This Term Will "Pop!"

The tone for this blog is a brief persuasive letter regarding the use of Pop Culture in the classroom. I have decided to be a fictional geography teacher writing to my students' parents. Here is a letter I would send home early in the term.

Dear Parents:

I am excited to have your daughter/son in my Geography class this year. We will be learning many things this term through many different activities and experiences. Central to geography and our studies will be the use of “popular culture.” There is rich depth to be explored in an area many think is too shallow to merit attention. By using aspects of popular culture, students will be asked not only to consider the course content but to analyze it in relation to events and people they are familiar with. Learning is brought to vivid reality and is engaging for students in a way inaccessible through a textbook. It is impossible to know what events will occur that may find their way into the classroom, but below are some examples of how popular culture may be used to focus on certain areas of study during the term.

Focus Area: Mapping
The most basic concept in Geography: where are countries, rivers, continents, etc located? Students will learn the basics of the world layout then will select a style of music or musician. They will follow that style from its roots, through its influences, and finally to its present form. If they select a musician/group, they will study their tour stops, their routes/movements, as well as the scheduling of events. By plotting a subject that is interesting to them, they will be interacting with the map in a way that is meaningful and expands their current understanding. Additionally, we would also work on mapping distribution and supply chains for major merchandise (like Coke, GAP clothing, etc) in an effort to understand mapping as well as consumerism and global markets.

Focus Area: Cultural Image
We will spend a great deal of time analyzing cultures. This area of ‘cultural studies’ is rapidly changing in the face of media and technological advances. One project that will incorporate popular culture and media texts will be the ‘Cultural Image’ project. The primary analytical consideration for this project is how the media’s ‘spotlight’ approach causes distorted concepts of an area. To analyze and combat the effects of these short clips that they are bombarded with, students will be asked to create a multi-media presentation with no written text that conveys the richness of a location and its relationship with the geographical and culturally specific aspects unique to it. They will need to select a ‘modern’ song to be the soundtrack to their images. By balancing their selection of images (picking photos requires a high level of analyzing) as well as having the ability to communicate in a medium that is fresh and creative, students will be challenged to learn about a place and its culture in an in depth way while considering the media’s presentation of these areas and their cultures.

Focus Area: Mapping Technologies
Creating maps and studying where people live are key areas for geographers. While studying these techniques, students will be utilizing popular culture tools and events to study and map people and events. Using GoogleEarth, looking at Census techniques all around the world, website counters, demographic collection techniques they experience, and the uses for this data students will study a process they are already a part of. Because they are actively involved in these processes already, they will have a higher investment in understanding the process and be more engaged.

As you can see, popular culture doesn’t always mean the study of tattoos and the latest trends in rock bands. There are aspects of students’ everyday lives that are ‘popular culture’ and should be brought into the classroom as a way of learning applicable knowledge in a meaningful and engaging way. I encourage you to question your student often about their engagement in this course, challenge them with questions about current world events, and be in contact with me should you have thoughts or questions on the course content.

Thank you for sharing your student with me this term!
~Mrs. Holton