Teachers are voracious consumers of media—using Netflix to hook reluctant readers, using TikTok to vent frustrations, and using podcasts to survive the data entry parts of the job. But the most important piece of media in a teacher's life is not on a screen.

The entertainment industry has undergone significant transformations over the years, with the rise of digital media and changing consumer behaviors. Amidst these changes, teachers have emerged as influential content creators, producers, and curators of entertainment content and popular media. The intersection of education and entertainment has given birth to a new paradigm, where teachers are no longer confined to traditional classrooms but are instead leveraging various platforms to create, disseminate, and shape popular culture.

2. Entertainment as a Coping Mechanism: The Digital Staffroom

When consuming media for leisure, educators generally fall into two categories:

Provide of real teacher-influencers and their impact

(2006) or the humorous but realistic struggles of underfunded schools in Abbott Elementary Common Media Tropes vs. Reality