A Digital Humanities Reading Circle: From Conceptualization to Implementation
Submission Type
20-minute Presentation
Abstract
In an effort to encourage faculty interest in digital pedagogy projects, I recently worked alongside our Faculty Director of Core Curriculum and an instructional librarian to facilitate launch of a "Digital Pedagogies in the Humanities Reading Circle" at Butler University. Our kick-off roster included nine faculty members, three librarians, and four staff members; and our chosen book, Digital Humanities in the Classroom: A Practical Introduction for Teachers, Lecturers, and Students (Battershill & Ross, 2017), proved long on practical advice and short on theory, making it nicely suited to our reading circle’s goals.
In this 20-minute presentation, I will report on the progress of our reading circle and share our model, both its merits and faults, with those wanting to try something similar at their institutions.
Start Date
5-23-2018 2:10 PM
Description
Broadening interest in and capacity for digital media projects at a private liberal arts university has its challenges. Many faculty are open to exploring technology as a means of enhancing pedagogy but hard-pressed for the time, energy, and resources to do it confidently. Add to this their legitimate concerns about technology detracting from learning outcomes rather than supporting them, and the perceived cost of technology integration begins to far outweigh any imaginable benefits.
In an effort to right this perception and better support faculty, I am working alongside our Faculty Director of Core Curriculum and an instructional librarian to launch a "Digital Pedagogies in the Humanities Reading Circle" at Butler University. Our kick-off roster includes nine faculty members, three librarians, and four staff members; and our chosen book, Digital Humanities in the Classroom: A Practical Introduction for Teachers, Lecturers, and Students (Battershill & Ross, 2017), is long on practical advice and short on theory, making it nicely suited to our reading circle’s goals.
Spring 2018 goals will include the following:
- Support the ongoing exploration and creative employment of digital pedagogies in the humanities;
- Take inventory of digital pedagogy projects at peer and aspirant universities;
- Examine the scholarly and pedagogical affordances of digital authoring and design tools;
- Vet rubrics for digital media projects and discuss how/if evaluative criteria correspond to University Learning Outcomes and related outgrowth initiatives;
- Consider digital humanities projects as avenues for student-faculty collaborative research and cross-curricular scholarship;
- Identify training needs and funding opportunities for faculty interested in launching digital pedagogy projects.
In this 20-minute presentation, I will report on the progress of our reading circle and share our model, both its merits and faults, with those wanting to try something similar at their institutions.
A Digital Humanities Reading Circle: From Conceptualization to Implementation
In an effort to encourage faculty interest in digital pedagogy projects, I recently worked alongside our Faculty Director of Core Curriculum and an instructional librarian to facilitate launch of a "Digital Pedagogies in the Humanities Reading Circle" at Butler University. Our kick-off roster included nine faculty members, three librarians, and four staff members; and our chosen book, Digital Humanities in the Classroom: A Practical Introduction for Teachers, Lecturers, and Students (Battershill & Ross, 2017), proved long on practical advice and short on theory, making it nicely suited to our reading circle’s goals.
In this 20-minute presentation, I will report on the progress of our reading circle and share our model, both its merits and faults, with those wanting to try something similar at their institutions.