The effect of digital storytelling method on 7th grade students' science course academic achievement, 21st century skills and lesson motivation

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of digital storytelling method on students' academic achievement, 21st century skills and motivation towards the course at middle school science course. Mixed method, in which quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques were used together, was used as a method in the research. In the study, quantitative data were collected within the framework of a quasi-experimental design with pre-test - post-test control group. The study group consists of 83 7th grade students studying at an official secondary school affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in Kepez district of Antalya province in the 2022-2023 academic year. There are 27 students in experimental group 1, 28 students in experimental group 2, and 28 students in the control group. "Academic Achievement Test", "21st Century Skills Scale", "Science Course Motivation Scale" and "Semi-structured Interview Questions" were used to collect the data of the study. The study lasted 4 weeks in all groups. At the beginning of the study, pre-tests were applied in all groups. In Experimental Group 1, the lessons were taught by preparing a digital story, in Experimental Group 2, the lessons were taught by showing the digital story, and in the control group, the lessons were taught according to the current program. In the last week of the study, post-tests were administered at all groups and a semi-structured interview was conducted with Experimental Group 1. In the analysis of the data, one-way ANOVA was used for unrelated samples from parametric tests and content analysis was used for semi-structured interview questions. The results of the study showed that digital story preparation had a significant effect on increasing students' academic achievement, 21st century skills and motivation towards the course. It was seen that students developed positive opinions about digital story preparation. Keywords: Academic Success, Digital Storytelling, 21st Century Skills, Motivation