The Impact of Digital Storytelling

In the modern age we are given the opportunity to share ourselves with the world through many different mediums. We can Instagram our lunches, Tweet at celebrities, video ourselves for Vine, update our status on Facebook, promote our professionalism on LinkedIn and so on and so forth. The list goes on with so many pieces of our social media puzzle it can be hard to keep track. One method that streamlines all these resources into one powerful medium is through digital storytelling. Educause defines this term as “the practice of combining narrative with digi­tal content, including images, sound, and video, to create a short movie, typically with a strong emotional component.” In other words, we can create a “story” to define ourselves using a multimedia source of output.

Within a classroom of culturally and linguistically diverse students defining one’s own identity in the classroom is an integral part of the learning process. It can be challenging for a student who is not yet proficient in English when the teacher asks them to write a personal narrative and expect that the student will feel capable of accurately sharing him or herself within the constraints of a limited language ability. Digital storytelling offers a fresh perspective on learning about how our students define themselves. A student may not yet be able to share stories from their home country but instead could post simple captions over photos that speak a thousand words. They may also feel more comfortable with an oral narration rather than a written assignment which focuses heavily on mechanics and can be quite daunting. One example is taken from a list provided by the Center for Digital Storytelling of a series of stories by refugees, the first told by Iftin Iftin about his experience as a refugee from Somalia in the United States. His powerful story is enhanced by his use of maps and images that all evoke an emotional response from the viewer. Providing ESL students with this outlet for their stories is both empowering and engaging and builds classroom community by giving them the opportunity to share their identity with their teacher and peers.