GZA To Bring Hip Hop Into Science Classes

In an unusual combination, Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA teams up with Dr. Christopher Emdin of Columbia University to create a ground-breaking new scheme for teaching science in classrooms. The two, who met on Neil deGrasse Tyson’s radio show, have joined forces to include hip-hop in studies to help appeal to a variety of different people. This came off the back of a conversation over the lack of attention shown to the subject by African-American and Latino students, which make up 70% of New York’s field of pupils.

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. There’s equal turns at talking. When somebody has a great line, the whole audience makes a ‘whoo,’ which is positive reinforcement. All of those things that are happening in the hip-hop cypher are what should happen in an ideal classroom. – Dr. Christopher Emdin

Another key point about the project is the appeal of written or perfomed rhymes instead of typical test papers. GZA has revealed that his favourite lyrics will be showcased on Rap Genius to be explained to the masses. The whole concept is set get underway in the first quarter of 2013.

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Via OS.