Telling your own never-ending story

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Telling your own never-ending story

• Steve Outram

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• It is useless to attempt to reason a man out
  of what he was never reasoned into
• Jonathan Swift

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What makes for a good story?

• A well-told story has a protagonist, a plot, a
  turning point leading to a resolution
• Choosing the right story
• Who I am stories
• Why I am here stories
• The Vision story
• Teaching stories
• Values in action stories
• I know what you are thinking stories
• Springboard stories
• The Story Factor Annette Simmons

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Common characteristics

• Senior staff as archetypal champions
• Heroes and heroines with appropriate skills
• Plot ( where things could either way)
• Clear vision/ clarifying vision
• Magicians ( with devices)
• Villains time, resistant colleagues,
  bureaucracy
• Dealing with the irrationality of change

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Higher Education Archetypes

• The Hero/ Heroine
• The creative power of decision
• The Magician
• Using imagination
• Using devices
• The Warrior
• - The champion/ advocate
• The Scholar ( Student/ Sage)
• - The lifelong learner
• The Fool
• The communicator at court crossing social
  boundaries/ emotional register
• Boldt, Zen and the Art of Making a Living, 1993

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Title of Story The story of the lecturer who read from his text book Focus Active learning Significant Events Lecturing from text book Students being autonomous Improved results
Fellowship Section 4a/ 4b Key Players Tutor 12 students Students father Evidence n/a
Let me tell you a story told to me by a most respected staff and educational developer. It concerns one of his children studying at a quite prestigious university who had telephoned to complain that the lecturer for an option course she was taking did nothing for his lectures other than read a chapter out of the text book that he had authored. What could she do? Lets see, replied her father. How many are taking this option? Twelve she replied. This is what you do he said. Contribute 5 each and go into the town and buy the text book His daughter was studying a subject where text books are usually quite expensive in this case it cost 50. Is the remainder of the money for the bus fare? she enquired. Not at all said her father with a smile on his face it is for a Stanley Knife. He gave her the following instructions. That she should use the knife to chop the book into three equal parts. The twelve students should divide themselves into three study groups and it would be the job of each group to teach the other two from the third of the book they had been allocated. This they did and, since they had the book, attended no more lectures. At the end of year examination they all did extremely well so well, in fact, that the tutor received a teaching award from the university to congratulate him on the improvements he must have made in his teaching! Key Feelings Disappointment in tutors conduct Support for students Ruefulness at teaching award Processing of Experience I now realise that I have concentrated on supporting the students and have omitted to engage with what needs the tutor might have had. Outcomes lessons learned doing it differently next time Obviously not to lecture from texts Engaging students in peer supported learning at the outset
Insights An example of how the focus ought to be on student learning rather than tutor lecturing Evidence to support active learning evidence of how recognising and rewarding schemes might have unintended consequences Insights An example of how the focus ought to be on student learning rather than tutor lecturing Evidence to support active learning evidence of how recognising and rewarding schemes might have unintended consequences Insights An example of how the focus ought to be on student learning rather than tutor lecturing Evidence to support active learning evidence of how recognising and rewarding schemes might have unintended consequences
New Insights gained while sharing the story To ask what the motivation of the tutor was to save time to stroke his ego maybe it was a very good text that others also teach from? I might be too judgemental? New Insights gained while sharing the story To ask what the motivation of the tutor was to save time to stroke his ego maybe it was a very good text that others also teach from? I might be too judgemental? New Insights gained while sharing the story To ask what the motivation of the tutor was to save time to stroke his ego maybe it was a very good text that others also teach from? I might be too judgemental?
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Story Template
Title of Story Focus Significant Events
Title of Story Key Players
Key Feelings Processing of Experience Outcomes lessons learned doing it differently next time
Insights Insights Insights
New Insights gained while sharing the story New Insights gained while sharing the story New Insights gained while sharing the story
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Activity

• Spend 10 minutes thinking about your FDTL Story
• Complete the story template as much as you can
  but not the final reflective box
• Now tell your story to a partner
• Reflect on the story one more time and see if you
  can gain a new insight
• If you have finished before time, go and find
  another partner

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references

• Janice McDrury Maxine Alterio, 2003, Learning
  Through Storytelling in Higher Education Using
  Reflection and Experience to Improve Learning
  Kogan Page, London
• Moon, J 1999, Reflection in learning and
  professional development, London Kogan Page Ltd.
• Simmons, A, (2001) The Story Factor inspiration,
  influence, and persuasion through the art of
  storytelling Perseus Books Group, Cambridge MA
• Christine Barter and Emma Renold , The Use of
  Vignettes in Qualitative Research, Social
  Research Update Issue 25, Summer 1999 URL
  http//www.soc.surrey.ac.uk/sru/SRU25.html
• Stephen Denning, 2005, The Leaders Guide to
  Storytelling Jossey-Bass
• Larence G. Boldt, 1993, Zen and the Art of Making
  a Living, Peguin Arkana