A wee article about the value of digital storytelling. We knew this!

But! Last year we did run a hugely successful workshop in Hamilton. A small group of Pasifika and Maori teenagers joined us for a workshop on digital stories. Many of the stories were emotionally moving and the final showntell event was attended by families and friends, as well as Maori tv. We can’t really show you any stories because we did not seek permission to show them, and besides they’ll be shown by the Hamilton City Council staff who organised the week-long event. But one of us did get to portray a racist school teacher…..

Another workshop is planned for this year. Meantime one of us is collecting stories of locals who have lived in the Porirua area for a while. A kind of mission of love, and also preparing to co-present a paper on distributed identities at the DEANZ Conference in Wellington at the end of April. The other of us has moved daytime jobs to the University of Waikato!

The researchers ask that those that are interested join them in the i reflect community where you can find resources, watch stories, and contribute to the community forums.

Technology-Mediated Narrative Environments for Learning (Hardcover)
by G Dettori (Editor), T Giannetti (Editor)

http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=HNDMY5YwCPkC&dq=learning+environments&printsec=frontcover&source=in&hl=en&ei=We7CSbv5GpKWsQP4p8T-Bg&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=10&ct=result#PPP1,M1

I liked this too:

The talk was inspiring, and made me think about ways educational institutions could use these tools to create communities of practice. It’s a wee bit more fraught for us than for museums but hmmmmm it’s an area I think we are still toying with.

Nevertheless the talk from Shelley was inspiring and you can find the Brooklyn Museum on facebook, or on the various twitter or flickr and related sites.

Worth watching.

Update: Shelley is speaking and facilitating a workshop at Webstock 2010!

It’s called: Talks Pattie Maes & Pranav Mistry: Unveiling the “Sixth Sense,” game-changing wearable tech

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/pattie_maes_demos_the_sixth_sense.html

The theme this year for May16th is Immigrant and Human Rights.

While last year we were part of team that set up the local Ning site Digital Life Stories I am not convinced that this year we will have the wherewithall to do anything. We had hoped that others would contribute to the Ning site and they have but it has alas lapsed a little. If you have a story you want to add there…. add it!

Let us know if you want to do something and we will do our best to support and be involved.

Looks as if virtual worlds continue to have a place this year. I guess it’s like the first time people saw movies or tv…..there may have been warnings about the nature of the new worlds….interesting to track.

Any other predictions for 2009?