Community Colleges and the Future of the Humanities

This workshop examines how 'slow looking' exercises, both in and outside the classroom, utilize site-specific learning environments to appeal to a wide range of learners and thinkers of different backgrounds and capabilities. Drawing upon recent publications such as Maggie Berg and Barbara K. Seeber's 'The Slow Professor,' as well as the popular slow-food movement which addresses the ethics of food production, the 'Slow Looking' exercise I have developed for my classroom asks students to find a piece of art in an original setting, turn off their phones, and examine it carefully. The exercise is not about the content of the art per se, but about the students' encounter with art and their own mental processes as they engage with it. As such, 'slow looking' assignments such as these can be an effective way to tap into students' innate interests and backgrounds while demanding little from them in terms of prior knowledge or educational history. Activities like this one, which demand deep engagement and concentrate on process and tempo rather than material and rote thinking, help students take ownership over their fields of study, and branch into discussions about empathy, difference, our reliance on technology, and vulnerable encounters with the unfamiliar.
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Hip Hop is a form of music that is not only favored by many students, especially students of color, at the community college level, but one that they relate to and identify with. Because many of them are well-informed in this genre, it is a topic of great interest in class. Students in community college English/literature courses are amazed when they are shown strong connections between Hip Hop and literature. Thus, in this presentation, participants will see how the study of Hip Hop lyrics and artists can supplement and inform other literary genres including Shakespearean plays, and literature including British, American, Contemporary, and Comparative. This presentation will include examples of sample assignments, in-class activities, and projects that have successfully lured students into the study of literature. The goal of this presentation is to show all faculty that students, especially those at the Basic Skills levels, find value, importance, and confidence in the study of literature when coupled with Hip Hop. Also, the goal is to show faculty that their students can gain more than just an education in literature, but also in History, Psychology, Sociology, and even Mathematics with Hip Hop integrated into their curriculum.