The Genre of Hip Hop Music Creating an Impact in the Education Curriculum?
The genre of hip hop and its involvement in the education curriculum was never a topic I ever imagined I would discuss in my lifetime. Now that I began my journey of diving through topics, outcomes and indicators of the curriculum. It is so interesting discovering what is required of each grade level to understand and recall. On top of those discoveries it is quite fascinating looking for different topics and themes that can be included in the education curriculum.
I will take the time to answer this question: How can hip hop be used as a tool to promote social justice and youth activism in the classroom? Hip Hop has traditionally been seen as a genre made and created by African American individuals, anyone from a rough area of town, incarcerated and other stereotypical assumptions and terms. The stereotypes have found their ways into movies, social media, tv shows and music videos that portray people of the hip hop genre to be those of the minority groups in specific African American background.
When adding it to the curriculum it provides the opportunity for it to be used as a way of self expression and cultural identity. Having the implications and teachings of hip hop in the curriculum allows people to feel connected to the genre and feel like they have a safe space to be who they identify as. In less abstract terms it has been stated that adding this topic to the curriculum will: “ respond to issues of racism and other acts of social differences that black people and colored faces in urban schools and communities” (Akom, 2009). Incorporating this topic into the curriculum can scream injustice of social differences between black and white people, which is something we need to accept and learn from in this current state.
The curriculum Hip Hop Pedagogy ‘approach attempts to address deep rooted ideologies to social inequities by creating a space in teacher education course for prospective teachers to examine their knowledge of hip hop as it intersects with race, class, gender and sexual orientation” (Akom, 2009). After reading the implications of this approach it is challenging to deny the outcomes this topic may add to the education curriculum?
What is the relationship between hip hop culture and the development of critical consciousness amongst students? Critical consciousness is a learning strategy that has provided countless questions for students to reflect upon. Critical consciousness is found in the topic area of Hip Hop Pedagogy. In other terms “the meaning, purpose, and function of hip hop as a field of academic inquiry and a weapon in the fight for racial justice has undergone a host of significant transformations since the emergence of the Big Bang in the South Bronx” (Akom, 2009). After reading that it is hard to deny the benefits of this topic being incorporated in the education curriculum used by all teachers.
There are countless other benefits of HIp Hop Pedagogy one of them being “when we use the strategy of ‘imaging’ when implementing this theme in the curriculum it can “describe the process by when Hip Hoppers reproduce or evoke images, events, people and symbols for the purpose of placing past ideas into closer proximity to the present” (Akom, 2009). In other ways this showcases the outcomes that can be achieved with a different topic such as this one? Plus it also shows us the ways we can utilize this topic in different methods of teaching such as images, events and even music.
How can we understand new educational trends in relation to the global trade network? Instead of answering it with a specific straight to the point answer. I choose to take the approach of responding with big questions that us teachers need to reflect and understand when we create our personal ideologies, thoughts and big ideas as a teacher. As teachers we need to understand the concept of adapting new educational trends “as reflections of the social context-as an inevitable effort to bring education into the broad pattern of change in an industrial society?” (Waks, 2013). It is also critical that we understand “how we are built upon and direct them and align them with a democratic social ideals?” (Waks, 2013). Lastly I wish to end with this big question such as “how should educators build upon and direct the new tendencies?” (Waks, 2013).
To close would you consider including the topic of Hip Hop Pedagogy into the walls of your classroom? If yes, explain why. If not, explain why?