Storytelling as

Teaching Strategy
Andari Karina Anom (aanom@binus.edu)
Lecturer Engagement Series 2021
“If you want your children to be
smart, tell them stories. If you want
them to be really smart, tell them
more stories. If you want them to
be brilliant, tell them even more
stories.“
Albert Einstein
Today’s Stories
1. Can You Be a Storyteller and a Lecturer?
2. The Purposes of Storytelling in Class
3. What Makes Storytelling So Effective For Learning
4. How to Use Storytelling in Your Classroom
5. Finding and Selecting Stories
• Storytelling remains the most
important form of communication
• Storytelling is a fundamental part
of being human
• We all tell stories: bedtime story,
the story of your day, the story of
your life, character from TV shows,
the gossip, the news (even hoaxes)
• Storytelling constructs internal
narratives to help us
understand the world
• Stories creates an emotional
connection
• Storytelling makes the
information memorable
Can You Be a Storyteller
and a Lecturer?
• Good news: you already are!
• Teachers and lecturers are storytellers, and storytellers
have been teachers for centuries
• Storytelling is the oldest form of teaching
• Telling stories is one of the most powerful means to
influence, teach, and inspire
Stories can serve multiple functions in the classroom, including:
• sparking student interest
• aiding the flow of lectures
• making material memorable
• overcoming student resistance or anxiety
• building rapport between the lecturer and the students, or among students themselves
The Purposes of
Storytelling in Class
To Introduce a New Topic
• Telling a story is a great way to introduce a new topic. Think of it as an icebreaker
• It can allow students to relate to a topic and get them interested in it
• If you can’t think of your own story related to new topic, you can surf on the internet for
one that’s relatable to your topic
To Attract Unmotivated Learners
• Storytelling can help engage your unmotivated learners as long as you do it in a creative
way like using a game or fun activity
• You can use gesture, symbols, dramatic reading or physical object to tell your story.
To Illustrate a Concept
• Retaining hard facts does not come easy for everyone. That’s where storytelling can
come into save the day.
• You can use digital storytelling through the use of videos, apps, and audio to help
students retain information in a more creative and memorable way.
• Stories can also be told through pictures and illustrations. Show students a sequence of
pictures or illustrations depicting a specific concept and have them transcribe the story.
To Enhance any Subject
• Teaching through storytelling can bring a subject to life. It can make it more exciting and
possibly engage students to learn more about the topic
• Storytelling is a powerful tool that can turn any lesson into an adventure
• Storytelling is a powerful method of communication that can help anyone relate or se the
world from another’s perspective
What Makes Storytelling So
Effective For Learning?
 • Stories make us think and feel
• They stick in our minds and help us remember
ideas and concepts in a way that a PowerPoint
Stories Create with bar graphs never can.
• Characters are an important element of any
Interest stories can also make material concrete and
memorable by putting a human face on
theories and issues
 • Coherence is the hallmark of a good narrative
Stories Provide • Remembering a list of isolated concepts and
a Structure for definitions is difficult, but recalling the flow of a
research story may be easier for students
Remembering • Stories provide natural connections between
Course Material events and concepts, mentioning one part of the
story may help evoke the other parts of the story
Stories are a • Stories help students understand abstract concepts
• A narrative opening may seem simple and
Familiar and straightforward, allowing students to relax and
grasp a concrete example before moving into more
Accessible Form technical details of a theory or finding
of Sharing • Tales of previous students who struggled but then
succeeded might serve as inspiration for current
Information students
Telling a Story • Sharing experiences gives the class a new tone,
From Experience and makes the subject come alive
can Create • As long as every class session isn’t another chapter
from your autobiography, students enjoy seeing a
a More Personal glimpse of the human side of their lecturer
Student-Lecturer • Providing this kind of opening may inspire
reciprocity to share their opinions and experiences
Connection
How to Use Storytelling
in Your Classroom
 • Make sure you like and enjoy the story
yourself.
Pick the • If it captivates you, it will captivate your
audience
Story you • Tell the story in your own words

Love! • Adapt and improvise

Write the Stories in a Note

• Use story outline to help you remember the key

events
• When you start "telling" your story, it's OK to
have the book nearby and to take a look at it if
you forget a part
• Create a sequence or quadrans when needed
 • Encourage students to also share their story (their
Share your own experiences, examples, their thought on the
issue, etc.)
Story, Listen • Stories from your audience can create more
discussion to help them understand the topic

to Theirs better
Learn from • Watch professional storytellers and take notes
about how they do it
other • Every storyteller is different, and you can learn
something from them all
Storytellers
Read, Read and Read more!
• A good storyteller is a good reader
• Read books, news, story, fiction, nonfiction, social
media post, anything that you enjoy
• You never know where you will find story that can be
used for your class
Finding and Selecting
Stories
 CURRENT EVENTS HISTORY

Sources
for MOVIES OR TV
BOOKS
PROGRAMS
Teachable
Stories PERSONAL
EXPERIENCE STORIES ABOUT
(YOUR OWN AND HUMAN
OTHERS)
 Have a folder or notebook for teaching
stories

Preparin Make a habit of clipping relevant news

stories

g Stories Taking notes about events that are perfect

illustrations of concept in your course

Read stories and more stories!

Fiction will work
too
• Research results need to be true, but
stories do not
• Do not be afraid to use stories from
fiction, especially well-known fiction.
For instance, the children’s story “The
Emperor’s New Clothes”
demonstrates Social Influence Theory
in Communication
Now, tell us your experience
of storytelling in class
Thank You
Andari Karina Anom (aanom@binus.edu)
Communication Program Binus International
References
• Storytelling in Teaching https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/storytelling-in-teaching
• Storytelling in the Classroom as a Teaching Strategy
https://www.teachhub.com/classroom-activities/2015/08/storytelling-in-the-classroom-as-a-teaching-strategy/
• Storytelling is not just Entertainment. It's a Fundamental Part of being Human
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/storytelling-is-human-1.5511027
• What Makes Storytelling So Effective For Learning?
https://www.harvardbusiness.org/what-makes-storytelling-so-effective-for-learning/