Internet Storytelling
One of
the most important skills I teach my creative writing students is the power
of storytelling. Each person has his or her own stories to tell.
If I can find ways to help my students tell their stories, then I have
helped them to tap into the natural storytellers within themselves.
Although storytelling has been considered a form of oral communication
for centuries, a new way of passing along stories has been quickly developing
as the internet has become a part of our everyday lifestyle. In her
article "Digital Storytelling: Effective Learning Through the Internet"
(Educational Technology March-April 1999), Constance Mellon described
how she used the internet as a tool for her storytelling class to post
their stories online. Mellon was originally resistant to the
idea of using the internet in her storytelling classes. She saw storytelling
as an oral form, and did not believe the internet would be a useful
tool to her. Then, one semester, she had
an especially large class, and
decided to try Digital Storytelling
(an online format in which the
students write personal stories in response to prompts) for students who
would be willing to take part. She was happy to find that her
students wrote more personal and heartfelt stories online than they told
orally. When she questioned her students as to how they felt about
the process, she received positive feedback. They all said they enjoyed
it, they liked being able to edit what they said, they liked being able
to avoid standing in front of others to tell their stories, and they enjoyed
the convenience of being able to write and respond whenever they wanted
to do so. One student commented that she felt that she was part of
"a storytelling family" and Mellon noted that she felt a greater sense
of community with these students than those she met with face to face.
I think
this idea could be useful in a creative writing class as an activity to
be done at the beginning of the year. It would help to create a sense
of "family" within the classroom, plus it would be relatively non-threatening
to those students who are uncomfortable sharing their writing or comments
aloud.
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