This panel brings together scholars and educators dedicated to the theory and practice of a culturally informed teaching of language, composition, and literature through the creative use of virtual spaces. Even before March 2020, there was an upward trend in students accessing higher education virtually. From fall 2019 to fall 2020, however, the number of students taking classes online doubled from 37% to 74% (NCES).* Regarding student performance and outcomes, this move to online learning has been found time and time again to disproportionately disadvantage students of color (Figlio, Rush and Yin; Xu and Jaggars; Johnson and Mejia). Importantly, more equitable student outcomes have been observed in hybrid modalities (Alpert, Couch, and Harmon; Bowen et al.). In their 2014 comparative study of online, hybrid, and in-person learning, “Interactive Learning Online at Public Universities,” for example, Bowen et al. conclude that “students in the hybrid format are not harmed by this mode of instruction.” That is, in the hybrid format, students of color underperform white students at the same rate as in in-person instruction.
When virtual spaces are used to replicate traditional classroom instruction, that students are “not harmed” is a satisfactory outcome. When these same virtual spaces are used to augment a traditional classroom experience in ways that are innovative yet intrinsic to the medium and in ways that honor students’ lived experiences—and the lived experiences of students belonging to historically underrepresented groups in particular—students excel. We argue, along with Tara McPherson in “Why is the Digital Humanities So White?” that a solution can be found in “new forms of graduate and undergraduate education that hone both critical and digital literacies” (154). This panel demonstrates that digital pedagogies can empower students to play an active role in their education, increase student engagement, and strengthen intellectual curiosity and confidence while building skills extending beyond traditional literacy to include and integrate digital literacy and cultural competence.
We have opted to bring together papers representing digital pedagogies relating to language, composition, and literature with a shared concern for students from and topics related to historically underrepresented groups. The papers cover diverse regions and languages—from English and Spanish in the United States through the Caribbean and Latin America—with the goal of reaching a broad audience and allowing for dialogue across linguistic and geographic boundaries. After brief introductory remarks, panelists will give papers of approximately 8 pages (17 minutes) to allow for 20 minutes of open discussion.
We begin with Elise Arnold-Levene’s paper: “Podcasting the Latinx Experience: Digital Project-Based Learning for Heritage Speakers.” While task-based learning is a recognized approach to lower-level language instruction, there is a gap in literature on similar approaches to advanced language acquisition for heritage speakers. This paper reviews existing literature on project-based learning and outlines a podcasting project for heritage speakers of Spanish modeled on the Spanish language podcast Radio Ambulante. Through this project, students engage with topics that speak to their lived experiences and develop traditional and digital literacy skills while also making a meaningful contribution to a digital humanities project and archive.
Next, Cristina Migliaccio presents “This Is A DEMAND: Linguistic Justice In The Virtual Classroom.” This paper explores linguistic practices online and key statements on social and linguistic justice in academic contexts—the NCTE 1974 “Student’s Right to Their Own Language” and the 2020 “This Ain’t Another Statement! This is a DEMAND for Black Linguistic Justice!”—and it considers their implications for digital pedagogy in the composition classroom. She discusses popular academic sites of “translation” beyond the classroom, such as Shmoop and Thug Notes, as well as examples of linguistic justice and inclusivity in the virtual classroom. Her work draws on David Barton and Carmen Lee’s investigations of code-switching and code-meshing, metalinguistic discourses, linguistic reflexivity, and multimodality in digital spaces.
Finally, in “Texaco Wiki: Engaging Undergraduates in Digital Research on Caribbean Literature and Culture,” Jessica Hutchins discusses the Texaco Wiki (https://iris.siue.edu/texacowiki/), a reference website co-created with honors students at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville to accompany Patrick Chamoiseau’s notoriously difficult novel Texaco. This open educational resource facilitates undergraduate research on Caribbean literature and culture through engagement with primary texts and peer-reviewed scholarship. Hutchins argues that the wiki format of iterative writing and revision by multiple authors emphasizes the interpretation of fiction and history as a process that always remains unfinished; it lends itself to teaching the novel by encouraging engagement and inviting students not only to consume but also to participate in knowledge production and dissemination.
*Citations may be found here on our MLA Commons Site