THE DEVELOPMENT OF STORYTELLING MATERIALS TO PROMOTE STUDENTS’ SOFT SKILLS IN EDUCATION FUND SCHOOLS IN PHRA NAKHON SI AYUTTHAYA PROVINCE

Abstract

This research article aimed to: 1) Examine teachers' ability to develop storytelling materials promoting Soft Skills in Education Fund Schools in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, and 2) Assess the Soft Skills of Grade 6 students in Education Fund Schools in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province. The samples were selected through purposive sampling and consisted of 16 teachers and 32 Grade 6 students from eight Education Fund Schools in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, namely Wat Chulamani School, Wat Muang Wan School, Mala-ee Songkhro School, Rungwittaya Pracha-uppatham School, Wat Nong Mai Sung School, Ban Chang School, Wat Tang Luang School, and Wat Sam Phleng School, during the 2025 academic year. The research instruments comprised a teacher ability assessment for developing Soft Skills storytelling materials (IOC = 0.80 - 1.00) and a student Soft Skills assessment rubric (IOC = 0.80-1.00; Cronbach's Alpha = 0.92). Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and the Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test. The findings revealed that: 1) Regarding teachers' storytelling development ability, the post-development mean score ( = 42.87) was significantly higher than the pre-development mean score ( = 39.45) and exceeded the 80 percent criterion of the total score at the .05 level of statistical significance (Z = −2.67, p = .008); and 2) Regarding students' Soft Skills, students who participated in learning activities using the developed storytelling materials achieved an overall Soft Skills level rated as very good ( = 4.33, S.D. = 0.51), with moral and ethical competency and collaboration and leadership skills recording the highest mean scores among all eight dimensions. The research findings indicate that storytelling as a learning medium is effective in developing students' Soft Skills significantly.