Teaching with TV. Last August 11, the second episode of the fourth season of “Jersey Shore” and a GOP debate were aired at exactly the same time.
Drama between Michele Bachmann and Mitt Romney proved less compelling to the U.S. than that between Snooki and Pauly D; “Jersey Shore” received almost 2.5 million more viewers. It was the 35th episode of “Jersey Shore” and only the third Republican debate. “Jersey Shore” has been critiqued on moral, aesthetic, social and spiritual registers. It’s even been denounced for glorifying tanning. While critical analyses of the show are worthwhile, however, there is also a sociological perspective that doesn’t question the reality show’s meaning for viewers. "A Talk to Teachers" James Baldwin, 1963. Critical & Creative Education. Educational Videos for Teaching Media Literacy and Media Studies, featuring Sut Jhally, Jean Kilbourne, Jackson Katz & more. BIGIDEAS Stephen Pinker. Engaging Sociologically with Students’ Facebook Usage » Sociology Lens. By Andrea Mueller, Nov 3, 2011, at 12:17 pm It’s the middle of class.
Looking out into the classroom, a dim light reflects on students’ faces as they stare or type into the devices in front of them. Walking up and down the aisles, blue-tinted Facebook pages on the students’ screens are usually the source of the reflected light. While such students might seem withdrawn from the class, this familiar scene holds a potential goldmine of sociological exploration and examples.