This blog post was written by 起点传媒member and Secondary Section Steering Committee member Vaughn W. M. Watson.聽
In a May 2018 High School Matters in English Journal, I discussed building on the 鈥渁lready present鈥� lived experiences of youth as an envisioning of 鈥淓nglish teaching and learning as all around us鈥� (Watson, 2018, p. 10). As illustrative practices, I described a 10th-grade student sharing with peers Suli Breaks鈥� spoken-word poetry on YouTube, youth songwriters in the Verses Project composing words and music about their Detroit hometown, and preservice English teachers discussing the interplay of languages and identities in video games.
In this way, I noted, 鈥渂uilding upon the 鈥榓lready present鈥� involves attending to literacy practices and learning activities across communities and within contexts that students see as important to them鈥� (p. 11). This stance-taking seeks to assert urgent possibilities in English teaching and learning, and encourages secondary teachers to build curricular and teaching practices that attend to strengths of youth and communities.
Teachers enrolled in spring 2018 in 鈥淗ip-hop Literacies,鈥� a graduate course I designed and taught, envisioned such work in the compiling of a multimodal class playlist. Teachers posted to our online course discussion forum the title, YouTube link, and a one-sentence annotation that described how in their curriculum design and teaching practices, teachers and youth may engage with a YouTube video featuring a creative or artistic practice involving hip hop.
Seven teachers across the semester each contributed eight playlist posts, 56 total, publicly sharing possibilities of teaching and learning with classmates.
Teachers鈥� annotations of their playlist posts underscore opportunities for discussing a range of topics in secondary English language arts, including action-taking, counter narratives, race, economies, and social change. In conversation with #WhyIWrite, and NCTE鈥檚 Statement on Anti-Racism to Support Teaching and Learning, I highlight curricular and learning activities of three teachers who build on the 鈥渁lready-present鈥� lived experiences of youth.
Across teachers鈥� playlists and annotations, consider for your own schooling contexts how you may build with youths鈥� lived experiences in developing curriculum and teaching practices drawn from popularized narratives of YouTube videos.
For example, consider asking youth to compile playlists, and one-sentence annotations, across course topics. Then with youth build connections across playlist posts, and youths鈥� already-present literacy and learning.
Youth, for example, may identify their already-present literacy activities in playlist posts; connect playlists to spaces and places meaningful to youth; or discuss how youths鈥� already-present literacy and learning connect to or extend in-school academic standards.
Sensoy and DiAngelo鈥檚 (2012) book, Is Everyone Really Equal?: An Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education, and Milner鈥檚 2017 Education Week commentary, , are additional resources for discussing social justice and equity in building and annotating playlists.
As you read teachers鈥� playlist posts, consider how you may involve youth in curricular and teaching conversations supporting youths鈥� already-present literacy and learning within and beyond reading, writing, speaking, and listening activities.
Sarah, 11th-grade teacher, IB Language & Literature; Seattle, Washington
Video title: 鈥淪olange — Rise/Weary Medley (Live from The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon)鈥�
YouTube link:
Sarah’s annotation: This live performance of 鈥淩ise鈥� and 鈥淲eary鈥� by Solange speaks to the ebb and flow of being called to action, yet feeling weary and emotionally drained in knowing that there is so much work to be done. In this context I’m interpreting 鈥渨ork鈥� as work = social justice and human rights organizing/efforts.
Video Title: 鈥淎 Tribe Called Quest 鈥� We The People聽 . . . 鈥�
YouTube link:
Sarah’s annotation: A Tribe Called Quest uses second-person point of view and sarcasm to comment on the gentrification, commodification, and oppression experienced by people who have been marginalized by dominant culture.
Video Title: 鈥淭he Hamilton Mixtape: Immigrants (We Get The Job Done)鈥�
YouTube link:
Sarah’s annotation: Teachers can use this to begin a dialogue about how music (and literature) serves as a counter-narrative in dominant culture in a rap about immigrants in context with U.S history.
VideoTitle: 鈥� 鈥楤lack Lives Matter鈥�: A Poem by Nikkita Oliver鈥�
YouTube link:
Sarah’s annotation: Leader of 鈥楾he Peoples Party鈥� in Seattle, Washington, Nikkita Oliver performs a spoken-word poem that critiques oppressive systems and provides a social commentary around race, power, and Black lives which could be used while teaching/reading The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison to discuss how narratives provide social commentary.
Drexton, 5th-grade teacher; Gwinnett County, Georgia
Video title: 鈥淗ip Hop Around The World: Discovering Cultural Identity In The Classroom鈥�
YouTube link:
Drexton鈥檚 annotation: This video discusses how cultures and populations around the world use hip-hop to try and solve or educate about the problems that many low-income communities share regardless of their location.
Dan, 11th-grade world history teacher; Detroit, Michigan
Video title: 鈥淜anye West 鈥� All Falls Down ft. Syleena Johnson鈥�
YouTube link:
Dan鈥檚 annotation: This song can open up student conversations on materialism, self-worth, self-confidence, and the functions of capitalist economies as it relates to people.
Video title: 鈥淏lack Thought Freestyles on Flex | #Freestyle087鈥�
YouTube link:
Dan鈥檚 annotation: The Roots鈥� Black Thought delivers almost 10 minutes of lyrical dexterity and depth.
Video title: 鈥淗ow this legendary hip-hop producer humanized a machine鈥�
Link:
Dan鈥檚 annotation: In honor of J Dilla week [a celebration of the life and work of hip hop artist and music producer J Dilla, who passed away in 2006], teachers can use this video to discuss how students can use their ingenuity to make magic out of machines.
Vaugh W. M. Watson is assistant professor in the Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University, East Lansing.聽