tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post7390314313589488479..comments2024-03-26T11:50:32.354-05:00Comments on Youth Development Insight: The power of storytelling to foster understandingUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-24443813285056362122017-11-06T09:15:09.939-06:002017-11-06T09:15:09.939-06:00Yes, I love that quote--part of the premise being,...Yes, I love that quote--part of the premise being, if we knew the "enemy's" story, perhaps we could see them as less of an enemy.Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-52478361750531408542017-11-04T16:25:25.177-05:002017-11-04T16:25:25.177-05:00Jess, I love this blog--it is so salient for this ...Jess, I love this blog--it is so salient for this moment in our culture. When people get isolated in our "echo chambers", we no longer hear the very stories that might challenge our worldviews and crack open the door of our understanding and empathy. I love the quote (whose provenance is somewhat unclear), "An enemy is someone whose story you do not know." I think as educators one of the best things we can do is to create opportunities for sharing stories.Kathryn Sharpehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06875039923921709325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-83117583759101153662017-11-03T15:44:03.616-05:002017-11-03T15:44:03.616-05:00Oops...I responded to Joshua's comment before ...Oops...I responded to Joshua's comment before reading yours--yes, as you point out too, it's the story that sticks, and therefore very important in our reporting, as well as our teaching and facilitating with young people!Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-11864675472764123282017-11-03T15:42:44.446-05:002017-11-03T15:42:44.446-05:00Or maybe every data point you had was even more re...Or maybe every data point you had was even more relevant as a result of hearing the story! As I learned from Tzitel (see her comments above) in a workshop on storytelling this week, actually, it's the story that people will remember. They won't necessarily remember the data point. However, the story is what makes the data relevant.Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-90662275096537354612017-11-03T15:40:27.458-05:002017-11-03T15:40:27.458-05:00Thanks, Tzitel! Even in nonformal education settin...Thanks, Tzitel! Even in nonformal education setting (like after school programs), adults forget that theirs isn't the most important voice in the room. I think you're right that storytelling is at the heart of being a culturally responsive educator. Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-74272368714470033142017-11-03T10:27:13.760-05:002017-11-03T10:27:13.760-05:00I love this post and the comments. I'm glad to...I love this post and the comments. I'm glad to see that Josh brought in the use of data. As an evaluator, I want to make sure that we have strong data behind our communications, but when it's time to share out, the story is what sticks with people. Allowing space for youth to tell their stories about our program can be such a powerful complement to our reporting. Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09962075474602747314noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-83804455789122611712017-11-03T09:42:34.603-05:002017-11-03T09:42:34.603-05:00I am fortunate to work a bit in the White Earth co...I am fortunate to work a bit in the White Earth community. The stories I hear mix comedy, tragedy, and history so well and I always leave a calmer educator. I try my best when I teach to share stories and align them how they do it as well. Stories are such a great way to teach and learn. Stories level the playing field because they are so easy to relate to in your own context and establish an empathy. <br /><br />One other 'story' I will share about the power of stories is how I gave testimony at the MN Senate about after school programs. However, when a young person shared her first hand experience - attention was completely given to her and the elected officials and public were at the edge of their seats. Every data point I had was irrelevant afterwards. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03093293272807936932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-83923106369074093962017-11-02T19:48:50.726-05:002017-11-02T19:48:50.726-05:00"...we can provide space for young people to ..."...we can provide space for young people to tell their stories and hear the stories of others." <br /><br />I love this! So much of traditional education is spent directing and expecting students to quietly listen to teacher-directed lessons/content. However, teaching students how to share their stories, with each other, is at the heart of what it means to be a culturally responsive educator.<br /><br />Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Jess! Now I want to hear YOUR story...! :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03513561694795666210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-90934897813271561412017-11-02T17:06:34.962-05:002017-11-02T17:06:34.962-05:00Thanks, Anne. Isn't it interesting also that t...Thanks, Anne. Isn't it interesting also that the need for clarity is so high to begin with--sometimes we have to help people along by helping them make the emotional connection.Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-16623548367847239452017-11-02T16:59:11.046-05:002017-11-02T16:59:11.046-05:00Erin, I love your examples. Just hearing people...Erin, I love your examples. Just hearing people's everyday stories helps us gain a picture of our similarities and differences.Jessica Russohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00470440646448035307noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-73860282426424049812017-11-02T16:17:32.216-05:002017-11-02T16:17:32.216-05:00Thanks for generating an important conversation, J...Thanks for generating an important conversation, Jess. Your thoughts resonate deeply with my own experience.<br /><br />I live on a block in Minneapolis with residents from many ethnic, language and income backgrounds. On the surface, we look like the ideal diverse community. But stereotypes and assumptions run rampant. The only way we've found to move past what "looks good" into real and mutual relationships --is storytelling.<br /><br />When Lupe sits with my daughter and tells her about his life (while cleaning fish in the backyard)...<br /><br />When Iqran joins me on our front steps for lemonade and a heart-to-heart about the challenges of being a big sister...<br /><br />Or when Sherry would holler for my husband to come and commiserate about missing home...<br /><br />That's when we start to learn about how different, and similar, our neighbors' experiences are. Stories can draw us together and help us to see just how unique and precious each of us is.Erin Kelly-Collinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07300458906715051396noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8870492126959061342.post-83044716240786799952017-11-02T15:33:30.273-05:002017-11-02T15:33:30.273-05:00Jess, loved the article from Scientific American! ...Jess, loved the article from Scientific American! It raises some important points about how we can use story to help our young people become better thinkers and people who see a variety of perspectives with empathy! Tzitel Voss's workshop for our staff yesterday gave us some practical ways to do this more in our work! Thanks for the relevant post!Anne Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08608439444099940262noreply@blogger.com