Hip Hop Education Retreat

The weekend of November 15th, 2024 marked a pivotal moment for the integration of Hip Hop into K-12 education, as a diverse group of approximately 30 educators, Hip Hop practitioners, activists, foundation leaders, and Hip Hop enthusiasts gathered to engage in a critical discussion about the creation of Hip Hop Guidelines for music teachers in K-12 schools. The Hip Hop Education Retreat was in session!

The primary group behind this initiative is the Hip Hop Roundtable, a collective of six experts and advocates in both education and Hip Hop culture. They have been collaborating closely with the Hip-Hop Education Center, and Music Will, an organization dedicated to the advancement of music education, to craft practical guidelines that would empower K-12 teachers to incorporate Hip Hop into their teaching practices, and the retreat was made possible with support from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and Sweetwater.

This retreat comes as a response and potential solution for ensemble directors grappling with the “emerging ensembles” place in k-12 education, recognizing that Hip Hop and popular musicians possess a wealth of knowledge and resources accessible to the public. The Hip Hop Roundtable encourages all directors to engage in dialogue around “How do I as a director, incorporate popular music, and more specifically, allow Hip-Hop to be incorporated in my school’s curriculum?” Directors should consider that there are many people that are currently engaging with Hip Hop curriculum and production in schools, and they can be resources available in the field, ready and willing to help expand one’s knowledge in these areas. This retreat was an attempt to bring those experts together.

The retreat kicked off with a reunion of sorts, where many of the participants had a chance to reconnect, renew relationships, and share the progress of their work. Those in the room have been involved with Hip Hop in education for years, working to establish the idea that Hip Hop can be a transformative and valuable tool for educators.

For many, this was more than just a professional gathering; it was a meeting of like-minded individuals who had been fighting to elevate Hip Hop as a legitimate and crucial part of educational discourse. Led by Martha Diaz, a veteran in Hip Hop education and advocacy, and Founding Director of the Hip-Hop Education Center, the weekend brought together a wealth of experience and knowledge.

The task at hand was not an easy one: breaking down Hip Hop culture into parts that could be both accessible and relevant for K-12 teachers, some of whom may not have a deep connection to or understanding of the culture. Hip Hop, with its complexity and multifaceted nature, presents a unique challenge when it comes to its integration into formal education spaces. Each member of the retreat comes from different backgrounds, but they all shared a commitment to honoring the authenticity of the culture while making it approachable for educators. There were intense discussions, passionate debates, and a sense of collective purpose as everyone worked together to find ways of distilling the essence of Hip Hop into frameworks that educators could use to foster deeper engagement with students.

A key turning point during these conversations was the recognition of the difference between creating educational guidelines and developing curriculum. The idea of creating broad, adaptable frameworks for teaching Hip Hop is an important first step that allows for greater freedom and creativity within classrooms, making it possible for educators to integrate Hip Hop’s core principles—such as self-expression, social consciousness, and creativity—into their teaching. Teachers could then take the guidelines and tailor them to fit their unique classroom environments and student populations.

As the weekend progressed, new ideas emerged on how to present these guidelines in a way that would be both easy for teachers to understand and effective for them to implement in their classrooms. The group focused on the practical side of things: how to make Hip Hop accessible to teachers who might be hesitant or unfamiliar with the culture. One main takeaway was to create resources that explained the foundational elements of Hip Hop—its history, its core values, and the way it operates as a cultural movement—while also providing a few exemplars that educators could directly apply in their classrooms. It was suggested that later, members of the retreat and other colleagues could offer professional development workshops and training sessions for teachers, where they could receive hands-on experience with using Hip Hop in a teaching context.

Despite the challenges faced during these discussions, the overall outcome of the weekend was overwhelmingly positive. The group left with a renewed sense of energy, realizing that the work they had begun was just the first step in a much larger journey. There was a clear understanding that creating these guidelines was only the beginning, and that much more work would be required to ensure that Hip Hop could be meaningfully integrated into K-12 education systems nationwide. Nevertheless, the participants left the gathering feeling optimistic and driven, knowing that their efforts were laying the foundation for a future where Hip Hop would be recognized as an essential educational tool for young people.

The creation of the Hip Hop Guidelines for K-12 educators is a process that is actively unfolding, and it will soon become a tangible resource for teachers across the country.

These guidelines will not only offer teachers a roadmap for integrating Hip Hop into their classrooms, but they will also help to bridge the gap between cultural understanding and educational practice. This initiative is set to make a lasting impact on the way that Hip Hop is perceived within academic spaces, showing educators how to bring the culture to life in a positive, constructive, and engaging manner for students. In the near future, teachers will have the tools and support they need to create meaningful learning experiences that connect Hip Hop culture to the lives of young people, fostering creativity, expression, and critical thinking skills in the classroom.

The work also must challenge and dismantle any forms of racial, gender, and educational stereotypes that persist within our educational spaces. The attendees were a diverse range of participants that included active producers, collegiate professors, songwriters, emcees, educators, change makers, curriculum developers, and grant seekers. There was a shared excitement in the room to make changes in music education to include popular music and technology: hoping to create not only racially diverse programs, but to also expand music programs genre and musical literacies inclusivity. So, whatever institution or musical background any of the participants derived from, the common goal is to assist music educators in curriculum and program development to include Hip Hop and technology in the field.

As the work continues, the anticipation is palpable. The vision of seeing Hip Hop Guidelines implemented in schools will soon become a reality, but the conversations sparked during this weekend gathering will continue to resonate throughout the educational landscape. The broader hope is that this effort will not only enrich music education but also have a transformative effect on how Hip Hop is viewed as an academic discipline and cultural force. With these guidelines, educators will be better equipped to harness the power of Hip Hop, empowering a new generation of students to engage with music, culture, and education in dynamic and innovative ways.

Dr. Jason Rawls is an Assistant Professor of Hip Hop at The Ohio State University. Dr. Carla Becker is an Associate Professor of Music Education at Delaware State University

MusicWill.org