An Analysis of Youth Talk About the American High School Film and School Culture

• In Event: Roundtable Session 47
  In Roundtable Session: Using Popular Culture to Explore the Sociocultural Aspects of Learning

Abstract

I conducted qualitative interviews and focus groups with fourth and fifth grade girls using the film High School Musical. Discussions focused on the portrayals of school culture in American high school films as well as participants’ own experiences and expectations of high school. This paper discusses themes found in participants’ talk about “smart” and “popular” students.

While often participants questioned the portrayals of “mean” popular girls and downtrodden smart girls, many found similarities between these portrayals and their own experiences in schools. These findings shed light on the ways that students understand representations of schools in the popular media and provide insight into the ways that youth understand their experiences in schools now and their expectations for the future.

Author

• Jennifer Dorsey, Harvard University