EXAMINING DIGITAL STORYTELLING AS A TEACHING AND LEARNING TOOL IN ENGLISH CLASSES AMONG PRIMARY PUPILS AND TEACHERS IN KELANTAN: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

As the world moves into globalization with the English Language as the medium of communication, all Malaysians are urged to be proficient in the language. At the grassroots level, it is of high need that pupils in primary schools master the English Language so that they will be able to communicate with peers and adults confidently and appropriately in formal and informal situations; to read and comprehend a range of English texts for information and enjoyment; to write a range of texts using appropriate language, style and form using a variety of media; to appreciate and demonstrate understanding of English language literary or creative works for enjoyment; and finally able to use correct and appropriate rules of grammar in speech and writing as aspired by the country’s government by the end of six years of primary schooling. To realize these aspirations, teachers must begin with basic literacy skills to build a strong foundation of language skills. To uplift the quality of teaching and learning experiences, numerous techniques and pedagogical strategies have been used by teachers, instructors, educators, and researchers. Storytelling has been known as one of the most common pedagogical strategies in ESL classrooms no matter what level they belong to. Also, the integration of salient new technologies in contextualized and meaningful lessons will help pupils to learn more effectively. Lessons should be fun and interesting through purposeful pupil-centred learning activities. Fun, interesting, and engaging classroom activities offered by digital storytelling techniques will then motivate pupils in second language learning. Enriching the pupils’ aptitude in English as a second language has been one of the substantial and dominant research areas in education, and so does the research on motivation towards second language learning and acquisition. Thus, this research will add knowledge to the field as it is intended to examine the potential of digital storytelling which incorporates all the underlying pedagogical principles as outlined in the Malaysia primary school curriculum as a tool to induce learning motivation among pupils at the grassroots level in rural areas. The general aim of this study is to explore how and to what extent does the pupils’ engagement in digital storytelling activities would induce their learning motivation in English Language learning. The study employed a case study approach, in which semi-structured in-depth interviews and non-participant observations were conducted to gather qualitative data. Both learners and instructors participated in this study. 35 pupils from a primary school located in Kuala Krai, Kelantan were observed during ESL classrooms and video-production processes. At the same time, only eight of them were selected to answer the in-depth semi-structured interviews at the later stage of data collection. Seven ESL teachers from six primary schools in the same vicinity were interviewed to answer the second part of the research objectives, The data obtained were thematically coded and analysed. The results revealed that the pupils perceived digital storytelling activities as fun and interesting and would like to experience it in their ESL classroom again in the future as they concurred that their learning motivation towards the English Language was induced after being involved in digital storytelling activity. The teachers’ responses were in parallel with the pupils’ responses. Factors affecting pupils’ engagement and participation during ESL lessons were realized. In addition, factors affecting rural teachers’ preference for adopting digital storytelling were also comprehended through this study.