The cornerstone of any education initiative is to ensure that class time won't be wasted on non-beneficial activities, such as simply showing a movie to pass the time. Over the years there has been no single method more widely misunderstood and grossly misused than using movies in the classroom. For some, the mere mention of the word "movie" in a classroom environment is a dirty word. For others, the act of showing a movie in class is simply viewed as un-acceptable behavior by a teacher. These reactions unfortunately deprive teachers of an important educational tool, the feature film.

In fact, every day in classrooms throughout the nation teachers are energizing their students, enriching their lesson plans, and getting better performance on assignments by occasionally using quality movies in the classroom. They do this in response to changes in society, attributed in part to technological innovations, that have rendered traditional teaching methods ineffective.

Today, electronic devices like portable computers, mobile smart phones, tablets and PDAs are ubiquitous. The new generation is often rightly referred to as the "screened-age." And it is true that the majority of media and story-based content on the electronic devices that dominate our age is delivered through a screen, be it a movie screen, TV screen, computer screen or mobile phone screen. In every day use written text are being limited to the technical and the old-fashioned.

Thus, a problematic situation was created. The average ELA class is designed to analyze written works, not screened productions. At this point, the teacher is starting at a significant disadvantage because they are competing for the attention of a student against devices and stories designed to do just that by the very best minds in our society. This affects students' motivation to pay attention in class. Who wants to learn about the literature of the past using the technology of the past? This is due to the fact that both the method of delivery and the material are of no significant relevance to the daily life of today's student.

The antidote for a stagnant learning environment is to bring the teacher to the same technological level as the student. This is a broad mandate, but one of part of the solution that can be implemented now is to effectively use movies in the classroom. A few properly used films that have been carefully chosen to interest and engage students to focus on the curriculum will help motivate students to do their school work. Plus, it will support a lesson plan that meets curricular goals. The steps to effective film use in the classroom are:

Step #1: Carefully select a film that, while it entertains, supports the curriculum.
Step #2: Precede the movie with an introduction. This will place the film in proper context and provide helpful background information.

Step #3: Give the students a film study worksheet to read before prior to starting the film with the instruction that they will be asked to answer the questions after the movie is completed. The worksheet focuses student attention on those aspects of the movie that related to the subjects being covered in class.

Step #4: Show the movie and allow several 3 - 5 minute breaks for students to make notes.

Step #5: Upon completion of the film, engage the students in a discussion which uses the interest generated by the movie to stress facts or explore concepts necessary to meet curriculum standards.

Step #6: Assign homework which, also uses the interest generated by the film to stress facts or explore concepts necessary to meet curriculum standards.

Principals often have significant influence over the type of resource materials used in the classrooms at their school. The first step to ensure effective use of movies shown in class is to give teachers the curriculum material needed that reveal the educational value of feature films. Only then can principals can begin to work with teachers to ensure that movies are only used occasionally, under circumstances where the educational return can be maximized and that are part of a lesson plan meeting applicable standards. By encouraging teachers to use films in this manner, principals empower them with the tools necessary to reach a highly "technologized" generation.

Once teachers know how to use movies to best advantage in the classroom, principals can then move to the next step of employing administrative techniques to limit the inappropriate use of movies at their schools.

This article was written by James Frieden, co-founder of http://www.TeachWithMovies.com, Inc. -- the premiere site on the Internet showing teachers how to create lesson plans using movies and film.

With the help of Teach With Movies, thousands of Teachers and Home School Parents use movies / film in their classes and home schooling programs to teach Social Studies, English, Science, Health, & the Arts.

Visit our site today: http://www.teachwithmovies.org

Inspiration is Priceless! Gain access to over 350 Learning Guides and Lesson Plans based on Movies and Feature Films.