Narrative
Is the style of teaching principally narrative, or is it
expository?
Narrative is identified as a sequence of events chained together.
The use of narrative in lessons is identified by an emphasis in teaching and
in student responses on structures and forms. These may include the use of
personal stories, biographies, historical accounts, literary and cultural
texts.
Expository is identified as an emphasis on written, non-fiction
prose, scientific and expository expression both in lesson teaching and student
responses. Examples are descriptions, reports, explanations, demonstrations,
documentaries.
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At no point is narrative used in the lesson, all teaching and content
remain expository.
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The lesson processes and content are evenly split between narrative and
expository forms.
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Almost all of the lesson processes and almost all of the lesson content
are narrative.
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In one year 6 social science class a teacher was dealing with the sensitive
topic of racism and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander studies. He provided
a detailed description of his childhood experiences in a small provincial
city. He gave a very clear account of this story through a child's eyes.
He then told the class about his recent visit to an Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander museum in his childhood town. It was only then that he came
to understand the difficulties and oppressions which Aboriginal people in
his town had faced. He spoke of racism, and of that of the townsfolk, which
was a product of the lack of knowledge about historical issues relating to
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
This narrative was a very powerful device for demonstrating the impact of
racism on a child's interpretation of the world. It was clearly more powerful
than many an exposition on racism.
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