Abstract
This chapter focuses on the use of the micro-story as a real language sample in a group of foreign adult learners in a situation of linguistic immersion at the A2 level to enhance the development of basic communicative skills, while encouraging the appreciation of literature in the target language and creative production by the learners. By combining the creative writing activity with the implementation of technological tools, students are offered the opportunity to engage in a comprehensive learning process involving written production in the target language and the underlying processes of interaction, planning, and creation, together with the use of technological applications to enhance the narrative content and aesthetic aspect of the micro-stories. A proposal is made that includes a series of enabling activities aimed at bringing students closer to the reading and analysis of micro-stories and their characteristics, while leading students to the final task of written production: the creation of digital micro-stories in Spanish.
TopIntroduction
The success that learners achieve during the process of learning a foreign language depends greatly on the activities that are carried out and how meaningful they are to the learners. Classroom routine and a narrow range of activities may demotivate learners, and their lack of participation in the process will have negative consequences for their progress, resulting in an unsatisfactory command of the language at the expected level. It is necessary for the teacher to look for ways of renewing classroom activity and to provide innovative options that involve the learners, respecting their role as the main agent in the teaching-learning process. This requirement, together with the possibilities offered by today’s information and communication technologies, constitute an excellent opportunity to propose innovative activities that include the use of these tools (Chan, 2021).
To respond to these needs, the use of the educational digital micro-story in the classroom of Spanish as a foreign language is proposed as a production activity in the L2. This involves the use and development of oral and written skills, the exploitation of the students’ creativity and the use of technological tools for the enhancement of the students’ narrative and creative capacity based on the micro-story (Wahba, 2019).
As stated in the Common Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR, Council of Europe, 2002), one of the main objectives of foreign language teaching is to manage the acquisition and development of the competences necessary for the learner to be able to use the language to communicate effectively in a variety of contexts. Within these competences, the processes of comprehension and oral and written expression are basic to the communication and interaction of the speaker with others and with the elements that make up the L2 environment.
The use of the micro-story in the classroom brings with it a series of learning benefits for the ELE (Spanish as a foreign language) student, among which the following can be mentioned: the introduction of literature as an authentic sample of the language and as a cultural product that can instruct the student on aspects related to the Spanish socio-cultural context (Sáez, 2020), and the acquisition of reading habits and the ability to understand and enjoy them (Cogollo, 2021). We can also emphasise the implementation of activities that make it possible to work with the four communicative skills of the learner by encouraging the reading of short texts and interaction with other users.
The digital story is a tool of great educational value whose use has been increasing in the classroom. According to Robin (2018), some of the advantages that this activity implies in the learning process are the following: the development of technological skills, the process of planning, research and creation required for the elaboration of this type of stories and the putting into action of their skills to organise ideas and create narratives.
The general objective of this chapter is the integration of language skills through the reading and analysis of micro-stories oriented to the digital production of micro-stories by students of Spanish as a foreign language (SFL) at an A2 level; these are young students aged 18 and adults in a situation of linguistic immersion. The choice of the technological tools to be used in the elaboration of the final task responds to the need to include the general characteristics of the digital story in the students’ final productions and to provide them with intuitive and easy-to-use tools to produce the micro-stories (Amobi, 2021).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Written Expression: Written expression is a complex process of using various cognitive operations to translate ideas and thoughts into a written language.
Micro-Stories: A micro-fiction piece is a story told in 300 or fewer words. It's a subset of flash fiction, which limits stories to 1000 words.
Digital Storytelling: Digital Storytelling uses multimedia tools to bring narratives to life. Digital Stories can be used to explain a concept, to reflect on a personal experience, to retell a historical event, or to make an argument. Digital stories are typically videos that combine audio, images, and video clips to tell a story.
Reading Comprehension: Reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it and understand its meaning. It relies on two, interconnected abilities: word reading (being able to decode the symbols on the page) and language comprehension (being able to understand the meaning of the words and sentences).
Digital Creative Writing: We use the term “digital writing” rather than computers and writing, online writing, or other combinations of terms because we anchor writing practices to digital spaces. Digital creative writing is the art and practice of preparing documents primarily by computer and often for online delivery.