TEACHING COSPLAY: A THEORETICAL CURRICULUM - BY CONNOR DYER - Master of Arts in Art Education

Sep 24, 2026

A college-level cosplay curriculum built through critical pedagogy and visual culture art education responds to recurring misunderstanding and criticism of cosplay as art and identity expression. The thesis frames cosplay beyond dressing as popular characters by emphasizing criticality, identity exploration, and craft. Curriculum materials include a class syllabus and four project documents grounded in theories of cosplay identity, critical pedagogy, and VCAE, with results suggesting critical instruction can strengthen engagement, identity construction, and critical thinking; additional research is needed to test effectiveness.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPaper Templates

FormatPDF

Pages121

Reading Time42 min

AccessFree to download

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

Statement of the Problem

Main Research Question and Sub-Questions

Purpose and Scope

Significance

Researcher Bias and Limitations

Research Design

Summary of Content

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE

Fans, Fandom, and Cosplay

Identity

Critical Pedagogy

Visual Culture Art Education

Conclusion

TEACHING COSPLAY: A THEORETICAL CURRICULUM USING CRITICAL PEDAGOGY AND VISUAL CULTURE ART EDUCATION BY CONNOR DYER THESIS Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Art Education in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2021 Urbana, Illinois Adviser: Associate Professor Laura Hetrick Abstract During my time as an MFA student, my cosplay-based art was often met with misunderstanding or criticism. I found that many of my peers and professors did not understand cosplay to be a form of artistic practice nor did they see it as a meaningful form of identity expression. While cosplay can be defined as the act of dressing up as a popular culture character, this definition fails to convey the criticality, identity exploration, and craft that are involved in its creation. Therefore, this thesis used critical pedagogy and visual culture art education (VCAE) to create a college-level cosplay curriculum. The intention of this curriculum is to promote students to think critically about their interaction with popular culture and fandom, to explore the construction of identity, and to use cosplay as a form of artistic practice. I developed curriculum documents consisting of a class syllabus and four project documents using theories of cosplay identity, critical pedagogy, and VCAE. I then present these documents and justify their content and classroom practice using critical pedagogy and VCAE. The results indicate that cosplay, when taught in a critical manner, can foster student engagement in identity construction and critical thinking. As the curriculum is theoretical, further research is necessary to determine the curriculum’s effectiveness and practicality. Acknowledgements My success would not have been possible without my advisor, Dr. Laura Hetrick. She has guided me with unwavering support and endless patience. Through my constant emails, endless questions, and near break downs, Laura has always been ready with answers and advice. Our conversations on fandom and art education have shaped me into the fan scholar and art educator Iam today. I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Sarah Travis for her teaching advice and discussion classes. I learned so much more than I ever thought possible during her classes which have helped to guide and form this thesis. Without Sarah’s advice and support this thesis would not have been possible. Next I would like to acknowledge the support of my close friends Alyssa Denneler and her husband Robert Girard. Your encouragement and support have been invaluable. You’ve made me laugh when I needed it most and are always available whenever I need a chat. I would also like to thank the art education graduate community. I have made lifelong friends and grown both academically and personally over the course of this journey. My inspiration for this thesis is largely due to my Grandma, Janice Dyer. My love of sewing and crafts can be traced back to learning to sew at her knees. Some of my most treasured memories are of times spent in your sewing room listening to the humming of sewing machine and the hiss of the iron. Thank you for all of your love and support. I would also like to thank my Grandpa, Ernie Dyer for his funny stories and support. I would like to thank my parents for their unwavering love and support in everything I do. Both of you have spent many hours on facetime listening to my ideas, anxieties, successes, and failures. I cannot begin to express how much those calls meant to me. I would like to express my love and gratitude to my mom, Robin Rooks, for her endless advice, words of wisdom, and always being there when I need her most. I would also like to express my love and gratitude to my dad, Bryan Dyer, for being my proofreader and for all the help and support he has given me both in writing this thesis and in life. Without the two of you this thesis would not have been po

FAQs

Why does the thesis reject a simple definition of cosplay as only dressing up?

It argues that the basic definition fails to represent the criticality, identity exploration, and craft involved in creating cosplay.

What educational framework does the thesis use to design the curriculum?

The curriculum is developed using critical pedagogy and visual culture art education (VCAE) to support critical engagement with popular culture and fandom.

What evidence does the thesis provide about the curriculum’s impact?

It indicates that teaching cosplay in a critical manner can foster student engagement in identity construction and critical thinking, while noting the curriculum is theoretical and needs further research for effectiveness and practicality.

Sep 24, 2026

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