An Alternative Teaching Process in a Social Studies Course: Learning through Digital Storytelling

The aim of this study is to examine the impact of social studies course conducted through digital storytelling on students' academic achievement and attitude towards technology, and to determine student views on such a learning process. Embedded mixed methods design was used in the study, consisting of 41 fourth grade students at a primary school. An academic achievement test, an attitude scale towards technology, and a semi-structured interview form developed by the researchers were used as data collection tools. Descriptive and predictive statistics were used in the analysis of the data obtained from the academic achievement test and the scale of attitude towards technology, while the data obtained from semi-structured interviews were analysed with content analysis. The quantitative findings showed statistical significance in favour of the experimental group students in terms of academic achievement and attitude towards technology, whereas the qualitative data explained the reasons for the difference in a way that supported the quantitative data. The results indicated that digital stories that are entertaining and encouraging to watch and listen, in addition to enabling active participation in the process proved to increase the students' academic achievement by creating easy and permanent learning opportunities and to be efficacious in developing positive attitude towards technology. From this perspective, it can be argued that digital storytelling, which offers a rich content to achieve meaningful learning, is an alternative pedagogical way that can be utilized in social studies lessons.