Digital Storytelling And Interactive E-Books: Fostering Young Adult Learners’ Reading Engagement And Vocabulary Acquisition
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37385/ceej.v7i2.11841Keywords:
digital storytelling, interactive e-books, young adult literacy, vocabulary acquisition, reading engagementAbstract
This article synthesizes contemporary research on the integration of digital storytelling and interactive e-books in secondary and higher education, with particular attention to their contribution to young adult learners’ reading engagement and vocabulary acquisition. Using a systematic literature review approach guided by PRISMA 2020, the study examines empirical research on interactive digital texts, multimodal glosses, audio-supported reading, branching narratives, and learner-generated digital stories. The analysis is informed by Paivio’s Dual Coding Theory, Mayer’s Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, and Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory. The findings indicate that well-designed interactive digital texts generally support receptive vocabulary learning, lexical retention, reading motivation, and active participation by combining verbal, visual, and auditory information. However, productive vocabulary mastery and higher-order reading comprehension require more than exposure to multimedia input. Their development depends on meaningful vocabulary retrieval, communicative production, teacher scaffolding, peer interaction, and structured opportunities for reflection. The review also shows that decorative animations, unrelated sound effects, excessive hyperlinks, and poorly positioned interactive features may increase extraneous cognitive load and encourage fragmented or superficial reading. Therefore, the effectiveness of digital storytelling and interactive e-books is determined by feature congruence, cognitive-load management, learner control, accessibility, and pedagogical mediation. When integrated into task-based, collaborative, and participatory learning environments, these technologies can move young adult learners from passive digital-text consumption toward active interpretation, productive language use, and multimodal meaning-making.
References
Campbell, M., McKenzie, J. E., Sowden, A., Katikireddi, S. V., Brennan, S. E., Ellis, S., Hartmann-Boyce, J., Ryan, R., Shepperd, S., Thomas, J., Welch, V., & Thomson, H. (2020). Synthesis without meta-analysis (SWiM) in systematic reviews: Reporting guideline. BMJ, 368, Article l6890. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l6890
CAST. (2024). CAST Universal Design for Learning Guidelines version 3.0 [Graphic organizer]. https://udlguidelines.cast.org
Clinton, V. (2019). Reading from paper compared to screens: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Research in Reading, 42(2), 288–325. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9817.12269
Clinton-Lisell, V., Seipel, B., Gilpin, S., & Litzinger, C. (2023). Interactive features of e-texts’ effects on learning: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Interactive Learning Environments, 31(6), 3728–3743. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2021.1943453
Cooke, A., Smith, D., & Booth, A. (2012). Beyond PICO: The SPIDER tool for qualitative evidence synthesis. Qualitative Health Research, 22(10), 1435–1443. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732312452938
Fazzi, F., Da Lio, E., & Guzzon, S. (2024). The affordances of extensive digital social reading for the EFL classroom: Analysis of the DigLit Book Club Project. EL.LE, 13(3), 261–292. https://doi.org/10.30687/ELLE/2280-6792/2024/03/002
Fina, M. E., Fazzi, F., & Da Lio, E. (2024). Digital storytelling as multimodal response to Young Adult Literature: Promoting EFL students’ multiliteracies, global citizenship, and mediation skills. EL.LE, 13(3), 311–332. https://doi.org/10.30687/ELLE/2280-6792/2024/03/004
Haring, N. (2024). Digital storytelling and Young Adult Literature: A methodological combination for the language classroom. EL.LE, 13(3), 293–310. https://doi.org/10.30687/ELLE/2280-6792/2024/03/003
Harrison, R., Jones, B., Gardner, P., & Lawton, R. (2021). Quality assessment with diverse studies (QuADS): An appraisal tool for methodological and reporting quality in systematic reviews of mixed- or multi-method studies. BMC Health Services Research, 21, Article 144. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-021-06122-y
Mayer, R. E. (2024). The past, present, and future of the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning. Educational Psychology Review, 36, Article 8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-023-09842-1
Nami, F., & Asadnia, F. (2024). Exploring the effect of EFL students’ self-made digital stories on their vocabulary learning. System, 120, Article 103205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2023.103205
Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., Brennan, S. E., Chou, R., Glanville, J., Grimshaw, J. M., Hróbjartsson, A., Lalu, M. M., Li, T., Loder, E. W., Mayo-Wilson, E., McDonald, S., … Moher, D. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372, Article n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
Paivio, A. (1991). Dual coding theory: Retrospect and current status. Canadian Journal of Psychology/Revue canadienne de psychologie, 45(3), 255–287. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0084295
Ramezanali, N., Uchihara, T., & Faez, F. (2021). Efficacy of multimodal glossing on second language vocabulary learning: A meta-analysis. TESOL Quarterly, 55(1), 105–133. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.579
Rethlefsen, M. L., Kirtley, S., Waffenschmidt, S., Ayala, A. P., Moher, D., Page, M. J., Koffel, J. B., & PRISMA-S Group. (2021). PRISMA-S: An extension to the PRISMA statement for reporting literature searches in systematic reviews. Systematic Reviews, 10, Article 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-020-01542-z
Shi, Z., Tang, T., & Yin, L. (2020). Construction of cognitive maps to improve reading performance by text signaling: Reading text on paper compared to on screen. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, Article 571957. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.571957
Snyder, H. (2019). Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 104, 333–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.07.039
Sweller, J., van Merriënboer, J. J. G., & Paas, F. (2019). Cognitive architecture and instructional design: 20 years later. Educational Psychology Review, 31, 261–292. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-019-09465-5
Thomas, J., & Harden, A. (2008). Methods for the thematic synthesis of qualitative research in systematic reviews. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 8, Article 45. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-8-45
Webb, S., Uchihara, T., & Yanagisawa, A. (2023). How effective is second language incidental vocabulary learning? A meta-analysis. Language Teaching, 56(2), 161–180. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444822000507
Wu, J., & Chen, D.-T. V. (2020). A systematic review of educational digital storytelling. Computers & Education, 147, Article 103786. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.103786
Yu, B., & Wang, W. (2025). Using digital storytelling to promote language learning, digital skills and digital collaboration among English pre-service teachers. System, 129, Article 103577. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2024.103577
Zhu, T., Zhang, Y., & Irwin, D. (2024). Second and foreign language vocabulary learning through digital reading: A meta-analysis. Education and Information Technologies, 29(4), 4531–4563. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-023-11969-1
Template
