So last night my son is doing homework and I see the earbuds in, so I ask what he's working on. Apparently there's a Social Studies assignment where he has to watch "educational" YouTube videos from some Weird Al wannabe. There was a cover of a Maroon 5 song. Whatever. I think (know) they suck, but it's innocent enough.
But the next one really set me off. It was a parody of "Crack That" by Soulja Boy. I totally remember that song from frat parties in college. The lyrics are typical rap crap - countless references to hoes, imaginative sexual positions to apply to said hoes, and of course ejaculation... because why not, right?
Though the lyrics for the parody were changed to something regarding ancient civilizations, the video starts off with a credit to the original song and artist. Now these 7th graders know precisely how to search for the real song and find the lyrics if they liked the tune.
I feel like I should email the teacher and express my dissatisfaction over the assignment.
1) I think it's lazy to assign YT videos for topics that can be learned w/o YT. Some YT videos are fantastic because they explore things never done before (Mark Rober, Smarter Every Day...etc.), but this was not that. The "lessons" were shoehorned into an existing rhyme scheme with D+ editing to boot.
2) I also think it's F'ing stupid that students are subjected to YT ads before they can view any content. IMHO, that should disqualify it as the preferred avenue to teach a topic purely from an ethical standpoint. My old textbooks didn't have banner ads at tops and bottoms of the pages (see pic below).
3) But I'm mostly really unhappy with the fact that "Crack That" is being used in an assignment and I would've never had known if I didn't check in on him. I don't allow my son on social media or to consume content anywhere close to the original song/artist.
So the poll now is open. I think I want to write the teacher, but in doing so am I being a total Karen? I get teachers have been stressed greatly over the last 2 years and there's probably complaints coming in all the time about their little Jimmy or Susie's issues, but this is the first time I've really felt the need to express dissatisfaction. Many of you are parents, other still may be able to relate. What's your $0.02?