A Film-Based Course for IEP Students

Joe McVeigh -- Middlebury College

Concept of the Course
Integrated Skills -- High Intermediate - Advanced
Film as Text and Content
Complete Films

Course Goals
Exposure to language
Exposure to culture
Vocabulary, slang, expressions
Listening
Speaking
Pronunciation/Intonation

Film selection criteria
Relevance / Interest for students
Clarity of speech / story
Linguistic difficulty
Theme
Perspective - new information
Violence, sex, language
Availability of film
Availability of script

Class activities
Viewing of film without / with caption decoding
Discussion of comprehension question
Vocabulary / Slang / Idioms / Expressions
Sportscasting
Reading of script (homework; in class)
Lecture / Explication
Acting out scenes
Intensive Listening
Tests

Practical Viewing Considerations
Previewing the film
Size of screen, position in room
Sound
Reflections
Comfort
Using the counter
Using closed captions
Films on reserve

Types of scripts
The final draft -- what the author wrote
The shooting script -- what the director had in mind
The continuity script -- what made it to the screen
Fully published
The Hollywood script distribution system

Sources of scripts
Bookstores - Samuel French, etc.
Samuel French-- 7623 Sunset Blvd. 213-876-0570, 11963 Ventura Blvd. 818-762-0535
The internet
Script Links: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/9371/
The Internet Movie Database search: http://us.imdb.com/search

Other resources
Costanzo, W.V. 1992. Reading the movies: Twelve great films on video and how to teach them. Urbana, IL. National Council of Teachers of English.
Mejia, E., Xiao, M.K., & Kennedy, J. 1994. 102 very teachable films. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Stempleski, S. & Tomalin, B. 1990. Video in action. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.
Stempleski, S. & Arcario, P. (Eds.) 1992. Video in second language teaching: Using, selecting, and producing video for the classroom. Alexandria, VA: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.

Some Highly Successful Films
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Clueless
Dead Poets Society
The Graduate
The Princess Bride
A River Runs Through It
When Harry Met Sally

Some Moderately Successful Films
Annie Hall
Casablanca
Chariots Of Fire
A Fish Called Wanda
Fargo
Hannah And Her Sisters
It's A Wonderful Life
My Life As A Dog
The Purple Rose of Cairo
Singing In The Rain

Some Less Successful Films
Brazil
Citizen Kane
Gone With The Wind
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers
JFK
On Golden Pond
Raising Arizona
The Wizard Of Oz