Double Entry #4

 “The problem for many students is their focus on the power of the technology rather than the power of their stories. Some students are engaging the medium at the expense of the message, producing a technical event rather than a story.” (Ohler, 2005)

Using Windows Movie Maker my Spanish teacher had my class create digital stories. She had us first write the script for the story then she looked over our stories for correctness. After they were corrected we were able to create our stories digitally and truly make our vision come to life. Some students in my class were artistic and drew pictures then uploaded them into their projects other students, like myself, used the internet to find images. Digital storytelling is an amazing way to be artistic without having to be a great artist and to make a story come to life. This was truly another fun project that my teacher provided our class with.

However, there are always problems that can occur when students are faced with creating a digital project. Students can get caught up in cool sound effects, awesome images, and special effects causing their story to become lost. I find the way Jason Ohler goes about having his students create their digital stories brilliant. Having them create and turn in the story first so the story can be looked over before adding all the gadgets in the digital medium is such an incredible idea. Digital storytelling should only be utilized in the classroom as long as the students put thought, research, and time into creating the story itself before they add any technological aspects.

 The seven elements of digital storytelling. (2009). [Web Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nI0KNz63ubM

I found this video, The Seven Elements of Digital Storytelling, on YouTube and I felt this video helps to reiterate the fact that the story is crucial for digital storytelling.

Ohler, J. (2005). The world of digital storytelling. Educational Leadership, 63(4), 44-47. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.fairmontstate.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=19270016&site=ehost-live&scope=site