Emergent technologies and shifting trends in the world of literature have carved a new environment for Digital Literature. As a 21st Century educator – and consumer of texts in my own right – it is my duty and pleasure to ensure I familiarise myself with these new modes of storytelling in order to better support and engage my students.
My own personal experience with digital literature is an enthusiastic, if not an overly academic one. While my heart will likely always lie with the print medium, practicalities have engendered a spirit of exploration with my reading. As such I have explored a variety of ebook readers, platforms, and services. I am an avid audiobook listener, gratefully utilise the book services of a range of libraries, and have been exploring more commercial avenues for digital graphic novels and comics. I have also recently entered into the world of long-form gaming and have become enamoured with the immersive and interactive digital storytelling capabilities. The global connectedness of these digital storytelling practices and the ‘new literacies’ that are emerging around these technologies are astonishing and pave the way for untold mediums (Bacalja, 2020, p. 34).
Within a professional context, my experience of digital literatures has been largely one of advocation. Within my immediate school environment, we have access to quite a large digital collection of ebooks and audiobooks – and a notably small physical collection of fiction only. As such, within my role as Teacher Librarian, my championing, marketing, and advising of wide reading practices to foster literacy growth has had to adapt to a largely digital environment. This has been meet with some reluctance on the part of students and staff who are used to the immediacy of a book placed in hand, however it has allowed for a deeper engagement with the ‘new’ digital literacies through the simple use of access (Sadokierski, 2013).
When in the classroom, digital literature has played a growing role in my practice. From simple inclusions (allowing students to utilise ebooks and audiobooks for wide reading), to basic modelling (using digital literature as a sample text), to the more involved tasks of student creation. I have recently completed a unit of digital storytelling with my Year 7 classes where they look at ‘narratives through the ages’, from myth and fables through to modern digital stories and modes of storytelling. Students themselves retold a known fable through the form of a multimodal digital storybook. This future of storytelling or transmedia storytelling, involving “multimodal, multimedia story with non-linear participatory elements” (Lamb, 2011, p15) speaks to so many of the ICT ideals of the modern curriculum and is embracing of ongoing trends in modes of storytelling.
I believe myself to have a fairly decent working knowledge of literature in digital environments – and the curiosity to fill in the gaps. I am eager to learn more and experience a wider variety of texts that will further my knowledge as a reader and an educator.
References
Bacalja, A. (2020) Digital writing in the new literacies age: Insights from an online writing community. Literacy Learning: The Middle Years, 28(2), 33-43.
Lamb, A. (2011). Reading redefined for a transmedia universe. Learning and Leading with Technology, 39(3), 12-17. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=67371172&site=ehost-live
Sadokierski, Z. (2013, November 12). What is a book in the digital age? [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/what-is-a-book-in-the-digital-age-19071
Curiosity is an important disposition to have as an educator, Rebecca; thanks for your post! (: