Everybody Has a Story, VI

The ways and methods of the Freedom Writers as a pedagogical concept are not tied to theories but to practice and to practical life in the classroom. It therefore has more to do with tools than with books – and the most significant tool in the Freedom Writer pedagogy is the narrative. But even in a very practical world tools can be reflected on – and have to be reflected on in order to give us an idea about what is going on. So it is with narratives, too. Narratives are about lived lives, and a way to take or regain power over one’s life. Therefore, the narrative is a pathway to empowerment. By writing, reading or listening to the narratives the story-teller will experience forms of recognition that foster in him or her a feeling of self-confidence, self-esteem and self-appreciation – feeling that many have not been granted until now. This book is an account of a Freedom Writer-course, where practical writing- and art-exercises are ‘warming up’ the students – making them confident with the situation, each other and the published media – in order to write their own narrative.