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6 Things You Should Know About Digital Storytelling

1. What is it?

A digital story is a short (3-5 minute) movie that uses images and/or video, voice, and music to tell a story.  Digital stories put emphasis on personal voice. Digital Storytelling is a way of talking about something that conveys not only information, but emotion and significance as well. Digital Stories communicate what we do, who we are, and why we care. They visualize the author's personal connection to the story by exploring and sharing topics of interest.

2. Who's doing it?

Stories allow us to understand someone else's experiences in a personal way. Stories can help us care about something we might not otherwise care about. In academics, stories provide affective learning that can lead the learner to a desire for more cognitive learning. It takes a deep understanding of a issue to tell your own story about it. Hearing someone else's story can touch viewers deeply, moving them to reflect on their own experiences, modify their behavior, treat others with greater compassion, and become involved to make positive change.  Stories can provide unique ways of building community in your own discipline, or in reaching out to other disciplines.

3. How does it work?

The steps to create a digital story are, in brief:

  • Create and share your story. When creating the script, we recommended that you share your script (preferably in a story circle) to gather responses of others to help you focus on the most relevant elements of your story.
  • Create and storyboard your script.
  • Gather visual and auditory elements.
  • Record your voice and music (if using).
  • Edit images, video and sound.
  • Arrange your story in the timeline of your editing software.
  • Present your story and/or export your story for sharing

There are seven elements of a digital story:

  • Point of View. Communicating the main purpose of your message from your perspective.
  • Dramatic Question. The element that sets up tension and holds your interest to the end of the story
  • Emotional Content. It what reaches inside our consciousness and takes a hold of us - death and our sense of loss, of love and loneliness, of confidence and vulnerability, of acceptance and rejection.
  • The Gift of Your Voice. Your voice tells part of the story by giving us glimpse of who you are and provides an interaction with the audience as your feelings about the story reflects through your tone.
  • The Power of the Soundtrack. The music and sound effects set the mood and plays on the perception of the visual information and narration.
  • Economy. Keep story to 3- 5 minutes and the script to approximately 400 words. Edit the script to include the most effective content and use visuals and sound to help tell the story.
  • Pace. The rhythm of a story that enhances interest and sustains the audience's attention.

4. What are the downsides?

  • Copyright and Intellectual Property Issues - It is tempting to use images from the web or music that is copyrighted. We encourage the use creative commons content listed on this resource page. http://digitalstory.osu.edu/resources.html
  • The visual encoding process can be somewhat difficult.
  • Participants don't always feel comfortable sharing their personal connection to the story
  • Gaining access to software
  • Training participants to use the software
  • By its nature, digital storytelling can be time consuming

5. Where is it going?

At OSU, a growing number of staff and faculty have embraced digital storytelling. To find out how to get involved, see http://digitalstory.osu.edu.

6. What are the implications for teaching?

Digital Stories can be used in courses as:

  • Stories that inform or instruct
  • Stories created by teachers serve:
    • As a introduction and hook into a lesson
    • As a way to make difficult content more accessible
    • To facilitate classroom discussion
  • An effective learning tool for students, with particular relevance to skill development in:
    • Research
    • Writing
    • Organization
    • Technology
    • Presentation
    • Interview
    • Interpersonal
    • Problem-Solving
    • Assessment
  • A way to promote literacy in the following areas:
    • Visual fields
    • Digital content
    • Global understanding
    • Technology
    • Information discernment

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