Assessing multimodal discourse in digital storytelling for ESP: From theory to practice

Abstract

Digital storytelling (DST) has gained in higher education settings significant attention in various fields, including language learning. The aim of this chapter is to assess multimodal discourse in financial DST and to bridge the gap between traditional assessment practices and the inclusion of multimodal elements in these. In this chapter, the authors focus on the usability and appropriateness of a proposed multimodal tool as well as to review the students’ results after its application and examine whether they have incorporated and considered multimodality as part of their learning experience. To succeed in their research, the methodology presents a three-phase approach, which involves (1) instructional sessions, (2) group assignments, and (3) recorded video assessment using a multimodal tool. Regarding the analysis of the results, a double, or also called dual, marking approach was used. Findings demonstrate the overall performance of each group. Some of these results show higher scores for some criteria, such as cohesion and coherence, audio-visual design, collaboration, and adequacy, and other areas that need improvement: grammatical accuracy, proxemics, phonological control, and editing and camera techniques. Moreover, the importance of assessing DST in language learning has been emphasised. The chapter highlights the strengths and weaknesses observed through the evaluation process, underscores the value of considering multimodal aspects in DST assessment, and suggests avenues for future research.