Hip Hop and Education

How do hip hop and education tie in together for students and teachers at schools? Rap and hip-hop music are used in K-12 schools to help students learn the class material by better memorization, new vocabulary and words, getting motivated, keep moving to the next level, poetry and rhymes, cultural and respect, and doing physical activity to be the best version of themselves. Hip hop in education can be created equally in the classroom. H. Samy Alim in “Hip Hop and Education” said, “Hip hop and education have had a long, enduring, and complex relationship in the United States” (p. 1062). Hip Hop and education have tied in together due to the fact that it will help students and teachers to find better techniques of learning the class subjects in school. They are working with the youth all over the world when it comes to language and literacy. According to an article by The Center for Hip-Hop Advocacy, “28% of U.S. adults . . . agreed that hip-hop’s musical and cultural history should be taught in schools.” Hip Hop and education has been working well with students and teachers over the years as they may understand the concepts that are learned in a school classroom appropriately. Hip hop is used as a strategy in education when it comes to learning every subject such as math and science for their backgrounds in school due to the fact that it seems like a powerful tool of understanding for themselves. Millions of students can benefit from hip hop in school.

Hip hop has an impact on students getting an education in a music classroom. As students learn from movies, they also learn from music. For example, people thought they knew what dinosaurs looked like because of Jurassic Park. Science has shown them many dinosaurs have feathers. Adam J. Kruse in “Featherless Dinosaurs and the Hip-Hop Simulacrum” said, “Perhaps this is because dinosaurs have not previously had feathers in the Jurassic Park series of books and films, within which Jurassic World is situated” (p. 13). New science has shown people that hip hop works in the classroom to teach as well. As education may progress, there are new ways to help students learn. Students are using hip hop when they are learning, including science and history, in an educational setting. Students are using hip hop in music classes as they are understanding the genres like rock, disco, funk, and soul. Appropriateness can apply into classrooms as they are working with students and staff through hip hop and education. Schools should be fair to students when it comes to hip hop and language.

Hip hop is often viewed as negative and anti-social, especially in education as people view it. Adam J. Kruse said, “Beyond the understandable mis-interpretation of hip-hop lyrics, the idea that all hip-hop music contains antisocial messages is simply not true. It is important to know that not all hip hop conforms to the arguably negative themes mentioned earlier. In fact, some artists work actively against many of these themes” (p. 17). There are plenty of positive messages in hip hop such as Afrocentrism, anti-racism, supporting culture, and positive aspects for women. Students are learning these themes of hip hop when it comes to language and literacy in an educational setting.

Hip hop is good for students because it will help them to be successful in going to school. According to the film, Transforming Urban Education Through HipHop Pedagogy, “Edmund Adjapong uses images from his personal educational experiences in Bronx schools and hip-hop artifacts to communicate how hip-hop pedagogy can transform teaching and learning and increase engagement among all students, but especially students who identify as part of the hip-hop generation and may have thought it impossible to become scientists” (TED Talks 0:00–10:30). Students and teachers can be inspired by Edmund Adjapong when they are interested in learning about hip hop and education. Adjapong also states, “…We know we love hip-hop music but we need to look at hip-hop as a culture and as a culture that can be used in schools and that we can encourage teachers to utilize the different elements…” (TED Talks 5:27–6:40). People are learning the culture of hip hop when it comes to street battles and rap contests. Hip-hop culture can involve people looking at murals in their neighborhoods. Some people are getting in trouble in school for not being able to remain quiet. Hip hop improves their ability to stay focused in school. Students are being active when it comes to learning and creating relationships. They are also creating rap. They are engaged and excited about learning.

Students want to be a musician like Ice Cube since hip hop may encourage music studies. According to the “Ice Cube” biography, “One of the most popular practitioners of hard-core rap music, Ice Cube rages against societal ills by making albums that straightforwardly depict the problems present in poor, black communities” (para. 1). Ice Cube is a rapper that taught himself music and was involved in Straight Outta Compton. Ice Cube is one of the rappers that was born in California. He attended Phoenix Institute of Technology for architecture study, but he really wanted to be a musician because he was involved in hip hop as a kid. It is important for students and teachers to be respectful of themselves and their culture.

Students are treating their teachers and friends in school to be polite and kind because they are able to take the concepts of hip hop and education seriously. According to the film, Gifted & Lit (A Blend of Hip-Hop and Education), “Hip Hop has had a tremendous impact on today’s youth . . . This is a great product to assist you with your parent engagement activities” (0:00–4:36). Teachers should be playing songs that are related to hip hop and education when it comes to language arts and mathematics. Gifted and Lit also states that, “By far, this is one of the best tools to use at home or in a classroom setting . . . In addition, ‘Gifted and Lit’ uses age appropriate kid’s music to make learning fun while promoting international travel, language learning, and positive growth” (0:00–4:36). Students are able to learn positive information about each other when it comes to the subjects in an educational setting for hip hop music. They are learning grammar such as nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and verbs. They are doing math problems such as multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction. They are learning words in Spanish such as hola, uno, agua, bueno dias, gracias, and mascotas. There are some students that are ready to graduate from school with better grades due to their hard work with hip hop.

Students are able to make their own songs in the future when it comes to hip hop and education. According to the film, An Introduction to Composing, “Anyways, I want to document my school life . . . and I’m gonna forget it all soon” (0:30–0:36). Students have the skills of composing a song when they go to school to learn music genres such as rap and hip hop in an educational setting. People are joining a band in the future due to the fact that they went to school just to learn and then they got to learn hip hop by getting their education. People are composing a song with better lyrics, melody, tempo, and beat when it comes to being involved in music. They are developing ideas for their songs. People are composing new materials and making changes to their music as they need to make them popular for the future. People are using a word processor when it comes to making lyrics and parameters with their music. They are making music with a call-and-response, chorus, and instrumental solo. An Introduction to Composing also states that, “It doesn’t have to sound like something you’ve heard before . . . and that’s how you sort of dissect the gist of how it was created” (22:52–23:20). They are making a song when it comes to having a great tune as long as they do not have any copyright restrictions as they are trying to play an instrumental solo such as saxophone, clarinet, trumpet, guitar, violin, banjo, trombone, flute, and piano. Students are learning many different skills besides math and language arts, because hip hop is interdisciplinary.

There are millions of students that are qualified to learn hip hop at school as they are getting their education, some to become musicians. Hip hop seems like a powerful tool for students to learn in every subject, such as history, science, math, and language arts. Students are trying to be familiar with language and literacy at school when it comes to applying hip hop into their lifestyles. People have the right to education by finding ways of learning that help them express themselves. People are defining themselves when it comes to the right to learn. There are musicians who are learning hip hop through their life experiences. There are people in school learning hip hop due to the fact that it may involve poetry and rhymes at times. Students are able to get a scholarship in school due to improved grades through learning hip hop. It does not matter if it is a private school or a public school because hip hop helps students learn everywhere. Music can help students remember. People should be getting a right amount of education because they can be able to perform well in their lives as well as learning about hip hop and rap culture when it comes to taking a music class at school. Students are using hip hop when other methods do not work for learning. There are some people who are listening to hip hop music, while there are some of them getting an education to help them with their future careers. Why is hip hop and education important to the current generation?

I believe that hip hop and education is needed at all schools because it seems to be an inspiration for many people. I value the way that students learn as they are trying their best to the best of their abilities. I feel thrilled about hip hop because I learned about hip-hop artists that went to college. I look forward to finding a piece of music when it comes to the history of hip hop and reading the musicians’ biographies. When I was watching a video of “Gifted & Lit” on YouTube, it showed me a connection between hip hop and education. This conversation matters to me because it is important to discuss the concepts about hip hop and education being compared to the present and the past as well as future references. Hip hop in education can be useful to individual students. Hip hop in education can be supported by the communities. Hip hop in education can understand the message of music, create artwork, and learn different cultures when it comes to working with the institutions. I highly recommend that anyone be able to use a powerful tool with hip hop for educational purposes.

About the infographic: Students get to do fun things when it comes to drawing the lines of hip hop as they are learning about different cultures and understanding the message of music. The visual component can be appealing when millions of students are engaged in hip hop. I intend to communicate that hip hop is a way of studying subjects as students tend to do better in a classroom while other students do not have a safe and effective learning. I chose the information and symbolism to best represent my topic because people are interested in hip hop and education as they are living in urban areas and some of them may have listened to music before. I would like to reach out with this message to the musicians and producers of hip hop. My audience will be the students, friends, staff members, teachers, families, and colleagues. Some students are using hip hop to improve their grades in school. The residents of Arizona are interested in hip hop because they are able to take a look at artwork. Students are able to go on field trips to learn about hip hop as they are taking the school bus. People are excited about hip hop and education since it is a good topic in the human rights movement. There are musicians getting an education through hip hop as they are learning to play different instruments such as saxophone, piano, and xylophone, as well as recognizing the musical notes. People are doing rap contests to prove themselves as a better rapper in hip hop. People can work together to achieve the common goal of hip hop whenever they are black and white especially when they are working in the industry. They should get hip hop involved with the community as well as making education songs. I should use hip hop as it may help me to achieve my goals of being a straight “A” student in school even though it does not have to be perfect. Students are learning hip hop to express themselves and knowing who they are. They are using hip hop for language and literacy. I highly recommend that everyone should be able to use hip hop as a tool in the future.

Works Cited

Alim, H. Samy. “Hip Hop and Education.” Encyclopedia of Diversity in Education, edited by

James A. Banks, vol. 2, SAGE Reference, 2012, pp. 1062–1066. Gale eBooks,

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX4195500319/GVRL?u=mcc_chandler&sid=GVRL&xid=5405f305. Accessed 19 Oct. 2020.

“An Introduction to Composing.” Films On Demand, Films Media Group, 2008,

www.digital.films.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=106409&xtid=40222. Accessed 4 Nov. 2020.

“Gifted & Lit (A Blend of Hip-Hop and Education).” YouTube, uploaded by Gifted & Lit, 19

Oct. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gfbmwi_wLUI.

“Ice Cube.” Newsmakers, Gale, 1999. Gale In Context: Biography,

https://link-gale-com.ez1.maricopa.edu/apps/doc/K1618002678/BIC?u=mcc_chandler&sid=BIC&xid=1f7c74ac. Accessed 27 Sept. 2020.

Kruse, Adam J. “Featherless Dinosaurs and the Hip-Hop Simulacrum: Reconsidering Hip-Hop’s

Appropriateness for the Music Classroom.” Music Educators Journal, vol. 102, no. 4, 2016, pp. 13–21., www.jstor.org/stable/24755676. Accessed 25 Sept. 2020.

The Center for Hip-Hop Advocacy. “Nearly 3 in 10 U.S. Adults Say Hip-Hop Should Be Taught

In Schools.” The Center for Hip-Hop Advocacy, 17 Jan. 2019, www.hiphopadvocacy.org/hip-hop-education-research/.

“Transforming Urban Education Through HipHop Pedagogy | Edmund Adjapong |

TEDxSaintMichaelsCollege.” YouTube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 2 Jan. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii1tzYQtN0c.