Comic-based Digital Storytelling with Primary School Children

In this paper, we describe a pilot study of a digital storytelling project conducted with primary school children. The study investigates how comic-based storytelling supported by a digital tool, named Communics, can facilitate primary school children in creating stories and in reflecting on situations involving discrimination within the classroom context. In a first stage, two teachers have been involved to negotiate the intervention, as well as define graphical and textual content on which to base the narrations in Communics. In a second stage, we piloted an intervention within a class of 12 children to investigate the scaffolding opportunities offered by Communics as well as different aspects of storytelling, as engagement and motivation, and explore the use of the storytelling practice as a reflective process. Finally, we discuss preliminary insights and suggestions for future studies

Interactive Digital Storytelling and Self-expression in the Context of Young Male Migrants

none3This paper describes Communics, a digital tool aimed at producing interactive digital storytelling in form of comics to facilitate self-expression. In particular, we investigated how Communics can support young male migrants to reflect on situations involving discrimination by elaborating digital narratives in counterstory. In this first stage, we built a set of graphical and textual content to be included in the software involving NGO operators and young migrants providing the users with elements to compose the visual story. Furthermore, we initially assessed the narrative approach. General considerations on this process and implications for the future user study are presented.noneRutta, Carolina Beniamina; Schiavo, Gianluca; Zancanaro, MassimoRutta, Carolina Beniamina; Schiavo, Gianluca; Zancanaro, Massim