Simply surf your way to the University of Texas Latin Department home page and within minutes complete a set of interactive vocabulary drills. Nelson also hands out disks at the beginning of the semester that contain files of information, assignment templates and bookmarks for relevant Internet sites. He accepts papers on disk and by email. He also sets up discussion groups through the Internet and encourages students to talk to each other, and to him, by email. It gives my students access to top-notch resources.
Homework can become a conversation through email.
Students who have to be home with a sick child can still be involved in discussions and assignments. As wonderful as this all sounds, however, Nelson and others caution it is not to be seen as a cure-all, a Pollyanna. None of the stunning new technologies can or should take the place of traditional learning styles or resources, they argue. Personally, I love to program and to take computers apart and put them back together again, but that isn't what education is all about. A true liberal arts education requires that students and teachers be together.