Mr. Powell vs. Pop Culture

I get a kick out of people who claim to be so "connected". They have internet, mobile internet, laptops, tv, cell phones, ipods, downloads, wireless, brainless, im this, text message that, satellite, cable, radio, microwave, space modulators, mother load boards, card boards, really boreds, and all the other ones I can't name. It's a scream.

Then there is me.

My wife and I haven't had "television" in twenty years. Twenty years folks. And people ask how we manage. Imagine what else we go without. Some people think I'm Amish. This is probably the reason that I see things from an entirely different perspective than most of my colleagues in the teaching world. It clarifies for me one of the biggest battles I face in teaching everyday: Mr. Powell vs. Pop Culture.

I want you to check out www.realityparents.com and look at their slogan. Look closely. This phrase dials it right in for me: "Unplugging from pop culture..." Some of our kids and adults in our schools stand in their own way because they don't see what we see: It's not what we're unplugged from, it's what we're plugged in to.

I take actual sports headlines from newspapers and substitute Mr. Powell and Pop Culture in various places, and it sums up my results as a teacher:

Pop Culture Eliminates Mr. Powell
Mr. Powell Out for the Season
Pop Culture's Attack Puts Strain on Mr. Powell's Defenses
Pop Culture Stuns Mr. Powell
Pop Culture Pulls Away From Powell in 3rd Period
Mr. Powell Falls to Pop Culture Comeback
Top Ranked Pop Culture Prepares To Play Unranked Mr. Powell
Pop Culture Dumps Mr. Powell
Mr. Powell KO'd in First Round

But here's the only headline that matters:

Pop Culture Going Unbeaten? Mr. Powell Says It Won't Happen