In a roundabout way have cameras come full circle?

What goes around, comes around.

Yes, I think we may see a mirrorless camera style dominate the digital market. The mirror was an addition that helped the market move away from larger formats while giving us lenses that would work with the smaller formats, particularly 35mm, with (almost) the clarity of the large format lenses/size combination. It made cameras more accessible and easier to use and frankly, helped people ditch the tripod (not necessarily a good thing. In the digital age, the mirror is not actually needed. I think we will be able to get small format cameras with viewfinders for a while, but that may change rapidly. I don't personally like using the the LCD screen but you gotta roll with the changes. So, yeah, I think it is going full circle.

Peace.

My thought is that this is a pointless question. The goal has always been to see what you're taking a picture of. Early photography did it the only way that was known. In the intervening years, technology developed to make this easier. One development was that of the single lens reflex camera, which uses a mirror to direct the image into an optical viewfinder. MILCs do it electronically. Big deal -- they don't have a mirror. Maybe your teacher is fascinated by this development. But there are many photographers who prefer a true optical viewfinder over the electronic one. The difference has little impact on image quality, which is the end goal.

Maybe they should shorten the length of the time for photography courses so that teachers wouldn't have to pad out the time with exercises that have little practicality in the real world. Or maybe they should spend more time on teaching students to master their cameras, composition, lighting, exposure and all the other stuff that, you know, contribute to a good photograph.

If it isn't about technology, what about then?

View cameras had no need for a mirror because the image on the viewfinder comes directly from the lens. The digital mirrorless camera veers away by putting an electronic circuit between the lens and the viewfinder. It's not full circle. It's just a novelty offshoot solution to something different. Besides, the viewfinder is just that - for looking. The camera (and photographer) can survive without one.

I'm not sure that I would diminish your observation's incisiveness by calling it roundabout. Even if it is just evolution of camera design, as qrk points out, it is nonetheless a brilliant insight that doubtlessly has parallels in other technologies. Jeannie makes perfect sense. I sure do love living in the 21st century!

Still a line that is branching. What you see is the evolution of camera design.