Learning, Teaching and Leadership

There I sat in my professor’s office, sobbing. “But it is such a lousy grade,” I said. “I’ll never get another scholarship. Then, how will I pay for school? I’ll have to drop out.”

I hated statistics, but it was a mandatory course in my research program. My grade was a passing one, but just barely.

Tim, in his Northern English fashion, didn’t really have much use for tears, but he knew that I was hurting. He retorted, “Look, you’re not going to drop out of school. It will work out just fine.”

“But how?” I sniveled.

“Let me tell you about the time I got a terrible grade in one of my courses in grad school…” He went on to tell me about an experience that paralleled my own. “I made it through OK, and so will you. After you’ve crossed that stage and you have your degree in hand, no one is going to ask you what your grade in statistics was! You passed. That’s enough. Now go on, and get back to work.”

Having my teacher and mentor share a story with me about his own shortcomings did not diminish his professional excellence in my eyes; in fact, it made me respect him even more. My point to you is this: Through our personal stories, as teachers we have an opportunity to create memorable learning experiences that motivate, inspire and teach our learners.

Here are some tips on how to incorporate stories into your teaching practice:

Be vulnerable 

Stories that show your humanity and your vulnerability are likely to resonate the most deeply with others. We are not talking about melodramatically pulling all your skeletons out of the closet and putting them on parade. It is about show-ing that you, too, are human. Adult learners in particular, can be hampered by a fear of failure. By sharing our failures and vulnerabilities, we become approachable and believable.

Get personal (just a little) 

Stories that are drawn from your own experience will have the most impact. Professional speaker, Patricia Fripp calls it “mining your experience”. Find the golden nuggets of your life and polish them. Then offer them as gifts of the heart.

Unless there is a good reason to do otherwise, tell your stories using the first person. They are your stories, after all.

Speak your truth 

Your stories will be more believable if they are true. A little bit of literary license is allowed, but at least 90% of the story should be accurate and true. If there is too much embellishment, others will pick up on it. If they do, then you lose credibility as a storyteller — and as a teacher. It is OK to massage the truth, just don’t stretch it too far.

Keep it short 

Keep your stories crisp, clean and to the point. Someone once told me that a story that relates directly to your lesson should take up a maximum of 5% of your teaching time. In a 60-minute class, your story should be a maximum of 3 minutes. If it is longer, students may tune out or get impatient. I have used that guideline in my teaching practice and it seems to work well.

Focus on the learner 

Your teaching stories may be about you, but they are for your learner. Edit out unnecessary details. Ask yourself, “How will this story help my learners?”

Make a point 

In teaching, we do not tell stories to simply to entertain our students. We use the entertainment and emotional elements of a story to create memorable learning experiences. The connection between your story and the point you are trying to make may not be obvious to the listener. Use transitional phrases such as “My point to you is…” to help others contextualize the story you have just shared with them.

How can you create memorable learning experiences for your students with stories? Your life is a gold mine of experience. What nuggets of life do you have to share with your students? The wisdom contained within them is priceless.

Related posts: 

• Storytelling resources for teachers
• Would you care for an earthworm with your coffee?: Turning language blunders into powerful teaching stories

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If you are interested in booking me (Sarah Eaton) for a presentation, keynote or workshop (either live or via webinar) contact me at sarahelaineeaton (at) gmail.com. Please visit my speaking page, too.