THE EFFECT OF CANVA-BASED DIGITAL STORY RETELLING ON STUDENTS’ NARRATIVE WRITING SKILLS

Abstract

Writing narrative texts requires EFL learners to generate and organize ideas while controlling vocabulary, grammar, and mechanics. This study investigated the effect of Canva-based Digital Story Retelling on the narrative writing skills of eleventh-grade students at SMAN 1 Kediri and explored students’ learning experiences during the intervention. The study employed an embedded mixed-methods approach, with a pre-experimental one-group pre-test–post-test design as the quantitative strand. Thirty-five eleventh-grade students were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through narrative writing tests, classroom observation, a student perception questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews with five students. Writing performance was assessed in content, organization, vocabulary, grammar, and mechanics. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Shapiro–Wilk normality test, and the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test, while qualitative evidence was analyzed descriptively. The mean score increased from 84.17 in the pre-test to 88.00 in the post-test. The Wilcoxon test indicated a statistically significant difference between the two measurements (Z = -3.065, p = 0.002). Twenty-three students improved, nine students decreased, and three students obtained the same score. Qualitative findings indicated that students perceived the strategy as engaging and helpful for organizing ideas and understanding narrative structure, although some students still experienced difficulty developing the complication and modifying story plots. The findings indicate that Canva-based Digital Story Retelling can serve as a structured instructional strategy for supporting narrative writing in an Indonesian EFL classroom.