In Defense of Rap

An 8^th Grade Communication Arts WebQuest

Rebecca West, Lesa Minnick, David Valley, and Jan von Harz

Introduction Task Procedure Evaluation Student Resources Conclusion

Are you sick and tired of your parents getting on you about the music you listen too?! How many times have you heard that rap is not music? It seems with everything going on, the last thing you want, is your parent dissing you about your music choice. What if I told you that we could stop the auditory violence and provide concrete evidence that Rap is a popular art form that deserves respect?

First, this is not the secret of life, in order for your argument to be believable, you, my friend must do the footwork. The first thing that we need to know is, What exactly is the definition of popular art? According to Online Britannia:

“Any dance, literature, music, theatre, or other art form intended to be received and appreciated by ordinary people in a literate, technologically advanced society dominated by urban culture. Popular art in the 20th century is usually dependent on such technologies of reproduction or distribution as television, printing, photography, digital compact disc and tape recording, motion pictures, radio, and videocassettes. By the late 20th century, television (q.v.) had unquestionably become the dominant vehicle for popular art and entertainment. Motion pictures are also an important medium of popular art but, in contrast to television, can more often attain the enduring significance and appeal of works belonging to the fine or elite arts.

Popular art in general tends to be narrative, to reinforce uncontroversial beliefs and sentiments, to support popular institutions, and to create identity in a social group. It is distinguished by the rapidity of its changes of style, by its revivals from earlier periods, and by its constant borrowings from elite art, folk art, foreign cultures, and modern technology for its song tunes and lyrics, radio and television broadcasts, novels, dances, and many other entertainments, objects, trends, and fads.” http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9060858

NO, WE ARE NOT DONE, COME BACK HERE!!!!!!!

One fact does not an argument make. You and I now know that rhythm, harmony and melody make music and that rap music contains these elements. Do you know what else encompasses these elements? Poetry. Oh, quit rolling your eyes, it is true. Do you want to know something else? A lot of poets throughout history were thought to be as rebellious as today’s rap artists.

If you really believe that rap deserves respect as a form of art, see what task we have for you to finish so that you can quiet rap critics.

So…..Will the REAL Slim Shady please stand up?

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Task

Hip Hop has many critics. Your job is to defend Hip Hop as a legitimate art form. You will base this defense on the following:

Hip Hop as a cultural movement

Hip Hop as an art form

After researching various cultural movements and analyzing Rap for poetic devices, you can either:

Ø write a narrative Rap for your parents defending Rap as a legitimate art form

Ø create an iMovie that documents the cultural impact and provides support that Rap is a legitimate art form, or

Ø design a PowerPoint presentation to support your understanding of the cultural and artistic qualities inherit in the genre.

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Procedure

To begin your task:

1. You will be divided into groups of three.

2. Each team member will choose one of the following roles:

The Developer: will be responsible for developing support that Rap is a cultural movement, and therefore, deserves respect for it’s contribution to the advancing a new cultural phenomena. Specific points in the support should address these questions. Write a one page summary that answers the question below and share to your finding to the team (see resources for a link on how to write a summary and links to obtain information on culture)

· What is a cultural?

· What is a cultural movement?

· What are examples of other cultural movements?

· What other cultural movements that show similarities to the rise in popularity of Hip Hop

The Art Critic: will be responsible for developing support that Rap is an art form highlighting its poetic contributions by completing and sharing the Elements of Poetry Chart with the rest of the group. Write a one page summary of how Rap present elements of poetry based on you understanding of the elements of poetry, and share your findings to the team (see resources for Elements of Poetry Chart and summary writing).

The Investigator: will be responsible for investigating the three major eras of Rap and develop a timeline to helps support your defense. Using Timeliner software to illustrate the eras and provides a one page summary of how this history has influenced society and the world, and share your finding with the team (See resources for information on how to write a summary).

After you have done the research, you will:

As a group:

1. Choose a narrative poem and a Rap song’s lyrics ( see resources for examples of both poems and lyrics) create a T-Chart showing how they share elements of poetry.

2. Print out the TP-CASTT Poetry Analysis Model and chart to analyze both the poem and the lyrics, http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/things/PDF/TP-CASTT.pdf Make sure you use one TP-CASTT chart for the poem and one for the lyrics.

3. Write an essay using the information from the TP-CASTT poetry analysis model. Remember to include in your analysis answers that relate to these questions:

Ø What was the message of the song?

Ø How was this message conveyed?

Ø To whom was the message directed?

Ø What words were used to convey the message?

Ø What does the message say about the everyday lifestyle of people?

Ø How were the messages similar or different?

Ø What elements of poetry were used?

Ø How did the elements of poetry enhance the works?

4. Use the narrative poem you analyzed and put it to a beat to present in class as a Rap.

5. In your group, choose one of the projects below to present to your parents (audience) as your defense of Rap (purpose). Check out the process guide for specific ways to make your defense strong. http://webquest.sdsu.edu/processguides/persuasive.html

· Create a narrative rap that highlights all your support and provides at least four elements of poetry and music (see resources for scoring guide).

· Create a PowerPoint presentation of the cultural and historical aspects of Rap and shows a comparison between a narrative poem and a Rap lyric you found in your group analysis. Use the storyboard before creating the slides (see resources for scoring guide).

· Design an iMovie documentary on the History of Hip Hop highlighting it as a cultural phenomenon, and a unique combination of poetry and music. You must create a story- board before you begin filming (see resources for storyboard and instruction for working with iMovies, and scoring guide).

Remember when developing your defense, make sure you anticipate the opposition’s (your parent’s) negative understanding of the genre, and be prepared to show how the positive aspects outweigh the negative.

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Evaluation

Essay Scoring Guide

Trait	Advanced	Proficient	Nearing Proficient	Basic
Content	Writing is exceptionally clear, focused and interesting. Holds the reader’s attention throughout. Main ideas stand out, are developed by strong support and rich details suitable to audience and purpose.	Writing is clear and focused. Reader can easily understand the main idea. Support is present, although it may be limited or rather general.	Main ideas and purpose are somewhat unclear or development is attempted but minimal.	Writing lacks a central idea or purpose.
Organization	Organization enhances the central idea(s) and its development. Order and structure are compelling and move the reader through the text easily. Strong, inviting beginning, strong, satisfying sense of resolution or closure.	Organization is clear and coherent. Order and structure are present, but may seem formulaic (i.e. five paragraph essay). Clear sequencing and paragraph breaks. Developed beginning and conclusion.	Writing lacks a clear organizational structure. Writing is difficult to follow, or the piece is simply too short to demonstrate organizational skills	Writing lacks coherence; organization seems haphazard and disjointed. Even after rereading, the reader remains confused.
Voice	Voice appropriate for topic, purpose and audience. Deeply committed to the topic, and an exceptional sense of “writing to be read.” Writing is expressive, engaging, or sincere.	A voice is present. A commitment to the topic, a sense of “writing to be read.” In places, the writing is expressive, engaging, or sincere. There is a suitable level of closeness to or distance from the audience.	Little sense of involvement or commitment. There is no evidence that the writer has chosen a suitable voice. The writing tends to be flat, lifeless, stiff, or mechanical. The voice is likely to be overly informal and personal.	Writing seems to lack a sense of involvement or commitment. No engagement of writer; the writing is flat and lifeless. No hint of the writer behind the words.
Word Choice	Words convey the intended message in an exceptionally interesting, precise, and natural way appropriate to audience and purpose. Rich, broad range of words, which have been carefully and thoughtfully chosen.	Words effectively convey the intended message. The writer employs a variety of words that are functional and appropriate to audience and purpose. Functional expression, with words that work but may not energize the writing.	Language is monotonous and/or misused, detracting from the meaning and impact.	Extremely limited vocabulary or is so filled with misuses of words that the meaning is obscured. Only a general kind of message is communicated because of vague or imprecise language.
Sentence Fluency	The writing has an effective flow and rhythm. Sentences show a high degree of craftsmanship, with consistently strong and varied structure that makes expressive oral reading easy and enjoyable.	The writing flows; however, connections between phrases or sentences may be less than fluid. Sentence patterns are somewhat varied, contributing to ease in oral reading.	Writing tends to be either choppy or rambling. Awkward constructions often force the reader to slow down or reread.	Writing difficult to follow or to read aloud. Sentences tend to be incomplete, rambling, or very awkward.
Conventions	Exceptionally strong control of standard writing conventions. They are effectively used to enhance communication. Few or no errors; the reader can easily skim over them unless specifically searching for them. Little or no need for editing.	The writing demonstrates control of standard writing conventions. Significant errors do not occur frequently. Minor errors are noticeable but do not impede readability. Moderate need for editing.	Little control of standard writing conventions. Frequent errors impede readability. Substantial need for editing.	Numerous errors in conventions repeatedly distract the reader and make the text difficult to read. Reader finds it difficult to focus on message and must reread for meaning. Need for extensive editing.

PowerPoint Scoring Guide

Activity	Advanced	Proficient	Nearing Proficiency	Basic
Research	Research indicates you accurately researched a variety of information sources, recorded and interpreted significant facts, meaningful graphics, accurate sounds and evaluated alternative points of view.	Research show you recorded relevant information from multiple sources of information, evaluated and synthesized relevant information.	Research show you misinterpreted statements, graphics and questions and failed to identify relevant arguments.	Research show you recorded information from four or less resources, did not find graphics or sounds, and ignored alternative points of view..
Preproduction Plan - Storyboard	The storyboard illustrates the slide presentation structure with thumbnail sketches of each slide including: title of slide, text, background color, placement & size of graphic, fonts - color, size, type for text and headings, hyperlinks (list URLs of any site linked from the slide), narration text, and audio files (if any). All slides are numbered, and there is a logical sequence to the presentation.	The thumbnail sketches on the storyboard include titles and text for each slide and are in sequential order.	The thumbnail sketches on the storyboard are not in a logical sequence and have incomplete information.	There a very few thumbnail sketches on the storyboard and do not provide an overview of the presentation.
Introduction	The introduction presents the overall topic and draws the audience into the presentation with compelling questions or by relating to the audience's interests or goals.	The introduction is clear and coherent and relates to the topic.	The content is vague in conveying a point of view and does not create a strong sense of purpose.	The introduction does not orient the audience to what will follow. The sequencing is unclear and does not appear interesting or relevant to the audience.
Content	The content is written clearly and concisely with a logical progression of ideas and supporting information. The project includes motivating questions and advanced organizers. The project gives the audience a clear sense of the project’s main idea. Information is accurate, current and comes mainly from primary sources.	The content is written with a logical progression of ideas and supporting information. Includes persuasive information from reliable sources	The content is vague in conveying a point of view and does not create a strong sense of purpose. Includes some persuasive information with few facts. Some of the information may not seem to fit. Sources used appear unreliable.	The content lacks a clear point of view and logical sequence of information. Includes little persuasive information and only one or two facts about the topic. Information is incomplete, out of date and/or incorrect. Sequencing of ideas is unclear.
Layout	The layout is visually pleasing and contributes to the overall message with appropriate use of headings, subheadings and white space.	The layout uses horizontal and vertical white space appropriately.	The layout shows some structure, but appears cluttered and busy or distracting with large gaps of white space or uses a distracting background.	The layout is cluttered, confusing, and does not use spacing, headings and subheadings to enhance the readability
Text Elements	The fonts are easy-to-read and point size varies appropriately for headings and text. Use of italics, bold, and indentations enhances readability. Text is appropriate in length for the target audience and to the point. The background and colors enhance the readability of text.	Sometimes the fonts are easy-to-read, but in a few places, the use of fonts, italics, bold, long paragraphs, color or busy background detracts and does not enhance readability.	Overall readability is difficult with lengthy paragraphs, too many different fonts, dark or busy background, overuse of bold or lack of appropriate indentations of text.	The text is extremely difficult to read with long blocks of text and small point size of fonts, inappropriate contrasting colors, poor use of headings, subheadings, indentations, or bold formatting.
Graphics, Sound and/or Animation	The graphics, sound and/or animation assist in presenting an overall theme and enhance understanding of concept, ideas and relationships. Original images are created using proper size and resolution, and all images enhance the content. There is a consistent visual theme.	The graphics, sound/and or animation visually depict material and assist the audience in understanding the flow of information or content. Original images are used. Images are proper size, resolution.	Some of the graphics, sounds, and/or animations seem unrelated to the topic/theme and do not enhance the overall concepts. Most images are clipart or recycled from the WWW. Images are too large/small in size. Images are poorly cropped or the color/resolution is fuzzy	The graphics, sounds, and/or animations are unrelated to the content. Graphics do not enhance understanding of the content, or are distracting decorations that create a busy feeling and detract from the content.
Writing Mechanics	The text is written with no errors in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.	The text is clearly written with little or no editing required for grammar, punctuation, and spelling.	Spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors distract or impair readability. (3 or more errors)	Errors in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, usage and grammar repeatedly distract the reader and major editing and revision is required. (more than 5 errors)