This article is an autoethnographic vignette of a schizoaffective sufferer learning about 'saneness' from slasher films. In this paper, theories from popular culture as pedagogy, Mad Studies, and cultivation theory, are used to confirm that saneness in motion pictures (specifically slasher films) can be conceptualized as a site of critical…

As one of the public pedagogical sites, Television (TV) has been studied from different perspectives. The purpose of this study is to discuss how TV serves as a habitat for learning in the ecological learning system. The author argues that TV as a habitat provides an exciting, entertaining, dramatic, and social environment which stimulates…

Most people have struggled with reading in one situation or another, depending on their appreciation for the content, their prior experiences, and the texts. This department column shares ways for educators to help literacy learners unlock their potential with instruction anchored in their skills, knowledge, ways of learning, interests, and…

This article focuses on the intersection of three areas of Peter Jarvis's work that have profoundly influenced the field of adult education generally and the authors own research trajectories, in particular: (a) learning from everyday life and in social context, (b) incidental and tacit learning in consumer societies in a globalised world (i.e.…

The importance of regular moderately intense exercise for overall wellness has been well documented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Reductions in obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis, and increased brain function can be achieved by being active throughout life. Quality…

Using the medical drama Grey's Anatomy as an exemplar, this article discusses findings from a qualitative case study exploring impacts of popular (or pop) culture on Canadian audience members' understanding of social issues, particularly health care policy. Adopting a neo-Gramscian perspective, our fundamental premise is that pop culture operates…

This study explores primary perceptions of and motivations to study abroad for adult and higher education learners. A large Hispanic-serving Southwestern university serves as the context of this study where undergraduate students and one graduate student were enrolled in an Italian urbanism study abroad program. The age of the participants ranged…

Too often, educators, researchers, and practitioners in the fields of adult education and human resource development rely on traditional curricular materials and an academic body of knowledge for teaching, evaluating, and training adults. This assumes a coherent body of prior knowledge, assumptions, worldviews, and experiences in their students…

Examining media artifacts as a learning method has received little attention in human resource development (HRD) despite it being a predominate form of information and influence in popular culture. As Giroux (2002) opines, media functions as a form of public pedagogy by offering situations and contexts through which viewers can vicariously…

This paper explores the attitudes of teachers, as adult learners, towards learning to do animation. A part of popular culture which second-language students enjoy, until recently, animation has been technically too demanding for non-specialists to learn. Adult learners can experience e-learning as transformative, but also as a barrier. Thus,…

This interview study is an exploration of the popular cultural and lifelong literacy practices of adult readers of comic books. Focusing on 4 participants from a pool of 12, the researcher used Kvale's (1996) method of meaning interpretation to analyze utterances and speak to the various uses reading held for these people. Aaron, Kyle, Peter, and…

This chapter introduces the volume, provides an overview of the theory and literature on popular culture and critical media literacy in education, and discusses ways to use popular culture in adult education.

The potential of drawing from urban youth culture, and hip-hop more specifically, to serve as a bridge to the standard curriculum has been well documented. However, the richness and potential benefits of hip-hop are more far-reaching and present significant implications for teacher education and professional development efforts as well. This…

This chapter examines popular culture as a site of cultural resistance. Specifically, it explores how "culture jamming," a cultural-resistance activity, can be a form of adult education. It examines adult education and learning as it intersects with both consumerism and popular culture. Focus is placed on a growing social movement of individuals…

The idea that popular culture and entertainment media influence us in both conscious and unconscious ways is not new. The use of alternative spaces, such as internet sites, for creating entertainment will continue to influence society and challenge educators. The importance of the internet was reflected in Time magazine's choosing YOU (meaning the…