1) Taiwanese undergraduate students created digital stories set in the virtual world of Second Life for a class project. 2) The stories featured various character types like heroes and vampires exploring artwork and sites in Second Life. Popular sites included ArtBox and locations featuring Chinese artwork. 3) Analysis of the stories found frequent themes of loneliness, dreams, and transformation. However, the stories generally lacked resolution and deeper examination of the artwork.

1. A Participatory Action Research
Study of Taiwanese
Undergraduate Students' Digital
Stories From Second Life
Mary Stokrocki
Jin Shiow Chen

2. Digital Storytelling
Concept & Literature
 A process of constructing an experiential space, in this case
on Second Life, in which others can walk through a story.
Education thus becomes self-expression and play. Sanchez, J.
(2009, Feb/March). Pedagogical applications of second life.
 Chung (2007) late wrote on digital storytelling of life action
stories.
 Christopoulou (2010) reported themes of suspense and
sorrow and happy endings (usually ending in marriage),
along with lighting, color, camera effects.
 Shin (2010) championed iMovie for MACS as easy to use in
K-12 classrooms. See motivational examples on the Center
for Digital Storytelling website at www.storycenter.org

3. Participatory Action Research
(PAR)
 As a science and practice, PAR methods incorporated
practical reflections throughout the study (Bogdan &
Biklen, 1992), beginning with the initial project design,
continuing throughout the data collection (students’
PowerPoint Presentations and self evaluations), and
analysis phrases (Tabular analysis and focus group) to
final conclusions and social action implications (Kemmis
& McTaggart, 2000).
 To analyze the content, Stokrocki borrowed narrative
scale categories from Caldwell & Moore (1991) that
included story (setting, character traits, and plot
development), and action (expression). Search for
frequent expression words formed patterns (Gee, 2005).

6. Digital Storytelling
Project
 The project was part of a semester course called Introduction to
Visual Culture & Art Education that met once a week for two hours
in the computer labor. The first unit was to pose within the 3D
painting -installation at Art Box. Students enjoyed this system role-
play introduction activity. The second major project was to make a
digital story –PowerPoint Presentation (Davis & Weinshenker (in
press). Sanchez (200() suggested the following considerations:
Conceptions of art are changing and expanding. Recent theoretical
and philosophical shifts have emerged in and across various
domains of knowledge. Those shifts have been informed by critical
theories, such as postmodernism and feminism, and shape analyses
of art and culture. New self-conscious trans-disciplinary fields of
study have emerged to challenge conceptual dichotomies, such as
fine/popular arts. As a result of these changes, it has become
necessary to expand the concept and practice of art education to the
realm of visual culture. The term visual culture ―reflects the recent
global explosion of of prolific pervasive visual images and artifacts
and their importance to social life (Boughton et al, 2002 ).

7. Lesson Plan Steps
 Introduce your character and its role (hero, seeker, child) at
some art place,
 Pose a conflict or quest to find secrets-details in artwork,
 Include the resolution scene at the same place [What you
learned]
 Include the story talk, name of artwork/artist/location-URL.
 Change your viewpoint (aerial/worm/close-up) and add
special effects.
 Use PowerPoint Presentation.
 Include Contrasting Colors—Background needs to be
exciting too!
 Include some character gestures (e.g., running, surprise,
crying).
 Using art criticism, evaluate your digital story.

8. Research Questions
 What avatar character types for role-play would
they choose?
 What digital story types/title/themes would they
construct?
 On what artist/work would they concentrate
 How would their stories develop/end?

9. Participant Avatar Characters
Mostly human warrior
(swordsky, wu, aluuuuu)
hero (Cheng, peacelai, margret,
ping), princess (sandy), cowboy
hero (Ping), and even 2
vampire –dead human type
Only three students tried being
a robot (Burning Cheese with
swimbuoy, Rita, Jason)
Question later insignificant

10. Analysis: Frequent Words:
Lonely
Cheng Yang, ―I feel very lonely to play this game, except for class time.‖
Students complained that they found no one at the SL sites, and the dominant word
was lonely (9 times). At first, feeling that Second Life is a lonely place with few avata
is quite normal on SL (Sanchez, 2009).

11. Students noted [4] ―Funny‖
stories
The warrior chose to rescue his ―boring city and add art‖ rather than do nothing.

12. Dreams [6] were also
Frequent
Shan discovered
another special
world
with hand-drawn
illustrations [See
Barack Obama].
She instructs,
―Follow our steps,
and get into the
unknown mist
together.‖

13. What Artworks/Sites were
Popular?
Out of 42
students, Asian
Sites: such as
Great Wall and
Hokusai‘s 19th c
Edo Hokusai
Painting People
Crossing Arched
Bridge.
Four people chose Terracotta Warriors. The best example was Wang Wen‘s story
of Lost Treasure. Students discovered the size of the original quest as important
and they were surprised to find it represented in Second Life.

14. Students Didn’t Realize the
Historical Meaning until coaxed
to do research

15. Some Contemporary
Works
In his Wandering Life,
Burning Cheese
wondered what the
stone lion in front
of the London Museum
was guarding.
They were similar to
the ones outside
the temples in Taipei.
Later, he discovered
an abstract guardian
lions with Orange Light
and found this blazing
light and abstract form
intriguing.
Kamilah Hauptmann‘s Viceregal Guardian Lion (Lionsgate Palace)
[http://slurl.com/secondlife/Caledon%20Lionsgate/60/96/52

16. Western Classical Literature
Sites
The caterpillar revealed to Swordsky, ‖Thinking is not the whole of life.
The most important [thing] is action‖ from ArtBox http://maps.secondlife.com/secondl

17. Transformation Stories
Wei-ting‘s cat visited a surreal place and the witch
rejected her quest.
Six TRANFORMATION
Stories
Verd Reed meets a surreal
woman’s
Head with Bird Beak.
Like a witch,
she whispers, “This is not
what you seek.”
So here the story itself
changed.

18. Angela Summarized…
 In real life, I feel lonely or boring (sic) and lots of thing to
do, busy, heavy, and nervous. In Second Life-this virtual
game-I found the design won my heart . . . When I
search this artwork (Empyreal Dreams), I found its
inspiration also came from art (Literature—Poe‘s poem--
The Raven). I really feel art is important, when you feel
lonely or heavy, you can relax.

19. Post questionnaire Results
 Results from post questionnaires revealed that one
third of students (15/42) preferred the ArtBox site
for their story. Students wrote: learn about more
artists and many [different kinds of] artworks
(Jessie), go inside artwork, and roleplay. Chin-Yen
praised, ―Virtual world is a textbook to explore.‖
Again, another third of the students (12/42) valued
the Digital Story project.. They reported: ―I can
make new story myself; learn about what
Taiwanese student think; ―Tell others what I think‖
(Elaine); ―You [become] a master of this world‖
(Chen]; ―it‘s fun‖ (Swordsky); ―like a picture book‖
(Puchu).

20. Preference Table
Sites
ArtBox
Asian
15
6
42
ArtWorks
Terracotta
Warriors
4
42
Characters
Human
Animal,
(cat)
robot
43
6
4
3
42
Stories
Lonely
Funny
Dreams
Transform
9
4
6
6
42

21. Conclusions
 Counting frequent words resulted in categories of
lonely, funny, dreamy, beautiful, and transforming,
which seemed somewhat simplistic. In the future, we
will plan a session for students to explain in depth
why the artwork that they claimed was ―beautiful.‖ For
example Sandy’s TMS Design furniture featured a bed.
Upon further coaching, she explained that everything
was white--indicating clean and pure, the sheets
looked smooth and soft, and the netting had texture
netting to keep mosquitoes away (practical reason).


22. No Resolution
 Stories really didn’t end with a resolution from
conflict, but in a question about pursuit of life purpose
as metaphysical concerns. In comparison to
Christopoulou (2010) reported themes of suspense and
sorrow and happy endings, Taiwanese student stories
were full of existential ―angst‖ or worry. Further
investigation with key informants also revealed the
nature of their real world not as simplistic fantasy but
as an existential struggle.
 Students to explain in depth how the artwork that they
claimed was ―beautiful.‖

23. Deeper Meanings: Evolving
Existential theme
 Digital Stories or narratives are revelatory tales that
communicate the deepest forms of receptivity in our
experience, known as the sacred (Grimes, 1995).
Narrative or stories help people to relate to—to
make sense or to straighten out ―their real world.‖
This text-analogue in ways is ―confused,
incomplete, cloudy, seemingly contradictory-in one
way of another. The interpretation aims to bring to
light an underlying coherence or sense (Taylor,
1976, p.153). Hermeneutics and politics. In P.
Connerton (Ed). Critical sociology: Selective
readings )pp/ 153-1930. Harmondsworth, England:
Penguin.

24. Existential

25. Taoist Meaning of ―Play‖
 In Chinese Taoism aesthetics, the term of ―play‖ might
have a higher level of meaning. ―Free and joyful play‖
implies spiritual freedom, and is regarded as the highest
artistic state of mind, transcending all the levels of mind.
Only the ―true man [women]‖ can achieve the state of
Tao, to lead the life of the Way (Liu, 2011). In the views of
Zen Buddhism, art involves the experience and
expression of the higher state of mind or enlightenment.
Art represents the living experience of the true self or real
mind, original nature or mind, the ultimate or Reality,
realizes Nature and Tao, and the unity of the self and
other, Heaven and man. Through proper learning in art or
aesthetic attitudes, the student can experience the state of
being, beauty, harmony, joy, peace, and freedom,
according to our key informant (Liu, 2011).
 Liu, F. J. (2011). The perspectives and collegial art instructional
frame work of spiritual intelligence and holistic development
in art (in Chinese). Journal of Arts Research, 7, 1-26.

26. Future Implications:
Unusual Story: Art for a Social
Cause
Angela‘s Empyreal Dreams, a 3D illustration of Edgar Allen Poe‘s poem The Raven
that was used to sell Fashions for Cancer.
See http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Ctrl%20Shift%20H/28/169/22
Although many
student quests
seemed simplistic at
first,
investigation into
Taiwanese
cultural concerns
revealed
deeper meanings.

27. Future Concerns
 Some of these interpretive stories are eclectic, interpretive, contradictory, and context-
bound (Stokrocki, 2010), but it does signify the intensity of the cultural life of Taiwanese
students in an era of paucity—few jobs and declining resources.
 In a digital world like Second Life, many participants will only dabble, some will express
deeper ideas, and still others explore social concerns most valued within the community.
Such courses are not meant to train future artists, but to liberate students thinking about
themselves and adjusts how they regard other peoples‘ work. The next step is
Collaborative Problem-solving — working together in teams, formal and informal, to
complete tasks and develop new knowledge (Sanchez, 2007, p. 8).
Sanchez, J. (2007). Second Life: An Interactive Qualitative Analysis. In C. Crawford et al. (Eds.),
Proceedings of Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International
Conference 2007.
Stokrocki, M. (2010). An experiment in digital storytelling with preservice art education teachers on
Second Life. Unpublished manuscript.
Stokrocki, M. (2012). Preservice teachers digital storytelling on Second Life. Unpublished manuscript.

28. Future Concerns
 By and large, young people are not defined by
society as political subjects, let alone as political
agents. Even in the areas of social life that affect and
concern them to a much greater extent than adults—
most notably education—political debate is
conducted almost entirely ‗over their heads‘
(Jenkins 2009, 218-219).
 Teachers thus need to help students become critical
and adopt skills in negotiating multiple
perspectives, respecting and even embracing
diverse or contrary opinions.