Adolescent subculture is a subculture of
youths with distinct styles, behavior and interests where it largely depends on
the social class and ethnic background of its members. Due to this, it can
raise issues within the classroom environment, impacting the educational
outcomes of the students.
In a schooling environment, there is an
endless list of adolescent subcultures. Here is example,
Through this scene from the movie Mean
Girls, you can see the diverse adolescent sub-cultures found at a schooling
environment. It is endless, and it varies from school to school. Additionally,
by providing a scene from a movie, it shows the important role of popular
culture to education as it can influence and define what it means to be a
“jock”, a “nerd”, or an “emo”.
By identifying with a subculture,
students are establishing stereotypes in the classroom. This can also be seen
in the news article “Inside the clash of
teen subcultures” on SMH. There are negative stereotypes associated
with ‘emos’, where they are ‘people who
cut their wrists and are all sad and depressed’. This
view is promoted from popular culture. As a result, students who are deemed as ‘emo’ might be
viewed as less qualified to hold certain academic positions in school. I
believe that schools should have a mindset that all students are equally
important, and provide equal opportunities for all students. Schools should not judge students by the
typical stereotypes, including the images and expectations of the students due
to the subculture the student identifies with.
According to Lisa Anne (2002) “Another way to confront the issue of youth
sub-cultures might be to study and understand how they interact with one
another and with the dominant society.” When teachers are in the classroom,
they should take in account that the effects of being a part of a subculture
can result in positive and negative outcomes. For example, nerds are deemed
more anti-social, and if this is so, this can impact and limited their career
opportunities, as most professions require leadership and social skills.
Teachers should highlight the importance of communication skills by promoting
group work so the different adolescent groups can help one another, and learn
from each other. This will also decrease the barriers between the different
subcultures, as they are helping one another.
However, subcultures in the schooling
environment can provide positive impacts as it creates a sense of belonging
among students, promoting an environment of group work. It can have the effect
of encouraging healthy competition among peers in order to achieve better
performance level. It will allow adolescents to gain confidence, to participate
in a group activity, or develop new skills with a group of their friends.
Therefore, there are advantages and
disadvantages with students identifying themselves into subcultures in the
schooling environment. I believe as teachers, we should examine these factors
to ensure that these assumptions of stereotypes do no occur, to provide an
equal learning environment.
References:
Deschamps,
Lisa Anne (2002) The effects of popular culture on youth sub-culture
and how it plays a role in the school environment. Masters thesis,
Concordia University.
SMH (2008) Inside the clash of the teen subcultures <http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/scene-kids-are-like-so-not-wannabe-emos/2008/03/29/1206207488553.html>
Accessed on
15/10/13.
Mean Girls (2004) Mean Girls Cafeteria Tribes <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZ_qXmxdgGM> Accessed on 15/10/13.
No comments:
Post a Comment