The Impact of Digital Storytelling on Students' Information Literacy and Critical Thinking Skills

Subject Areas : Education

saeed Farsi ^{1 *} , Hamideh Zare Dehghanani ²

1 -
2 - Department of Educational Sciences, Shiraz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shiraz, Iran

Received: 2025-09-25 Accepted : 2025-10-22 Published : 2025-11-15

Keywords: Digital Storytelling , Students' Information Literacy, Critical Thinking Skills,

Abstract :

Introduction and Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the impact of digital storytelling on the information literacy skills and critical thinking of eleventh-grade female students in District 2 of Shiraz.

Research Methodology: This study was applied in purpose and employed a quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test measures, including both experimental and control groups. The statistical population consisted of all 7,800 eleventh-grade female students in District 2 of Shiraz during the 2024-2025 academic year. A sample of 60 students was selected using random cluster sampling and was equally divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group received English language instruction through digital storytelling in five 45-minute sessions (one session per week), while both groups were assessed before and after the intervention. Data collection instruments included Lau's (2014) Student Information and Communication Technology Literacy Questionnaire and Ricketts' (2003) Critical Thinking Questionnaire, the validity and reliability of which were confirmed. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was performed using SPSS version 27 to test the hypotheses.

Findings: The data analysis results at a significance level of 0.05 indicated that digital storytelling has a significant impact on both the information literacy skills and critical thinking of the participants. Specifically, digital storytelling significantly affected the students' information literacy skills (including information literacy, internet literacy, and computer literacy). Furthermore, digital storytelling significantly influenced the students' critical thinking (including creativity, maturity, and commitment).

Discussion and Conclusion: Based on the results, the use of digital storytelling in educational settings can enhance the quality of learning, develop cognitive abilities, and improve information analysis skills

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