“Digital Storytelling: A Method for Engaging Students and Increasing Cultural Competency,” by Grant and Bolin (2016), explores the use of digital storytelling as a pedagogical tool in the classroom. The authors argue that digital storytelling can be an effective way to engage students and promote cultural competency by providing a platform for students to share their own experiences and perspectives.
The paper begins by discussing the challenges that educators face in promoting cultural competency among their students. The authors argue that traditional methods of teaching cultural competency, such as didactic lectures and textbook readings, can be inadequate in fostering a deep understanding and appreciation of other cultures.
To address these challenges, Grant and Bolin propose the use of digital storytelling as a teaching tool. They argue that digital storytelling allows students to create their own multimedia narratives, which can provide a more engaging and authentic learning experience. By sharing their own stories, students can develop a deeper understanding of their own culture and that of others, leading to increased cultural competency.
The paper then describes a study in which the authors tested the effectiveness of digital storytelling in promoting cultural competency among college students. The results of the study showed that students who participated in the digital storytelling project demonstrated a greater understanding and appreciation of other cultures, as well as improved communication skills and self-reflection.
Overall, the Grant and Bolin study provides a compelling argument for the use of digital storytelling as a pedagogical tool in promoting cultural competency among students. By providing a platform for students to share their own experiences and perspectives, digital storytelling can foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of other cultures, leading to increased cultural competency.
My multimedia presentation is a pitch for a TV series about the life of sports agent Leigh Steinberg. It entails an overview of the suggested storyline, genre, tone, theme, target audience, format, style, and unique formula/recipe for presenting these in the visual medium of television. Creating this pitch and presentation has provided me with valuable experience in researching and crafting a narrative based on real-life events. The process of writing a TV series pitch involves identifying and developing key themes and ideas, as well as considering the perspective and motivations of the subject, which could also be useful in supporting others to create digital stories. This process could be useful in helping students and others to create digital stories that are personally meaningful and relevant because it would require them to consider how to effectively convey their experiences and emotions in a way that is engaging and authentic. In this sense, the process of creating the pitch and presentation is a model that students and others could follow.
The goal of my pitch and presentation is to sell a creative vision that is strong enough to shape a very large TV series that is both entertaining and educational. Movies and TV series are types of stories that are told through a highly collaborative effort. The long list of job titles at the end of every movie or show attests to this reality. There is something almost magical about the idea of coming together to create a story that is enjoyed by a mass audience. From the meager starting point of digital storytelling with a target audience of one (i.e., Leigh Stenberg), to the potential for these story ideas to expand to a mass audience in a highly collaborative effort, community is an intrinsic component of this story and its creation.
References
Grant, N. S. and Bolin, B. L. (2016). Digital storytelling: A method for engaging students and increasing cultural competency. The Journal of Effective Teaching, 16 (3), 44-61.