Music
Pearl Jam is being used to help Ethiopian students learn English
by Dan MacRae
September 4, 2015
A Peace Corps volunteer has brought "Even Flow" to the classroom.
Who needs Rosetta Stone when you have the difficult-to-decipher wailings of Eddie Vedder?
A Peace Corps volunteer by the name of Matt Westerberg has elected to use the rock radio staple “Even Flow” as a tool to help teach Ethiopian Grade 9 students English.
“I am a huge fan of Pearl Jam, and 90’s rock in general (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Rage Against The Machine, etc). After class one day I jokingly wrote the chorus line to Pearl Jam’s “Even Flow” on the chalkboard,” he wrote in a piece for Alternative Nation. “I thought it would be funny to have the kids try and learn it. They laughed their way through it. The next day, they demanded to try it again. After a while we went through most of the song day by day as a motivational tool. At first it was all just a joke, but after awhile, the students began to really build confidence through learning the song. Kids that were shy and quiet all year were suddenly more confident speaking up in class and loved participating in the song.”
The students have also learned chunklets of songs by Metallica and Red Hot Chili Peppers with the prospect of a Foo Fighters song waiting in the on deck circle for a future school project.
What’s that? You’d like to check out some footage of the students singing “Even Flow?” Sure, we can provide that. The lyrics are splashed on the screen if you’re in the mood to sing along.
[h/t Diffuser]
