You may think that educators might be expected to only be keen on educational documentaries, but good, impactful, purposeful stories come in various mediums. In fact, while you are hard at work on your online EDD degree, watching a good movie every now and then is essential for unwinding and getting a new perspective on things. Here are five movie titles that professionals in the education field need to check out in their free time. Pick a movie that you normally would not watch on your own accord to experience something totally new. After all, isn’t that what education is all about?
1. Mr. Holland’s Opus
Although Richard Dreyfuss had been working in film for decades prior to tackling the lead role in Mr. Holland’s Opus, many consider this to be his most memorable movie. This movie follows an unimposing music teacher who connects with various students over the course of several decades. In the interim, he struggles to develop a close relationship with his own son, who was born deaf.
2. Bowling for Columbine
When the mass school shooting at Columbine High School took place, there were many people who hypothesized on how such a tragedy was able to even take place. Documentary filmmaker, Michael Moore, explored how certain factors in the public education system, as well as at home, could contribute to the making of a mass shooter. Topics such as mental health, racism, patriarchy and the media are thoroughly discussed as various public figures are interviewed and weigh in on this historic event.
3. Precious
This is not an easy film to watch, and it was likely even more difficult for many of the actors in Precious to complete some highly controversial scenes. Centering around the life of a severely abused teenaged single mother, Precious shows just how bad a student’s home life can be without school administrators ever being aware. Since the main character showed up and participated in school regularly, no one had a clue that her own mother was a major source of her torment. The film doesn’t exactly have a typical happy ending, but it does leave viewers filled with hope.
4. Lord of the Flies
If you plan on completing an online doctor of education in higher education leadership, Lord of the Flies is a movie that you need to see before graduation. Civilization is what you make of it, and when a group of adolescent boys are left to fend for themselves on a desert island, humanity all but goes out of the window. While one faction embraces the wild, another group of boys hold on to all they had been taught about civility, teamwork and genuinely being good. This is an older film that deserves to seen again and again by anyone planning to work in education administration.
5. Bad Teacher
Okay, so Bad Teacher might be an unorthodox choice, but there is a very important message buried deep under this film’s rather crass exterior. Following Cameron Diaz, a self-admitted selfish, careless and downright bad teacher, viewers get to see what happens when an educator doesn’t start off with the best of intentions. Motivated by ego and greed more than anything else, this ‘bad teacher’ does eventually begin to see the light by the end of the film.
Serious or satirical, you can find a movie that meets your specification and actually teaches you something new as long as you are open to new things. When you have completed your studies for the day, watch one of these films recommended for teachers instead of regularly scheduled programming. At the very least, you will have something interesting to talk to your fellow students about.
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