RAP AND HIP HOP IN THE CURRICULUM

MARLEY FAIRCLOUGH
‘How can the popular culture of rap and hip-hop be used to critique Indigenous representation’?

Rap and Hip-Hop is an art that uses very carefully chosen lyrics and beats to create a song that depicts story
and meaning. It is a form of music that uses expression through lyrics and meaning to draw upon varying
views, opinions and social issues. According to Shusterman (1991, p.613) ‘Rap and Hip-Hop are the fastest
growing music genres’, which is due to the large range of topics and messages that can be articulated and
conveyed through this form of representation. Commonly Rap and Hip-hop artists cover subjects that focus on
political and social issues within society that reflects their own personal opinion. Therefore the popular culture
of Rap and Hip Hop allows people to creativity portray and express themselves and critique topics within
society through lyrics, beat and song.

Indigenous Australian culture and history have generally been expressed in the form of art, dance, and
storytelling as opposed to literature and books. Whilst Indigenous Australian Rap/Hip-Hop has only been
around for a brief period of time, it has come about from a history of dispossession and survival. For
Indigenous Australians, Rap and Hip-Hop culture serve as not only a new means for the teaching of culture and
history but also an outlet for expression concerning racism and representation of Indigenous culture. In other
words, it can be utilised as a new way of telling old stories. It can be recognised that Educational Settings have
become racialised sites, with the curriculum taught through a combination of social, historical, political and
economic forces, which represents the dominant culture and, creates a significant cultural barrier. Research
conducted by (Paul, 2000) shows students were less engaged when the teacher placed more emphasis on
subject matter and more engaged when the primary emphasis was incorporating student’s personal
knowledge and ideas into the classroom.

Thus, teaching students the ideologies of race through Rap and Hip-Hop can assist in creating a culturally
aware curriculum. It has benefits to both Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal students, helping in the
understanding, acknowledgement, and acceptance of the cultural differences within Australian society. By
celebrating and articulating Indigenous culture through the use of re-contextualised popular cultural will allow
Aboriginal students, in particular to greater express and explore their cultural heritage and identity.

A focus on the transformative development of curriculum strategies and interventions provides further focus
on critical pedagogy's ability to challenge the productive roles school play in political and cultural life. As well
as reflects upon key ideas that centre on promoting critical thinking, social inquiry, and self-confidence for
adolescent students. This concept of Rap and Hip Hop through the Curriculum promotes questioning amongst
students and provides them with the ability to exercise moral and ethical judgment, communicate ideas and
further understand their cultural underpinnings through an expressive form of learning. Engagement can be
 greatly heightened through this focus on expression as an educational tool, which will prosper opportunities
for constructive personal, interpersonal and social development and offers Indigenous students opportunities
to find a way to feel at ‘home' in body, spirit, school, family, and community. This educational process goes
beyond the effects of remedial education, in order to better provide students with the agency to make
schooling work for them, while remaining in touch with cultural values and community.

Incorporating Rap and Hip-Hop in the curriculum, as a means of acknowledging, recognising and
understanding Indigenous Identity, heritage and culture can be used as a valuable tool within educational
settings to critique Indigenous representation. It allows students to present their views and reflect on
Indigenous culture in a multimedia format of there current social practice, and this is an excellent tool that can
be used to present information to the broader community.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
 Blanch, FR, and Worby, G 2010, ‘The silences Waiting: Young Nunga Males, curriculum and rap', Curriculum
Perspective, vol.30, no.1, pp.1-3
 White, C 2009,'Rapper on a rampage': theorizing the political significance of Aboriginal Australian Hip Hop and
Reggae', Transforming Cultures e-journal, Vol 4, no.1, pp.108-130
 Blanch, Faye 2016,’ Rapping Ontologies’, Lecture notes distributed in the topic EDUC2420 Teaching Indigenous
Australian Students, Flinders University, Bedford Park, 5th September
 Paul, D.G 2000,'Rap, and Orality: critical media literacy, pedagogy and cultural synchronization', Journal of
Adolescents and Adult Literacy, 44(3), pp.246-252
 Shusterman, R 1991, ‘The fine art of rap: New Literary History, 22 (3), 613-632