Writing for Immediacy: Narrative Writing as a Teaching Technique in Undergraduate Cultural Geography

Abstract

Narrative inquiry is an innovative means of encouraging students to internalize concepts, reflect on experiences or create applications for theoretical ideas. The use of first-person creative writing in a second-year cultural geography course prompted initial scepticism from students but eventually highlighted their constructivist engagement with course concepts. Despite a number of ethical, evaluative and moral dilemmas, encouraging the use of creative writing as a form of narrative inquiry allowed students to tell their stories so that they were valued and connected to wider disciplinary concepts.

Keywords:

• Narrative inquiry
• creative writing
• experiential learning

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge with gratitude the many contributions of the students of Geography and Environment 2311, Introduction to Cultural Geography, Fall term 2007, including their contributions to the figures included in this paper. In addition, the valuable advice of Eileen Herteis, Director of Mount Allison University's Purdy Crawford Teaching Centre, is gratefully acknowledged, as are the generous and insightful comments of the reviewers and editor.