School in Popular Film: How Movies Shape Views on Teachers, Students, and Education

Catalog description

The course explores of how teachers, students, and schools have been depicted in popular film, and how these portrayals have contributed to national perspectives, expectations, and debates related to schools and education. Essential questions explored include: How have media representations of schools, teachers, and students evolved since the popularization of film as a mass entertainment medium? How has film depicted ethnic, racial, economic, gender, and cultural diversity in schools? How have depictions of teachers evolved over the years and how have these depictions affected our expectations of teachers? How have films depicted urban schools and students and how have these depictions influenced teacher recruitment and retention? What political values and platforms have these films promulgated and reinforced? Ultimately, the goal of the course is to help students think critically about education themed entertainment and its effects. Numerous salient films and film clips will be viewed and analyzed.