Narrative Pedagogy
Learning and Narrative Pedagogy
Man differs from the lower animals because he preserves his past experiences... man lives in a world where each occurrence is charged with echoes and reminiscences of what has gone before, where each event is a reminder of other things... man remembers, preserving and recording his experiences.
We naturally remember what interests us and because it interests us. The past is recalled not because of itself but because of what it adds to the present. Thus the primary life of memory is emotional rather than intellectual and practical... To revive it and revel in it is to enhance the present moment with a new meaning, a meaning different from that which actually belongs either to it or to the past... the conscious and truly human experience... comes when it is talked over and re-enacted... into a whole of meaning... John Dewey, Reconstruction in Philosophy, 1920, pp. 1-3
Introduction
In this book, our major task is to explore how life narratives can be pedagogic sites and to work towards the theory of narrative pedagogy. To do so, we started by defining what narrative is and the part it plays in social research in general and the challenges that this approach confronts (Chapters One and Two). We also examined the process of life history research, individuals' narrative characters and possible shifts in an individual's narratives as the result of dialogic interaction and reciprocal encounters and exchanges (Chapters Three & Four). Then we investigated more closely the nature of the narrative encounter and began to move away from life history research as the site for narrative exchange to a focus on exploring narrative as a pedagogic site and process for learning and transformation (Chapter Five). By doing so, we also looked at the how narratives connect with an individual’s identity and agency (Chapter Six).
In this chapter, we further expand on the concept of narrative learning and began to develop a theoretical framework narrative pedagogy. We also look at how educators can take the opportunities offered by encounters to facilitate profound learning.
