Skip to content

Reflections on Teaching with Technology

In my teaching experience, I have found that digital technology is like any invention: it offers many opportunities to enrich in-class and out-of-class learning, while carrying certain pitfalls. As detailed in the “Teaching Materials” section, I have found that the incorporation of different forms of technology can enhance learning in a variety of ways. Among many other purposes, technology offers ways for students to stay engaged between classes with the instructor and their classmates, reinforce course concepts in between classes, and gain a different (visual) perspective on works of literature that were, in some cases, intended to be performed rather than read.

The greatest pitfall associated with technology is typically considered to be its fallibility. If a given lesson depends on a form of technology that fails, the lesson will fail too. But from my perspective, an equally significant consideration in using technology may be ethical — for while the use of technology can make course material and class time more engaging, an unhealthy reliance on technology may have long-lasting consequences for students. Several researchers have demonstrated that the frequent use of technology — especially through the constant use of smartphones — can change brain chemistry by decreasing attention span and diminishing the powers of concentration. Dependence on technology may lead to a mental and social passivity that, in my view, seems important for instructors to consider. In fact, I believe that the field of literary studies offers a distinctive means of slowing this trend, as the reading and discussion of written texts affords a means of “exercising” the psychological muscles and powers of concentration that may be at risk of weakening. Therefore, while I use technology in and outside the classroom frequently, I intentionally set limits on its use. For all the ways technology can increase engagement and enhance learning, nothing can replace time spent close reading written texts and critically discussing passages of literature.

Where I see technology playing an especially important role in student learning, however, is in the realm of course assignments. I have seen students benefit significantly from creative projects such as staging a performance of a scene of a play, developing a modern adaptation of a classical literary work, or scripting a rap battle among literary characters. For whatever downsides technology may sometimes present, such projects require students to take an active role in shaping technology, a process that can develop creativity, critical thinking, and problem solving abilities. Crucially, moreover, the final product of technology-based assignments may offer students a more tangible reward for their efforts than “traditional” written assignments. This alone can help foster a sense of confidence, pride, and further interest in the texts under analysis, producing a feedback cycle that leaves students excited about continuing their study of language, literature, and culture.

Skip to toolbar