Enhancing Teaching and Learning with Digital Storytelling

Author(s):  
Shuyan Wang ◽  
Hong Zhan

This article intends to help educators interested in technology integration in the classroom acquire a firm theoretical foundation, pedagogical applications, and step-by-step technical procedures for infusing digital storytelling into the curriculum. Through illustrations of digital storytelling projects completed in the authors’ undergraduate and graduate classes, this article discusses the benefits along with the challenges for using digital storytelling as a means of engaging students in reflective, active, and personally meaningful learning.

Author(s):  
Shuyan Wang ◽  
Hong Zhan

This article intends to help educators interested in technology integration in the classroom acquire a firm theoretical foundation, pedagogical applications, and step-by-step technical procedures for infusing digital storytelling into the curriculum. Through illustrations of digital storytelling projects completed in the authors’ undergraduate and graduate classes, this article discusses the benefits along with the challenges for using digital storytelling as a means of engaging students in reflective, active, and personally meaningful learning.


Author(s):  
Chantyclaire A. Tiba Publishing ◽  
Janet Condy ◽  
Agnes Chigona ◽  
Nyarai Tunjera

It has been shown that teachers are reluctant to use technology despite the South African (SA) government’s huge expenditure on technological equipment. This might  be the result of teachers being unable to select appropriate technology that will yield positive learning outcomes  as well as being ill-equipped to integrate  technology  into their pedagogy. To this end, pre-service teachers at a University were trained on how to integrate digital storytelling (DST) effectively into their teaching. The aim of this study is to  gain insight  into the  potential benefits of DST  for teaching and learning  and to determine factors that may prevent pre-service teachers’ uptake of DST during in-service practice. This is a qualitative study in which fifty pre-service teachers were divided into five groups for focus group interviews. Data were analysed, and the results show that pre-service teachers perceived DST to be beneficial in the classroom as it has the potential to (i) motivate and engage learners, (ii) promote  voice/self-expression, and  (iii) promote collaborative learning and  acquisition of multiple skills. Pre-service teachers are of the opinion that a lack of resources, self-confidence and time owing to restrictive curricula may prevent uptake of DST during in-service teaching. It was recommended that school stakeholders create a balance between intrinsic and extrinsic factors that will promote the adoption and integration of DST into teaching. Also,  the education institution concerned strives to balance all three strands of knowledge: technology, pedagogy and content.


Author(s):  
Wing Sum Cheung ◽  
Khe Foon Hew

<span>In this paper, we share two blended learning approaches used at the National Institute of Education in Singapore. We have been using these two approaches in the last twelve years in many courses ranging from the diploma to graduate programs. For the first blended learning approach, we integrated one asynchronous communication tool with face to face tutorials, classroom discussions, and a reflection session. For the second blended learning approach, we integrated two asynchronous tools with face to face tutorials in a course. We discuss the theoretical foundation of the two blended learning approaches. In addition, we share insights from these two blended learning approaches, based on the students' data (online postings, questionnaires, reflection logs, and interviews), as well as our own reflections. Finally, we describe and discuss several important lessons learned that could inform the design of future instructional strategies in implementing blended learning in university teaching and learning settings.</span>


Author(s):  
Jung Won Hur ◽  
Amy Anderson

The availability of engaging apps on the iPad and its portability have encouraged many educators to adopt it as a teaching and learning tool in the classroom. However, because iPad integration is new, neither practical guidance nor best practices are yet available. Consequently, the authors integrated 13 iPads into a third grade classroom for a year to facilitate learning while examining how to unlock their full potential. The purpose of this chapter is to present specific elementary-level subject learning lesson ideas for iPads, identifying the advantages and challenges of such integration. They also provide practical tips for mobile technology integration in elementary classrooms.


Author(s):  
Irene Mwingirwa Mukiri ◽  
Bonface Ngari Ireri

Digital literacy indisputably plays a momentous role in our future lives (Allen, 2007). This chapter considers technology integration at various levels of school, ranging from primary to tertiary levels. It further shows results of a practical quasi experimental study done in Kenyan secondary schools showing how scores of students learning mathematics in a technology-based environment compared with those learning using conventional methods of teaching. The students' scores in examinations showed that the students learning using the selected application known as GeoGebra performed better and girls performed equally as well as boys when taught mathematics in a technology environment. The chapter underscores the importance of technology to improve teaching and learning process and it has promise to bridge the gap in performance between boys and girls in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).


Author(s):  
Taralynn Hartsell

Digital storytelling has many implications in teaching and learning. As a way to communicate ideas, experiences, beliefs, and topics to an audience through the use of technology and multimedia, digital stories help storytellers acquire many different skills and literacies. The most important aspect is that the storyteller learns to create stories using their personal voice and interpretation to be shared with a larger community. Self-expression is encouraged and confidence can be developed through the creation of digital stories. This paper examines digital storytelling from an instructional and learning perspective. Areas such as the implications of digital storytelling in education, the process of planning and developing stories, and a discussion of various tools to create digital stories are included. Digital storytelling can provide storytellers with an avenue for conveying ideas and information that are personal in nature or more informational.


Author(s):  
Jared Keengwe ◽  
Grace Onchwari

While national statistics cite a remarkable improvement in technology tools and access to the Internet in most schools across the nation, many teachers are not integrating these tools into their instruction in ways that support and maximize student learning. Additionally, many teachers entering the workforce are far more likely to use computers for personal purposes rather than in the classroom (Keengwe, 2007; Keengwe & Onchwari, 2009). Consequently, there is need to motivate, train, and equip teachers with the skills, knowledge, and pedagogical framework to effectively teach with technology tools. This article reviews the constructivist pedagogical framework and the critical issues related to technology integration in schools. This article advocates the need for teachers to embrace constructivist teaching strategies to enhance meaningful teaching and learning in modern technology-rich classrooms.


2005 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Swan ◽  
Annette Kratcoski ◽  
Pat Mazzer ◽  
Jason Schenker

This article describes an ongoing situated professional development program in which teachers bring their intact classes for an extended stay in a ubiquitous computing environment equipped with a variety of state-of-the-art computing devices. The experience is unique in that it not only situates teacher learning about technology integration in their regular practice, but also gives them the opportunity to explore the full possibilities afforded by a variety of technologies and 1:1 computing opportunities. The program provides an important alternative model for professional development that has been highly successful, not only in increasing teachers' knowledge and confidence in technology integration but also in changing the ways in which teachers think about and use a variety of technologies in their classrooms. Findings also suggest that ubiquitous computing environments afford unique teaching and learning opportunities upon which ordinary classroom teachers can capitalize to a greater or lesser degree.


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