A Case of Equipping Malaysian ESL Undergraduates with 21st Century Skills via Digital Storytelling

Abstract

Today’s advanced economies and innovative industries have created a demand for knowledge workers with 21st century skills. Recent research studies have shown that the current mode of teaching and learning have not managed to adequately equip undergraduates with the desired 21st Century skills. Thus, there is a need to intro duce more appropriate methods into the pedagogy. In recent studies, digital storytelling (DST) has been found to be effective in inculcating ICT literacy, inventive thinking and problem solving skills among students through involvement in simulated working environment. The process of creating DST which includes organize ideas, express opinions and construct narratives is also believed to be able to enhance students’ communicative and collaborative skills. However, the extent this technology benefits students is still rarely examined in many Asian contexts, particularly in Malaysia. Hence, this study intends to address this gap in knowledge by investigating the effects of DST on 198 students undertaking an English for Academic Purpose course at a public uni versity in Malaysia. A quantitative approach involving the use using a 30-item is used for collecting data in this study designed to explore the effectiveness of DST from the students’ perspectives. The findings revealed that students in general were receptive towards DST despite facing some problems and challenges throughout the project. The findings and the implications of the study will be discussed in this paper.