Drawing on David Bartholomae’s 1985 essay, “Inventing the University” (Bartholomae, 1985), this article argues that college instructors should not readily assume that students would grasp technological innovation in the classroom and improve as writers because of it. Before co-opting students’ favorite devices such as iPods, iPads, and social networking sites as the way to reach them in the classroom, instructors should first reflect on the costs and benefits of such an arrangement.