What questions or answers have formed in your mind in relation to digital storytelling?
As a creator of digital works (under my penname, Eddie Nigma, at Blogorrhea if anyone is interested), I have seldom viewed digital literature through a consumer lens. Let alone an educational lens. Through the module readings, I have come to understand and appreciate the importance of digital storytelling (DS) within an educational setting; especially how DS can address student learning needs in ways that traditional storytelling cannot. Deoksoon and Li (2021), comment that DS is an important type of “multimodal composition” in which its digital affordances enable opportunities for learners to share and reflect on their own learning, shaping their individual identities in the process (p. 35).
I am still pondering, the process of infusing DS and other digital literature (DL) into the learning cycle, so that my students can become “successful in the 21st century” (Tackvic, 2012, p. 428). Personally, I’m still so overwhelmed by the variety of options of DS and DL available online (or through apps) and am still figuring out how access them in terms of their authenticity, accessibility, reliability, bias, and relevance. I am curious as to how others complete their selections.
How does social media fit into the mix for you?
As DS provides both teachers and students with the opportunities to “explain and illustrate abstract ideas” in ways that are approachable, accessible, and relative (O’Byrne et al., 2018, p. 2); social media (such as Tic Tok, Instagram, Twitter) can act as a pedagogical tool to achieve this. However, in a primary context, students are often under the minimum age for subscribing to or downloading social media apps. Therefore, parental permission must be obtained to incorporate it into student learning. I believe this would prove too troublesome, and that more age-appropriate digital narrative tools could be sourced (I’m still figuring out if these exist). Despite the above statement, social media is a constant for secondary students and could be implemented into their regular learning cycle. Teachers may be able to engage more relucent learners through the narratives of social media. Yet, moderating usage and engagement could still prove challenging.
What are the most important connections to learning overall?
DS and DL connect to the ACARA general capabilities of Literacy, ICT Capability, Critical and Creative Thinking, Personal and Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, and Intercultural Understanding. DS and DL provide opportunities for:
- Communicating experience,
- Understanding narrative structures,
- Creating verbally, visually, and orally through different medias (Botturi et al., 2012, pp. 10-11).
- Exploring and engaging with more than two or more, different semiotic systems
- Increasing student interests,
- “Fostering identity development and the articulation of student voices” (Deoksoon & Li, 2021, pp. 34-36).
- Skill development (Henneman, 2020, p.2).
- Meaning creation,
- Communication,
- User involvement (Matthews, 2014, pp. 28-29).
- Knowledge building,
- Explaining and illustrating abstract ideas,
- Pedagogical change (O’Byrne et al., 2018, p. 1-3).
- Emotional and personal development,
- Transliteracy and creativity,
- New perspectives (Sukovic, 2014, pp. 205-206).
- Boundary crossing between leisure reading and school reading,
- Enhancing learner agency (Bjorgen, 2010, pp. 162 & 171).
References
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). N.D. Australian Curriculum: General capabilities. https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/general-capabilities/
Bjørgen, A. (2010). Boundary crossing and learning identities – digital storytelling in primary schools. Seminar.Net: Media, Technology & Life-Long Learning, 6(2), 161-178. http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=60705774&site=ehost-live
Botturi, L., Bramani, C., & Corbino, S. (2012). Finding your voice through digital storytelling. Techtrends: Linking Research & Practice To Improve Learning, 56(3), 10-11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-012-0569-1
Deoksoon, K., & Li, M. (2021). Digital storytelling: Facilitating learning and identity development. Journal of Computers in Education, 8, 33-61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40692-020-00170-9
Henneman, T. (2020). Beyond lip-synching: Experimenting with TikTok storytelling. Teaching Journalism & Mass Communication, 10(2), 1-14. https://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/scholarly-journals/beyond-lip-synching-experimenting-with-tiktok/docview/2523169901/se-2?accountid=10344
Matthews, J. (2014). Voices from the heart: The use of digital storytelling in education. Community Practitioner, 87(1), 28-30. https://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/scholarly-journals/voices-heart-use-digital-storytelling-education/docview/1474889132/se-2?accountid=10344
O’Byrne, W. I., Houser, K., Stone, R., & White, M. (2018). Digital storytelling in early childhood: Student illustrations shaping social interactions. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01800
Sukovic, S. (2014). iTell: Transliteracy and digital storytelling. Australian Academic & Research Libraries, 45(3), 205–229. http://doi.org/10.1080/00048623.2014.951114
Tackvic, C. (2012). Digital storytelling: Using technology to spark creativity. The Educational Forum, 76(4), 426. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131725.2012.707562