Student-Created Digital Stories in Primary School, Interpreting the Day/Night Cycle Through Conceptual Representations

Abstract

In this study, digital storytelling refers to narrating linear stories using multimedia. Specifically, the study focuses on educational digital stories created by combining multimedia elements to understand and interpret a phenomenon related to a specific subject area, such as natural sciences, mathematics, arts, etc. We claim that digital storytelling can be an effective learning tool, contributing to the meaningful integration of technology in education. This study aims to investigate the changes in the knowledge of 12 sixth-grade students regarding the day/night cycle phenomenon before and after the creation and experience of the digital stories they completed in the classroom, divided into four groups of three members each. The qualitative method of analysing the students' written explanations and the four digital stories they created was used to analyse the results and draw conclusions. According to the results, the students' models for the phenomenon and the specific aspects studied appear to have improved. Through the digital storytelling they created and the use of various modalities, students were allowed to shift their models from initial (mental) to scientific (conceptual) and express their knowledge more comprehensively and analytically. Additionally, using digital storytelling as an assessment tool revealed their deeper understanding.