Opinion Panel | The UvA must return to analogue methods in its teaching

Hadassa Noorda is an associate professor of criminal law.

“We cannot return to an analogue world. AI and digitalisation are part of the world in which students operate, both during their studies and afterwards. But we must ensure that students do not lose essential academic skills, such as thinking critically and independently, reading, writing and engaging in discussion with one another.”

“That is why we need to deliberately create space in education for students to develop these skills without digital tools or AI. This year, I started holding laptop-free lectures, in which students are encouraged to listen, take notes and engage in conversation with one another. This sometimes requires a different approach to teaching, but it also creates valuable opportunities for deeper learning and interaction.”

“So this is not about returning to analogue teaching. We also need to teach students how to use AI critically and responsibly, and that clearly has a place in education too. But as AI becomes capable of taking over more and more tasks, I believe it is important for students to keep practising how to think independently and formulate their own judgements. For me, that remains the core of academic education.”

Silvia Bușcan (19) studies media & culture.

“Technology and education have become inseparable, from online magazines, to digital platforms such as Canvas. However, neither technology nor education is perfect, making occasional failure inevitable.”

“It is important to remember that technology is, at its core, a human-made tool, and its effectiveness therefore depends largely on the people who design, develop, and maintain it. When a digital system malfunctions, the problem does not necessarily lie with the technology itself, but with the way it has been designed, implemented, or maintained. Therefore, rather than immediately concluding that we should return to analogue methods whenever technology fails, we should focus on investing in the people, resources, and practices needed to make these systems more reliable.”

“When faced with a negative experience, people tend to overlook the benefits they previously took for granted. Technology offers clear advantages in education: it helps organize information, makes learning more accessible, and enables innovative teaching methods. It is not fair to allow occasional technical failures to overshadow these benefits. So instead of abandoning technology at the first sign of trouble, we should learn from its shortcomings and work towards making it better.”

Cor Zonneveld (65) is biologist and teachter at the AUC.

“The UvA should not merely return to analogue teaching; it should revive a scribal tradition that endured for nearly three millennia, with course materials still accessible almost four thousand years later: Mesopotamian cuneiform education.”

“Students learned cuneiform by copying examples set by their teacher onto clay tablets. The advantages are obvious. Clay requires no electricity, accepts a stylus without Bluetooth and never demands a password reset. It is immune to ransomware and offers data retention that Canvas can only dream of. Backups are straightforward: make another tablet.”

“There are minor practical disadvantages. Tablets are heavy, editing is easiest while the clay remains wet, and submitting an essay may require a donkey. Scaling up storage could also prove awkward, although the Roeterseiland campus probably has sufficient load-bearing capacity.”

“The absurdity of this proposal lies not in Mesopotamian education, which functioned perfectly well, but in believing that older technology is necessarily more reliable or educationally preferable. Digital dependence certainly creates vulnerabilities. The answer is to provide backups, alternatives and contingency plans. Not to abandon digital teaching.”