Bridging the clinical and academic through creativity and narratives

Abstract

ABSTRACT Despite my extensive experience as a clinician, my experiences as an educator were limited. When first asked to teach a graduate-level course, I was given a syllabus, a classroom, and a list of students. I entered the first few class sessions unsure and afraid until I realized that some of the same principles that guided my narrative-based clinical practice could be adapted for successful integration into the classroom. This article explores my parallel process in incorporating five concepts—engagement, “narrative show and tell,” creative play, simplicity, and voice—into both my clinical practice and my pedagogical approach as a graduate social work educator. I identify how these principles informed the development of innovative teaching exercises and explore how narrative therapy, relational-cultural theory, trauma-informed care, object relations theory, and relational pedagogy influenced my creative approach.