Seminars

Digital Storytelling for Education

Registration for this seminar in 2004 is now closed - to receive information about dates for this seminar in 2005, please email us at seminars@hippasus.com.

The last decade has provided creators with the tools to capture media in the digital domain, transform it and integrate it into new, unusual, and creative narratives that have been called “digital storytelling”. This seminar will introduce teachers to the basic elements of the craft, providing them with the conceptual and practical tools to explore its educational potential. The seminar is scheduled to run over two days, so that teachers may focus intensively on pedagogical aspects of digital storytelling on the first day, while learning its practical aspects on the second day.

What is digital storytelling? Digital Storytelling (DS) is the result of the combination of traditional modes of storytelling with digital technologies that allow for the seamless integration of images, sound, and video into the narrative. It is closely related to other narrative forms such as cinema, but provides options for interactivity and media integration that exceed traditional medium boundaries. The end product can take on many different forms, ranging from videos, through specially structured web pages, to interactive exploration “quests”.

Why is it an important educational tool? DS brings together different forms of media, and likewise provides ready integration of different areas of knowledge. The current workshop is targeted specifically towards the needs of teachers, and the knowledge and techniques gained by students can be applied in any curricular areas. Additionally, DS puts special emphasis on providing learners with tools to communicate knowledge on their own terms: a learner that can create individualized ways of communicating their knowledge operates at a much higher competency level than one that can only mimic established ways to achieve this goal. Finally, DS provides a way for learners with different learning styles to achieve mastery of the same content: learners can choose different types of media as the focus of their DS projects in ways that best match their personal learning styles.

What will teachers learn? Teachers will learn the conceptual basis for digital storytelling, as well as how it can best be integrated into classroom practice. They will learn the basics of key authoring tools, and will have the opportunity to use these tools for the creation of a project. Finally, they will learn how to set out clear expectations for DS projects, as well as how to evaluate the results.

Day 1 - Background and Theory

Prelude: What is Digital Storytelling?

A history of the field

Parallels to and differences from other storytelling media

Thinking about Digital Storytelling

Two models from traditional media:

The sequential image: illustrated novels and comics

The moving image: film and video

Learning from the sequential image:

A grammar for coupling printed words and images

When layout and sequence play the role of time

Learning from the moving image:

A grammar for narrating with changing images

Four ways of structuring a story in time

Interlude: A one-hour introduction to the tools of the trade

The basics of scanning and still image acquisition

Simple digital sound recording

A how-to for basic video editing

A first exercise: constructing an effective short tale

Connecting Digital Storytelling with classroom practice

DS and pedagogical theory: three key observations

Narrating in writing, performance and the practice of DS

DS and knowledge integration across subject areas

Evaluating the results

A simple content/competencies model for evaluating DS projects

Multiple evaluative aspects of DS projects

Pitfalls and points of caution

Epilogue: forms of Digital Storytelling to come

Day 2 - Putting the Theory to Work

Part one: tools for authoring

Creating and enhancing still images

Capturing and editing video

Part two: tools for structuring

Using storyboards to think about storytelling

Tools for organizing your work

Part three: telling a story

Compiling the material

Putting it all together

Part four: evaluating the story

Presenting the story

How to (and how not to) provide feedback

Self-evaluation and teacher evaluation

The creative cycle: using what one has learned in future creation

Epilogue: what projects would you like to do next?

We welcome your inquiries on this seminar - please email us at seminars@hippasus.com