Movement 2: Friction and Surprise
Movement 2: Friction and Surprise
This is about staying with discomfort. Instead of rushing to solve or smooth over contradictions, slow down. Notice what tension is teaching you.
Have you encountered contradictions, surprises, or unexpected gaps in your research so far?
Where might your initial assumptions have been challenged?
What happens if those tensions stay in the story?
Core Question:
How do I navigate and learn from the unexpected challenges, contradictions, and discomforts encountered in my research that push against my initial assumptions?
Pedagogical Purpose:
This movement encourages students to recognize where their initial ideas encounter challenges, surprises, or contradictions —
and to learn from moments of cognitive dissonance, unexpected findings, or challenging perspectives encountered during the research process.
Student Outcomes:
Students will be able to:
- Identify contradictions, surprises, or gaps encountered,
- Analyze how these "friction points" have shifted their understanding of the topic,
- Reflect on avoidance or discomfort in facing tensions,
- Begin to see how moments of friction can become generative for their story, adding depth and authenticity.
Interaction Design: Reflection Prompts
(Choose 2–3 prompts to reflect on.)
- Where have your assumptions been challenged so far?
- What is an assumption you started with (from Movement 1) that now feels incomplete or changed?
- Reflecting on your intended audience, how might the uncomfortable or surprising parts of your research actually make the story more compelling?
- Did any friction points reveal limitations in your early research methodology or scope?
- What would you rather avoid addressing — and why?
- Have you encountered findings that didn’t line up with your expectations?
- How has "surprise" become a tool in your research process?
- Are there tensions or uncomfortable findings that feel easier to leave out? Why? What happens if they stay in the story?
- What new assumptions are you forming now, and how might you continue to test them?
- How could the disruptions or tensions you’ve explored become narrative elements in your final audio story (leading into Movement X: Listening for Medium)?
Reflection Journal Companion
Follow the standard Reflection Journal structure:
- What I Am Noticing,
- What Feels Hard or Unsettled,
- What I Want to Carry Forward.
(See Movement 1 for a full detailed example.)
Black Box Micro-Engagement
At the end of this Movement, you will complete a Black Box Micro-Engagement:
- Action Step: A production-related activity focused on exploring how friction, tension, or contradiction might be rendered narratively or rhetorically. (Specific task TBD.)
- Personal Reflection: Reflect on the tools used, surprises, frustrations, and solutions.
- Relational Reflection: Reflect on any outside help you sought (e.g., tutorial, video, peer, etc.).
- Source Acknowledgment: Briefly cite any external models, templates, or inspirations.
- Organization Reflection: Describe how you saved, named, and organized your materials for future use.
(See Movement 1 for detailed reflection structure.)
AI Role
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Current AI Role:
Prompts students to reflect on discomforts, cognitive dissonance, and potential blind spots in their assumptions. -
Explore Further AI Role (Devil-in-the-Data Bot):
Surfaces provocative peer-reviewed claims that complicate or challenge students’ assumptions —
training habits of verification, skepticism, and evidence-weighing.
🤔💭 More Reflection Prompts
- What felt most uncomfortable to admit about your evolving inquiry?
- How does tension deepen the potential stakes of your story?
- Where did you encounter "productive uncertainty" or moments that made your research better, even if it made it harder?
- Are there contradictions or complexities that your audience might need to struggle with too?
- What did you expect to find and what did you actually find?
- What questions emerged that you didn’t know how to answer?
- How do you know when you’re asking the wrong question?
- How do you handle material that doesn’t support the story you want to tell?
- What would it mean to let your story hold contradiction rather than eliminate it?