About the Book
Jason Ohler, well-known education technology teacher, writer, keynoter, futurist, and Apple Distinguished Educator, guides educators on how to effectively bring digital storytelling into the classroom.
The author links digital storytelling to improving traditional, digital, and media literacy and offers teachers ways to:
o Combine curriculum content and storytelling
o Blend multiple literacies within the context of digital storytelling
o Plan for creating and executing digital stories.
Table of Contents:
Foreword by David Thornburg
Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Part I. Storytelling, Education, and the New Media
1. Confessions of a Digital Storytelling Teacher: Twenty Revelations About Digital Storytelling in Education
2. Defining and Discussing Digital Storytelling: Helping Teachers See, Think, and Talk About Digital Storytelling
3. Digital Storytelling as an Educational Tool: Standards, Planning, and Literacy
4. Assessing Digital Stories: The Opportunities and Challenges of New Media Evaluation
Part II. The Art and Practice of Storytelling
5. Thinking About Story: The Story Core, Story Mapping, Story Types
6. Applying Story Maps: Seeing the Core, Mapping the Story
7. Story Planning Considerations: Tips, Techniques, Lessons Learned
8. Transformation Formations: How We, and the Characters in Our Stories, Change
9. More Story Maps: From Aristotle to Present Day
10. Other Kinds of Stories: Different Story Forms and Story Perspectives
Part III. Going Digital
11. The Media Production Process, Phase I: Developing the Story
12. The Media Production Process, Phases II–V: From Preproduction to Performance
13. The Digital Storytelling Toolbox: The Tools Teachers and Students Need to Tell Digital Stories
14. Media Grammar for Teachers: Assessing Media Expression
15. Copyright and Fair Use in Education: Living in the Gray Zone, Doing the Right Thing, and Protecting Yourself
Epilogue: If I Had a Time Machine
Resource A: Teaching Oral Storytelling
Resource B: Audio Techniques for Video Recording Oral Storytelling
Resource C: Audio Techniques for Interviewing People
Resource D: Freytag's Pyramid
Resource E: Grammar of Camera Angles
Resource F: What's Scannable?
Resource G: Joseph Campbell's Story Adventure Diagram
Resource H: Visual Portrait of a Story
References and Further Readings
Index
About the Author :
Learn more about Jason Ohler's PD offerings
Jason Ohler is a speaker, writer, teacher, researcher, and lifelong digital humanist who is well known for the passion, insight, and humor he brings to his presentations and writings. He is author of numerous articles, books, and teacher resources and continues to work directly with teachers, administrators, and students. Combining twenty-five years of experience in the educational technology field with an eye for the future, Ohler connects with people where they are, and helps them see their importance in the future development of living, learning, and working in the Digital Age. Although he is called a futurist, he considers himself a nowist, working nationally and internationally to help educators and the public use today's tools to create living environments that we are proud to call home.
Review :
“The visual representations from the charts and graphics are wonderful. I love the connections to current research because they give credence to the material and allow teachers to connect research to everyday strategies.”
"I haven't seen concrete examples like these in any educational book I've read. Throughout this book, my reactions ranged from 'awesome' to 'wow,' and I had many ideas for implementing the ideas in my own classroom. I love it!"
"The book builds and unfolds fluidly. You can see the practical progression of ideas on digital storytelling, which is wonderful because the reader can conceptualize what should happen."
"I definitely recommend this book. Many teachers do not have the expertise to plan an undertaking like this, but really want to try something new and exciting with their students. Trying new and creative activities makes teaching interesting and challenging."
"Jason Ohler writes with clarity, wit, and passion about topics that are central to the enterprise of educating. He demonstrates how each student can become an active and more confident meaning-maker by using the tools that make stories powerful aids to understanding in all areas of the curriculum."
"Essential for integrating learning, literacy, and new media in and out of the classroom. Jason Ohler is a world leader in digital storytelling, a master teacher, and a global communicator."
"All the elements of classical rhetoric are reinvigorated, from invention to decorum, to memory, to delivery of the story. This useful book places these traditional skills in the digital milieu."
"Ohler illuminates the very heart of learning and digital technology: storytelling. His is the story of how the networked computer amplifies our human capacity to learn through tools of expression."
"Ohler's latest book is a godsend to all of us working with teachers and digital media. This book makes stories work."
"Ohler continues to be witty, wise, and indispensable. Pedagogy that resonates, teamed with a practical road map for teachers exploring the digital frontier—the best new media guide for teachers by far!"
"Jason Ohler’s new book is a must-read for any educator interested in harnessing the tools of digital technology to teach students to be creative and powerful storytellers. Original, accessible, and thought provoking for technophobes and technophiles alike."
"A very important resource for twenty-first-century teaching and learning. Ohler's ability to distill the elements of good storytelling down to simple, clearly communicable ideas will prove beneficial for teachers and students alike, regardless of experience or technological knowledge."
“Provides a way for educators to begin digital storytelling at their own level and with limited technology. The makes the case that teachers need to take the digital step, and through examples, he shows how to organize, plan, and share different types of stories in a new way.”
"For both educators and college-level teaching libraries interested in blending the digital technology tools newly available with classroom strategies. A pick that practicing teachers will relish."
“For teachers looking to incorporate technology into their classroom curricula, this book serves as a great instructional tool and reference. Even for those who are not technologically proficient, Ohler’s discussion of helping students hone their storytelling skills is quite valuable.”
