EVERYONE’S A CRITIC: INTRODUCING FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE WITH POPULAR CULTURE

________________ Motivating students placed in remedial reading courses after several semesters of college coursework is a considerable instructional challenge. When students learn to use reading strategies and skills with engaging, “entertaining ” texts, through guided practice, they can eventually apply those skills to more academic texts that they encounter in their coursework and on standardized exams. Tapping into students ’ interests with materials that relate to popular culture is a way to meaningfully connect with students in addition to helping them gain awareness of reading skills they already use in everyday life, such as thinking critically and unraveling figurative language. This approach involves reading instructors ’ selecting materials from the internet, including movie reviews and popular song lyrics that many students find familiar. Experience with Regents ’ reading course students has shown that students become more engaged in discussion and more likely to remember texts and strategies when the readings relate to topics that interest them, including popular films and music