Graduation Year

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Ph.D.

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Degree Granting Department

Curriculum, Instruction, and Learning

Major Professor

Ilene Berson, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Jolyn Blank, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Michael Berson, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Elizabeth Hadley, Ph.D.

Keywords

digital storytelling, early childhood education, Educational technology, kindergarten, Saudi educational context, TPACK-EC framework

Abstract

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 emphasizes the importance of integrating digital technologies into early childhood education, with the goal of developing children’s skills for the 21st century from an early age and preparing them for the future. Digital storytelling is an effective and interactive multimodal strategy to enhance young children’s skills in the classroom. However, there is limited research examining how kindergarten teachers design and utilize digital storytelling in their classrooms. This qualitative multicase study aimed to explore how Saudi kindergarten teachers perceived and implemented digital storytelling as a tool to promote engagement and comprehension among young children. The study focused on how teachers designed and integrated multimodal elements—including visual, auditory, textual, and interactive media—into their digital stories, analyzing their approaches through the lens of the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework to understand how technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge informed their practice. This study aimed to contribute to the field of educational technology by providing practical evidence on the effectiveness of different modes of digital storytelling to promote young children’s engagement and comprehension skills, particularly within the Saudi educational system. The findings of this study provide insights that can help improve educational practices and guide future research efforts about digital learning in early childhood education in Saudi Arabia and similar environments.

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