Narratives in a drug court setting

• Main Author: Keller, Anna Catherina Maria
• Format: Others
• Published: CSUSB ScholarWorks 2006
• Subjects: English language Composition and exercises Study and teaching; First person narrative Study and teaching (Higher); Education Biographical methods; Adult education; Drug courts California; Narrative therapy; Drug courts; Narrative therapy.; Education; Rhetoric and Composition
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/3176; https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4249&context=etd-project

The purpose of the project is to develop and evaluate a writing unit that could be used to teach adult students in a drug court program. The project is based on theories behind narrative therapy, its use in the treatment of persons with addiction problems, and how the reframing of students' own life stories through writing can bring about change. By using writing prompts as both therapeutic and educational tools, the author hoped to improve the students' life-coping skills and their writing abilities. The unit consists of paragraph writing, essay writing, reflective writing that focused on past events, and using computers to compose and format texts. The author evaluated a preliminary draft of the unit by submitting it to four education professionals with a questionnaire. Data was also collected from the author's students by means of surveys, interviews, and writing samples. Feedback from the professionals and the students guided the revision of the unit. The questionnaire, survey, and interview questions used in the project and the preliminary and final revised drafts of the teaching unit are included.