We Got Next: Hip-Hop Pedagogy and the Next Generation of Democratic Education

Hip-Hop History: A Course for Change

“…Students of all races, religions, nationalities, and languages should be able to connect to the themes of Hip-Hop music, poetry, art, and fashion (Shelby-Caffey et al, 2018). Hip-hop transcends race allowing for a common space to analyze institutional racism (Dando, 2017). Restoring the interest in social studies by connecting the curriculum to students’ lives through analyzing counter narratives is critical to this course’s success (Woodson, 2015).…”

“…Hip-Hop Pedagogy aligns with the CRT framework by validating the recognizable voices of opposition to white-male dominated curricula and provides a relevant blueprint to help racialized students to deconstruct and analyze institutional racism. The use of “daily experiences and existing identities as the subject matter, a hip-hop-centered class encourages students to develop a critical lens so that they can ‘envision a social order which supports their full humanity’ (Shor, 1987, p. 48) and embraces the idea that hip-hip culture provides context for students to develop critical consciousness, engage in democratic activism, and get motivated for academic skill development” (Dando, 2017, p. 28).…”

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

“…Hip-Hop pedagogy scholars have made calls for using Hip-Hop music as a way for students to relate to traditional school curricula as well as for transforming the content and environment of school spaces. With aims like transformation (Adjapong & Emdin, 2015), social justice (Abe, 2009), resistance (Love, 2016), and socio-political consciousness (Dando, 2017) and with a grounding in US Black experiences, Hip-Hop pedagogies could be one potential contributor toward decentering Whiteness in US music education.…”

“…Dando (2017) similarly suggested that Hip-hop education requires that educators attend to the express social, academic, and emotional needs of their students, as well as engage in personal reflection . .…”

“…This might include engaging in some of the practices described by the teachers in this study, including acknowledging their Whiteness, decentralizing themselves as musical authorities, and seeking knowledge from their students. Dando (2017) suggested that teachers take on ‘the role of learner and listener’ (p. 33) when engaging with Hip-Hop. This could be a powerful place to start.…”