Film
description
Transcript of Film
Purposeful Use of Film within the Classroom:
Encouraging Student Engagement
Presented by Mandy Latz27 February 2009
3rd Annual Learning College Conference, Ivy Tech Community College
Presentation Agenda
Overview of film use inside classrooms Items to consider Examples in a variety disciplines Think-Pair-Share Activity
Why this topic?
My own in-class film use Integration of film via Blackboard
discussions Need to articulate rationale Student feedback Better than me
Advocacy for Film Use Meets students where they are
Is Google Making Us Stupid? Brings course concepts to life Variation in messenger Provides a common experience to draw from Leads well into various learning activities and
assignments
Quotation
“…instructors must learn, and in turn teach their students, how to make
movie viewing a meaningful and active educational
experience” (Sprau, 2001, para. 10).
Purposeful Use
Why are you showing the film? What is the purpose?
What learning outcomes are associated with the film?
How will you measure the intended outcomes? Link film use with activity, assignment,
discussion, etc. Integrate film with course content
Quotation
“…film in educational settings is often relegated to
filler material for overworked, underprepared,
or absent instructors” (Sprau, 2001, para. 10).
Considerations in Selection
Documentary versus fiction
Full length versus clips Length of class Method of presentation
Documentary versus Fiction
Hollywood movies Novel and appealing to students Easy to find Students may perceive fiction as reality
Documentaries May be hard to find Closer to reality but may be historically or
politically bias Should be viewed critically
Quotation
“One of the dangers of using feature film is that students often confuse what they see in it with
the truth or attribute to a film the factual characteristics of a documentary. Although most
films are not documentaries, they can carry great emotional power while delivering truths that reality obscures, as has been said about
fiction. This emotional power can be a catalyst for thinking and learning. It is important to
remember, however, that films are a starting point, not an end in themselves” (Harper &
Rogers, 1999, para. 5).
Examples of Learning Activities Historical fiction
Popular Is it accurate?
Feature films in the psychology classroom Diagnosis, identification
Rewriting the documentary from a different perspective
Specific Examples of Films
Full Length versus Clips Consider the class time you have Consider the actual full length of the film Watching the whole film may be boring Clips can overcome lack of class time to show
entire film Clips can be extracted to display particular
character, scene, or concept Clips can be difficult to manage Go back to the overarching purpose of showing
the piece YouTube, Google Video, other websites (PBS)
Crafting Learning Activities
Some questions to consider… What are you trying to achieve (in terms of
student learning) by showing film? How can you “stretch” your students? How can you help them to think critically? How can you enable them to use a variety of
skills (writing, speaking, building)? How can you help students enjoy the
process?
Using the New Bloom’s Building on remembering and
understanding Enabling students to create
Using Kolb’s Cycle
Moving from concrete experience (watching) to active experimentation (creating a new film)
Quotation
“…an instructor, in selecting learning activities to correspond with each of the four poles of the experiential learning model, must give greater consideration to the functional use of the activity than to the activity itself” (Svinicki &
Dixon, 1987, p. 144).
Personal Example from ANTH 154
The Observation Exercise
Think-Pair-Share
How have you used films in your classrooms in the past?
What types of learning activities have you linked with film viewing in the past?
Brainstorm a new use of film within a class you are currently teaching Create a short list of films to use Create a learning activity for students that
blends the film and your course content. Can you describe your activity in terms of the
New Bloom’s or Kolb’s Cycle?
References
Harper, R. E., & Rogers, L. E. (1999). Using feature films to teach human development concepts [Electronic version]. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education & Development, 38(2).
Sprau, R. (2001). I saw it in the movies: Suggestions for incorporating film and experiential learning in the college history survey course [Electronic version]. College Student Journal, 35(1).
Svinicki, M. D., & Dixon, N. M. (1987). The Kolb model modified for classroom activities. College Teaching, 35(4), 141-146.
I appreciate your attendance!