art-activism

Panel Resources: “Activist Affordance of Digital Storytelling in the Academy”

~ trauman ~ Leave a comment

Ames and I, along with our friend and colleague, Phil Bratta, recently presented some of our work at the 6th International Digital Storytelling Conference and Exhibition. Our panel was titled: “Activist Affordance of Digital Storytelling in the Academy.” Here is a description of the panel and a summary of what each of us talked about (from our submitted panel proposal):

This session explores various ways digital storytelling can be understood as a form of activism relevant to the academy. Through specific examples of ways digital storytelling has influenced their pedagogy and scholarship, the presenters–an Associate Professor, Lecturer, and Doctoral Graduate Student–explore a range of affordances inherent in the activist power of digital storytelling, and provide tangible take-aways for anyone who desires a better understanding of this critical/creative form. The audience will learn how digital storytelling enables activist connections between communities and the academy, through the production of digital storytelling as an accessible form of creative scholarship.

The presenters will offer: 1) a list of digital storytelling principles for activist intentions; 2) guidelines for providing generative feedback as advocacy; 3) an opportunity to experiment with mobile media to create mini-autoethnographic projects.

Trauman: My presentation recounts how I employed digital storytelling principles as the foundations of a first-year writing course. I also offer alternative ways of understanding “reading” assignments, responsible multimedia collaboration, and digital storytelling assignments in the tradition of Studs Terkel, “This I Believe,” and RadioLab.

Ames: My presentation argues for digital storytelling as a rich form for art activism pedagogy. I also explain that student work from my course inspired me to want to make my own film–one that has activist qualities as a digital piece reflecting a genderqueer/transgenre story, and as scholarship itself.

Phil: I examine the potentials of digital writing/images with mobile media as an opportunity for critical autoethnography for students. As students work with familiar modes of writing and technology “at-their-hand,” they have opportunities for self-reflection and self-discovery. Such reflections and discoveries, as I delineate, may also offer students opportunities to address and engage with social issues that matter to them. I conclude by having attendees briefly work with their own mobile media to create their own autoethnographic digital project.

Resources for Trauman’s Presentation

Assignment Examples

“Another’s Work” (Audio Interview Text)

“Remediating Your Work” (digital story: script, voice narration, and moving images)

Resources for Ames’s Presentation

(resources to be posted soon)

Resources for Phil’s Presentation

Bratta_Digital Storytelling Presentation

(resources to be posted soon)