Julie Mundy-Taylor | The University of Newcastle (original) (raw)

Papers by Julie Mundy-Taylor

Storytelling, Self, Society, 2012

Abstract:People with severe cognitive impairments have the same rights to happiness, subjective w... more Abstract:People with severe cognitive impairments have the same rights to happiness, subjective well-being and a (best) quality of life as all others. Storytelling can contribute to delivering these rights. Getting the most out of storytelling for audiences of people with severe cognitive impairments poses a significant challenge to both storytellers and others responsible for providing ongoing care and support. This challenge arises because these cognitive impairments get in the way of communication, understanding and memory and diminish the intensity and duration of positive storytelling experiences. "Collaborative stretching" is a simple, intuitive but evidence-based strategy for enhancing storytelling events and storytelling experiences for participants with severe cognitive impairments and ultimately for enhancing their quality of life.

This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or dip... more This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. I give consent to the final version of my thesis being made available worldwide when deposited in the University's Digital Repository, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968.

aair.org.au

In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, bu... more In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, but also institutions have embraced technological advances to create new facets to the teaching and learning process. The challenges offered by virtual learning as well as the impact of email and e-learning remain largely under-researched both broadly and in relation to first year transition. First year students are now expected to not only acquire the implicit academic discourse in a timely fashion but also master the computing skills so central to contemporary university delivery. Skills central to effective and efficient academic research and writing are often perceived in an atomized and disparate way. The information skills program outlined in this paper seeks to forge connections between the processes involved in locating information and producing essays. Utilising the requisite knowledge of staff from two areas, the objective is to highlight to students how skills required to obtain information in an often virtual environment can further inform assignment preparation. In this way the role of information literacy is negotiated as intrinsic to the essay writing process as opposed to something that is seen as external. The program has been developed in consultation with academic staff to ensure that relevant research topics are demonstrated. The paper will highlight facets of the workshop and explain the reasoning behind its construction and ongoing enhancement, as well as provide justification of the need for such programs within university environments in the light of increasing diverse student populations.

When possible, most people ‘prepare’ for favoured experiences and events in their lives. They org... more When possible, most people ‘prepare’ for favoured experiences and events in their lives. They organise / plan for the experiences beforehand, take the opportunity to engage in positive anticipations, and think about and/or discuss their positive expectations for these forthcoming experiences with valued others. (Hopefully these ‘lived experiences’ live up to these anticipations and expectations!) Most people also re-live, reflect on and reminisce about past favoured experiences and events, either personally and/or with important others. We have labeled this very prevalent strategy “Stretching” i.e. Stretching occurs when people ‘stretch out’ or value add to the enjoyment of their positive lived experiences through anticipation, expectation, reflection and reminiscence. Stretching can deliver repeated periods of enjoyment for months before an event and repeated periods of enjoyment for months and (even many) years after an event. This increased enjoyment leads to increased happiness,...

This workshop will illustrate the PAL technique with examples of stories used in a study of child... more This workshop will illustrate the PAL technique with examples of stories used in a study of children and examine the evidence obtained in the form of the recorded responses. Participants will be encouraged to share examples of stories from their own histories that come to mind during the telling.

Storytelling, Self, Society

This paper outlines the researcher-devised QUEST method to clarify and identify children'... more This paper outlines the researcher-devised QUEST method to clarify and identify children's engagement with oral storytelling. In a series of research challenges and solution-seeking processes, the storyteller worked with traditional storytelling approaches and also with contemporary digital recordings and analysis software to follow students' responses to storytelling experiences. As a result of deep analysis that looked beyond the raw data and questioned why certain responses occurred, a set of Indicators of Engagement were devised. Twenty-five indicators were identified that were further broken down in clusters of common types of engagement behaviors. These indicators can be applied to future studies, with both children and adults that investigate the intriguing phenomenon of storytelling.

This paper outlines the researcher-devised QUEST method to clarify and identify children's engage... more This paper outlines the researcher-devised QUEST method to clarify and identify children's engagement with oral storytelling. In a series of research challenges and solution-seeking processes, the storyteller worked with traditional storytelling approaches and also with contemporary digital recordings and analysis software to follow students' responses to storytelling experiences. As a result of deep analysis that looked beyond the raw data and questioned why certain responses occurred, a set of Indicators of Engagement were devised. Twenty-five indicators were identified that were further broken down in clusters of common types of engagement behaviors. These indicators can be applied to future studies, with both children and adults that investigate the intriguing phenomenon of storytelling.

Storytelling, Self, Society: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Storytelling Studies Vol. 8, Issue 2, p. 85-107

People with severe cognitive impairments have the same rights to happiness, subjective well-being... more People with severe cognitive impairments have the same rights to happiness, subjective well-being and a (best) quality of life as all others. Storytelling can contribute to delivering these rights. Getting the most out of storytelling for audiences of people with severe cognitive impairments poses a significant challenge to both storytellers and others responsible for providing ongoing care and support. This challenge arises because these cognitive impairments get in the way of communication, understanding and memory and diminish the intensity and duration of positive storytelling experiences. “Collaborative stretching” is a simple, intuitive but evidence-based strategy for enhancing storytelling events and storytelling experiences for participants with severe cognitive impairments and ultimately for enhancing their quality of life.

The SLD Experience Vol. 61, Issue 1, p. 8-12, 2011

When possible, most people ‘prepare’ for favoured experiences and events in their lives. They p... more When possible, most people ‘prepare’ for
favoured experiences and events in their lives.
They plan and organise for the experiences
beforehand, take the opportunity to engage in
positive anticipations, and think about and
discuss their positive expectations for these
forthcoming experiences with important
others. (Hopefully these ‘lived experiences’ live
up to these anticipations and expectations!)
Most people also re- live, reflect on and
reminisce about past favoured experiences
and events, either personally and/or with
important others.
We have labelled this very prevalent strategy
‘Stretching’ – ie, Stretching occurs when
people ‘stretch out’ or add value to the
enjoyment of their positive lived experiences
through anticipation, expectation, reflection
and reminiscence. Stretching can deliver
repeated periods of enjoyment for months
before an event and repeated periods of
enjoyment for months and (even many) years
after an event. This increased enjoyment leads
to increased happiness, subjective well- being
and ultimately improved (subjective) quality
of life.

Conference Presentations by Julie Mundy-Taylor

Old stories, New Ways: National Oral History Conference, 2007

""Humans are strong verbal communicators. We have spent millennia perfecting the art of conversat... more ""Humans are strong verbal communicators. We have spent millennia perfecting the art of conversation as a means of understanding each other, and of learning each others‘ life stories. On the other hand the process of the interview is a relatively new phenomenon, and one which, by its very structure, can hamper the exchange of information. When confronted by an interviewer with a set of typed questions, the usual reaction is to want to answer them as efficiently as possible. The wish is not to ―waste the person‘s time.‖
Yet people have always exchanged ideas through stories, and as Pastorelli points out, stories ―continue to remain a record of our memories and other significant experiences.""

Change, Evidence and Implementation: Improving Higher Education in Uncertain Times. 2007Australasian Association for Institutional Research Annual Forum . , 2007

In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, bu... more In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, but also institutions
have embraced technological advances to create new facets to the teaching and learning process. The challenges offered
by virtual learning as well as the impact of email and e‐learning remain largely under‐researched both broadly and in
relation to first year transition. First year students are now expected to not only acquire the implicit academic
discourse in a timely fashion, but also master the computing skills so integral to contemporary university delivery.
Skills central to effective and efficient academic research and writing are often perceived in an atomized and disparate
way. The information skills program outlined in this paper seeks to forge connections between the processes involved in
locating information and producing essays. Utilising the requisite knowledge of staff from two areas, the objective is to
highlight to students how skills required to obtain information in an often virtual environment can further inform
assignment preparation. In this way, the role of information literacy is negotiated as intrinsic to the essay writing
process, as opposed to something that is seen as external. The program has been developed in consultation with
academic staff to ensure that relevant research topics are demonstrated. The paper will highlight facets of the workshop
and explain the reasoning behind its construction and ongoing enhancement, as well as provide justification of the need
for such programs within university environments in the light of increasing diverse student populations.

Dissertation by Julie Mundy-Taylor

The value of storytelling in a busy world, awash with multiple sound bites, myriad visual grabs a... more The value of storytelling in a busy world, awash with multiple sound bites, myriad visual grabs and a seemingly endless input of information, is recognized and utilized in an increasing number of areas in modern society, including in all levels of education. Narrative is used in all cultures to give meaning to the human experience. When narrative is presented in the form of oral storytelling this meaning making and relevance are enhanced by focused listening and people are captivated by the shared experience that storytelling provides. This thesis addresses a gap in the literature about how children in particular engage with storytelling. In an innovative approach to storytelling research, this thesis systematically examines the observable responses of a group of primary school aged children to a long term programme of storytelling. 88 children across the school grades of Kindergarten, Third and Sixth class participated in 6 storytelling sessions each. This thesis places 12 of the videotaped storytelling sessions under critical scrutiny and analyses every verbal and physical response made by each child in order to measure both their individual and collective engagement with storytelling. In so doing, the thesis canvasses the challenges encountered in conducting such systematic research and utilises action research (Bryman, 2004; Gray, 2004) in the structure of the storytelling project and grounded theory (Dey, 1999; Glaser, 1998; Strauss & Corbin, 1998; Tuetteman, 2003) in the analysis of the collected data. Storytellers who wish to conduct similar research are provided in this thesis with a replicable method and a project template they can adapt to suit their own particular needs. The third part of the thesis is devoted to a detailed examination of what happened to the child participants as they listened to a wide variety of stories. Five clusters of Indicators of Engagement grew out of this research and they are employed as a means of measuring the individual responses to storytelling. The thesis establishes, in an academically rigorous manner, that there is indeed a means of measuring a listener’s engagement with storytelling.

Storytelling, Self, Society, 2012

aair.org.au

Storytelling, Self, Society

Storytelling, Self, Society: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Storytelling Studies Vol. 8, Issue 2, p. 85-107

The SLD Experience Vol. 61, Issue 1, p. 8-12, 2011

Old stories, New Ways: National Oral History Conference, 2007

Change, Evidence and Implementation: Improving Higher Education in Uncertain Times. 2007Australasian Association for Institutional Research Annual Forum . , 2007

In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, bu... more In contemporary university environments not only have student populations become more diverse, but also institutions
have embraced technological advances to create new facets to the teaching and learning process. The challenges offered
by virtual learning as well as the impact of email and e‐learning remain largely under‐researched both broadly and in
relation to first year transition. First year students are now expected to not only acquire the implicit academic
discourse in a timely fashion, but also master the computing skills so integral to contemporary university delivery.
Skills central to effective and efficient academic research and writing are often perceived in an atomized and disparate
way. The information skills program outlined in this paper seeks to forge connections between the processes involved in
locating information and producing essays. Utilising the requisite knowledge of staff from two areas, the objective is to
highlight to students how skills required to obtain information in an often virtual environment can further inform
assignment preparation. In this way, the role of information literacy is negotiated as intrinsic to the essay writing
process, as opposed to something that is seen as external. The program has been developed in consultation with
academic staff to ensure that relevant research topics are demonstrated. The paper will highlight facets of the workshop
and explain the reasoning behind its construction and ongoing enhancement, as well as provide justification of the need
for such programs within university environments in the light of increasing diverse student populations.