The old way would have been for the professor to bring videos to class and juggle them in and out of the VCR while lecturing to students who were half-watching while scribbling notes. Valuable class time is reserved for discussion. The site is not meant to replace toting around a paperback of the play. You'd probably still read the play in a book. The advantages, he says, are that his presentations are more detailed and clear, the students don't have to decipher his handwriting or battle glare on the chalkboard, and he can spend more time explaining and less time writing on the board.
Students agree, saying that multi-media resources make it easier to study as well as learn in class.
A book can just say something so many times, but if you can interact with it at home it's made so much more clear. For Professor Flynn's chemistry class, images and notes from the presentations are posted on the Web. He used to hand out hard copies in class, too, until students told him, please don't. The students get a laptop and a stipend, and in return will spend about 10 hours a week helping their departments' faculty members create helpful resources using new media. Both Moretti and Reeves say that having a familiar face right in the department will make some faculty more willing to give technology a try.