The impact of digital storytelling on Iranian EFL learners ‘motivational self, and self-disclosure

Abstract

Abstract Digital stories are nowadays a rather well-known foreign language teaching material, especially produced by and for the EFL learners. Moreover, it is rather widely believed that producing digital stories is beneficial for the learners of English since they help them better develop their language skills, along with their digital literacy and (critical) thinking skills, as well. This study aimed at investigating the effect of using two types of digital storytelling, i.e., asynchronous and synchronous digital storytelling, on the EFL learners' motivational self and self-disclosure. To this end, a quasi-experimental design with an experimental and a comparison group was devised in which the learners’ language proficiency and gender were controlled variables. Sixty-five lower intermediate EFL learners were conveniently selected, and then were homogenized based on their scores on Oxford Placement Test (OPT). Then two questionnaires with Likert-scale items were used to measure their motivational self and self-disclosure before and after the intervention. The results of the study indicated that, with regard to their motivation, unlike what was observed before the intervention, the learners in the two groups were not only different in terms of their ought-to self, but also different in terms of their ideal self after the intervention. In terms of their ought-to self the learners in synchronous group had stronger beliefs. These orientations were very similar to those they had before the course in terms of instrumentality. However, the synchronous group changed in terms of their ideal self. In terms of self-disclosure, it was found that learners in both groups were more willing to disclose themselves after the course.