This research critically examines the role of pedagogical leadership as it is distributed amongst middle leaders. It seeks to better understand the playful utility of a popular culture metaphor as a frame for understanding empirical data about pedagogical leadership in two Australian schools during a period of imposed curriculum change. Utilising…

Integrating popular music as part of the public school music curriculum has been a topic of debate among many educators and researchers. Songs from the Disney Corporation, specifically from movies, television shows, and performers specifically marketed by Disney, are particularly significant due to their widespread popularity. In this article, the…

In this article, I offer four principles relevant to hip-hop cultures (keep it real, flip the script, make some noise, and stay fresh) and explore how these principles might affect music classrooms. I argue that a music classroom that works to keep it real, flip the script, make some noise, and stay fresh might go beyond teaching hip-hop skills…

This review begins from a premise of Disney as a cultural curriculum. After a brief history of Disney studies, tracing the cultural analysis of Disney through the twentieth century, and drawing upon several recent literature reviews of Disney scholarship, the authors survey some of the most notable work produced in the last 10 years. They describe…

In this article, I aim to critically analyze theories contained within Dr. Christopher Emdin's newest book "For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood (and the Rest of Ya'll Too!)" in the context of the music classroom. To begin, I summarize Christopher Emdin's theories of both "reality" and "pentecostal" pedagogy and then…

In this essay I suggest some ways in which science teacher educators in Western neoliberal economies might facilitate learners' development of a critical literacy concerning the social and cultural changes signified by the concept of "biopolitics." I consider how such a biopolitically inflected critical literacy might find expression in…

Since the early nineteenth century, western governments have expected history education to play a vital role in the formation of a national identity and the pursuit of national cohesion, by fostering shared knowledge and a shared (master)narrative of the national past. This article reports on a qualitative study that examines which narratives…

In this article we use "The Matrix" movie as a heuristic device that offers two possibilities for conceptualizing teacher education: as a mirror (looking at ourselves) and as a window (looking at teacher education). We begin by sharing our interests and reason for using self-study while examining the components of "The Matrix,"…

Following Hyland's model of metadiscourse, evidential is defined as an expression that references information from other texts. Evidence in traditional academic writing may include peer-reviewed articles, published books and personal communication with field experts. With a sharp increase in the use of online teaching and learning environments by…

Purpose: Naming practices reflect culture, language and identity considerations. This study aims to explore Chinese American naming choices, revealing nuanced and complex linguistic, cultural and pragmatic considerations for teachers of literacy. Design/methodology/approach: The authors interviewed Chinese parents who are now living with their…

The blending of entertainment and education is often used as a mechanism for communicating science to the general public. Key to dissemination of scientific information is cognitive engagement of the audience with the content. The authors describe a study investigating the relationship between entertaining videos and cognitive engagement of the…

Picturebook discussions are commonplace literacy events in contemporary classrooms. The different experiences, backgrounds and ways of being that individual students draw upon during talk around texts prompt a broad range of ways to make, negotiate and share meanings. In addition to developing students' literacy skills such as oral language,…

In the United States dance competition culture and commercial dance are both highly visible. Although connections between the two distinct dance worlds are implicitly present, they remain largely unexamined. To begin a conversation about how commercial dance and dance competition culture relate and their influence on dance education, this article…

A lesson plan on the phylum Tardigrada is presented in a storytelling workbook that introduces the evolutionary concepts of adaptive radiation, speciation, divergence, and "tree-thinking" through narrative, transitional art, contemplative coloring, and data searches, which can be enhanced with microscopy wet labs. Students gain insight…

Mass media's educative function has had a considerable influence in Kenya since the colonial period. The impact of mass media in shaping the contemporary worldviews--how people see and live in the world--has led to the transformation in the society. The influence of mass media especially in reinforcing commodification and economic rationalism…