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.

Who owns it?

I would have to say that I watch TNT and channel 5 the most for television. The radio station that I usually listen to is KS95. After taking this class, I began to wonder who owns it? It is important to know this information because the owner of the station or network may have his own agenda. The station you listen to may have bias in their reporting or hidden agendas, which are trying to manipulate the consumer. It is also important to realize what is said and what isn't said when looking at who owns a station. Obviously an owner is not going to report negative information about any its other companies. This is a negative situation for the viewer because they are getting manipulated by a particular bias. There are many monopolies in the media, which restricts the inoformation that is gained by the consumer. For example, clear channel owns many local stations in Minnesota. Do you only want one view or perspective in the media? I know I don't! That is why i have decided to check my viewing habits and see who owns the stations that I tune into.
The company that owns Minnesota channel 5 is an ABC affiliate, which is owned by Disney. Well, I guess i know why they always have the Disney movies on around the holidays. I found out that Time Warner owns TNT, which is a basic cable station. I was surprised to find out that Clear Channel doesn't own my radio station, because they own a majority of radio stations in the Twin Cities. Hubbard Broadcasting owns 94.5 KS95. I think that they are able to have a little more freedom than the other stations that I tune ino, because they are not as huge as owners like Disney. I imagine they have less restrictions on what they can say on their station.
By having these monopolies often the information that we recieved is slanted. I can imagine that many people might only listen to media from one owner. If you were to look at one company and what it advertises, you might find that it sponsors other stations that it owns. This is dangerous, because viewers would not be exposed to varying perspectives. I think that their should be more independant media stations so this can happen. I think that the other big bussinesses have to give up trying to control the minds of their viewers. People need to recognize who owns it so that they can keep a critical eye and ear on what is being said on their favorite stations.

Music and Ani Difranco

I would have to say that my favorite shows to attend are alternative rock. I enjoy the liberal attitudes that are demonstrated in the music and with the people who attend these shows. Many of the artists that I listen to are female including Ani Di Franco, Indigo Girls, Tori Amos, Bjork and many others. As you can imagine, I always attended Lilith fair, which celebrates these artists! I think that these artists portray what it means to be a woman in today’s society. I enjoy their powerful lyrics, which illustrate the raw emotions that women go through on a daily basis.
One of my favorite songs is called “Both Hands” by Ani Difranco, which illustrates how a woman feels after a break-up. The lyrics of the song illustrate her sadness of the break-up, but also gives her power to go on with her life. It talks about how communication is key in every relationship and that sometimes you can’t be heard in a relationship. It is a song that doesn’t blame either partner for the break-up situation. The instrument is a lone guitar and female singer. It feels like everyone is on their own in this life and that true power comes from loving yourself.
This reminds me of many break-ups that I have had in my life. It is tough to move on from a relationship that means a lot. I enjoy her music because it gives me strength to move forward in this life. I think that everybody should listen to her music. I find myself listening to her music when I am going through tough times in my life and I need a little extra strength.

Documentary

I would like to film a documentary about the bar and restaurant industry and how they hire immigrants. I think that it would be interesting to see how businesses profit off these individuals by paying them less than white Americans. You can go to any city in the United States and in the kitchen is where you will find most of these workers. I would be interested to see how businesses can hire these individuals who are working without a permit or are illegal aliens. However, this issue is never talked about in our society because big business has a lot of power. My documentary would have bias because I have worked in the service industry and feel that these people are not paid what they are worth.
My documentary would include a lot of interviews with immigrant workers in the service industry. I would also plant a hidden camera in the kitchen so that the audience could see what a workday was like for these employees. I would probably have to do a lot of editing to get my perspective across to the viewers. The kitchen is a place where anything can happen, but often there are long periods of time when nothing happens. I think that the audience would benefit from seeing the realities of the service industry. The issue of these workers rights is a very important message to deliver. I think that often people don’t notice that these new immigrants are sometimes working two jobs with over 60 hours a week just to survive in our country and mail money home.
My intended message in my documentary would be that all workers deserve the right of equal pay. I want my audience to understand that big business is profiting off the cheap labor that these immigrants provide. The point of this documentary is to have society be more aware of the injustices that happen in their local area. This documentary would make people think twice before dining at these establishments who don’t treat their workers fair and equal. I would include many interviews during my documentary.
I would like to interview restaurant workers who work more than 60 hours a week and follow them through their normal workday. I would also go home with these workers to demonstrate the struggle of these new immigrant families in America. I think that often people put these new immigrants into very negative categories. Often we hear comments from the public saying “they are taking our jobs!” or “these people come here and use our system for money.” I think that these are heard more because people don’t want to face that these families are working harder than most Americans and trying to support their families.
I would also ask these workers many questions about how they got hired in America. I am sure that most of these immigrants would know how to get hired whether they are legally or illegally in this country. I would also ask the general managers and kitchen managers how they cold hire these individuals. It would also be important to ask these managers what they think of the work ethic of these immigrant workers. I am sure that some of these mangers would be reluctant to talk about their hiring practices.
It would be difficult to get accurate information about this issue from managers, because they might be at risk of losing their job. I think that more accurate information would come from a manager who had left the industry because of the unjust treatment of immigrant workers. However, this might also be inaccurate because maybe this person would have a personal vendetta against the service industry because of losing his/her job. I also think that it would be difficult to get accurate information from the immigrant workers because they would not want to lose their job. However, I would hope that by protecting the identity of these individuals I could obtain accurate information from these people. The language barrier might pose a problem, because many of these new immigrants speak little or no English. A translator would have to tell the story coming from these interviews. Some American people might think that since these individuals speak little or no English than they shouldn’t be successful. However, people don’t want to admit that English is not the only language in the world. People don’t want to hear that many people are manipulated because of their lack of understanding of how jobs in the United States are supposed to function.
I hope that my documentary would open they eyes of people so that they would fight for these workers rights. I think that if people step forward with accurate information we could stop this modern day slavery. I believe that all people deserve the right to be in this country and work for equal pay. This should be the land of opportunity not injustice.