Analysing stories
In analysing stories, McDrury and Alterio (2003) focus on the reflective practice processes that
occur pointing out that, as the storyteller becomes adept at storytelling the reflections become less
focused on themselves and more oriented towards the contexts and the events that occurred. They
will also become more aware of the impact they are having.
Further, in telling and analysing this story there is, as Moon (1999) would argue, an opportunity for
metacognition - there is an unfolding to this story – a reflection on the reflections – and it is,
therefore, emergent and defies the ‘best advice’ given to reflective practitioner portfolio building; to
start with the evidence and align that with the assessment criteria through some sort of narrative!
The outcomes within this narrative are not yet known, they are generative. This can be readily
seen by using an adapted version of the analytical model developed by McDrury and Alterio (2003).
Figure 1. Story Template
Title of Story
Focus
Key Players:
Doing a presentation on evaluation at a Change
Academy residential
Significant Events
Evidence
Change
Academy
participants,
planning team;
self
Key Feelings
Presentation;
feedback sheets
Story
Let me tell you a story about when I first joined the
Change Academy team and I was given the task of
preparing a session on evaluation. Change
Academy was a joint Higher Education Academy
and Leadership Foundation programme that lasted
a year and where institutional teams were
supported in their aim of bringing about
sustainable, transformational change. The model of
change that informed this programme was based
on the principle that successful change in
universities and colleges is emergent; is likely to be
chaotic and cannot be pinned down to a particular
timeline. Emergent change is not amenable to the
usual evaluation methods such as ascertaining
whether the objectives of the project were met
within the given timeframe and within budget. I
spent a lot of time in York University library
researching possible alternative methods and then
Elation that it
seemed to go
well;
disappointment
that it was not
particularly well
received
Processing of
Experience
Outcomes; lessons
learned; doing it
differently next time
On the night there
was a good outcome
– lots of energy and
good humour at a
time when people
had been working
intensively and were
tired. The impact,
however, was
negligible. A
practical session
would have been
better, particularly
have people had
been given tools etc
to work with,
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