1st Edition

The Instructional Value of Digital Storytelling Higher Education, Professional, and Adult Learning Settings

By Patricia McGee Copyright 2015
    206 Pages
    by Routledge

    206 Pages
    by Routledge

    Although storytelling has been recognized as an effective instructional strategy for some time, most educators are not informed about how to communicate a story that supports learning—particularly when using digital media. The Instructional Value of Digital Storytelling provides a broad overview of the concepts and traditions of storytelling and prepares professors, workplace trainers, and instructional designers to tell stories through 21st century media platforms, providing the skills critical to communication, lifelong learning, and professional success.

    Using clear and concise language, The Instructional Value of Digital Storytelling explains how and why storytelling can be used as a contemporary instructional method, particularly through social media, mobile technologies, and knowledge-based systems. Examples from different sectors and disciplines illustrate how and why effective digital stories are designed with learning theory in mind. Applications of storytelling in context are provided for diverse settings within higher education as well as both formal and informal adult learning contexts.

    List of Figures and Tables

    Introduction

    Section I: Foundations

    1. Storytelling’s Value Then and Now
    2. Traditions of Oral Storytelling in Digital Stories
    3. Culture, Learning and Digital Storytelling

    Section II: Instructional Frameworks of Digital Storytelling

    1. The Learner as Audience and Maker
    2. Storytelling that Supports Learning
    3. Story as Curriculum

    Section III: Applications of Digital Storytelling in Context

    1. Disciplinary Applications of Digital Storytelling
    2. Applications in formal, non-formal, and informal learning
    3. Conclusions: Implications for Instruction

    Glossary

    References

    Index

    Biography

    Patricia McGee is Associate Professor of Digital Learning Design at the University of Texas at San Antonio, USA.

    "We love to learn and we love to tell stories, but seldom is this supported in the classroom, and even less in the new digital spaces where we learn. This thoughtful work provides new ideas for constructing meaning and learning through e-story. Educators, learning designers, and new kinds of storytellers won’t be able to put it down. It tells a compelling story."

    Colleen Carmean, PhD, Assistant Chancellor for Instructional Technologies, University of Washington Tacoma, USA

    "A compelling and comprehensive treatment of the history, philosophical underpinnings, and best practices of master storytellers, written for the digital age. A must-read for anyone interested in the topic of storytelling!"

    Dr. Larry Johnson, CEO, the New Media Consortium (NMC)