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Recent Student Research and Theses:
Maureen Dattilo's Thesis Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THESIS
VISUALIZING LITERACIES: THE POSSIBILITIES OF HIP HOP CULTURE AS COMMUNITY LITERACY
Arguably, more than any other musical genre, Hip Hop has been, and continues to be, instrumental in creating a counter culture of today's youth. Carried from New York City to urban communities across America, Hip Hop now reaches into the suburbs and internationally into clubs and homes world-wide where youth are demanding "I am Hip Hop." This power speaks worlds about the impact that Hip Hop has on young people and invites literacy scholarship to study the impacts it has on literacy and learning. When we look at the often political and social messages that are carried through the music and fans, Hip Hop serves as a medium that many youth employ to understand their worlds and develop their identity. Hip Hop culture, however, is more than just rap music; it comprises whole identity structures that include dress, dance, art, and language, only a few of its many features as a unique discourse. As educators and socially aware beings, we must understand Hip Hop culture as it contributes to the literacy practices of urban youth. This thesis draws on theories of critical pedagogy and New Literacy Studies to examine the ways that Hip Hop culture contributes to a wider definition of literacy through the study of two Denver-based community literacy groups.
Maureen Dattilo
English Department
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80523
Summer 2005
Recent Student Research and Theses: Main Page