Mythic Learning Design
Learning is as old as humanity itself. The advent of the internet hasn’t changed that. The key difference today is the distance between the teacher and the learner - both in location and time.
When the learner is no longer in the same place as the teacher, and learning can happen asynchronously, it’s more important than ever that the content we create can be remembered and acted upon.
How do we do this?
By telling stories.
Why stories?
Stories are universal
Every culture, in every part of the world, tells stories. While the language may change, the themes and narratives do not. Love, loss, hope, adventure - no matter who you are or where you come from, you can tell me a story you remember about these.
The planets - Many Volcanoes Erupt Mulberry Jam Sandwiches Under Normal Pressure
Stories are remembered
Not only do stories survive, they aid memory and knowledge retention. Strategies for memorizing data such as mnemonics usually revolve around telling yourself a story, or otherwise imbuing faceless data with human meaning.
Stories are emotive
Very few learners are genuinely interested in the finer points of Data Protection legislation. However, if you were to tell them about Erika and a personal data breach that caused her son real problems at school, they’ll easily be able to tell you what went wrong.
So what stories do I tell?
The best stories come from the learners themselves! Where trainers often go wrong is to create a ‘top down’ story, quickly constructing an artificial narrative in service of a particular learning point they want to cover. This usually leads to shallow tales which are disregarded by learners.
I prefer, instead, to reach out to your learners directly, and give them the opportunity to share their experiences with you. Not only does this give you accurate and relevant scenarios for teaching, it also helps the learner to feel heard, valued, and acknowledged.
The Labours of Hercules
The final step is to weave these individual stories into an overall narrative journey, which both covers the required syllabus and allows the characters to develop. Consistent settings and characters allow learners to build emotional connections and suspend disbelief.