Professors shouldn’t be so quick to try and adapt to trends. Students should be adapting to the academic environment, not the other way around.
It is tempting to see websites such as BuzzFeed and memes as an easy way to connect with students, but professors should stay skeptical about using it instead of textbooks and academic research.
Pushing for BuzzFeed-styled lists and clickbait articles to take the place of traditional academic writing is ill-advised.
Trying to stay on top of what’s hip is impossible and will inevitably lead to awkward classroom moments that everyone would like to avoid. Professors will seem like the sitcom dad who doesn’t know whether his kids still say “dude” anymore.
Accessibility should not eliminate challenge. When students engage with complex ideas it is expected that they have some difficulty.
The professor’s job is to give students the necessary tools to tackle difficult texts, not to dissect and present the texts for them.
Students will eventually be expected to write academically, and if they are not exposed to academic writing they will not be able to to write properly.
Professors should use videos and new media to supplement academic sources instead of replace them.
