ETL402: 5.2 The value of different digital story formats and recent publishing trends

Kellie BillingsleyChildren's Literature, Digital Collections, Digital Literature, Digital story formats, ETL402

The value and use of different types of digital story formats. 

I have found the readings for digital story formats very exciting as it suggests so many innovative ways for students to learn and engage with new knowledge. There is no escaping that children are familiar with technology and in turn, if digital literature is effectively utilised in the classroom this could increase student learning and engagement at school. Cullen (2015) suggests that students of all abilities can be motivated to learn through digital literature, and that children today are excited by the interactive features digital books can offer. Furthermore, digital stories can help increase students’ awareness of a wider ranger of people’s experiences. Yocom et al (2020) argues that this could help students develop greater appreciation of the diversity of other cultures and I think this would be interesting notion to research further.

Firstly, it must be noted that digital literature is not just ebooks! Many examples of digital literature include narratives that have specifically been written and designed for digital devices and interactive use. Students with different learning needs can often use interactive features within digital books and choose their own pathway through a non-linear narrative which can personalise their reading experience. Using digital books can also increase students’ digital skills. A digital collection in a school library can provide greater access and availability especially during times such as holidays and weekends when the library space is closed.

A innovative school library should strive towards a wide breadth of reading opportunities that caters for all preferences and student diversity. Libraries need to embrace digital books to support the growing needs of a student community that are part of  a technologically driven society. Through providing digital books and print books together, a stronger, more diverse reading culture could be developed. During the recent Covid-19 pandemic, the lack of physical access to schools and libraries at this time, highlighted to me the need to provide quality digital resources for students. Nevertheless, there is still must be an emphasis on quality, as digital books need to be well designed to provide a rewarding reading experience.
Some different digital story formats include:
  • Standard ebooks: basically print narratives that have been reproduced in digital form.
  • Digital Storytelling: Includes such stories as historical narratives, informative narratives and biographical narratives combines the art of storytelling with multimedia tools.
  • Enhanced ebooks (Hypertexts): these formats can be both fiction and non-fiction. These ebooks contain hyper links to websites, images and embedded media. My experience of these books reflects non-fiction texts such as Lightbox books.
  • Transmedia storytelling:  these non -linear narratives include game like features and offer dynamic online reading experiences.  Inanimate Alice is one of the most well known examples has been interesting to explore .
  • Multimodal books: These books use Augmented Reality to enhance storytelling. An example of this can be observed in Khyiah Angel’s I Know Why You Run provides the reader with opportunities for uploading video footage that has been created by the antagonist within the narrative. This offers another perspective on the storyline rather than just seeing the events through the eyes of the protagonist. (Taylor, 2018).
The value of these digital story formats centre on the reading audience playing an active role which can result in a deeply immersive experience. Readers can build their own story pathways within a virtual world and non-linear narrative – something print books  mostly do not offer. Students today experience multiple text types in their everyday lives and therefore need variation and greater ownership over their learning. (Howell & O’Donnell, 2017).
Recent digital publishing developments
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality  – These technologies enable the audience to go beyond text and image when experiencing storytelling.  VR is complete visual immersion through such technology as a headset whereas AR enhances the reader’s vision by adding an extra layer and is often used through mobile apps. (Some book publications have involved combining VR or AR alongside the traditional print book through being able to download an app that creates a AR experience. (Greenwald, 2018).
References
Greenwald, W. (2018, July 21). Augmented reality (AR) vs virtual reality (VR): What’s the difference? PCMag. https://au.pcmag.com/virtual-reality-1/44886/augmented-reality-ar-vs-virtual-reality-vr-whats-the-difference
Howell and O’Donnell. (March 2017). Digital trends and initiatives in education: The Changing Landscape for Canadian Content. Association of Canadian Publishers.
Taylor, A. (2018, September 16). ‘Technology can bring books alive’: Harry Potter inspires novel with moving images. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/technology-can-bring-books-alive-harry-potter-inspires-novel-with-moving-images-20180915-p50407.html
Yocom, D., Bashaw, C., Price, D., & Cook, M. (2020). Perceptions of digital storytelling in the classroom. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 15(3), 164–167. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2020.01.010

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