“Something You Can Look Back On”: Teacher Candidates, Rap Music, and P-12 Social Studies

Abstract

Although several studies highlight the integration of hip-hop-based education (HHBE) into teacher education workshops and coursework, little is known about the use of HHBE by the teachers and teacher candidates who take part in these learning experiences. Toward such a contribution, this study examines how teacher candidates proposed to integrate rap into lesson plans designed for middle and high school social studies classes in an urban intensive setting. The findings indicate that the teacher candidates’ proposed uses of rap not only privilege their own preferences and experiences but also position rap as subordinate to traditional classroom-based texts.