LEADING THROUGH STORYTELLING
Becca Monteleone, PhD�Disability Studies�University of Toledo
NEED A CLOSER LOOK?
www.plaintruthproject.org/access
AGENDA
Why Storytelling?
What Stories to Tell?
How to Tell Stories to Many Different Audiences?
WHY STORYTELLING?
WHAT KINDS OF STORIES COMMONLY GET TOLD ABOUT PEOPLE WITH I/DD?
AS SOMEONE ELSE’S “GOOD DEED”
AS PASSIVE VICTIMS
BOTH THESE MODELS PERPETUATE MYTHS AND STEREOTYPES
IT’S A JUSTICE ISSUE
When we rely on stereotypes, people with intellectual disabilities have their experiences and knowledge invalidated. Historically, this has resulted in:
YOUR WORK CONTAINS STORIES THAT CHALLENGE THESE STEREOTYPES AND MYTHS
How do you currently share about your work?
WHY DO WE TELL STORIES?
WHAT DOES STORYTELLING DO THAT OTHER KINDS OF KNOWLEDGE SHARING DOESN’T?
Reaches a wider, more diverse audience
Creates an emotional and personal connection
Gets at ambiguities and intangibles
Opens up new conversations
WHAT STORIES TO TELL?
WHAT DOES STORYTELLING LOOK LIKE?
START AT THE BEGINNING…
A story is a moment, not a report
QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN CHOOSING A TOPIC:
WHAT STORIES ARE MINE TO TELL?
The Ethics of Storytelling
THINGS TO CONSIDER
STEP 1: THINK OF A KEY MEMORY IN YOUR OWN WORK/EXPERIENCE AT THE NISONGER CENTER (ONE MOMENT!)
Who is your audience? What does this audience need to take away?
What would they be surprised to learn about your work/experience?
What’s something people frequently get wrong about this subject?
What was a pivotal moment in your own thinking about this subject? (don’t be afraid to share your own growth!)
Where do you fit in the story (why are you the right person to tell it?)
ASK YOURSELF: WHY DO I WANT TO SHARE THIS STORY? �
STEP 2: ESTABLISHING THE KEY DETAILS
Setting: Time, place
Characters: Who they are, their relationships
Plot: What changes from the beginning to the end (avoid simply describing a program or place)
What information does the audience NEED to know to understand the story
STEP 3: ADDING RICHNESS
STEP 4: RECORD YOURSELF
TAKE A MOMENT AND SHARE YOUR STORY WITH SOMEONE AROUND YOU
Listeners: offer additional questions and feedback
STORIES TAKE MANY FORMS!
STEP 5: DECIDE HOW TO SHARE YOUR STORY
HOW TO TELL STORIES TO MANY DIFFERENT AUDIENCES?
AS PROFESSIONALS, WE TEND TO RELY ON:
These things can make our stories hard to understand!
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
Tyrone Weedon/Make Studio for ProPublica
CHARACTERISTICS OF PLAIN LANGUAGE
Single clause sentences
Active tense
Repeat nouns instead of using pronouns (especially at the beginning of a new paragraph)
Bulleted lists
Vocabulary familiar to your reader
Clear chronology
Explanations of new/crucial ideas, terminology, or quotes
WHAT PLAIN LANGUAGE IS NOT
Censoring content
“Dumbing” things down
Automatically shorter than the original
A universal accessibility solution
The automatic preference for people with intellectual disabilities
HELPFUL TOOLS
Writing guides
Thesaurus
Lists of most frequently occurring words
PLAINTRUTHPROJECT.ORG/PLAIN-LANGUAGE-GUIDES-DATABASE
NO IDEAS ARE TOO COMPLEX
DESCRIBE YOUR JOB OR RESEARCH AREA USING ONLY THE 1000 MOST COMMONLY OCCURRING ENGLISH WORDS
Up-Goer 5: https://splasho.com/upgoer5/
DESCRIBE YOUR JOB USING ONLY THE 1000 MOST COMMONLY OCCURRING ENGLISH WORDS
TRY IT OUT!
TRANSLATE TO PLAIN LANGUAGE
Mission Statement� �The mission of The Ohio State University Nisonger Center is to empower and support all people with developmental disabilities and their families through interdisciplinary training, research, and service.� �Vision Statement� �To cultivate an inclusive environment for all individuals, through the highest quality of interdisciplinary care, education, and research to support people with developmental disabilities.
DEFINING KEY TERMS
The Nisonger Center values are the commitments made by our faculty, staff, and students regarding how we will carry out our work. Our values include:
RESOURCES
THANK YOU!
Rebecca.Monteleone@utoledo.edu
RebeccaMonteleone.com