Movies in class - What a novel concept!

Creating Lifelong Learners
by Matthew Needleman
9/6/2010

"The Right Way to Show Movies in Class"

Okay, what I like about this blog is it actually addresses/presents a suggestions on how to best implement a concrete activity (ie; showing a movie to students) that teachers can examine, consider and potentially use.  So much of the professional development training that is designed for teachers seems to fall very short in the most important area.  That is, while pedagogy and philosophies are incredibly important, many teacher instructors are unable or unwilling to suggest actual lesson plans that incorporate their ideas.  Teachers are always looking to create new lesson plans or learning based activities.  They desperately lack the time to collaborate with their peers so this blog is refreshingly simple and useful.   

 The blogger Matthew Needleman presents some very good strategies. Having worked in a few schools where movies were forbidden I think he is brave to address the topic.  I agree that if presented properly, the movie viewing will be taken seriously by the students.  Even more importantly, it can and will be extremely effective in achieving learning objectives.  Let's face it a teacher can present all the articles/readings in the world on the horrors of fossil fuels etc. but a simple film that depicts exhaust, oil spills, mining disasters etc. can have much more of an impact on students.  

One important tip that I would add would be to make sure that you preview the movie ahead of time.  As with any lesson, the objective should be clearly stated in kid language.  A teacher should definitely point out the part of the film that addresses the objective and that they want to students to pay extra attention to during the film.  As Matthew Needleman points out task to be performed during the film is a must to not only improve student focus but to also remind the students that the movie viewing is to be taken seriously.  I love the evaluation piece.  I wonder would the teacher tell the students at the beginning of the movie that they'll be expected to evaluate it at the end of the clip?     Furthermore, what about extension activities?  What might they include?  I think that there are some remaining challenges for teachers on how to differentiate for students with different learning styles and special needs.  Nevertheless, movie viewing is a definitely worth using in the classroom!