I can see where rap music could be* used to teach kids about poetry or storytelling or in the humanities, but in the natural sciences? A New York Timespiece focuses on efforts to teach kids science through hip hop which is something I can’t believe people are still trying to pull off in 2012. A video of Columbia professor Christopher Emdin trying to make this happen:
A couple of things really stuck out at me. First, Emdin speaks of the Eurocentricism of science and appreciates the diversity of the mural on the wall of the entrance to the school which is named….The Marie Curie School. She’s European as fuck.
Second, one of the students at the end of the video says “It definitely made everyone more comfortable though.” Which is about all it will do, and that’s really what all of this is about. Remain comfortable in your familiar cultural settings, let the curriculum come to you whether or not it is diluted along the way. You won’t learn but you won’t know it.
Third, the video doesn’t actually show any science being performed or learned about.
To review the NYT piece, the problem:
…science classrooms were failing to engage many African-American and Latino students, who together make up 70 percent of New York City’s student body. Only 4 percent of African-American seniors nationally were proficient in sciences, compared with 27 percent of whites, according to the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress.
The proposed solution which is focused mainly on getting minority students to stop thinking of scientists only as white people:
Starting in January, the 10 schools, with support from Dr. Emdin and his graduate students, will experiment with cyphers and rhymes to teach basic science concepts — one class per school, one day per week. The students will write rhymes in lieu of papers; the best rhymes, as judged by GZA, will appear on Rap Genius, beside the lyrics of popular hits. The program fits into a broader educational movement to use students’ outside interests to engage them in class work.
So students will end up being vaguely aware of loose scientific concepts. And Emdin, touting this pedagogy:
“A hip-hop cypher is the perfect pedagogical moment, where someone’s at the helm of a conversation, and then one person stops and another picks up,” Dr. Emdin said, his checked bow tie bobbing under his chin. “There’s equal turns at talking. When somebody has a great line, the whole audience makes a ‘whoo,’ which is positive reinforcement.”
He added, “All of those things that are happening in the hip-hop cypher are what should happen in an ideal classroom.”
Student-sourcing could be implemented in small doses as a teaching method in certain subjects: sociology, poetry, maybe history. But hard subjects like science and math require rigid, top-down instruction. What can one ignorant student teach another ignorant student through rap lyrics? This is all just an exercise in government grant capture. Come up with an “original”, glossy, aspirational method and get some cash money for it. When it fails, move on to the next spurious method. Recycle said methods every decade or so.
*In theory, with a competent league of Finding Forester types, not with the current stable of uncreative, going-through-the-motions educators.
Why don’t they just get the kids to memorize “We Didn’t Start the Fire”? That way, they’d have the same depth of knowledge of post-WW2 American history as this rap crap will ‘teach’ them about science.
Emdin has good intentions and the lyricism (?) of science concepts may actually help students grasp some basic definitions, but this is just another way of solving a problem that has not been properly addressed. Why is it that children of Asian descent can handle what he calls a Eurocentic approach to science? As a black person myself, I would have found a hip hop approach to science demeaning.
I once wrote a song about chemistry, called Like a Chemist, and it was to the tune of Like a Virgin. It was fun. I think it was the only grade above a C I ever got in chemistry class.
“science classrooms were failing to engage many African-American and Latino students, who together make up 70 percent of New York City’s student body”
Very careful choice of words here. Unschooled rube that I am I might have suspected that the minority students were failing to learn the material, but now I see it’s those damn classrooms’ fault. They just need to replace the periodic table on the wall with a tacky diversity mural and no doubt it will all work out.
B.S. in Physical Anthropology/ Biology/ Chemistry, Lehman College (2000)
M.S. in Natural Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2003)
Project: Extracellular Matrix and Mesenchymal Cell Signaling
PhD in Urban Education, Graduate Center of the City University of New York, (2007)
Dissertation: Exploring the contexts of Urban Science Classrooms: Cogenerative dialogues, Coteaching and Cosmopolitanism
Lehman is a bottom of the barrel CUNY school, ranked 118 in the US News Regional category; I’m sure his triple major is not as impressive as it looks. RPI is a good school, but the Natural Science MS is, in fact, a teacher education program, so I’m not sure his “project” would have required much: http://www.cipce.rpi.edu/graduate_degrees_certificates/msns.html
PhD in Urban Education explains itself.
So, I’m assuming that Dr. Edmin is probably a bright guy, definitely toward the right end of the African American bell curve, but not smart enough to do actual graduate work in physical anthropology, biology, or chemistry. Certainly not chemistry. In other words, his style over substance approach makes perfect sense. Edmin himself probably doesn’t grasp the substance all that well.
Speaking of science and stuff, you know you’re to the right of the general population’s IQ when you watch “Big Bang Theory” and the main characters’ smart talking is about on the level of what you knew about science as a sophomore in high school. You’re extra-bright (compared to the general audience of BBT) when you are impatient with the dialogue’s banality and unnecessary rhetorical complexity.
A good first step would probably be some instruction in proper grammar, Principal Ingrid Thomas Clark (@thatname really?) was a garbage speaker, it was almost like someone intentionally put in the bad cut of her introduction. Also lol at that “symbolical” Chuck I think you’ve found a steady source of entertainment for me.
So what scientific nomenclature rhymes with bitch, ho and po-lice? At least we can have some confidence they can rap about evolutionary theory… maybe not , primitive rhymes with initiative, inquisitive, and prohibitive, stuff they have a bit of trouble with. What rhymes with baby-moma ? Lil help anti-racist, did ol’Yukab invent any words that will kick out a mean beat and rhyme with section eight?
GLP, have you ever considered offering full text in your RSS feed? Those of us that want full text will find workarounds to make it happen. I feel like you’re missing out on a lot of subscribers. I certainly didn’t read many of your posts until I was able to see them in my newsreader.
Although in fairness, Big Bang Theory can be pretty funny. A joke from one of the episodes:
Three physicists go into a bar, and as usual, they order an extra drink and put it at an empty spot at their table. Finally the bar tender asks them, “why do you guys always do this?” One of them explains “well, according to quantuum mechanics, there is a non-zero probability that the air molecules over the empty chair will spontaneously arrange to form a beautiful girl who will have the drink and want to have sex with us.” So the bartender says “why don’t you just walk up to a real girl at this bar and get her a drink and have her want to have sex with you?” The physicists say “yeah, what are the odds of that happening.”
There is a diverse, vibrant, and expanding category of reports that can be filed under “Who’s in on the joke?”
Are the ostensible subjects of the story, Dr Edmin and his students and colleagues?
Are the reporter and editors?
Which readers know enough to laugh* at the punch lines? Chuck and his coterie get it, obviously. What about the NYT’s targeted SWPL audience?
This shit on the wall, that’s the periodic table.
Been telling ya’ll the truth since brother Cain slew brother Able.
The first of the letters in the boxes is a H,
Learn it fast muh niggah or I hit you in dah face!
The H is for a element, it’s hydrogen no shittin’,
The lightest of all elements, it light like a kitten.
Atomic number 1, but that don’t mean it be the best.
You callin’ it the best? well then you dissin’ on the rest.
You know you findin’ hydrogen in every glass a water,
They tight with the oxygen like yo daddy does his daughter.
So learn this my niggahs cuz it’s science and its mighty,
If you don’t know your hydrogen you never passin’ whitey.
great! That isn’t bad at all. Now explain Avogadro’s number in something less than 5 albums… + 5 points if you can do it without using the word guacamole.
This wouldn’t be so ironic if there already wasn’t a subgenre of music dedicated to hip hop versification of nerd topics, of course nearly all done by white dudes:
Miss_Fu 11/19/2012 at 4:38 pm
Emdin has good intentions
=====
He seems like a nice enough guy who has no idea that he’s intellectually very mediocre.
=====
Why is it that children of Asian descent can handle what he calls a Eurocentic approach to science?
===
I thought the same thing. When the Japanese made it a national project to absorb western knowledge from the 1870s onwards, they had to accept that it was white european knowledge and that their ancestors’ contribution to that knowledge was either inexistent or very minor. The japanese did have homegrown mathematics and geometry but it was cookbook math in the chinese, egyptian, babylonian style not formalized, proof-based ultra powerful mathematics on the greek model, so they let go of their own math traditions.
Dr Emin is almost certainly ignorant of this
Dr Emin is engaging in “car-ghetto cult” teaching of science. Those kids will remember nothing at all in a few years. Hell, they probably won’t learn anything this year.
“The Marie Curie School. She’s European as fuck.”
Nikos twitched in silent disagreement.
People of Color have made virtually every scientific discovery
Yakoub actually created white people in a test tube
the greeks stole all there ideas from the Black Egyptians
All education should be done via hip-hop. Quickest way to burn it all down.
Chuck, stop linking to The Onion. Oh wait…
Where’s the video?
Why don’t they just get the kids to memorize “We Didn’t Start the Fire”? That way, they’d have the same depth of knowledge of post-WW2 American history as this rap crap will ‘teach’ them about science.
Yo, yo! Science be dope n’ shit mu’fuckah!!!!
Video re-loaded. If it drops check out the link. It’s worth a look.
i think yo guys are just scared that black boys will start to reach their intellectual potential
if they do then wathc out!
Black Men are already superior physcially to them white boys and with the smarts in the bag they gone be cherry pickin them beckys
Emdin has good intentions and the lyricism (?) of science concepts may actually help students grasp some basic definitions, but this is just another way of solving a problem that has not been properly addressed. Why is it that children of Asian descent can handle what he calls a Eurocentic approach to science? As a black person myself, I would have found a hip hop approach to science demeaning.
I once wrote a song about chemistry, called Like a Chemist, and it was to the tune of Like a Virgin. It was fun. I think it was the only grade above a C I ever got in chemistry class.
“science classrooms were failing to engage many African-American and Latino students, who together make up 70 percent of New York City’s student body”
Very careful choice of words here. Unschooled rube that I am I might have suspected that the minority students were failing to learn the material, but now I see it’s those damn classrooms’ fault. They just need to replace the periodic table on the wall with a tacky diversity mural and no doubt it will all work out.
Here’s the good doctor’s CV:
B.S. in Physical Anthropology/ Biology/ Chemistry, Lehman College (2000)
M.S. in Natural Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2003)
Project: Extracellular Matrix and Mesenchymal Cell Signaling
PhD in Urban Education, Graduate Center of the City University of New York, (2007)
Dissertation: Exploring the contexts of Urban Science Classrooms: Cogenerative dialogues, Coteaching and Cosmopolitanism
Lehman is a bottom of the barrel CUNY school, ranked 118 in the US News Regional category; I’m sure his triple major is not as impressive as it looks. RPI is a good school, but the Natural Science MS is, in fact, a teacher education program, so I’m not sure his “project” would have required much: http://www.cipce.rpi.edu/graduate_degrees_certificates/msns.html
PhD in Urban Education explains itself.
So, I’m assuming that Dr. Edmin is probably a bright guy, definitely toward the right end of the African American bell curve, but not smart enough to do actual graduate work in physical anthropology, biology, or chemistry. Certainly not chemistry. In other words, his style over substance approach makes perfect sense. Edmin himself probably doesn’t grasp the substance all that well.
Speaking of science and stuff, you know you’re to the right of the general population’s IQ when you watch “Big Bang Theory” and the main characters’ smart talking is about on the level of what you knew about science as a sophomore in high school. You’re extra-bright (compared to the general audience of BBT) when you are impatient with the dialogue’s banality and unnecessary rhetorical complexity.
Yeah, I watched some DVDs with a friend.
A good first step would probably be some instruction in proper grammar, Principal Ingrid Thomas Clark (@thatname really?) was a garbage speaker, it was almost like someone intentionally put in the bad cut of her introduction. Also lol at that “symbolical” Chuck I think you’ve found a steady source of entertainment for me.
LOL!
I see Ebonics has “evolved”.
So what scientific nomenclature rhymes with bitch, ho and po-lice? At least we can have some confidence they can rap about evolutionary theory… maybe not , primitive rhymes with initiative, inquisitive, and prohibitive, stuff they have a bit of trouble with. What rhymes with baby-moma ? Lil help anti-racist, did ol’Yukab invent any words that will kick out a mean beat and rhyme with section eight?
GLP, have you ever considered offering full text in your RSS feed? Those of us that want full text will find workarounds to make it happen. I feel like you’re missing out on a lot of subscribers. I certainly didn’t read many of your posts until I was able to see them in my newsreader.
i think yo guys are just scared that black boys will start to reach their intellectual potential
The problem is… they already have.
Although in fairness, Big Bang Theory can be pretty funny. A joke from one of the episodes:
Three physicists go into a bar, and as usual, they order an extra drink and put it at an empty spot at their table. Finally the bar tender asks them, “why do you guys always do this?” One of them explains “well, according to quantuum mechanics, there is a non-zero probability that the air molecules over the empty chair will spontaneously arrange to form a beautiful girl who will have the drink and want to have sex with us.” So the bartender says “why don’t you just walk up to a real girl at this bar and get her a drink and have her want to have sex with you?” The physicists say “yeah, what are the odds of that happening.”
There is a diverse, vibrant, and expanding category of reports that can be filed under “Who’s in on the joke?”
Are the ostensible subjects of the story, Dr Edmin and his students and colleagues?
Are the reporter and editors?
Which readers know enough to laugh* at the punch lines? Chuck and his coterie get it, obviously. What about the NYT’s targeted SWPL audience?
* or, per Dalrymple, cry.
I would like to return my Astrophysics degree after watching that video.
This shit on the wall, that’s the periodic table.
Been telling ya’ll the truth since brother Cain slew brother Able.
The first of the letters in the boxes is a H,
Learn it fast muh niggah or I hit you in dah face!
The H is for a element, it’s hydrogen no shittin’,
The lightest of all elements, it light like a kitten.
Atomic number 1, but that don’t mean it be the best.
You callin’ it the best? well then you dissin’ on the rest.
You know you findin’ hydrogen in every glass a water,
They tight with the oxygen like yo daddy does his daughter.
So learn this my niggahs cuz it’s science and its mighty,
If you don’t know your hydrogen you never passin’ whitey.
great! That isn’t bad at all. Now explain Avogadro’s number in something less than 5 albums… + 5 points if you can do it without using the word guacamole.
This wouldn’t be so ironic if there already wasn’t a subgenre of music dedicated to hip hop versification of nerd topics, of course nearly all done by white dudes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0JxrDTJHIc
Miss_Fu 11/19/2012 at 4:38 pm
Emdin has good intentions
=====
He seems like a nice enough guy who has no idea that he’s intellectually very mediocre.
=====
Why is it that children of Asian descent can handle what he calls a Eurocentic approach to science?
===
I thought the same thing. When the Japanese made it a national project to absorb western knowledge from the 1870s onwards, they had to accept that it was white european knowledge and that their ancestors’ contribution to that knowledge was either inexistent or very minor. The japanese did have homegrown mathematics and geometry but it was cookbook math in the chinese, egyptian, babylonian style not formalized, proof-based ultra powerful mathematics on the greek model, so they let go of their own math traditions.
Dr Emin is almost certainly ignorant of this
Dr Emin is engaging in “car-ghetto cult” teaching of science. Those kids will remember nothing at all in a few years. Hell, they probably won’t learn anything this year.
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