Teaching New Testament Intro in the Information Age

I wrote an article for Logos on Teaching New Testament Intro in the Information Age.

It is partly an informercial for New Testament in its World on Logos, but it also points out how the information age is or should be changing the way that we teach biblical studies in the classroom. In the article I give my own ideas of how we can better use technology like apps. you.tube, Logos, etc. in on-campus and on-line teaching, and how to make use of a textbook and videos in the process.

First, you can beat your chest, and say, “We shall have students on-campus, face-to-face, there will be no laptops in the classroom, no tweeting, no instagramming, students will have books, and they will learn to love the smell of my chalk.”

But if we do that, sooner or later we’ll be having a chat with an insolvency accountant because of a basic economic principle: supply does not create demand. What students demand is flexibility, efficiency, experience, and value for money. If you don’t offer it, someone else will.

Second, alternatively, you can ask: How do I teach Theology and Bible in the information age in a way that meets with students’ needs, whether on-campus or on-line, that strives for pedagogical excellence, that meets the learning outcomes, but without watering down the content or compromising educational values?

I’m not an expert on educational theory or educational business models. But as a professor and author here is what I can tell you about teaching New Testament in the information age using the textbook and video The New Testament in its World (NTiiW) with Logos as a test case.