Integrating Digital Technology into the Language Curriculum: Understanding Information and Communications Technologies in the Media Literacy and Digital Storytelling Classroom

Information and communications technologies (ICT), as described by the Ontario curriculum for language arts regarding grades 1-8, “provide a range of tools that can significantly extend and enrich teacher’s instructional strategies and support students’ learning in language” (2006, p. 30). However, with the multitude of ICT currently available to educators across the province and around the world, the question remains: what technologies and strategies are best suited for developing engaging, multimodal learning experiences in the media literacy classroom and how can these instruments help develop reading and writing proficiency? This research paper reports how primary teachers, as well as extracurricular educators, in the Greater Toronto Area utilize ICT in their media literacy and language instruction while interpreting the Ontario language curriculum through the use of digital storytelling tools and strategies. Employing qualitative research methodologies, including characteristics of narrative research, grounded theory, and ethnographic study, this research paper explores the practices and methodologies of several primary teachers in York Region, as well as extramural educators, in order to outline and detail challenges that a comprehensive media literacy program faces when it includes digital storytelling as its core tenet