic and thematic content of the blog
o An engaging quote from the interviewee that acts as a hook to their story
o A judicious account of the interviewee’s story in regard to their lived experience with immigration
(you may write this in first-person or third-person narrative voice)
• Conclude your page with a final section that includes your group’s insightful reflection to the following
questions, supported by evidence found in the stories collected or additional referenced data:
o What are the reasons and opportunities that individuals immigrate to Canada for?
o What challenges do immigrants face or does immigration have on Canadians?
o How does immigration support the goals and community of Canada?

Guiding Question:

What are the immigration stories of how our community members coming to Canada? What were the push
or pull factors of coming to Canada?

In what ways was immigrating to Canada difficult? What types of challenges and supports were offered
in that experience?

In what ways do our community of immigrants contribute to the community and Canada? What issues are
there about immigration that the government has a role in resolving?

* Note: As part of good journalism, you may interview more individuals but need to publish 1 blog minimum in
addition to your conclusion. All interviews should be conducted with at least 2 members of the group.

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 Creating Your Interview Questions

A semi-planned interview includes both questions that an interviewer will go in with the intention to ask, along
with follow-up questions that may arise from conversation with the interviewee for clarification, further
elaboration, or tangential exploration. A good journalist will go in prepared with planned questions that seek to
draw information that would answer their research question.

Use the following graphic organizer to plan a list of questions that you WILL ask your interviewees and justify
what purpose those questions will seek to answer. Submit this graphic organizer, or a similar one, to be evaluated.

Planned Questions Purpose

Record a list of planned questions here. Record the research question that you hope will be
answered with your planned questions. You may wish
to organize your questions according to this category
for the flow of your interview.

2
3
Unplanned Questions
Sometimes new themes or more information is needed during the process of the interview in order to collect
more enriched data. Record these unplanned questions here.

4
 Acknowledgement of Consent

I, _______________________________________ (full name), sign and acknowledge that I

consent to be interviewed for the purpose of this grade 9 social studies project.

I acknowledge that all information I share is of my own volition and agree to allow that to be

published and shared for the internal use of the grade 9 project. I further give consent for my picture or

picture(s) of other artifacts of my own provision to the group to be published in the same project.

I acknowledge that I have been informed of the nature and purpose of the interview, and that I am

allowed to withdraw from the interview and rescind my consent at any time. At which point, the group

will not be able to publish my story or any information related therein on their project.

Signed:

_________________________________________
Name (print), interviewee

_________________________________________
Signature, interviewee

_________________________________________
Date

5
Rubric for Humans of Holy Cross Project
Excellent Proficient Satisfactory Limited Poor
Quality of Questions List of questions List of questions List of questions List of questions List of questions
[5] contained a robust contained a mixture of contained some open contained mostly showed no planning
mixture of closed and closed and open questions that were closed questions that to answer research
open questions that questions that were simple in purpose to were lacking in questions. [1]
were intentional in thoughtful in purpose answer generalized purpose to answer
purpose to answer to answer relevant research questions. [3] insufficient research
precise research research questions. [4] questions. [2]
questions. [5]

Quality of Website A judicious account An informative A generalized A simple account of A lacking account of
[10] of the story is account of the story is account of the story is the story is the story is without
enhanced by visuals enforced by visuals to supported by visuals accompanied by visuals to fulfill the
to fulfill the purpose fulfill the purpose of to fulfill the purpose visuals to fulfill the purpose of the
of the assignment in the assignment in a of the assignment in a purpose of the assignment in a
an engaged manner. detailed manner. [7- straightforward assignment in a minimalistic manner.
[9-10] 8] manner. [5-6] haphazard manner. [1-2]
[3-4]

Quality of Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion

Understanding [10] demonstrates an demonstrates a demonstrates a demonstrates a demonstrates a
insightful purposeful satisfactory superficial faltering
understanding of the understanding of the understanding of the understanding of the understanding of the
content that is content that is content that is related content that is content that is
supported by substantiated by to evidence. [5-6] unrelated to contrary or without
evidence. [9-10] evidence. [7-8] evidence. [3-4] support by evidence.
[1-2]