As someone who would never call myself mathematically-minded, I always liked the idea of choosing a major that was as far away from STEM as possible. Studying history seemed to fit well into this plan. My first-year syllabi were filled with commonplace books, long essays and blue book exams– all challenges that played to my strengths and interests. They were also all assignments that did not require too much interaction with digital technology. This was a plus in my eyes, because it seemed like all of the digital tech-heavy majors were based on the subjects I shied away from. While some of my friends worked on complex math-based projects through equally complex websites and software programs, I was happy to stick with words written on paper, books and occasionally Microsoft Word.
This sentiment does not seem to be uncommon among humanities students. This week, I interviewed Alex Mayfield, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor of History at Asbury, about his thoughts on our tendency to avoid new technology.
“In general,” he shared, “I think most people are a bit wary of technologies and programs that they haven’t used before… Humanities students are not really different on that front. That said, I do think humanities students can be more avoidant of newer technologies because they are more naturally drawn to more classical forms of scholarship and argumentation.”
As I progressed through my studies at Asbury, I started to realize that I could not stay in that classical bubble forever. My love for historical research led me to explore complicated online databases, and increasingly demanding requirements for research papers led me to spend even more time sifting through them. My interest in historical preservation led me to a job as an archives specialist in the Kinlaw library. This pushed me to become comfortable with Microsoft Excel, a piece of data software used for purposes such as data organization and charts, which was the exact type of thing that I had previously tried to avoid. In the digital methods course that I am taking right now, I am improving my data literacy and learning how digital methods apply in humanities contexts. I have slowly become aware of the fact that digital technology and humanities studies do not exist in opposite spheres.
It is important for humanities students to develop tech literacy in relation to our majors. Despite my initial assumptions about the integration of digital technology being for people with “math brains,” tech literacy really is useful in every field of study. This is especially true as we move through college and start engaging in more difficult research projects; it becomes even more vital as we start looking beyond college and towards potential careers.
This applies regardless of what career path we choose. The methods that we learn for one purpose can apply in other contexts as well. This is something that became clear to me during a summer internship at a non-profit organization. Learning to navigate Excel spreadsheets at my archives job became useful when I had to do similar tasks for a completely different purpose at my internship. Even when the software is not the same in a new context, the mere process of learning to navigate a piece of software can be helpful.
“Re-trainability and technological flexibility are essential qualities for high-valued employees,” Mayfield stated. “Students can build these skills by jumping in and trying out a new piece of tech or an unfamiliar software package. Even if you never use that technology or that software again, the process of training your brain to figure out new ways to accomplish tasks prepares you for whatever you might need to do in the future.”
I also interviewed Glenn Harden, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor of Political Science and History at Asbury. He brought up an important point about the risks of going too far in our use of technology and becoming overly dependent. This feels poignant in the age of AI, as students grapple with questions of what an acceptable use of resources is and what crosses the line.
“If the humanities are to have any meaning,” Harden stated, “we must remain human. To the extent that technology opens new domains for human creativity… then we should become technologically literate. To the extent that we surrender our humanity to the machine, then we should not.”
In my experience, it is hard to find the line between using technology for human creativity and surrendering my humanity to it. In some cases, I am clear on what I believe. In other cases, I am not always sure that I am making the right decision.
I think that this is where the humanities side of our engagement with technology really comes in. It is absolutely important to learn how to utilize digital technology, but it is also important to learn about digital technology itself. We should be observing and evaluating it in the same way that we engage with any other topics. As a history major, that may mean looking to the past for a greater understanding of digital technology and how it plays into broader contexts in society.
“Technologies are not neutral, nor are the people and organizations who invent and control them,” said Mayfield. “If humanists yield the technological space to the uncritical and gainsayers, then we all lose.”
Rather than leaving all digital technology matters to the people who seem geared towards it, it is vital that we engage with it as humanists. We should be taking all the opportunities we can to explore technological concepts, whether that is through classes, independent studies or jobs.
Photo courtesy of Unsplash.
