Kimura

nternational Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 1-12, January-March 2012 1
Copyright 2012, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic Iorms without written permission oI IGI Global is prohibited.
Kevwords. Digital Storvtelling, Oral Reading Fluencv, Photo Storv 3, Reading Comprehension, Jisuali:ing
and Jerbali:ing
INTRODUCTION
The study oI English in the Japanese classroom
is Iocused on acquiring knowledge about the
Iundamentals oI English, such as grammar,
vocabulary, and sentence structure, in prepara-
tion Ior entrance examinations Ior a university
or proIiciency tests Ior employment. The tra-
ditional reading class is conducted using the
reading and translation method. Although oral
reading is used in classroom settings, sentences
in English are read individually or in a series
by a student. The student must translate into
Japanese the passages read aloud, with the
teacher providing corrections to the translation
when necessary.
There are two signiIicant problems with
this teaching method. The Iirst problem is that
the aim oI the students in a reading class is to
simply translate the text word-Ior-word Irom
English into Japanese, leaving the students un-
able to enjoy the content or the story. The author
has taught English reading classes Ior nursing
students Ior more than ten years. In the early
stages oI her teaching experience, she prepared
comprehension questions to determine whether
students understood key messages in the story
and attempted to encourage deep discussions
oI the content. However, the students were
not interested in reading passages deeply or
DigitaI StoryteIIing and OraI
FIuency in an EngIish Reading
CIass at a Japanese University
Midori Kimura, Tokvo Womens Medical Universitv, Japan
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this studv is to examine the effectiveness of digital storvtelling (DST) in improving oral read-
ing uencv bv using the preview function of the software Photo Storv 3. This application easilv handles the
recording and revising of a narration, which is an essential part of oral reading. DST is the art of telling
stories through the use of various multimedia, such as text, still images, audio, and video. DST combines the
functions of visuali:ing and verbali:ing, which are essential for language comprehension and thinking from
the perspective of cognitive neuroscience. The participants were 35 Japanese nursing students in Japan, who
carried out DST utili:ing nursing episodes from a textbook. Undertaking DST enabled the participants to
learn to read deeplv, visuali:e the storv, and enfov verbali:ing their interpretation of the context, which is a
skill lacking in most Japanese students due to the reading/translation teaching method.
DOI: 10.4018/ijcallt.2012010101
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
2 nternational Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 1-12, January-March 2012
interpreting them Irom various perspectives,
and they were reluctant to answer comprehen-
sion questions. These problems made reading
classes unIulIilling Ior both the teacher and
the students and encouraged the teacher to
seek new and interesting methods Ior teaching
reading. The other problem is that students
do not actively seek out phonetic, lexical, or
morphological input unless they are highly
selI-motivated (Muroi, 2005). The extra time
devoted to in-class translation means that the
amount oI oral pronunciation the students hear
in any class period is limited. Most students do
not prepare beIore class by reading the entire
text aloud; thereIore, they 'tune out the pro-
nunciation oI vocabulary when it is their turn to
read aloud (Yoneoka, 1994). This is especially
true Ior the nursing students in the author`s
classes, who read textbooks containing diIIicult
terminology. The students Iind it diIIicult to
pronounce medical terms and oIten stop read-
ing in the middle oI the sentences. This pattern
eventually leads to decreasing selI-conIidence
in English. ThereIore, there is an urgent need to
help students enjoy reading and to re-energize
language classes. One promising method is the
use oI digital storytelling (DST).
DST has been extensively practiced in
grade schools, middle schools, high schools,
universities, and graduate schools in the United
States to improve the comprehensive literacy
skills oI students (Behmer, 2005). For example,
the University oI Houston (2007) Ieatures a
website describing 'The educational uses oI
digital storytelling. DST is a relatively new
method in Japan. Based on its potential beneIits,
DST was introduced into a Japanese university
nursing class to help students improve their
levels oI oral Iluency and to increase students`
enjoyment oI reading.
THE STUDY
What Is DigitaI StoryteIIing?
DST is a method that combines electronic media
tools with traditional storytelling teaching meth-
ods. The method used in DST includes preparing
digital pictures based on a story, recording the
story or narration, adding music, iI desired, and
combining these various eIIects into a movie.
Through this process, reading and learning can
be made exciting and Iun. Ohler (2007) states
that DST is a new pathway to literacy, learn-
ing, and creativity. DST is an academic tool
Ior exploring content and communicating what
is understood, and it improves speaking and
listening skills while it helps learners acquire
the context oI literacy. Ellis (2009) believes
that DST is the key to excellent teaching and
dynamic learning. Ellis notes that this is a unique
method oI communication that enables students
to express their thoughts and ideas in their own
unique ways, and it improves reading Iluency,
comprehension, and vocabulary.
Many other researchers (Beck & McK-
eown, 2001; Bendt & Bowe, 2000) have
emphasized improvements in reading Iluency
through the practice oI DST. Rasinski (2003),
in particular, points out the importance oI oral
reading Iluency. Rasinski emphasizes that oral
reading Iluency means more than reading ac-
curately and quickly; it also involves reading
with expression as a way to uncover the text`s
meaning. In addition to improving the under-
standing and interpretation oI the content, oral
reading expresses emotions through voice in-
Ilection, suggesting that it is a speaking activity
rather than a reading activity. Rasinski (2011)
deIines oral reading Iluency in terms oI three
key components: accuracy, automaticity, and
prosody (or expression). The third component
oI Iluency, prosodic or expressive reading,
is directly related to comprehension. Fluent
readers embed the prosodic or melodic Ieatures
oI spoken language stress, pitch variations,
intonation, rate, phrasing, and pausing in their
voice (Dowhower, 1987, 1991; Schreiber, 1980,
1987, 1991; Schreiber & Read, 1980). This
embedding oI prosody shows that the reader
is trying to make sense oI the text.
Many beneIits oI digital storytelling have
been reported. For the author`s Iirst empirical
study, the Iocus was on oral reading Iluency in
terms oI visualizing and verbalizing. The next
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
section explains the connection between oral
reading Iluency and the concept oI visualizing
and verbalizing.
VisuaIization and Language
Comprehension
Bell (1991) identiIied visualization as a basic
Iactor in language comprehension and critical
thinking. Considerable evidence in the Iields
oI cognitive psychology and reading supports
imagery as a critical Iactor in language com-
prehension. Pavio (1971) demonstrated that
imagery represents one oI two types oI cogni-
tive codes, and Kosslyn (1976) conducted a
developmental study on the eIIects and roles
oI imagery in retrieving inIormation Irom
long-term memory. Wittrock (1981) stated that
reading comprehension could be Iacilitated by
several diIIerent procedures that emphasize
attention to the text and to the construction oI
verbal and imaginable elaborations. Kulhavy
and Swenson (1975) and Gambrell (1982) Iound
that school-aged readers who were instructed to
visualize images while reading recalled more
and made signiIicantly more predictive inIer-
ences about the story events than did control
group subjects.
How can a teacher help his or her students
to visualize images while reading? This study
reports an experiment in which pictures were
drawn in the context oI the reading content.
The pictures expressed ideas drawn Irom the
reading passages, including the setting oI the
scene, the characters and their Ieelings, and the
intention oI the book`s author. These drawings
were converted to digital images Ior the stories.
VerbaIization and Language
Comprehension
There are two reasons that many Japanese
students are very poor at verbalizing words in
English. One is the reticence oI Japanese stu-
dents in general, which results in a lack oI voice
projection and a Ilat Japanese-language-style
delivery. A more serious reason, which is related
to the learning oI English, is that students have
not been trained to read English aloud at school.
Knowledge oI a language is diIIerent Irom the
skills required to use it and the training neces-
sary to develop oral Iluency. Scientists consider
oral reading highly eIIective (Kawashima &
Adachi, 2004; Miura et al., 2003). Kawashima
(2004), a specialist in neuroscience, conIirmed
that oral reading activates not only the language
areas, but also other areas in the brain and
may thereIore be useIul Ior learning English.
According to Kawashima and Adachi (2004),
sounds and letters are recognized and processed
in diIIerent parts oI the brain through diIIerent
networks. Auditory language goes through the
primary auditory cortex in the upper temporal
lobe Iirst and is comprehended at Wernicke`s
area. Written language goes through the primary
visual cortex in the occipital lobe and is com-
prehended in the occipital lobe. Visual inIorma-
tion is subsequently processed in the inIerior
temporal gyrus in the lower temporal lobe and
comprehended in the parietal lobe. Uemura
(2009), another specialist in neuroscience and
a neurosurgeon, notes that we articulate words
using the motor cortex oI Brodmann`s area 4
(Figure 1), and that we speak sentences using
Broca`s expressive speech area in Brodmann`s
area 44 (Figure 1). Uemura claims that the
Japanese method oI teaching English in high
schools has been a complete Iailure:
The effective strategies for teaching/learning
foreign languages must be in accord with the
cerebral mechanisms for learning languages.
English education in Japan, up until now, has
concentrated primarilv on the processing of the
written word, and largelv neglected phono-
logical language processing, and development
of the network for verbali:ing has not advanced
verv much. Therefore, Japanese students as a
whole are unable to read sentences aloud with
anv degree of fluencv or competencv, conse-
quentlv, thev need training to activate the part
of the brain that handles phonological language
processing (Uemura, 2009. p. 9). The numbers
in the figure represent the numbers given bv
Brodmann, who classified the cerebral cortex
into 53 different areas. The description in the
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
map was partlv adapted from Kawashima and
Adachi (2004) and Uemura (2009).
How can teachers cultivate the necessary
skills in students? Researchers suggest that the
practice oI reading aloud provides many beneIits
in reading classes. A survey oI ESL teachers
(GriIIin, 1992) indicated that the beneIits
included an expansion oI oral vocabulary, the
development oI awareness oI the sounds oI the
language, the Iacilitation oI assembling words
into meaningIul groups, and the development
oI selI-conIidence. Oral reading is widely sup-
ported in Japan by many English teachers and
learners as one oI the most eIIective methods
Ior oral language development (Miyasako,
2003; Niisato, 1991; Suzuki, 1998; Takayama,
2004; Tsuchiya, 2004; Yasugi, 2003). Kunihiro
(1998), who is an authority on the simultaneous
interpretation oI Japanese into English and vice
versa, is an advocate oI repeated oral reading.
Tsuchiya (2004) supports the importance oI
implementing oral reading in English classes
and lists the Iollowing beneIits Ior students:
1. Knowledge can be acquired and skills can
be developed through the use oI phonemes,
syntactic construction, and tone units
(phrasing).
2. Practice can be completed individually and
improvement can be evaluated.
3. Motivation can be increased iI students
are given the opportunity to make
presentations.
4. A good Ioundation Ior speaking can be
established because oral reading Iunctions
as an output activity.
Kubono (2006) pointed out that reading
aloud is not a panacea, explaining that students
would be unable to gain the potential beneIits oI
reading aloud unless teachers provided guidance
and clariIied the purpose and advantages oI this
activity. The teacher thus becomes a pacemaking
model Ior the students to emulate. Students can
immediately obtain the correct pronunciation oI
unknown words and can make comparisons with
their own pronunciation. Niizato (1991) warned
that repeated oral reading without purpose only
bores students, and Tsuchiya noted that oral
reading requires patience and strenuous practice.
Figure 1. Schematic illustration of the lateral view of the human left (dominant) cerebral hemi-
sphere . Brodmanns map was adapted from http.//www.umich.edu/~cogneuro/fpg/Brodmann.html
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
Another important element is well-organized
guidance and assistance Irom teachers. How can
we help students to practice oral reading without
boring them while simultaneously evaluating
their reading, recognizing their improvement,
and motivating them? In summarizing the above
studies, the author concluded that DST is an ideal
method that combines visualizing and verbal-
izing Iunctions to enhance oral reading Iluency.
DST oIIers a purposeIul yet entertaining and
creative method, thereby motivating students
to try their hand at making digital stories. As
a solution to the above quandary, the author
introduced digital storytelling in class, leading
to two hypotheses.
Hypothesis 1: DST enhances oral reading
Iluency.
Hypothesis 2: DST helps students comprehend
the text.
METHOD
Participants
The English proIiciency level oI most nurs-
ing students is not very high. The author`s
students had an average TOEIC test score oI
approximately 450, which is low intermediate.
Approximately 80 oI the students preIerred
English conversation to reading. English reading
reminded them oI the diIIicult English test they
took as a part oI the entrance examination to the
university, and they had a preconception that
reading was diIIicult and that conversation was
enjoyable. However, English reading skill and
the knowledge oI English medical terminology
is required to advance to graduate school iI stu-
dents want to become midwives or public health
nurses. The 35 nursing students in the reading
class read stories about nursing that included
many medical terms, most oI which were diI-
Iicult Ior the students to pronounce correctly.
ThereIore, when they read the text aloud, most
oI the students could not pronounce the words
correctly and stumbled repeatedly. However,
their problem did not seem to involve only the
diIIicult terminology. When the teacher asked
questions such as Whv do vou think so?, What
does that mean?, or How do vou feel about it?,
it was evident that the students` comprehension
was very shallow. The students` reading sug-
gested that they did not Iully understand what
they were reading. Students who are unable to
understand the content have diIIiculty read-
ing a text aloud with any degree oI Iluency.
The students needed to comprehend the text
more thoroughly to read aloud eIIectively. In
other words, they needed to improve their oral
interpretation skills. However, Iorcing them to
read the text aloud many times did not seem to
solve the problem. The teacher needed a method
to motivate the students into becoming more
interested in reading and to practice oral reading.
Procedure
An experiment to create the digital stories was
conducted using Photo Story 3, a Iree soItware
application available Irom MicrosoIt. This ap-
plication was selected because oI the ease with
which it allows students to manage the recording
and revising oI the narration and to add music.
Most importantly, the preview Iunction oI this
soItware provides a non-threatening way Ior
students to preview and adjust their reading
oI the narration. The students listen to their
recordings and veriIy that they are correct. II
they are not correct, the recordings are deleted,
and the student records another. This way, the
students can determine whether their reading
is improving.
First recording. Prior to the start oI the
experiment, students silently read stories about
nurses working in America. The students then
checked unknown vocabulary and practiced
reading the stories aloud once or twice. Then,
they proceeded to record their narration. AIter
these steps were completed, the author inIormed
the students that they would be making digital
stories. Emphasis was placed on the importance
oI attracting the audience`s attention through the
narration and pictures, which were intended to
reIlect the students` interpretations oI the story
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
(thereby clariIying the purpose and advantages
oI digital stories).
The students were divided into seven
groups, corresponding to the number oI stories
in the textbook. Five students were assigned to
each story. The students discussed the Ieelings
oI the patients and nurses in certain scenes in
the stories. The students were then tasked with
drawing pictures oI each scene and describing
the medical kits in the textbook. Finally, the
students wrote the digital stories. The Iollow-
ing week, the author explained the prosodic or
melodic Ieatures oI spoken language stress,
pitch variations, intonation, rate, phrasing,
and pausing and showed individual students
a model or pacemaking readings, based on
Kubono`s (2006) suggestion that the teacher
should be a pacemaking model Ior the students
to emulate.
Depending on each student`s oral reading
ability, the teacher provided detailed instruction
to some students by oIIering examples, such as
stressing or stretching key words or numbers
or pausing beIore important words, because it
was diIIicult Ior some students to emulate the
model reading and to determine whether they
were pronouncing words correctly. Only 15
oI the students had learned about pronunciation,
stress, pausing, or meaningIul units oI words
in high school.
Second recording. The second recording
involved individual oral reading practice. The
students were eager to practice. They created
pictures or visual images to be incorporated
into Photo Story 3, and they were delighted to
record, hear, and watch the stories they were
working on and to preview their narrations.
Students typically spend only about 20 to 30
minutes practicing Ior oral presentations; how-
ever, none oI the students objected to spending
a signiIicant amount oI time preparing in an
attempt to present the best narration.
Third recording. AIter individual oral read-
ing practice, the students again Iormed groups
and recorded another narration as the Iinal
version oI the digital story. The students added
music that was appropriate to the story Ior each
scene and were excited to be able to make their
stories sound like a real movie. Some oI the
students rehearsed several times to produce a
creative and well-craIted version oI the digital
story. Other students had to re-record their nar-
ration or speak louder to achieve a balance with
the volume oI the background music.
The students made three recordings oI the
same text, and the author compared the Iirst and
the third recordings. The Iirst recording was a
simple oral reading, and the third recording was
the digital storytelling version. To evaluate the
recordings, the Multidimensional Fluency Scale
(Table 1) was used to rate Iour areas: volume
and expressiveness, phrasing, smoothness,
and pace. This scale, adapted Irom a version
developed by Zutell and Rasinski (1991), was
combined with a version oI the Rasinski (2003)
scale to rate accuracy. The author combined
these scales Ior two reasons. First, Rasinski
(2011) deIined oral reading Iluency in terms oI
three key components: accuracy, automaticity,
and prosody. 'Accuracy, which was lacking
in the Zutell and Rasinski (1991) scale, was
compensated by the Rasinski (2003) scale
to rate accuracy. Furthermore, both versions
utilized the same Iour-level Likert scale, so the
reliability was not compromised by combining
the two scales. The total score range was Irom
5 to 20. Scores oI 11 or higher indicated that
Iluency had been achieved.
The author asked the students how many
times and how they practiced oral reading Ior
the second and the third recordings, because it
was important to show that the DST method is
a Iun and eIIective way to practice oral reading.
AIter sharing their DST movies in class, the
students discussed the movies with each other
and then reported on what they had learned
Irom the DST method. The author asked the
students to provide Ieedback in two ways: by
answering 'yes or no questions regarding
the eIIectiveness oI oral reading through the
DST method and by writing open-ended com-
ments. The questionnaires were prepared based
on the study above and on a preliminary ex-
periment conducted the previous year.
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Hypothesis 1: DST Enhances
OraI Reading FIuency
The results showed a dramatic change in all
Iive Iactors oI oral reading Iluency between
the Iirst reading and the third reading (DST
version) (Figures 2 and 3). The students`
prosody improved signiIicantly in the DST
version compared with the Iirst oral reading,
with statistically signiIicant improvements in
all categories. The inter-rater reliability between
the two raters, the author and her colleague in
the same research group, was .963. The aver-
age total Likert scale scores increased Irom
8.6 to 17.8. As mentioned previously, a score
oI 11 or higher indicates that Iluency has been
achieved. ThereIore, this suggests that DST was
highly successIul in improving oral Iluency.
In the DST version, almost all students paid
close attention to their pronunciation, narrated
in a louder voice, put stress on key words,
and inserted pauses in appropriate places. The
students also learned about phrasing, which
enabled them to group words into chunks oI
Table 1. The multidimensional fluencv scale (adapted from Zutell & Rasinski, 1991, Rasinski,
2003, p. 177)
Dimension
Accuracy Accuracy is poor:
gener al l y bel ow
85. Reader clearly
struggles in decoding
words.
Accuracy is margin-
al: 86-90. Reader
struggles with many
words.
Accuracy is good: 91-
95. SelI-corrects suc-
cessIully.
Accuracy is excellent:
96 and above. Nearly
all words are read cor-
rectly on initial attempt.
Expression
and Volume
Reads with little
expression or en-
thusiasm in voice.
Seems to read words
simply to get them
out. Little sense oI
trying to make text
sound like natural
language. Tends to
read in a quiet voice.
Some expression.
Begins to use voice
to make text sound
like natural language
in some areas oI the
text, but not others.
Focus remains largely
on saying the words.
Still reads in a quiet
voice.
Sounds like natural lan-
guage throughout the
better part oI the passage.
Occasionally slips into
expressionless reading.
Voice volume is generally
appropriate throughout
the text.
Reads with good ex-
pression and enthusi-
asm throughout the text.
Sounds like natural lan-
guage. The reader is able
to vary expression and
volume to match his/
her interpretation oI the
passage.
Smoothness Frequent extended
pauses, hesitations,
Ialse starts, sound-
outs, repetitions, and/
or multiple attempts.
Several rough spots in
text where extended
pauses, hesitations,
etc., are more Ire-
quent and disruptive.
Occasional breaks in
smoothness caused by
diIIiculties with speciIic
words and/or structures.
Generally smooth read-
ing with some breaks,
but word and structure
diIIiculties are resolved
quickly, usually through
selI-correction.
Phrasing Monotonic with lit-
tle sense oI phrase
boundaries; Irequent
word-by-word read-
ing.
Frequent two- and
three-word phrases
giving the impression
oI choppy reading.
Improper stress and
intonation that Iail
to mark ends oI sen-
tences and clauses.
Mixture oI run-ons, mid-
sentence pauses Ior breath,
and possibly some choppi-
ness. Reasonable stress/
intonation.
Generally well phrased,
mostly in clause and sen-
tence units, with adequate
attention to expression.
Pace (during
sections oI
minimal dis-
ruption)
Slow and laborious. Moderately slow. Uneven mixture oI Iast and
slow reading.
Consistently conversa-
tional.
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
meaningIul units oI words. Furthermore, the
students put a great deal oI eIIort into incor-
porating rhythm into their narration to express
their stories more eIIectively. The second and
third comments in Figure 3, which shows the
results oI the students` eIIorts in oral reading,
clearly indicate that the students speciIically
Iocused on eIIective prosody. ThereIore, it
can be concluded that Hypothesis 1 has been
proven (Table 2).
Hypothesis 2: DST HeIps Students
Comprehend the Text
Many students stated that they could visualize
the story when they read the text in preparation
Ior digital storytelling, which is an important
strategy Ior reading Iluency. Additional Ieed-
back Irom the students is summarized.
DST was Iun.
DST gave the students the opportunity to
read stories in depth and made it possible
Ior them to visualize (draw pictures oI) the
story content.
DST provided them with interesting dis-
coveries because they Iound that stories
sounded diIIerent iI they paid attention to
their vocal delivery.
We can see that prosodic or expressive
reading is directly related to comprehension.
Fluent readers embed prosodic or melodic
Ieatures oI spoken language stress, pitch
variations, intonation, rate, phrasing, and paus-
ing in their voices (Dowhower, 1987, 1991;
Schreiber, 1980, 1987, 1991; Schreiber & Read,
1980). ThereIore, it can be said that the students
attempted to make sense oI or comprehend
the text by embedding prosody. In addition to
the results regarding Hypothesis 1, it can be
concluded that Hypothesis 2 has been proven.
The next discussion relates to DST as an
ideal means oI enhancing oral reading Iluency
through a purposeIul yet entertaining method.
The pie chart in Figure 4 depicting 'Second
reading shows how many times the students
practiced oral reading aIter they received
guidance and instruction in prosody (voice
inIlection). Approximately 58 oI the students
practiced oral reading more than ten times aIter
they received advice Irom the teacher regard-
ing vocal delivery, and 91 oI the students
practiced more than Iive times. The pie chart
depicting 'Rehearsal shows how many times
the students rehearsed when recording the
Iinal version oI their digital stories with the
background music. Approximately 30 oI the
students perIormed at least three rehearsals even
Figure 2. Improvement in oral reading fluencv
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
Figure 3. Students comments on the Digital Storvtelling method
Table 2. A comparison of average scores of the first and third oral readings
Mean SD p
Accuracy 1 2.03 0.874
0.0001
Accuracy 3 3.80 0.248
Volume 1 2.43 0.632
0.0001
Volume 3 3.61 0.366
Smoothness 1 1.23 0.547
0.0001
Smoothness 3 3.57 0.405
Phrasing 1 1.54 0.679
0.0001
Phrasing 3 3.54 0.427
Pause 1 1.34 0.539
0.0001
Pause 3 3.24 0.534
Total 1 8.57 3.04
0.0001
Total 3 17.77 3.61
Note: n35 Ior each pair
Factors with number 1 mean the Iirst reading, and 3 means the third reading.
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
aIter conducting multiple oral reading practices.
This chart clearly shows the students` eIIorts
to create the best version oI the digital story or
to make their narration loud enough in relation
to the background music. The students enjoyed
this activity, as shown in the students` Ieedback
discussed in Hypothesis 2.
The DST method supports statements made
by researchers regarding eIIective oral reading.
Students were able to gain the beneIits oI read-
ing aloud through the deIinite objective oI
creating a digital story and with the teacher`s
guidance in reading aloud. Moreover, reading
comprehension was enhanced by emphasizing
that students should visualize and pay attention
to the story through the act oI drawing pictures
and that they should be aware oI the construc-
tion oI verbal and imaginable elaborations. As
shown in Figure 3, the students acquired knowl-
edge oI terminology and skills Ior oral presen-
tation by making use oI phonemes, syntactic
construction, and phrasing.
Students improved their prosody and recog-

nized that they had made progress in their oral
delivery skills. It could be suggested that the
results were due to the voice inIlection guid-
ance the students received and not because
they practiced DST. However, one need only
recall Tsuchiya`s (2004) and Niizato`s (1991)
observations that oral reading requires patience
and strenuous practice and that students become
bored with practicing unless teachers are able to
provide well-organized guidance and assistance.
As a result oI the DST method, the students
became engrossed in oral reading practice and
did not mind repeating rehearsals many times.
The students Iound DST Iun and interesting,
as indicated by the students` own comments.
The students were able to acquire a range oI
skills that augmented the skill oI oral reading.
They also gained oral interpretation skills that
enabled them to gain a deeper understanding
oI the stories and to express their impressions
and emotions by controlling their voice.
Photo Story 3, with its 'preview Iunc-
tion, enabled students to view how they spoke
and provided a means to evaluate their own
improvement. The students in this study under-
stood the concrete purpose oI DST and did not
mind spending a signiIicant amount oI time in
preparation to present the best possible digital
stories. Consequently, the students learned the
importance oI clear articulation and dramatic
interpretation and showed a signiIicant improve-
ment in their oral reading Iluency, averaging a
score above 3 in all Iive categories oI the oral
Iluency scale. Creating digital stories enabled
the students to read deeply to visualize the
story, resulting in improved comprehension,
as evidenced by their Ieedback. They gained
Figure 4. The number of times readings were practiced
IGI GLOBAL PROOF
Iirst-hand experience in the perIorming arts and
an opportunity to create stories using various
multimedia tools.
It can be concluded that DST is an ideal
method to enhance oral reading Iluency and help
students comprehend content. DST Iunctions
in accordance with the cerebral mechanisms
Ior learning languages, and it combines visu-
alizing and verbalizing Iunctions to enhance
oral reading Iluency through a purposeIul yet
entertaining and creative method, thereby mo-
tivating students to enjoy making digital stories
and, ultimately, establishing a good Ioundation
Ior speaking.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I would like to express my sincerest appreciation
Ior the support and cooperation I received Irom
e-Learning ProIessional Competency (eLPCO)
oI Aoyama Gakuin University in Japan.
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Midori Kimura received her MA degree (TESOL) from Teachers College and her EdD from
International Christian Universitv in Japan. Her research interests include learning strate-
gies, learning stvle, and multimedia education with a focus on digital storvtelling. She has held
workshops and svmposiums on digital storvtelling at universities in Japan and at international
conferences, such as GLoCALL 2010 and JACET 2011. She co-authored Studving Language
and Learning Strategies and Strategv Handbook, which are teacher resource books. She has
also published articles in fournals, such as Eibei Bunka and JACET Bulletin, and proceedings in
Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). She is verv active outside
of Japan as well, taking part in international conferences such as GLoCALL, Societv for Informa-
tion Technologv for Teacher Education (SITE), Educational Media and Technologv (EdMedia),
and E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare & Higher Education (E-Learn). Books
that she has recentlv co-authored are Research Highlights in Technologv (2009), World CALL
(2011), and Open Source Mobile Learning (2011).
IGI GLOBAL PROOF

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nternational Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 1-12, January-March 2012 1

Students improved their prosody and recog-

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