Why the Magic Matters
Discovering Disney as a Laboratory for Learning
Why the Magic Matters
Discovering Disney as a Laboratory for Learning
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Description
Co-editors Franzese and Peterfeso – both Disney scholars and professors – have specifically recruited educators who specialize in Disney to create a volume that speaks to teaching Disney in the classroom. Disney is often dismissed as “entertainment,” but this text aims to help the reader to see the (seeming) contradictions of Disney as opportunities for learning. Using the organizational framing of dialectics, the book shows how the tensions Disney creates and holds are by design and in turn generate both the magic Disney is known for and the learning that it can yield. With the information provided, readers will have a framework that allows them to utilize Disney for their own learning.
Table of Contents
Introduction, Jill Peterfeso
Disney Dialectic Pairs: Theoretical Framework and Book Structure
Section I: Magic and Strategy
Section Introduction: Magic and Strategy, Jill Peterfeso
Chapter 1: Disney's “Magical” Curriculum: Bibbity, Bobbity Boo!, Gabriel Huddleston, Blake Lentz, Nicole Weinberg
Chapter 2: A Private Mouse for Public Art, Cher Krause Knight
Chapter 3: To Infinity and Beyond: Understanding Data Science Through the Lens of Disney Data, Lucy D'Agostino McGowan
Chapter 4: Why and How Walt Disney World Makes You the Star of Its Story, Gary Kaskowitz
Section II: Authenticity and Simulation
Section Introduction: Authenticity and Simulation, Alexis T. Franzese
Chapter 5: From Magic to Memory: How the Physical Experiences of the Disney Parks Contribute to Historical Memory and Learning What it Means to Be an American, Bethanee Bemis
Chapter 6: True-Life Adventures: Walt Disney and the Modern Environmental Movement, Sarah Nilsen
Chapter 7: Urban NDNs and the House of Mouse: A Journey of Education and Self-Discovery, Lucy Buck
Chapter 8: Asian Disneyland, Local Community Reactions, and the Role of Cultural Spaces, Jenny Banh
Section III: Nostalgia and Innovation
Section Introduction: Nostalgia and Innovation, Jill Peterfeso
Chapter 9: Only Correct: How Disney Revises, Rethinks and Re-edits Their Own Creations, Bonnie Rudner
Chapter 10: Teaching Walt: Place-Based Learning and SHAPE-ing Walt's Legacy, Christopher W. Tremblay
Chapter 11: Theme Park America, Alex Hofmann
Chapter 12: Worldbuilding and Role-Playing Across Disney Production, William S. Chavez
Section IV: Leisure and Labor
Section Introduction: Leisure and Labor, Alexis T. Franzese
Chapter 13: Making “Happy” Happen: What Disney Teaches Us About the Hidden Costs and Labor of Leisure, Jacob Hayward and Alexis T. Franzese
Chapter 14: Disneyland: The Happiest Classroom on Earth, Jeffrey A. Barnes
Chapter 15: Wheelchairs, Magic Carpets, and a Community of Tomorrow: Constructing Disabled Utopia in the Disney Parks, Mason J. Shrader, Benjamin Shrader, Carol Mason Shrader
Takeaways
Contributors
Acknowledgements
Index
Product details
| Published | 07 Aug 2025 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (PDF) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 272 |
| ISBN | 9798765155349 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Illustrations | 2 bw photos, 6 line art |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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