When we think about instructional design, we often focus on learning objectives, assessments, accessibility, engagement, and technology. Those elements are certainly important, but there is another question worth asking: whose stories are we telling?
Every course, training program, workshop, and learning experience is built from choices. We choose which examples to use, which case studies to highlight, which voices to quote, and which perspectives to present. Sometimes these decisions are intentional. Other times, they are simply the result of using familiar resources, established materials, or examples we’ve seen used repeatedly over the years.
As educators and instructional designers, we have an opportunity to look beyond the most commonly told stories and consider what we might be missing. This is not about checking boxes or meeting quotas. It is about creating richer, more accurate, and more meaningful learning experiences. Often, the stories that have received less attention can provide valuable perspectives that deepen understanding and improve learning outcomes.
As we observe Juneteenth, a day that reminds us of the importance of history, freedom, and often-overlooked narratives, it seems like an appropriate time to reflect on what instructional designers can learn from untold stories and how those stories can strengthen the learning experiences we create.
Every Course Tells a Story
Even courses that seem highly technical tell stories.
A mathematics course may highlight certain mathematicians and discoveries. A business course may rely on familiar corporate case studies. A leadership course may repeatedly feature the same executives and organizations. A psychology course may focus heavily on particular researchers while overlooking others who contributed significantly to the field.
These choices shape learners’ understanding of a discipline. They influence who learners see as contributors, innovators, and leaders. They also affect how learners connect course content to their own experiences and backgrounds.
When instructional designers review learning materials, one useful question to ask is:
What perspectives are represented, and what perspectives might be missing?
The answer is not always obvious. Sometimes the missing voices are historical figures whose contributions were overlooked. Other times they may be practitioners, community leaders, researchers, or professionals whose experiences offer valuable context that learners would otherwise never encounter.
Expanding the range of perspectives presented in a course often creates a more complete picture of the subject matter itself.
Untold Stories Increase Relevance
Adult learners bring diverse experiences into every learning environment. Some have extensive professional backgrounds. Others bring cultural, community, military, volunteer, or life experiences that shape how they interpret new information.
When learners encounter examples that reflect a wider range of experiences, they are often better able to connect new knowledge to what they already know. This connection is important because meaningful learning occurs when learners integrate new information with existing understanding.
For example, leadership concepts can be illustrated through corporate executives, but they can also be demonstrated through educators, community organizers, healthcare workers, military leaders, nonprofit directors, small business owners, and countless others. Each perspective offers unique lessons that may resonate differently with different learners.
The goal is not to replace familiar examples. Rather, it is to broaden the conversation and provide multiple entry points into the content.
Sometimes the example that finally makes a concept click is not the one found in the standard textbook.
Diverse Perspectives Strengthen Critical Thinking
One of the most valuable outcomes of education is the development of critical thinking skills. Learners become stronger thinkers when they encounter multiple viewpoints, compare perspectives, and evaluate information from different sources.
Courses that rely exclusively on a single narrative may unintentionally limit opportunities for analysis and discussion. When learners encounter differing experiences and perspectives, they must engage more deeply with the content.
Consider a history course examining a major event. Reviewing multiple firsthand accounts often produces a richer understanding than relying on a single source. Similarly, a business course may benefit from examining how different organizations approached the same challenge. A healthcare course may gain depth by exploring experiences from both practitioners and patients.
Instructional designers can support critical thinking by intentionally incorporating materials that encourage learners to examine issues from multiple angles.
Learning becomes more powerful when students move beyond asking, “What happened?” and begin asking, “Why did it happen, and how might others have experienced it differently?”
Reviewing Course Materials Through a Different Lens
One practical strategy for instructional designers is conducting a periodic content audit focused specifically on representation and perspective.
When reviewing course materials, consider questions such as:
- Whose voices are represented in readings and resources?
- Do case studies reflect a variety of experiences and contexts?
- Are examples drawn from multiple industries, communities, or settings?
- Are learners exposed to both historical and contemporary perspectives?
- Do examples connect to the experiences of a broad range of learners?
This process does not require rebuilding an entire course from scratch. Small adjustments can have a meaningful impact. Adding a new case study, incorporating a different viewpoint, or introducing learners to lesser-known contributors can enrich the learning experience without changing the core learning objectives.
The goal is not perfection. The goal is intentionality.
Storytelling Remains One of Our Most Powerful Learning Tools
Humans have been learning through stories long before formal education systems existed. Stories help learners organize information, create emotional connections, and remember concepts more effectively.
Research on learning and cognition consistently demonstrates that narratives can improve engagement and retention. Stories provide context, meaning, and relevance that abstract information sometimes lacks.
Instructional designers often use storytelling techniques in scenarios, simulations, case studies, and problem-based learning activities. Yet there is an opportunity to look beyond the stories we tell most often and discover narratives that may be equally valuable but less frequently shared.
Sometimes the most memorable learning experiences emerge from stories learners have never heard before.
Creating Space for Learner Stories
Untold stories do not always have to come from textbooks or historical sources. Some of the most powerful stories in a learning environment come directly from learners themselves.
Discussion activities, reflective assignments, and collaborative projects can provide opportunities for learners to share experiences and perspectives related to course concepts. These contributions can enrich learning for the entire class.
Adult learners, in particular, often possess significant expertise that extends far beyond the course materials. Creating opportunities for learners to contribute their own stories acknowledges that expertise and strengthens engagement.
When learners become contributors rather than simply consumers of knowledge, learning becomes more collaborative and meaningful.
Final Thoughts
Instructional designers have tremendous influence over the stories learners encounter. Every example, case study, reading, video, and scenario represents a choice about whose experiences are highlighted and whose perspectives are heard.
Exploring untold stories is not about abandoning established content or rewriting every course. It is about recognizing that learning becomes richer when we broaden the range of voices, experiences, and perspectives that inform our instructional design decisions.
As we reflect on Juneteenth and its reminder that important stories can remain unheard for far too long, it is worth considering how our own courses and learning experiences might benefit from a wider lens.
Sometimes the most valuable lesson is not found in the story everyone already knows.
Sometimes it is found in the story that has not been told often enough.
References
Brookfield, S. D. (2017). Becoming a critically reflective teacher (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Merriam, S. B., & Bierema, L. L. (2014). Adult learning: Linking theory and practice. Jossey-Bass.
National Museum of African American History and Culture. (n.d.). The historical legacy of Juneteenth. Smithsonian Institution. https://nmaahc.si.edu
Rose, D. H., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. ASCD.
Wlodkowski, R. J., & Ginsberg, M. B. (2017). Enhancing adult motivation to learn: A comprehensive guide for teaching all adults (4th ed.). Jossey-Bass.