Write, Speak, Listen: Spoken Word Poetry as Discussion

Abstract This article situates spoken word poetry as a discussion-based practice for the social studies classroom. Similar to traditional forms of discussion like debate and deliberation, spoken word poetry engages students in multiple perspectives, allows students to make critical arguments about the world, and creates a space for student voices to have agency in the classroom. This article first examines the potential of spoken word poetry to mitigate the limitations and leverage the benefits of existing practices. It then explores how spoken word can be used as a tool for empathy, active listening, and community building in the classroom by analyzing several classroom experiences. It concludes with providing practical tools for how and when spoken word poetry can be implemented into the social studies classroom.