Students' perceptions and experiences on digital storytelling in Mathematics

Abstract

With the advent of technology, storytelling has evolved from a very simple face-to-face storytelling between the storyteller and the listener to a more complex set-up called digital storytelling. This quantitative-qualitative study utilizing a quasi-experimental posttest-only design with nonequivalent groups participated in by 79 Grade 9 students of Jordan National High School for S.Y. 2016-2017 determined the students' perceptions and experiences on digital storytelling in mathematics. The students were classified as Storytellers and Audience. Forty-four Storytellers came from an intact class while Thirty-five Audience came from the 15% of the five classes that were selected randomly using fishbowl method. The Storytellers who performed the task which was the production of digital stories were classified as Actors, Managers, Math-tiniks, Novelists, and Visual Artists based on the Multiple Intelligences Assessment. The intervention period which lasted for ten weeks had 6 stages - Orientation, Grouping, Workshop, Planning, Working, and the Presentation stage. Using a researcher-made digital storytelling perception questionnaire which has a Cronbach's alpha reliability of 0.901, it was found out that the perceptionof the participants, as an entire group and when classified as Storytellers or Audience, on digital storytelling in mathematics as a performance task was excellent. The perceptions of the Actors, Managers, Math-tiniks, Novelists, and Visual Artists on digital storytelling in mathematics as a performance task were also excellent. A significant difference in the perceptions on digital storytelling in mathematics between the Storytellers and Audience was noted, but there was no significant difference in the perceptions among the Actors, Managers, Math-tiniks, Novelists, and Visual Artists. Using the students' reflective journals, teacher observers' notes, and follow-up interviews of the teacher observers to the Storytellers, it was found out that production of digital storytelling provided challenging, skill-developing, and values-enriching experiences. Challenging experiences consisted problems with technology, problems with group members, problems with one's particular role, conflicting schedules, and editing lapses. Skill-developing experiences included technology skills, skills in one's particular role, and presentation skills. Values-enriching experiences comprised development of group's teamwork, cooperation, and unity; trust, self-confidence, and self-worth; and patience, persistence, and optimism. Thus, mathematics teachers are encouraged to expose their students to the production of digital storytelling which maximizes students' varied skills.