‘Take a back seat’: White music teachers engaging Hip-Hop in the classroom

Abstract

<jats:p> With the purpose of exploring how engaging with Hip-Hop might contribute toward decentering Whiteness in US music education, this research aims to understand the perceptions of three White music educators in the United States teaching Hip-Hop in their classrooms comprising majority students of color. The study explores participants’ past experiences with Hip-Hop, their current teaching practices, and the influence that teaching Hip-Hop has had on their role in the classroom. I also engage in critical self-reflection in order to name and disrupt my own White fragility that emerged during the process of conducting the study and writing this article. Analysis reveals that engaging with Hip-Hop does not inherently contribute to decentering Whiteness, and considerations suggest more intentional and explicit work toward these ends. </jats:p>

Rethinking the Elementary “Canon”: Ideas, Inspirations, and Innovations from Hip-Hop

“…As White educators and scholars ourselves, we identify closely with this responsibility. From our experiences so far, as well as findings from recent research, 18 keeping race, racism, and our own White identities continually and critically "on the table" during this work is paramount. Additionally, working closely with hip-hop artistsparticularly Black artists and other artists of color-as partners in community and classroom projects has been incredibly valuable for both our pedagogical and personal musical growth.…”

Music Educators as DJs: Remixing Teaching With Hip-Hop

“…For music educators already involved in such efforts, investigating their experiences might help to understand what current challenges exist and the potential approaches to mediating such challenges. In a study about White music educators engaging with Hip-Hop in their classrooms, Kruse (2020b) found that Hip-Hop magnified the teachers' White identities, providing opportunities to consider and challenge hegemonic Whiteness in their spaces. A White music teacher in a different study (Kruse, 2020a) who was largely unfamiliar with Hip-Hop chose to rely on students' knowledge to inform curriculum and instruction in a high school Hip-Hop class.…”

Editorial

“…This has resulted in some very popular issues—most notably Volume 42, Issue 2 (July 2020), and Volume 43, Issue 3 (July 2021). The July 2020 issue, published at a time of racial unrest across the world, addressed issues at the intersection of music education and race (Grissom-Broughton, 2020; Kruse, 2020), gender (Grissom-Broughton, 2020), social justice diversity and inclusion (Bjørnsen & Woddis, 2020; Crawford, 2020; Ellefsen & Karlsen, 2020), cultural partnerships and heritage (Mabingo, 2020; Prest, 2020), and methodological responsibility in research (Kallio, 2020). The July 2021 issue similarly had many articles focussing on issues of inclusion, including those associated with disability (Pickard, 2021), mental health (Koops & Kuebel, 2021), and social awareness (Grant & Low-Choy, 2021).…”