Narrative Pedagogy
Learning and Narrative Pedagogy
Re-reading Jennie’s narrative and Scherto’s conversations with her, Jennie and Scherto both agreed that the narrative encounter between them resulted in a consolidation of Jennie’s long held beliefs and values. It is also transformative not in the sense of a dramatic change, but through developing her professional and personal integrity. Jennie concluded that the narrative exchange had enabled her to understand that there is little division between her work as a nurse and her life as a person. She was content that she is able to lead a life of such integrity and shall continue to do so.
6. Dialogue and reflection
Scherto:
In this chapter, our focus is on developing narrative pedagogy. We realised that it is not an easy task to show how the process of facilitation is carried out in a small space such as this book, nevertheless we chose Jennie’s narrative as a case study to give an example of how her voice shifts as the result of the dialogic interaction. Do you think through this excerpt, we were able to give the reader a flavour of the working of narrative pedagogy?
Ivor:
Yes, and no. Your conversation with Jennie hinges on the so-called ‘academic failure’ which seems to have occupied a big space in her narration. The reason that the theme was attractive to you was because of the kind of background you came from and the kind of interest you have in academia. If it were another person who is interested in music or who is interested in healthcare issues, the conversation between Jennie and the other interlocutor may have zoomed in on a different focus. This shows that narrative pedagogy is not to be detached from the identity and authenticity of the educator/facilitator as we have claimed earlier. So in this sense, it does give the reader a flavour.
Ivor:
It hasn’t worked in terms of exhibiting the process of narrative pedagogy. The excerpt does not offer any insight into how deep listening is, and how the two of you went through the chaotic process of collaboration and the strenuous exchange trying to locate the narrative within a broader historical and political context of British education. Neither does your excerpt give the reader a sense of how the broad pathology we tentatively put forward in this chapter might work in a pedagogical intervention.
