Integrating film into the English classroom

It is vital that film and media are implemented in the classroom. “Regardless of the text, film adaptations of literature can engage students in critical interpretations of both literature and the media” (Beach 104). I think that it is important for students to understand the difference between print and media representations. Media has the power to influence people and it is up to the schools to teach students how to interpret these representations. I plan on creating units that give students the opportunity to read, view and create assignments. I think it is a shame that media is often neglected in the English classroom. “Film/media is often marginalized in the language arts curriculum peripheral to teaching “basic skills” of reading and writing” (Beach 101). I think that students are not being taught how to analyze and interpret alternative sources of information. It is essential that the teacher employ multimodel ways of teaching because all students learn in different ways. I would use film adaptations in many of my literature units so that student’s could see a variety of interpretations of texts.
I really enjoyed the book Lord of the Flies when I was in High School. I remember vividly having the opportunity to watch the film in class. It almost felt like a prize for having finished the text. We watched the newer version of the film, and later I encountered the version made in the 1960’s. I believe that my reading and comprehension was enhanced through the opportunity of watching the film in class. I could easily distinguish the differences between the movie and print version of the text. I think that it would be a fun activity to have the students read and watch the film. I think that students would benefit from analyzing the difference between the film and book version. I would have the students write about which interpretation they enjoyed and why they enjoyed it. I would also ask students to interpret how the experience of the text is different in book and film form. I hope to help students understand the text in both forms, and how the experience with a text is different depending on the form. I would also employ Shakespeare film adaptations.
Getting students to read and enjoy Shakespeare is getting more and more difficult. Part of it has to do with the difficult language and the idea that it was meant for stage or film. A student could miss a lot of what is going on in the plays if they didn’t read the stage directions. One film that I would show is A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999). I would have the students choose their favorite character both in the book and film. I would have the student write a diary of what happened to that character both when reading the book and watching the movie. This diary would be on the blogger website and would be a great way to get students to understand the motive of individual characters in the play. I think that this film is different from the text, but the characters and scenes in the film are excellent. After the students have both read and viewed the film I would have them look at the difference of their character both in the book and film. I hope to foster a discussion on why certain parts were cut from the movie and why other parts were added. I would hope that my students would understand that interpretations can very greatly depending on the mode of a text.