DIGNITY AS A CORE VALUE with faculty sharing based on prompts in a collective space. Now, we typically have one storyteller in each full faculty meeting using a series of prompts that are changed every year.
As a communicator who loves stories, the storytelling component of our faculty meetings quickly became a moving highlight of my week. I learned so much about colleagues with whom I did not interact regularly, and almost instantly felt that I understood their humanity so much better. The amount of immediate attention and affirmation that peers bestow on one another during these storytelling moments is special, and the fact that so many new teachers will willingly subject themselves to public speaking— an activity that is well known to be one of the top fears— speaks volumes about how important feeling seen and known is to them as well. Our initial connection may be no deeper than the fact that we all work at Browning and are all
“ I learned so much about colleagues with whom I did not interact regularly, and almost instantly felt that I understood their humanity so much better.” addressing the same story prompts— but the ways in which that connection can spread are limitless.
Storytelling and connection are now part of Browning’ s Core Four skills( the other two are constructive dialogue and studentship) that help a Browning boy lead a life of meaning through embodying our school’ s values. Designed to be taught in an age-appropriate manner throughout the curriculum, these skills allow boys to connect meaningfully with others using both reason and emotion. Our goal for our boys upon graduation— in addition to all of the other academic achievements they will have had— is to be able to tell a story that is important to them to an audience that they care about. If they can experience the power of that, they will be in a better position to recognize the inherent worth and dignity in lives that they have never touched.
Any teenager’ s social media likely provides ample evidence that teaching boys how to have constructive dialogue is a good idea. But what does this have to do with dignity? Imagine a society where boys are taught the dual skills of logical argumentation and empathetic listening. A society where boys learn how to disagree or engage productively and dispassionately with ideas that they have never contemplated, or which are far from values they hold dear. Would they feel safer and more seen? Could they more easily see a uniting humanity, rather than a divisive threat, in a person who simply has different thoughts?
Continues on page 16
CSEE Connections Winter 2025 Page 15