Second language classrooms provide unique opportunities for intellectual growth, cognitive skill development, and cultural exchange. In Integrating the Digital Humanities into the Second Language Classroom, Melinda A. Cro makes the case for bringing the digital humanities (DH) into that sphere, strengthening students’ language skills while furthering their critical thinking and research abilities. Written as a practical guide for language instructors new to DH, Cro addresses practitioners’ most common questions: What are the benefits of DH for language learning in particular? How can DH be used at different levels of instruction? What types of DH tools are out there, and what kinds of knowledge must students and teachers bring to the table? Integrating the Digital Humanities into the Second Language Classroom is filled with real-world examples and concrete recommendations, making it an ideal introduction for language teachers intrigued by the potential of DH.
Table of Contents
Introduction: How Does the Second Language Classroom Benefit from the Digital Humanities?
1. The Digital Humanities: Definitions and Debates
2. Collaborative Building and Tinkering: Towards a DH-Inflected Approach to L2 Learning and Teaching
3. Implementing a DHL2 Classroom: Design, Learner Characteristics, and Assessment
4. DH Tools and Examples: A Case Study through Cultural Comparison
Conclusion: Challenges and Considerations of a DHL2 Methodology
Reviews
"Cro explores the overlaps between the fields of digital humanities and modern languages, highlighting how the pedagogical edge of DH methodology, with its emphasis on project-based, participatory, and collaborative learning-by-making, can complement second-language instruction, promote multimodal literacy, and provide students with a range of transferable digital, interpretive and linguistic skills."—Clarissa Clò, professor of Italian, Department of European Studies, San Diego State University
About the Author
Melinda A. Cro is an associate professor of French at Kansas State University, where she has served as French language program coordinator and as Director of Graduate Studies for the Department of Modern Languages. She is the founder of the Early Modern Humanities Lab, an initiative for working one-on-one with researchers on projects that combine digital humanities, pedagogy, and early modern literature.
