Science Genius Program Uses Hip-Hop to Teach Science to Teens

From the New York Times:

School was out for the week, but the lessons were just starting. Jahleel Cephus, 17, a sophomore from Validus Preparatory Academy in the Bronx, swayed to a hip-hop beat and dropped science: “Bioclast, foliation, and that granite,” he rhymed. “I can tell you something ‘bout an aphanitic.” On a screen behind him, the last word linked to a note explaining that it meant a volcanic rock. Students whooped in appreciation.

Jahleel was one of about 300 students from nine New York public high schools who participated this semester in an experimental pilot program called Science Genius, which used hip-hop to teach science to urban teenagers. On Friday night, the best students from each school met at Teachers College, Columbia University, in a final battle for citywide supremacy.

Read the full article here.