Narrative in teaching and learning: Narrative research

My experience with Narrative practice has been in the area of counseling or psychotherapy. In Narrative psychotherapy one generally works with clients to support the externalization of specific problems. Specifically, one works with clients to support the notion that “the problem is the problem - the person is NOT the problem”. Through a process of meaning making, we work to support clients to externalize problems and reconstruct their narratives such that they have a better understanding of “the problem’s” effect on their lives. Through narrative therapy, clients work to “re-author” or “re-story” their life’s narratives.

Taking this knowledge and applying it to teaching, learning, and narrative research, the idea of “re-storying” continues to be meaningful for me. Narrative is the process of meaning making in teaching, learning and research. The process of narration is suggestive of a narrator and an audience. In essence, we are not so much just telling a story of what happened, we are making meaning of what happened in teaching, learning, and research. In terms of assessment in teaching, I cannot help but compare and contrast narrative methods with more objective, quantitative means of assessment. In narrative assessment, we work with students to make meaning of what has been learned. Portfolios are often used as a means of narrative assessment. Using portfolios in teaching and learning serves to foster reflective practice for students. Portfolios are both a process of reflective inquiry as well as a means of documenting what is known, what is learned, and what can be used in the future. Bruner (1986) has argued that Narrative is a way of learning.

As I am writing this, I am wondering ….how I can work to combine my Narrative work in counseling and psychotherapy with that of teaching? I am also wondering … how can we promote authentic narrative practice in teaching and learning within the high demands of the education profession. In my experience, Narrative practice takes both time and space for ideas and reflections to surface (it is creative) - how can we expect this to happen authentically within high stress and high-demand situations? How can we prevent students (and teachers) from simply “going through the motions” as they will do when there are so many other expectations and/or stressors. How can we balance qualitative with quantitative ways of teaching and learning to support optimum development in out teachers and our students?