Under seven students’ shared critical gaze, television becomes a tool to better understand their place in the world.
The students belong to an independent sociology course focused on social institutions, such as school and family, through which children learn cultural norms.
Led by Social Studies Curriculum Coordinator Gary Shiffman and African-American Scholars Program Director Chris Vick, the students use episodes from HBO’s The Wire, a critically-acclaimed drama depicting urban life in Baltimore, to understand how otherwise abstract concepts unfold in real life.
“There’s nothing quite like seeing and getting involved with characters onscreen, who are vivid, and following their life story to make you really think about these issues and what they mean,” said Shiffman.
Senior Hannah Gottlieb agrees, adding that her emotional investment in The Wire has allowed her to examine social pressure in others’ lives with greater empathy and understanding.
“It’s natural to have emotional reactions to things around us and what we’re experiencing,” said Gottlieb. “You definitely need that human aspect when you’re looking at any kind of social relationship.”
Vick affirms that by demonstrating how issues like drug policy, which may at first seem distant, affects individuals, The Wire prepares students to think about these issues on a more personal level and cultivate greater social awareness in their daily lives.
“I think sometimes the challenge is, in Brookline, to not think that these issues only affect other folks,” said Vick.
Students hold class discussions on Fridays during Z-block. Together, they draw parallels between themselves and characters seen in the series, a practice that allows them to better understand social pressures in their own lives.
An episode in which 10 eighth graders participate in an alternative academic program for the misbehaved led students taking The Wire class to question what makes programs like Opportunity for Change (OFC) successful.
The students reacted to the alternative program in The Wire, which they named “the basement,” with disgust. They admitted that OFC and the basement were alike in premise, but agreed that OFC succeeded in actually nurturing participants, whereas the basement kept the students locked away like prisoners.
Eventually, they decided on the primary difference between the two programs: leadership. While Opportunity for Change Director Brian Poon has faith in his students, the teachers in the episode acted as if students were already destined for failure.
Social studies teacher Roger Grande, who has taught sociology in the past, sees The Wire’s ability to inspire self-examination through comparison to others as its primary benefit to students.
“I think we can’t really know ourselves very well until we see ourselves from the outside or until we look at others and see how they are different or similar to us,” said Grande. “That’s the best way to know yourself, to step outside yourself.”
Emma Nash can be contacted at [email protected].
