Sunday, May 6, 2018

MOVIE THEMED LESSON PLANS HELP EDUCATORS TEACH JOURNALISTIC PRINCIPLES

20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT AND JOURNEYS IN FILM HELP TEACHERS INSTILL THE IMPORTANCE OF FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

In the fledgling years of the United States, it was realized journalism served as an important check on the power of government vital for preserving the integrity of a democracy.  With this in mind, the nation's Constitution was amended to assure the freedom of the press through the Bill of Rights adoption in 1791.  While a lot has changed in our society during the more than 200 years that have passed, the importance of an uncensored media is still as important today as it was when the First Amendment was ratified. So, I was impressed to find out about how Journeys in Film, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating inspiring educational materials and classroom lesson plans based on popular films, has partnered with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment to create an eight-part curriculum guide based on the Academy Award-nominated film, THE POST.

From Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein's investigation of President Nixon to Jim Schaefer and M.L. Elrick's exposes on Kwame Kilpatrick, journalists have played a crucial role throughout the history of the country in uncovering misdeeds and ensuring the integrity of our governmental institutions.  The Washington Post's Pentagon Papers battle is another example of journalists keeping government officials accountable.  THE POST, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, tells the true story of legendary publisher of The Washington Post Katharine Graham (Streep) and editor Ben Bradlee (Hanks) as they join forces to expose a decades-long cover-up brought to light in a series of leaked military documents dubbed the Pentagon Papers.  The ensuing legal battle with the White House over the right to publish information from these documents went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court and set an important precedent prohibiting censorship of the press.



A LESSON PLAN EXAMINING THE TRUE EVENTS BEHIND THE POST
IS NOW AVAILABLE TO CLASSROOMS NATIONWIDE

The curriculum guide created by Journeys in Film and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment consists of an eight part lesson plan, designed for students in grades 6 through 12, that is available to teachers as a free online download. Educators can utilize these lesson plans in conjunction with THE POST to help explain to students journalistic principles and ethics, the important role the press play in a democratic society, and the historical context of the Pentagon Papers among other topics relevant to the movie.
  • Lesson 1 establishes “the facts of the case” by having students work as journalists, digging through excerpts from real government documents to find the 5 Ws—who, what, when, where, and why—and using a jigsaw activity to share their information.
  • Lesson 2 explores the First Amendment, the case of Marbury v. Madison, and the Espionage Act under which Ellsberg was charged to understand the Supreme Court’s decision to allow publication. A document-based question gives students practice in synthesizing primary sources to write historical analysis.
  • Lesson 3 answers the question of what happened to Daniel Ellsberg, acquainting students with the differences between civil and criminal courts and further exploring the protections guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.
  • Lesson 4 is a study of journalistic ethics. What principles should professional journalists work by? How closely do our contemporary news outlets adhere to these principles?
  • Lesson 5 uses readings and videos to establish why a free press is so important to a democratic society. Students also survey the varying degrees of freedom under which the press must operate in other countries and the consequences for citizens of having a free or not-so-free press.
  • Lesson 6 brings these ideas home to students by exploring the rights of student journalists under the Supreme Court case of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier and asking them to investigate policies in their own school or school district.
  • Lesson 7 is a drama lesson in which students first work in pairs to research important figures in the Pentagon Papers case and then script and perform mock interviews with these figures to learn more about their personalities and motives.
  • Lesson 8 gives students the opportunity to explore some of the directorial choices made by Steven Spielberg in turning the history of the Washington Post’s decision into a dramatic and compelling film.
CURRICULUM GUIDE AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD: journeysinfilm.org/films/the-post


THE POST is now available from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.  Watch it through the Movies Anywhere service that lets people stream or download their digital movie library to view films anytime and anywhere it is convenient for them. For more information about the movie, head over to foxmovies.com/movies/the-post


12 comments:

  1. Interesting concept to help teachers. Will be sharing with my son who is a special needs teacher to see what he thinks.

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  2. Interesting concept! I think it would definitely help with real life experiences and make it more interesting for students. Would love to see how well it works!

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  3. I have to share this with the kiddos teacher to see if she will be applying this technique to her classroom.

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  4. So cool! I like this idea! I'm sure kids would like it as well. I know I always preferred to watch movies to learn in school.

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  5. This is a great resource. I hope it finds it’s way to many teachers.

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  6. Very cool way to educate! Entertaining as well. Students always seem to absorb more when entertained. I can't wait to see this movie for myself.

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  7. This is such a great idea. Making things more entertaining and relatable really has effective results.

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  8. Great practical life lessons kids can use outside of school are the best. I am sure there is a lot of engagement with these lessons.

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  9. That's brilliant. I think this will get the kids more interested and the lessons are easy to understand. I think it's amazing!

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  10. Lesson 4 is a must. Journalism ethics seem to be at a loss these days!

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  11. I think this is a great way to demonstrate these lessons. I learn so much better when I can see how things are applied.

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  12. I love this! My nine year old daughter has been the SeaWorld kid blogger for almost four years. She is the most mature marketing minded amazing nine year old and she has definitely learned through experiences. She is very hands on and I'd love for her to continue learning this way. This is fantastic for older children.

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