Digital Storytelling: Public Service Announcement

Hello my future colleagues, today I am going to tell you about one of my most extraordinary ELT experiences: Digital storytelling!

Digital storytelling can be simply described as “a short form of digital media production that allows everyday people to create and share their stories online.” I have surely experienced something like this for the first time and I had so much fun. We had three options: Public service announcement (PSA), “how to” project and a fictional story. We chose creating a PSA with two of my group members Ayşe Rümeysa Şahin and Mehmet Furkan Tekeş. It was about timber mining, which means ruthless cutting of timber with complete disregard for the future of the forests.

One of the most significant advantages of creating a digital story in a language classroom is the use of second language for sure. It is very useful for students to improve their speaking skills. Another advantage is that students can speak English without hesitation and present their projects in front of their classmates. I have experienced a personal disadvantage of storytelling, I was shy about acting while shooting and speaking on the camera because I have never done something like this before and I think also some of my classmates could not show their full potential because they were shy, especially if they have chosen a fictional story to create.

You can watch our PSA here, and can also visit Ayşe’s and Furkan’s blog.

What do you think about digital storytelling and our PSA project? Please let me know your comments. See you all!