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Editorial: Coplas de Ciego

Journal of College Science Teaching—February 2004

The medieval Spanish custom in which blind storytellers went from town to town telling stories (sung as mantras) of murder, impassioned love, and pestilence to the villagers as a means of sustaining themselves were known as Coplas de Ciego, or Blind Tales. Metaphorically speaking, as teachers, we weave our own tales about the rules and facts of science. Unlike the Spanish storytellers, who got feedback in the form of coins, we teachers seldom construct a way of determining how we are doing. If we are going to argue that the storytelling approach has value—not that it is just value-added, but is a better way to teach—we must collect data on its effect on student learning and attitudes toward science. We must collect the “coins” after the tale is told.
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