"What is a fandom, and why do fandoms matter for school?" Fandoms are passionate communities dedicated to appreciating and engaging with texts of interest (movies, TV shows, books, bands, brands, sports teams, etc.) via personally and communally meaningful literacy practices. It is increasingly obvious that scripted literacy curricula…

The semester-long activity described herein uses an integrated instructional approach to media studies to introduce students to the research method of qualitative content analysis and help them become more critically vigilant media consumers. The goal is to increase students' media literacy by guiding them in the design of an exploratory…

Movies are mostly viewed for entertainment. Mixing entertainment and physics gets students excited as we look at a famous movie scene from a different point of view. The following is a link to a fragment from the 2010 motion picture "Inception": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3tBBhYJeAw. The following problem, based on images in facing…

In this article Matthew Jellick describes an introductory lesson he has used on the first day of class with students around the globe. The activity touches on each of the skill sets associated with English language acquisition, with special attention paid to cultural issues that can be applied on a country-by-country basis. No matter what country…

Teachers the world over are discovering the importance and benefits of incorporating popular culture into the music classroom. The cultural prevalence and the students' familiarity with recorded music, videos, games, and other increasingly accessible multimedia materials help enliven course content and foster interactive learning and…

Students' backpacks bulge not just with oversize textbooks, but with paperbacks, graphic novels, street lit, and electronics such as iPods and handheld video games. This book is about unpacking those texts to explore previously unexamined assumptions regarding their usefulness to classroom learning. With a strong theoretical grounding and many…

An edited collection describing key issues in supporting literacy development, this book helps to "unlock" the mysteries behind helping children learn to read, write, speak and listen. It explores ways to help children develop their skills in literacy, thinking and learning and shows how literacy teaching can be used creatively and…

Points out that song lyrics are poetry that has moved people to love, march to war, march against war, and respond to religious impulses. Suggests that studying the lyrics of popular songs can help students develop an awareness of language and the power of poetry. (TJ)

Asserts that using popular music to introduce such concepts as irony, artistic influence, or the appropriation of cultural materials is a logical way to interest students and help them make connections and understand new material quickly, efficiently, and pleasantly. Outlines an approach to teaching English that uses music as a chief source of…

Describes a successful approach to teaching poetry--teaching poems in pairs or other small groupings, putting them in conversation with one another so that their ideas resonate and illuminate the experience of being in the poem. Demonstrates how poetry can be woven into the the classroom and into the lives of the students. (RS)

The key purpose of this paper is to provide economics and business professors, particularly those teaching principles courses, with concrete examples of economic theory applied to the music industry. A second objective is to further the interest in economic theory among business majors and expose non-majors to economic principles via real world…

Describes ways teachers can exploit student knowledge and interest in pop music by drawing examples from it to illustrate music theory and appreciation concepts. The author contends that, when students receive a broad exposure to all kinds of musical types, they develop their own valid standards for good music. (AM)

Describes the use of popular song lyrics as a method of improving the reading skills of teenagers in remedial classes. (MKM)

Argues that Fritz Lang's film "Metropolis" deserves exploration and analysis because of its outlandish plot, dazzling visual and technical elements, and its reflection of the closing days of Weimar Germany. Presents a brief study guide designed to stimulate student curiosity and facilitate further interest in the film. (RS)

Discusses the background of rap music, its definition, its themes and messages, and rap as a blend of language and music. Offers ideas for its use in the classroom as a way to motivate and instruct students. (SR)