Response to Jenkins article

In reading Classroom of Popular Culture by Jenkins I found that some of the points he makes on education and the use of video games interesting. He states that video games teach children how to learn through play. He also states that good video games give players strong identities. Some examples of this is being able to build a character from the ground up and look at the character's point of view, create their own skate park, community, and life. He further states that in this realm, students are able to be free, independent thinkers, that do not need to master something right away, but take it at their own pace. In doing so, it seems that students become independent thinkers and creative problem solvers. I have watched this in action with my own eight year old with the Webkinz frenzy. When she first brought her pet home, and went online, it seemed like a whole different world opened up to her. In this world, you are given a house for your pet, you are able to buy clothes, food, treats for your pet, as well as chat with other Webkinz users. My daughter has definitely built an identity for herself in this world and has taught her responsibility such as caring for this pet.

When we look at education, these same qualities are the things that we as educators want our students to walk away with after a lesson. In many aspects, Jenkins has it right. People do
seem to find more challenging learning experiences in popular culture than in the classroom. With that said, how can we move to a classroom that views popular culture as a tool rather than
the enemy? How can we persuade administration and parents that including popular culture will
give the end result that we want which is creative, independent thinkers? In my opinion, this
may still be a hard sell for many administrators, teachers, and parents. Many times, if lessons
seem to fun, it must not be educational. First off, we must break this stereotype. Secondly, finding resources for classrooms. How would we find the resources to bring these types of media into the classroom? With some districts, this might be nearly impossible. How do we then bridge this gap? Moreover, can we still teach higher order thinking skills, characterization, identity without the implementation of video games? Can we still create independent and creative thinkers without the implementation of video games? I think the answer is still yes. Do we need to incorporate some aspects of popular culture into our lessons? I think yes, but it needs to be what the teacher feels comfortable with. I am not a gamer by any means, and am frankly a little scared of that world. I am a parent who limits screen time at home with my eight year old daughter. With that said, I am not so close-minded that I wouldn’t like to explore other ways to motivate students either.

I believe that popular culture is a huge part of our lives, especially in the teenage years. Many people can remember certain songs, and movies, or fashion, and it will bring up strong feelings of nostalgia or an event in your life from the past both good and bad. I get that, I think we all do. I guess my point is that if the use of popular culture in the classroom helps students better grasp a concept, understand how to write, become creative and independent thinkers, helps students succeed, then it definitely should be there.