IBSC Exploring Boys' Education Podcast

Episode 8

Teacher Feature: Harness the Power of Narrative to Teach Boys

For thousands of years people have used stories to process and make sense of the world around them. Stories connect us to one another, helping us learn about our history and ancestors. We tell our own stories to transform ourselves, inspire others, and help define our own identity. When we listen to other people’s stories, we develop empathy, understanding, and a tolerance of difference and “otherness”—we begin to recognize the world from multiple perspectives.

Stories have always held a strong appeal for the human brain. Research shows that when we learn through stories, we improve content retention and recall of key ideas. Stories encourage deep learning by establishing significant links and connections.

In this episode of the IBSC Exploring Boys’ Education podcast, Bruce Collins interviews seven teachers from IBSC member schools who have successfully implemented storytelling as a pedagogy in their schools. These teachers from Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa describe how they use of narrative in their classes. They discuss the impact on their teaching and offer advice for other teachers who want to explore using stories in class. Each highlights key research underpinning the use of narrative as a pedagogy.

For more ideas on proven strategies in the classroom, check out the top 10 action research reports from 2018-19 in IBSC Member Center.

We welcome your voice notes in response to IBSC Exploring Boys’ Education episodes. Leave a comment or highlight how you’re using the podcast in your school. Please send WhatsApp voice notes to Bruce Collins at +27 71 8911 898 or email voice memos to IBSC@theibsc.org. We’d like to feature as many of your voices as possible in future podcast episodes.

Patricia Alviano
Patricia Alviano

Middle School
Learning Support Specialist
Crescent School (Canada)
@palviano2

Patrick Ell
Patrick Ell
Year 6 Teacher and
Thomas Housemaster
The King’s School
Preparatory School
(Australia)

Penny Horsley
Penny Horsley
English Teacher

SHORE School (Australia)

Melissa Ramon
Melissa Ramon
Librarian and Middle
School Teacher

St. Andrew's College
(Canada)
@melissaeramon

Nicole Richardson

Nicole Richardson
Grade 3, 4 & 5 Afrikaans Teacher
St. Peter’s Boys’ Prep
(South Africa)
@nicrichteach

Catherine Steenhoff
Catherine Steenhoff

Deputy Head: Director of academics
St. Peter’s Boys’ Prep
(South Africa)

Richard van Dam

Richard van Dam
Teacher, Cabin Coach
and Outdoor Instructor
Dilworth School
(New Zealand)
@richard_vandam

Bruce Collins
Bruce Collins
IBSC Director of
Membership Engagement

IBSC Exploring Boys’ Education music composed and performed by Tom DiGiovanni.