Effects on academic success and motivation in fields of culture and legacy learning events based on digital stories in the social studies class of 4th grade

This study aims to examine the effect of digital story-based activities in the culture and heritage learning area of the fourth-grade social studies course on students' academic achievement and motivation levels. In today's context, written texts are often insufficient to capture students' interest. Therefore, this study is expected to contribute to understanding the relationship between students' interest in the course, learning motivation, and academic achievement through the use of digital stories, as well as to support the effective teaching of skills, the achievement of learning objectives, and the improvement of student performance. At the same time, this experimental study is intended to guide teachers in using digital technologies more effectively in education and to help create more engaging learning environments. The research was conducted with a total of 67 fourth-grade students at a public school in Bingöl province during the 2023–2024 academic year, including 36 students in the experimental group and 31 students in the control group. A pre-test–post-test control group quasi-experimental design was employed. While the lessons in the control group followed the current curriculum, the lessons in the experimental group were designed around digital story-based activities. Research data were collected through an academic achievement test and a motivation scale. The findings indicated that social studies lessons supported by digital story-based activities were effective in increasing students' academic achievement and motivation towards the subject. In this context, it is recommended that digital stories be incorporated into lessons to enhance fourth-grade students' social studies achievement and motivation studies.