Category Archives: Uncategorized

Pump It Up: Voter Outreach by Black Fraternities and Sororities Can Help to Elect Kamala Harris President

Black fraternities and sororities, commonly known as the Devine Nine, have taken an active interest in the 2024 presidential election. The Devine Nine has a long history of political and social activism, so their involvement in the 2024 election is part of that history.  The Divine Nine refers to the nine historically Black Greek-letter organizationsContinue reading “Pump It Up: Voter Outreach by Black Fraternities and Sororities Can Help to Elect Kamala Harris President”

Can You Teach Math Using Rap Music?

Malaika Costello-Dougherty is a writer for Edutopia.  In this informative 2009 article, she describes how Daniel Joseph Duey and Alex Kajitani use hip-hop beats to teach math to their middle school students. Then see what you think of two YouTube videos: One is a 2011 video on Math Rap by Mathodman, and the other is Mr. A’s 2017 Math Rap. Duey is a professionalContinue reading “Can You Teach Math Using Rap Music?”

Hip-Hop in the Classroom?

Harnessing the Power of Hip-Hop in Education: An Exploration Imagine driving down the street when suddenly a car pulls up alongside, blaring a hip-hop track filled with potent lyrics, pulsating beats, and raw energy. The music reverberates through your body, making you acutely aware of its presence. Then, just as quickly as it arrived, theContinue reading “Hip-Hop in the Classroom?”

What Is Critical Thinking—and Why Does It Matter?

by Larry Alexander  |  Tutor With Larry  |  tutorwithlarry.com When I first began teaching English at Prairie State College, I noticed something that surprised me. My students could read. Many of them could write a decent sentence. But when I asked them to evaluate what they had just read—to question it, to weigh it, toContinue reading “What Is Critical Thinking—and Why Does It Matter?”

How Closed Sessions Is Shaping a New Hip-Hop Renaissance

by Larry Alexander  |  tutorwithlarry.com  |  Updated 2025 Hip-hop is supposed to uplift and create, to educate people on a larger level and to make a change.  — Doug E. Fresh Hip-hop don’t have no fresh energy, none at all. It’s money driven, everybody tryin’ to make that check, nobody putting art in their albumsContinue reading “How Closed Sessions Is Shaping a New Hip-Hop Renaissance”

Things Forgotten and Things Remembered

by Larry Alexander | Tutor With Larry | tutorwithlarry.com It’s funny how memories long forgotten suddenly jump back into your conscious mind. For example, one of my early recollections was growing up on the South Side of Chicago in the 1950s and playing Superman in the back yard with my brother, Jack. As I likeContinue reading “Things Forgotten and Things Remembered”

The Study of Hip-Hop Music Can Promote Critical Thinking

by Larry Alexander November 13, 2024 Introduction This proposal aims to introduce educators to a dynamic and engaging way of teaching self-reflection, critical thinking, and personal development through the lens of hip-hop music, specifically my song “The Self-Knowledge Symphony.” The song conveys the transformative power of hip-hop as a tool for unlocking self-knowledge, which isContinue reading “The Study of Hip-Hop Music Can Promote Critical Thinking”

How Hip-Hop Can Help Teens Understand Themselves Better

by Larry Alexander  |  Tutor With Larry  |  tutorwithlarry.com I recently came across this great little video on YouTube from 2016 called “Finding Yourself Through Hip-Hop.” The video is a reminder of how hip-hop can be used in the classroom to help students write and record different emotional experiences, help them to articulate and analyzeContinue reading “How Hip-Hop Can Help Teens Understand Themselves Better”