Kristina Chew
The Internet offers many tools, from online texts to scholarly resources to technologies making
it possible to communicate with -- and teach -- students who are thousands of miles away,
to enhance the teaching of Classics. Classicists at colleges and universities with very small
programs, or without a Classics program at all, can especially benefit from these. Classicists such
as Barbara McManus and Carl Rubenstein have shown just a few of the ways Internet resources
can be used to promote the study of the ancient world. They and more than a few other scholars
have also expressed reservations about over-reliance on e-learning, citing concerns about
academic integrity, practical issues such as how to evaluate students, and reduced opportunities
for interaction (Guerlac, O’Donnell). As the sole classicist at two smaller universities, and as
an online instructor for a variety of Classics courses, I have very much relied on the creative
use of Internet resources to provide students with a well-rounded foundation in Classics. Online
tools such as those designed by Google can be adapted to provide students with as personalized
and attentive a learning experience as possible in online courses on topics ranging from Latin
to Medical Terminology. The ready availability of resources about the ancient world, Latin and
ancient Greek on the Internet can be of use in developing lessons about ancient history, culture
and literature for community college courses, to bring Classics to a wider audience of students.
I will discuss specific strategies to (1) use Google Tools to facilitate online instruction and
(2) infuse Classics into community college writing and reading courses, as examples of how,
even in the absence of an official Classics program, the teaching of the ancient world can be
accomplished.