Navigating from Overvaluing numbers to valuing stories and numbers

The second mindshift in being a Curator is Navigating from Overvaluing numbers to valuing stories and numbers. You are valuing stories and numbers when you identify both quantitative and qualitative sources of evidence to tell a story. Curators who value stories and numbers use stories to humanize numbers. They use numbers and data to layer evidence to perspective in telling stories. They seek many different types of data and evidence to form a fuller picture of challenges and successes. In valuing both stories and numbers, curators try to uncover the stories behind the numbers and recognize that numbers alone can be used to obfuscate truth. 

Examples: 

• Collecting student stories as well as quantitative evidence 

• Asking learners to share their stories (writing, video, audio, etc.)

• Valuing learning artifacts

• Uncovering the story behind quantitative evidence

Non Examples: 

• Collecting only traditional quantitative metrics 

• Presenting only quantitative student performance data at conferences

• Devaluing learning artifacts 

• Overvaluing stories 

Questions I might ask myself:

• What are the benefits and drawbacks of using numbers as evidence?

• What are the benefits and drawbacks of using stories as evidence?

• How might we find a balance in the value of stories and numbers as evidence? What shifts must we make for ourselves? For our places of employment? In society?

• What is the impact of overvaluing numbers? What is the impact of undervaluing stories?

• What is the impact of undervaluing numbers? What is the impact of overvaluing stories?

Numbers tell a story but often lack context. When we value stories as much as we value numbers, we can begin to more deeply personalize and contextualize what we are actually learning.  When we use and value stories as much as numbers we can begin to dig into root causes and focus on upstream challenges so that we can begin to develop solutions that will last.  The stories that we can tell about these solutions allow others to learn from one another and ensure that a culture of storytelling evolves.