Popular Culture in the Classroom

I recently read Alvermann’s book, Popular Culture in the Classroom: Teaching and Researching Critical Media Literacy in the Classroom. It is a quick and easy read. Although the beginning of the book touches upon theories and the thinking behind elements of critical media literacy in the classroom, the majority of the book focuses on equipping teachers with the frame of mind and possible lesson plans to utilize popular culture texts in the classroom. The book includes three lesson plans for multiple grade levels that can make it a resource for any teacher. The authors make a strong argument for the need to engage students in critical media literacy so that students are better able to read and critique a wide range of texts to make more informed decisions. There is no denying that our lives are filled with media texts (fiction, music, movies, comics, magazines, videos, computer games, and many more).

The references to popular culture are dated because the book was published in 1999. Although references to popular culture were outdated, I found myself plugging in modern-day equivalents to Madonna, South Park, or Ally McBeal. Looking across various texts, I found myself thinking about books that were in my classroom library (Diary of a Wimpy Kid), toys that my nieces adore (Bratz dolls, Hannah Montana), and popular songs that I hope my students don’t understand (too many to list!). The book is by no means cookie cutter lesson plans for teachers to implement the next day. In order to engage students, the texts must be relevant to their lives and teachers must be fully invested in the work. One of the authors assumed students in a younger elementary class would know South Park, and the author and I were both relieved when a few students knew the television show.

If there were a teacher who was interested in using popular culture texts in the classroom to engage students in critical media literacy, there are a few essential pieces of advice I would give if they didn’t have time to read the whole book (it’s only 141 pages).

•Children at any age are capable of making judgments and evaluating ideology…give them a chance.
•Popular culture texts are pleasurable – don’t take that away from students when you bring these texts into the classroom.
•Balance the issues of analysis, pleasure, positioning, and audience across all phases of the lesson.
•Use materials that are relevant to students’ lives.
•There will be oppositional readings between students, or even between teachers and students… it’s okay. Encourage multiple readings!
•Be flexible in your teaching and ready to think on the fly. You’re going to have to give up some control to the students!

Within each chapter that presents a different lesson plan, the authors offer long narratives to describe the work that students are doing, as well as evidence of the students’ processing and critical analysis of popular culture texts. While Alvermann certainly provides the teachers with the how-to, I don’t think she emphasizes enough of the ‘researcher’ role that teachers must assume in the classroom. At first, the lessons seemed a little too casual for me and I was uncomfortable with what appeared to be a lack of teacher involvement. As I have thought about this more, if a teacher considers his/herself a researcher in the classroom when engaging students in critical media literacy, they are less likely to teach from the approaches that result in denial of media’s role in society, or lack of a pleasurable experience or opportunity for critical analysis. As a teacher-researcher, students are placed in the driver’s seat (so to speak) and teachers observe carefully, take notes, and ask questions to get at students’ thinking. The teachers are involved, but at the student’s level. It is in this researching the processes students are using to position themselves and create identities will be revealed. In order for the authors to provide the narrative that they did – it became clear that there was ample research in the classroom and reflection following the lessons. It would be similar to conferring with a reader/writer one-on-one during workshop in order to get a better sense of what they working on as a writer/reader. More specifically, not what their writing piece/book is about, but what skills or strategies they are using, when they are using them, and why they have done so. When students are engaged in this type of work, it requires metacognition, which seemed to be downplayed by Alvermann.

All in all, I can certainly see using some of Alvermann's ideas to bring popular culture texts into my middle school classroom in a way that students can practice critical literacy.