HOW TO coach youngsters to share their opinions on Global Citizenship issues through digital stories

During the workshop conducted at the ALL DIGITAL Summit, participants learned the basics of how to facilitate a Digital Story session linked to Global Citizenship Education in your group. This How-to Guide is created by the workshop facilitator Jasper Pollet, MAKS vzw and is based on the BRIGHTS project experience

Purpose of the Activity

Digital Storytelling is a simple technique to transform personal stories, anecdotes about difficult to discuss topics into a structured and semi-professional looking video.

Target end user audience(s)
Vulnerable youngsters between 13 and 19.

Hardware/ software / technology required

  • You need a PC, MAC or iPad with a video editor. We currently recommend DaVinci Resolve for PC or iMovie for iPads and Macs as these are free and support multiple languages.
    We experience the least problems and the highest accessibility with iMovie on iPads.
  • A camera, the one in your smartphone, tablet or even laptop will do to create your images
  • Internet to find rights-free images
  • A device that can record your voice. Most laptops, tablets and probably even your smartphone is fine.

Data/ privacy/ IP issues 
As everyone makes their personal video every participant decides for themselves what is shown in the video. 
However, it's important to let them know if these video's are going to be shared publicly or not before starting the training.
Concerning IP and copyright issues we have a clear answer: preferably use only self made images (drawings, paintings, photos, etc)
and if this is not possible you can always fall back on Rights-Free images through Creative Commons (see https://search.creativecommons.org/)

Timing factors/ suggested duration
Minimum of one day, ideally 2.5 days leading up to 5 full days.

Step by Step Programme

All information for the step by step programme can be found on the BRIGHTS website.

Most of the content can be found in this resume:

  1. Getting to know each other

If the participants in your group do not know each other, then it's crucial to install some get-to-know-each-other activities. 
In most cases we use the board game Dixit for this. If you would like to know how to use Dixit for this step, we refer to . and the YEP4EUROPE methodology, page

  2. Going in depth of a certain topic

When discussing one of the GCE topics with your group it doesn't hurt to delve into the topic at hand beforehand. For this we have many video's to enlighten and inspire you made for the Brights MOOC. These video's on GCE and tips and tricks to get your group working around these topics can be found in these modules of the Brights MOOC:
Module 1 on GCE in global: https://vimeo.com/album/4856053 
Module 2:on Digital Storytelling about GCE: https://vimeo.com/album/4856057
Module 3 on How to approach the GCE topics with Digital Storytelling: https://vimeo.com/album/4880099

It is also important to not just bombard your group with a topic you randomly chose, more on this in the Overall Pitfalls section of this How-To Guide.

  3. Asking a profound question to inspire
Once the topic is clear it's time to start writing. But writing out of nothing about a certain topic is very difficult. This is why one or a few questions can help to inspire your participants.
For instance on the topic of identity and gender you could ask the question "When is the last time you personally have been confronted with gender inequality?" If you don't only want them to reflect but also encourage to act, you can also ask questions aimed at the future. For instance: "What will you do to help stopping gender inequality, no matter how small?".

  4. Writing the story
Give time to let these questions sink in and let everyone write out a personal anecdote or story.

5. Story circles
Now on to one of the more important parts of the Digital Storytelling! To know how to install a story circle we refer to <page> and this video in Module 3 of the Brights Mooc: https://vimeo.com/album/4880099/video/245377479

  6. Discussion about what makes an image good

There are three ways you can add images to your digital story:

  • Show what you are saying
  • Erase some text and replace it by showing an image that tells the erased part.
  • Show an image that evokes an emotion or enhances the emotion of the text.

For methods on how to teach your youngsters what is a good image we refer to this video in Module 4 of the Brights MOOC: https://vimeo.com/album/4856060/video/236198427

  7. Explanation on how to make images or where to find rights-free images

The best image for a digital story is a self-made image. It can be a painting, drawing or a photo. In case you don't have time or the group is not fit for making their own images, you can fall back on rights free images. All information about this can be found in this video in Module 4 of the Brights MOOC: https://vimeo.com/album/4856060/video/236202180

  8. Making of the Digital Story:

Putting the images in a video editor, recording your text with your own voice and matching the images to the text.
Probably the most daunting part for trainers is the technical part of Digital Storytelling. For this we made an entire module in the Brights MOOC that should help you step by step through the digital process of the workshops: https://vimeo.com/album/4856060
There are videos for iMovie on iPad or Davinci Resolve that is multiplatform.

  9. Showtime
And once everyone is ready it's time to bring out the snacks, get comfortable and watch each others videos! It's the moment everyone has been waiting for...

How to train the trainer/ prepare staff
That's quite simple: let them make digital stories themselves and engage in the process of each participant as much as possible!

Overall pitfalls/ lessons learned/ tips and tricks

  • Foresee enough time. The writing process always takes time. It often looks that people are not writing but in most cases people are just reflecting and thinking in this process. Also take enough breaks, especially after the story circle. These can be mentally heavy for everyone.
  • Foresee some basic rules of trust: Do not tell what you don't feel comfortable telling. Don't push anyone in this either. Have respect and no judgement towards a different opinion and everything that is said in the group stays in the group.
  • Try to steer your group to avoid big truths. When talking about ecology it's not that interesting to see a video about someones opinion where we hear people are destroying our planet and we all should do something about it. The real interesting stories are anecdotes and personal experiences where your participants talk in the I-form. Viewers can more easily empathize with the creator this way.
  • Last but not least: take a topic that's close to the groups mental state, heart or interest. It's no use to bombard a topic you picked on a group without there being any viable link. This is also discussed at length in the MOOC videos.

Where to find more information online/ good online resources

Contact for follow up questions
Jasper Pollet: STEM-Trainer at Maks vzw, Brussels: 
jasper@maksvzw.org

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