Second Annual University of Arkansas Teaching and Learning Symposium: Sharing Teaching Ideas
As a tool that allows for the creation of a geospatial multimedia story, ArcGIS StoryMaps facilitates students’ learning both inside and outside of the classroom. This interactive software offers students the opportunity to express their understanding of an input and elaborate upon it in original and personal ways using various sources. In this presentation, we will illustrate how ArcGIS can be used successfully in an advanced Italian language class to engage students with a fable by Somali-Italian acclaimed writer Igiaba Scego, Prestami le ali. Examples of scaffolded and collaborative activities demonstrate how students were able to retell the original text with their own words and images. ArcGIS supports students’ understanding of the text and its cultural components by making its storyline and geography more relatable. Moreover, it stimulates students’ creativity by expanding the text with details that make the story more accessible and the story’s geography easier to identify. The various assignments stimulated the students’ creativity and gave them the opportunity to practice the Italian language with topics that align with their interests
