Improving EFL Students' Paragraph Writing Skills Through Folklore-Based Digital Storytelling

Abstract

This study investigates how folklore-based Digital Storytelling (DST) supports paragraph-writing development among EFL university students. Previous research has mainly emphasized learner motivation and multimodal creativity, with limited attention to paragraph-level writing skills. This study aimed to examine how folklore-based DST supports idea generation, organization of supporting details, cohesion, and concluding sentence construction. Using an interpretive qualitative design, data were collected through classroom observations, a folklore-based writing task using the Putri Mandalika digital story, and semi-structured interviews with selected participants. The findings indicate that folklore-based DST served as a cognitive and cultural scaffold, helping students develop clearer topic sentences, organize supporting details logically, and maintain cohesion through appropriate transition signals. The familiar cultural narrative also encouraged reflective concluding sentences incorporating moral and cultural values. These findings suggest that integrating local folklore with digital storytelling can effectively support academic paragraph writing and provide valuable implications for EFL writing instruction and curriculum development.