BLM Demostration at KC Plaza 5.27.20 - first person account
I (as well as several others in my department) assign a natural narrative as one of the first assignments in my comp. classes. It has to be true, It has to have started in the past and finished in the past, and it has to detail the event from the writer's perspective. I recommend choosing events of a limited or discreet timeframe (a few hours, or days works much better than something that drags on for weeks or months). Here is a handout taken from Labov, and here is the rubric as I use it in one of my classes. It was used in training for Teaching Assistants at KU in the late 90's to early 2000's - which is where I codified my use of personal narratives.
This assignment doesn't require research, and students truly enjoy and appreciate telling and reading each others stories. The natural narrative may actually have first gained recognition or cachet through ice-breaking and team building. Natural narratives also provide opportunities to discover interests for research and a low-stakes chance to share values.
I generally recommend waiting 3 months - because making sense of an event takes time. Emotions will overpower words and make meaning more elusive. But sometimes an event is too powerful and you want to get it down fresh - to document not just feelings but facts: who, what, when, where, why and how. I have my own example from documenting my dad's "Celebration of Life." But while what I wrote wasn't good, it was incredibly valuable, and I will write that Natural Narrative soon.
My podcast the first week of June 2020 is one of those cases with Kahil Perkins. In class I would have students tell each other in groups, but here we shared the story over the phone using Google Voice. I then edited the interview in audacity - removing personal names, a few of my "um"s and a bunch of "so like"s. At the end I had her summarize the plot, and then stuck that at the beginning of the podcast. I like knowing where things will be going, and a good plot summary is analogous to a thesis statement. We generally don't know what that is until we have a solid draft.
I share this in podcast to demonstrate active listening and engagement - imperfect though it may be. As an interviewer, I did step on a few of my questions and/or interrupt, but we have rapport. ALSO, students tend to be too timid in asking questions. Sometimes real meaningful thought is hidden behind omissions of data. Listen Actively! Ask questions.
This assignment doesn't require research, and students truly enjoy and appreciate telling and reading each others stories. The natural narrative may actually have first gained recognition or cachet through ice-breaking and team building. Natural narratives also provide opportunities to discover interests for research and a low-stakes chance to share values.
I generally recommend waiting 3 months - because making sense of an event takes time. Emotions will overpower words and make meaning more elusive. But sometimes an event is too powerful and you want to get it down fresh - to document not just feelings but facts: who, what, when, where, why and how. I have my own example from documenting my dad's "Celebration of Life." But while what I wrote wasn't good, it was incredibly valuable, and I will write that Natural Narrative soon.
My podcast the first week of June 2020 is one of those cases with Kahil Perkins. In class I would have students tell each other in groups, but here we shared the story over the phone using Google Voice. I then edited the interview in audacity - removing personal names, a few of my "um"s and a bunch of "so like"s. At the end I had her summarize the plot, and then stuck that at the beginning of the podcast. I like knowing where things will be going, and a good plot summary is analogous to a thesis statement. We generally don't know what that is until we have a solid draft.
I share this in podcast to demonstrate active listening and engagement - imperfect though it may be. As an interviewer, I did step on a few of my questions and/or interrupt, but we have rapport. ALSO, students tend to be too timid in asking questions. Sometimes real meaningful thought is hidden behind omissions of data. Listen Actively! Ask questions.
Comments
Post a Comment