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Learner Digital Stories in a Web 2.0 Age image by GHINWA ALAMEEN…
Learner Digital Stories in a Web
2.0 Age
by GHINWA ALAMEEN
Ghinwa Alameen
s a PhD student of applied linguistics and technology at Iowa State University.
Her primary research interests
include computer-assisted language learning, teaching speaking and pronunciation, and material design.
She has also conducted
research in new literacies and online and hybrid teaching of speaking and writing.
Literature review
English language learners face
increasing demands to advance their familiarity with a variety of online tools (Conole, 2008) as well as effective strategies for
collaborative and communicative work (Thorne & Reinhardt, 2008).
Tim O’Reilly (2005), who coined the termWeb 2.0, describes it s a collaborative environment where users have the opportunity to contribute to growing collective knowledge, assist in the development of web-based tools, and participate in online communities.
Collaborating to create and share online content with
others may prove useful for learning languages (Lomicka & Lord, 2009; Stevenson & Liu, 2010).
Web 2.0 technologies require users to have multiliteracies that are not necessary for traditional pen-and-paper activities (Sylvester & Greenidge, 2009).
A coalition of teachers and media
literacy scholars, to refer to the combination of literacies used today that allow people to successfully use and adapt to information and communication technologies and contexts (Leu, Kinzer, Coiro, & Cammack, 2004).
Digital storytelling
Allows people to share
personal and cultural stories and perspectives in unique ways.
With digital storytelling, learners use personal artifacts and a variety of multimedia tools to narrate their story, describing and sharing with others significant life events in an innovative way
(Porter, 2005).
Readers are no longer static browsers; they can comment and add content to the story, integrating their perspectives into the overall experience.
Stories can be created by much simpler online applications such as VoiceThread (
http://voicethread.com
) and SlideShare (www
.slideshare.net) that do not have the potentially steep learning curve
that video editing software does.
What is voicethread?
VoiceThread is a Web 2.0 application that centers on
collaborative conversations around digital images, documents,videos, or any combination of the three.
Similar to a PowerPoint, a VoiceThread consists of slides, but it can carry the user’s narration or text using the commenting feature.
Users can leave comments in
various ways: voice, using their computer’s microphone or a phone; a movie from a webcam; text; and a doodling tool.
With the doodling tool, users can write on or annotate a video, for example, to focus viewers’ attention on a specific object on the screen.
Once the VoiceThread is created,
authors can share it by sending out a link or embedding it in other websites.
Users have the opportunity to participate by leaving asynchronous comments using any one of the aforementioned commenting features
four-week project
Student discussion
In general, students’ views were favorable
Some critiqued VoiceThread’s
inability to display synchronous comments; users have to refresh the page in order to view new comments, which can slow down the discussion process.
Most of the
students indicated that they were comfortable working on computers and were experienced with some social networking
technologies, especially Facebook.
Assesment
Itemizing different aspects in the
digital storytelling project, such as content and choice of images, helped me focus on students’ specific skill areas, provide pinpointed feedback, and assess projects more efficiently.
VoiceThread projects can provide teachers with a view of
student thinking and language by displaying student conversation on one slide.
48 students
In the first stage of the project, students discussed elements of
personal stories and brainstormed ideas for their individual projects
undergraduate Chinese and Korean
nonnative speakers of English with an age range of 18–21
Students provided feedback to one
another on different versions of the narrative to help them fine-tune their perspective
Next, they completed a storyboard to plan their digital story and organize their ideas.
Conclusion
Web 2.0 digital stories offer an enjoyable and interactive way to
achieve multiple language learning goals in a learner-centered environment
Web 2.0 digital stories provide a place for learners to share and
discuss their experiences and culture.
Students need to be aware of the difference
between written and oral media
By incorporating media from a
variety of sources and allowing the layering of sound and comments from many users
They also provide an opportunity for classmates to ask questions, learn about each other, and discuss different points of view.
VoiceThread is a creative and useful
tool for the ESL classroom that is equipped with access to technology
VoiceThread provides an easy way for students to listen to and
respond to their peers’ digital stories
Objectives of the project
to develop a digital story element (Lambert, 2002).
to raise awareness of copyright
to increase students’ electronic skills using an online application that combines
a variety of multimedia such as text, still images, audio, and video.
to encourage collaborative learning by asking questions,
expressing opinions,
narrating a story, and writing for a real audience, which creates opportunities
for authentic feedback.
to engage learners with multiliteracies, and allow them to express themselves
with different media by creating online digital stories.
Web 2.0 digital stories class project asks students to create a
story about an event that happened to them and affected their life or the life of someone they know.
Advantages in educational settings
Supports student learning
and higher order thinking (Nelson, 2006)
Important tool for the improvement of student writing, language, and literacy skills (Davis, 2004; Garrety, 2008; Kajder, 2004; Michalski, Hodges, & Banister, 2005).
Reduces the cognitive overload
in working memory.
Provides opportunities for revision and
editing before finalizing the product (Garrety, 2008).
Provides an alternative medium of expression
for students who struggle with writing traditional text (Reid, Burn, & Parker, 2002; Sylvester & Greenidge, 2009).
