Pop Culture So Bad?

From The Essential Conversation by Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, p 33:

"We do not resist the distractions and bad influences of technology, television, and rap music taking over our lives, letting popular culture rule and permitting the developmental needs of our kids to get overlooked."

In the broader context, it is a valid point that there are a variety of other factors that are at play when we are educating our children. But I take great offense at the inclusion of rap music, largely because of the cultural context of the music. Why not simply say music? Is the rap music made largely by African Americans that much worse, as an influence, than say the country music made by white people?

I think there is an issue of parents filtering what their children see or use, with age-appropriateness being of particular importance. But I take exception at rap music being singled out.

Bring your lesson plans and campfire songs!

Why is it that we tend to see lots of really hokey, campy songs in elementary school? Is it that many of the teachers were camp counselors? Are they still yearning to be campers (year-round mind you)? Or is it that they feel compelled to bring their students back to their folksy roots? I'm not sure, but I am a bit perplexed by it, particularly as I sit listening to my indie-rock-streaming KEXP!

Of the classrooms I have worked in, across a few different schools, I've only encountered 2 that deviated from that norm. Perhaps it is my bias towards more modern music, but I was pleasantly surprised to hear the kiddos rapping along to Nas' "I Can" or singing the Postal Service's "Sleeping In," or simply using Jack Johnson's "Reduce Reuse Recycle" for the clean-up song. The teachers used some of the campy songs during a sing-along/music time, but they mixed in other songs as well for the students to sing, as well as listen to in the background. There is certainly the issue of function and placement during the day, but why not other genres?

My assumption is that many teachers are afraid of using more modern music during the day because of the appropriate-ness or the content. Perhaps it is a fear of others not approving, and not seeing the music as kid-friendly. I am not sure, but I am going to explore this assumption a bit more during the course of the year.

Meanwhile, the root of all this is a hip-hop rendition of the Lorax that a friend of mine made (I'll upload it soon). He looped a beat from RJD2 and read it, or rather rapped it. The result is the antithesis of the type of reading found here. Both accomplish the stated goal of presenting text in an engaging way, but the former is more modern. The moral of the story... Hip Hop (and other genres) should be used more frequently in classrooms.

Also check out: Langley Schools of Music Project here.