Ratchetdemic

<b>&#147;<i>Ratchetdemic</i> will inspire a new generation to be their authentic selves both within and beyond the classroom.&#148;&#151;GZA of the Wu-Tang Clan<br><br>A revolutionary new educational model that encourages educators to provide spaces for students to display their academic brilliance without sacrificing their identities</b><br><br><b>From the nationally renowned educator and New York Times best-selling author of <i>For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood&#133;and the Rest of Y&#146;all Too</i></b><br><br><br>Dr. Christopher Emdin advocates for a new kind of student identity&#151;one that bridges the seemingly disparate worlds of the ivory tower and the urban classroom.<br><br>Because modern schooling often centers whiteness Emdin argues it dismisses ratchet identity (the embodying of &#147;negative&#148; characteristics associated with lowbrow culture often thought to be possessed by people of a particular ethnic racial or socioeconomic status) as anti-intellectual and punishes young people for straying from these alleged &#147;academic norms&#148; leaving young people in classrooms frustrated and uninspired. These deviations Emdin explains include so-called &#147;disruptive behavior&#148; and a celebration of hip-hop music and culture.<br><br>Emdin argues that being &#147;ratchetdemic&#148; or both ratchet and academic (like having rap battles about science for example) can empower students to embrace themselves their backgrounds and their education as parts of a whole not disparate identities. This means celebrating protest disrupting the status quo and reclaiming the genius of youth in the classroom.