New Books in Literary Studies Carlo Rotella, "What Can I Get Out of This?: Teaching and Learning in a Classroom Full of Skeptics" (U California Press, 2025)
Dec 7, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Carlo Rotella, Professor of English at Boston College, dives into his latest book about teaching in challenging environments. He shares how he uncovered students' inner lives through interviews and reflects on strategies to spark their interest in literature, even when they resist. Rotella compares classroom dynamics to band practice, highlighting collaboration and iterative learning. He also discusses the importance of knowing students personally, navigating classroom challenges, and adapting teaching approaches in the age of AI.
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Classroom As Craft And Rehearsal
- Teaching is a craft where teachers and students work together to develop practical skills.
- Rotella compares classrooms to rehearsal spaces where everyone sharpens their chops through practice.
Boxing Gym Lesson Shaped His Teaching
- Rotella recalls watching Larry Holmes at a boxing gym and learning that students must come halfway to teachers.
- That moment made him scale back lecturing and ask more of students in class.
Humanities Teach Transferable Reasoning
- Literature teaching builds transferable skills: extracting meaning and building evidence-based arguments.
- Rotella argues these are basic civic and workplace skills often undervalued in debates about higher education.
