Planning for Romeo and Juliet as First Year Teachers

A professor at Kennesaw State University once told our graduate methods class, “Teaching is hard work. Teaching is really hard work.” Now, as we prepare for our first year as teachers with classes of our own, we are in full understanding of that reality. This professor also taught us that planning can be the hardest and most important part of the job. As graduate students on the tail end of the program, we have the benefit of some of the best and most current writings on best practices fresh in our minds; but we lack the familiarity, the natural rhythm which years of teaching instills in the planning process. This makes planning both more difficult and more important, especially with a challenging text like Romeo and Juliet.

Most students read Romeo and Juliet during their freshman year of high school. As an integral part of the literary canon, it is one of the most often-taught books, but it can also be one of the most hated. Romeo and Juliet is usually students’ first experience with Shakespeare, often their first experience with language other than modern mainstream English, and sometimes even their first experience with reading drama. Many teachers would prefer to opt out of Shakespeare entirely. This would be cheating students out of an important growing and learning experience. In The English Teacher’s Companion, Jim Burke writes, “…nothing scares students more nor gives them a greater sense of achievement than having successfully read—and ideally performed—a Shakespeare play. They know he is the top of the mark, a point of reference.” (65) Appreciating Shakespeare and feeling equipped to approach challenging texts in the future will give students confidence in their abilities as readers. This first brush with the bard can shape students’ attitudes about English class in general, and who they are as students, for the next three years.

In her book, Opening Texts, Kathleen Andrasick puts the problem into words, “Convincing students that texts are not closed, determinate receptacles of meaning is a difficult task. Printed pages bound within covers suggest permanence.”(41) Nothing suggests permanence more than a text written four hundred years ago, in a language noticeably different from our own. Robert Probst writes, in “Dialogue with a Text,” “Meaning is the product of a transaction between active minds and the words on the page—it does not reside in the ink to be ferreted out, unearthed, uncovered. Rather, it is created, formed, shaped by readers in the act of reading, and thus it is their meaning.” The task, then, is to plan this unit to dwell in the place where modernity and this canonical text meet—that is, not within the words printed on pages but in the understanding constructed by our students.

Using Technology to Teach Romeo and Juliet

“This is a complicated and amazing time for our profession and our students. Their future will be in a world where technology is fully integrated into every aspect of life; it is our responsibility as educators to reach out and secure tomorrow’s future for the students of today.”

~ Hill and Ford, “To What Extent Should English Teachers Embrace Technology?”

If our goal is to conduct class at the point of connection between text and student, technology is a good meeting place. Our students are used to gaining information from multi-media sources. From podcasts to Google image searches to DVD with commentary and bonus features, students regularly connect text, audio, and image to create meaning. To bring this practice into the English classroom is to allow students a greater opportunity to approach the material on their own terms and construct their own meaning. Using computers, students can pull together image, video and text to reflect a deeper understanding of the text. Lessons that use technology as a tool for expression are more engaging and can be more representative of student learning.

In Laptops and Literacy, Warschauer writes, “Simply put, the context of literacy has changed dramatically in the United States in the last fifty years, and what may have been acceptable previously is no longer so now.” Literacy itself has changed in meaning. The skills that were most valuable in the past (the ability to read and write) now fall second to skills that involve thinking about information in a more abstract way, reorganizing information and drawing it together to form meaning and communicate one’s understanding with others.

Sara Kajder writes repeatedly about matching the right tool with the right task and the right student in her book, The Tech Savvy English Classroom. Technology offers us many tools to work with, including information-finding as well as representing students’ own understanding and ideas. Students can manipulate images, connect them with sound, and make a video that more accurately conveys their understanding of a scene. The non-linear structure of information on the internet gives research assignments a versatility that is not offered in books. More immediate access to information is available. Students can watch a scene from Romeo and Juliet, listen to the pronunciation and delivery of the language, view an artist’s depiction of scenes from the play, and listen to music from the time period. They can view seventeenth century versions of the text as well as primary source documents which would otherwise be unavailable in schools. In analyzing image in the text, they can quickly do a search for key words within a text, a task which would have taken hours and hours without this tool. Being able to accomplish such tasks in such a short amount of time leaves students more time to focus on analyzing the results.

The diversity of resources available to students means that use of the internet gives students more control over their learning activities, empowering them to transform their study of a text into an individualized experience tailored to their own interests. They are more likely to remain engaged, as outside of school they are used to fast-paced action full images and noise. Debate exists, of course, as to whether or not this is a trend that educators should be supporting, but the reality remains that we are likely to do our job better if we acquaint ourselves with the technology available to us in the classroom. With strong guidelines, creative thinking, and careful planning, technology can enrich student engagement with a text and allow them to more reflect a more authentic understanding of the text in their assignments.

Teaching William Shakespeare: Using Popular Culture to Engage and Motivate Students

“Content knowledge alone is not all we need to teach our students; we know all too well that we are in the relationship-building business where no amount of content expertise alone can capture the Generation Y learner”—Tonya Perry (2004)

Most teachers will agree that getting students motivated to learn is one of the major problems faced in the classroom. In fact, in one survey given to teachers, teachers stated that “student motivation was the greatest limitation on teachers’ effectiveness” (Bradford 2005). The idea of getting and keeping all students motivated is a huge goal in any teacher’s classroom. How does a teacher get the attention of students in today’s classroom especially when studying a classic literary text, such as Romeo and Juliet? After all, today’s students are used to the fast paced Internet world, high tech films, computer games, the chat room environment, text messaging, and cell phones. They are obviously not going to be immediately engaged by just reading a text. Today’s students need to be given much more in order to not only get their attention, but keep it so valuable lessons can be taught. So how does a teacher do this? How does a teacher keep the attention of students who would probably rather be surfing the Internet? Teachers should embrace the use of popular culture in the classroom within the unit plan of a classical text, such as Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. After all, Shakespeare was a popular icon of his time period. Why not incorporate modern popular culture while studying the popular culture of a different time period?

Imagine for a moment the time period in which Shakespeare lived and wrote. There was no television, movie theaters, radio, recorded music, or Internet. He provided his generation with entertainment in the form of well crafted plays that were mostly performed in outside public theaters, such as The Globe. The audiences who came to see his plays were filled with people from different social standings from the “prosperous merchant class in London” to the “apprentices and others further down the social scale” (Bevington 13). He saw the world around him and wrote about it, attracting a socially diverse audience in the process. His plays provide much insight in terms of the social issues and historical problems that occurred during his lifetime, and he was the creative genius of his time period much like people today might view film director Steven Spielberg or popular science fiction writer Stephen King.

By incorporating forms of popular culture such as music and film within the unit plan, teachers will enhance the study of Shakespeare’s plays, providing more opportunities for students to connect with the play and understand that the issues and themes Shakespeare deals with are timeless. Shakespeare proves that the world may change, but emotions clearly stay constant. Once teachers embrace the idea of using forms of popular culture in their classroom, they will realize along with their students that Shakespeare is still very much present in the modern world. For example, some teachers have used contemporary music within the unit study of a classic literary text, to discuss and analyze themes that are present in the text and in the song (Evans 2004). This shows students that themes of classical texts are still relevant in today’s world. If this type of lesson plan were used within the unit study of Shakespeare students would realize that Shakespeare used his stage to communicate with the audience of his time, while today’s creative artists use various media outlets from music to short films on the Internet. The use of popular media in the classroom from music to the use of film clips can also help bridge the generation gap between the teacher and students, making connections (Hunt 2004). The teacher finds out more about the students as they are invited to bring in their popular culture and this in turn enhances student engagement, as well as builds a community within the classroom (Perry 2004). After all, how can a teacher expect students to come to class excited to learn, if the teacher chooses to ignore their world? Simply put, “our students must be invested in the content if they are to be successful” (Hunt 2004). Teachers can use popular culture to successfully get the students invested and keep them invested.

Teachers who teach Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet can start the unit off by discussing with students how Shakespeare is still very present in the modern world. Teachers can easily demonstrate to students how Shakespeare continues to influence and shape our culture. For example, teachers could start off by asking students the following question: When was the last time you heard someone say or said yourself “That’s Greek to me?” Then discuss with students how this phrase is often used by people in order to let someone know that what was said or explained was not understood. Then tell the students the phrase actually comes from Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, as the character Casca speaks the line (Bevington 13). Discussing the origin of this one phrase coined by Shakespeare, shows the students how he still impacts present day language. Shakespeare also continues to influence television shows and films, which can also easily be pointed out to students. In fact, Joey, the popular character from “Friends,” quoted lines from Romeo and Juliet in an attempt to impress a date on the pilot episode of his spin-off show “Joey.” He of course, being typical Joey, quoted a line said by Juliet not Romeo, which his date pointed out to him (Lanier 20). Teachers could show this TV clip to students as an example of how lines from Romeo and Juliet continue to be used for comic effect in modern forms of entertainment media. In fact, “none of Shakespeare’s plays has had more lasting or ubiquitous effect in popular culture than Romeo and Juliet” (Lanier 19). The balcony scene alone “has become an instantly recognizable image for romantic devotion” (Lanier 19).

Of course, most students will ask the questions all English teachers dread, which are the following: Why do we have to study Shakespeare? Why is it important to know about his plays when he is dead and no one talks like he writes? We suggest that teachers refer back to popular culture to help students see the relevance of studying the work of William Shakespeare. After all, he left such an impact on the world that a lot of this words and phrases continue to pop up in songs, films, TV shows and even as news article titles. Teachers can point this out to students. Tell students how his words are often used, due to the widely understood association people have in regards to them. Shakespeare is very much engrained in our culture, so most people know his plays and the famous lines he left the world. He left us plays that still deal with issues and themes that are still very relevant in the modern world such as first love, suicide, tense family relationships and finding one’s self. Stress to students that to not know Shakespeare would cause them to miss out on much humor and drama in today’s world, as his work and words will most likely continue to be used in various forms of popular media for comical effect. Bring up one of the news articles on this website that uses a Shakespearean coined phrase, to spark a class discussion of how knowing his work, his famous phrases, brings instant knowledge of the overall message of the article for the reader.

Teachers who decide to embrace the use of popular culture in their classrooms will find that it will not be very hard to do so within the unit study of Romeo and Juliet, as out of all of Shakespeare’s plays this is the one that has had more staying power throughout time. Romeo and Juliet provides “one of the most enduring plotlines for popular culture,” as it consists of two young lovers kept apart due to the “conflict between two older generations” (Lanier 21). In short, Romeo and Juliet meet, fall in love, learn their families hate one another, and so then must hide their love from them. The play deals with timeless and controversial issues, such as first love, family relationships, social order, rebellion, isolation and even suicide. The play has been made into movies over the years with the most recent film starring a young Claire Danes and Leonardo DeCaprio. Out of all the film adaptations made of Shakespeare’s plays, “only those of Romeo and Juliet have been consistent commercial success at the box office” (Lanier 19). It is clearly a play that has remained popular throughout the times, from Shakespeare’s time to ours. Due to Shakespeare, most people know right away after hearing the phrase “star-crossed lovers,” that it refers to two people who love each other passionately but are being kept apart due to problems or issues that are somewhat out of their control.

Therefore, teachers and students, as you study the play Romeo and Juliet together keep in mind his role in popular culture back in his own time and ours. Discuss with one another how this play can connect with the modern world and the popular culture present in it. Bring popular culture into the classroom! We invite you to use some of the lesson plans/projects/activities provided on this website that incorporate popular culture in the unit study of Romeo and Juliet, but urge you to brainstorm together for your own ideas of how to bring in elements of popular culture as you study the play together.