Films: A Linguistic, Cultural, and Spiritual Resource for ELT
Mary Shepard Wong, mwong@apu.edu
Editors’ note: This article is based on a presentation made during the CETC Colloquium at the TESOL 2007 Convention in Seattle, Washington, on “Images of Christianity in the Media.” We are delighted to be able to share it with you here.
As an ESL teacher and teacher educator, I have come to value films as a resource for English language teaching. In this article I would like to comment on how I have used movies as a linguistic, cultural, and spiritual resource in some of my classes.
Linguistic Resource
Most people would agree that films are a rich resource, especially a linguistic resource, for language teachers. In my first TESOL presentation 15 years ago, I explored how language teachers could use short clips from feature films as “text” to teach from. I recall explaining several techniques for how to show clips in class with and without subtitles or sound, and discussing an information gap activity in which the teacher shows a part of the film to half the class and another part to the other half and asks students to tell each other what they had missed. Whether I asked students to just notice how a particular structure was used or had them complete a cloze activity from the movie script, the focus was usually linguistic, and the film was treated simply as text, or a corpus of visual and audio data to notice, discuss, imitate, and reproduce (see Stempleski & Tomalin, 2001, for more ideas on using films in the classroom).
Later when I wrote an ESL textbook (Wong, 1998), I devoted an entire chapter to the language needed to write a movie review and discuss films. I wanted to actively engage students in language and culture learning and I found that when students could articulate why they liked a film, whether it was because it made them cry, think, feel, or see something in a new way, they were engaged in the language and not just “practicing English.” I was no longer using the film as just text; the film was a context in which students could engage with ideas and stories that were larger than life, which went a bit deeper than the ubiquitous shopping/dating/finding-an-apartment dialogues found in typical ELT textbooks.
Cultural Resource
Later as a teacher educator, I focused more on the cultural and social aspects of films. I found films that exposed stereotypes and intolerance, hoping this would heighten students’ awareness and sensitivity to cultural difference. I selected feature films that I thought would help students see the world from another’s perspective, such as Amistad, The Mission, and X-Men, and documentaries that would help explain intercultural issues, such as Cold Water, The Color of Fear, and the Tale of O. In numerous conference presentations and articles I have addressed the use of film in teaching intercultural communicative competence. I recommend Summerfield’s (1993) Crossing Cultures Through Film for a rationale and further suggestions.
To help students analyze stereotypical representations in films, I ask the following questions (Quinlisk, 2003, p. 37) in an effort to guide students in an examination of how a particular group (ethnic, religious, social, economic, etc.) is portrayed in a film of their choice:
1. How are X portrayed physically? (e.g., clothing styles, attractiveness, age, gender)
2. How do they talk? (e.g., dialect, accent)
3. What do they talk about and with whom? (e.g., topics of conversation: serious, trivial)
4. What do they do and what are they shown doing? (e.g., professionally, for leisure)
5. To what extent are their actions meaningful to the plot?
6. What is their power or status level in their communities?
7. How is their lifestyle represented, and what do they possess?
8. Are their intercultural interactions positive, negative, or neutral?
9. What will their future be?
10. What emotions do they display?
11. What kinds of emotional responses do they evoke?
12. What are their values and how are they displayed?
13. How would you describe the moral code by which they live?
14. Overall, what stories about X as a culture are being cultivated through these images?
15. How do these cultivated stories of X compare to what you know from your own experience?
In my Intercultural Communication courses I provide a rationale for using and selecting films and a framework to design classroom film-based tasks and activities that focus on learning outcomes related to acquiring the awareness, knowledge, and skills needed for intercultural communicative competence. Graduate students select a film, which focuses on a subculture in the United States such as Mexican Americans or Native Americans, and design a series of activities around that film that could help their ESL learners to learn more about this subculture. Feature films we use in this course included Smoke Signals, The Long Walk Home, Lone Star, Real Women Have Curves, The Joy Luck Club, Children of a Lesser God, What’s Cooking, and Bend It Like Beckham, among others. See the template adapted from Summerfield and Lee (2001) in Appendix A at the end of this article for suggestions of activities, and Zeigler’s (2000) Film and Video Resources for International and Educational Exchange for a list of films that may be useful.
Spiritual Resource
Because I teach at a private Christian college, I am encouraged to consider how faith impacts teaching. I look for ways to encourage my graduate students, Christian and non-Christian, to consider the spiritual nature of their teaching. In the teaching practicum course, I use clips from Dead Poets Society, Mr. Holland’s Opus, Mona Lisa Smile, The Emperor’s Club, Stand and Deliver, Chariots of Fire, and Not One Less to help students reflect upon their vocation or calling as teachers and ask them to consider what they want their legacy to be. Each clip is chosen to help teachers reflect on a particular aspect of teaching, whether it is why they teach, how they teach, or who they teach.
Though I have asked my ESL students to critique the films that have static, negative, limited, and demeaning depictions of the people, languages, and religions my students represent, as a member of the dominant White culture, which has been guilty of providing stereotypical images of the other, I don’t spend too much time defending negative images of my culture, language, or religion. Instead, I first ask, What can I learn from the harsh rendering of protestant Christianity in films? How much of it rings true, and what parts are justified? If this is an exaggerated rendering or a one-sided portrayal, I consider what example I might suggest to present a more complex view. I have recently written pages of questions for the film Jesus Camp to help Christians respond to what they see in that film about themselves and how Evangelicals are viewed by others. An area that I would like to explore further is the images of missionaries or pastors in films. Amazing Grace, The End of the Spear, Beyond the Gates of Splendor, The Black Robe, Chariots of Fire, Luther, The Mission, Mother Teresa, and At Play in the Fields of the Lord are films about missionaries that could be examined.
Conclusion
There are a number of good resources online and in print to help teachers use films as a linguistic, cultural, and spiritual resource for their classes. My favorite three are Christianity Today’s Movie Web site, The Internet Movie Database, and Summerfield and Lee (2001). I hope you will explore the lists of these and other resources in Appendices B and C below, and add to them as you locate other books and Web sites that you find helpful.
Mary Shepard Wong is a former chair of CETC and currently serves on TESOL’s Caucus Leadership Council. She is an associate professor and director of the graduate field-based TESOL programs at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California, USA.
References
Quinlisk, C. C. (2003). Media literacy in the ESL/EFL classroom: Reading images and cultural stories. TESOL Journal, 12(3), 35-40.
Stempleski, S., & Tomalin, B. (2001). Film. New York: Oxford University Press.
Summerfield, E. (1993). Crossing cultures through film. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
Summerfield, E., & Lee, S. (2001). Seeing the big picture: Exploring American cultures on film. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
Wong, M. S. (1998). You said it! Listening/speaking strategies and activities. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Wong, M. S. (2004). Using films to teach language, culture, and respect. CATESOL News, 36(1), 10-11.
Zeigler, L. (2000). Film and video resources for international and educational exchange. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
Appendix A: A Template for Using Films in an ESL/EFL Classroom
Adapted from Summerfield and Lee’s (2001) Seeing the Big Picture. (From Wong, 2004, p. 11)
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Appendix B: Resource Books for Christian Teachers Using Films in the Classroom
(The “about this title” descriptions below are reproduced from Web sites promoting them.)
Finding God in the Movies: 33 Films of Reel Faith by Catherine M. Barsotti and Dr. Robert K. Johnston. About this title: Recognizing that Christians go to the movies, the authors present a unique resource to help believers engage in and enjoy films of faith. Includes information for understanding and discerning the Christian message relevant to 33 recent movies now available in video or DVD formats.
Reel Spirituality: Theology and Film in Dialogue by Dr. Robert K. Johnston. About this title: In view of the increasingly powerful role that movies play in cultural dialogue, Johnston has written a book to guide Christian moviegoers into a theological analysis of and conversation with film. Intended for use in the college and seminary classroom, “Reel Spirituality” helps Christians interpret movies through the eyes of faith. It provides the theological underpinnings for this art form and fosters both dialogue and discipleship.
Videos That Teach 1-4: Teachable Movie Moments From 75 Modern Film Classics by Doug Fields and Eddie James. About this title: Lists of teachable video clips from over 100 movie titles, indexed by topic and Scripture, provide the framework of this powerful tool for anyone who works with teenagers or adults.
Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films With Wisdom and Discernment by Brian Godawa. About this title: Award-winning screenwriter Brian Godawa guides you through the place of redemption in film, the tricks screenwriters use to communicate their messages, and the mental and spiritual discipline required for watching movies.
Finding Faith at the Movies by Barbara Mraz. About this title: A user-friendly guidebook to using film in Christian education.
Reel to Real: Making the Most of Movies With Youth (Vol. 3, No. 2) by Abingdon Press (Creator). About this title: Teenagers spend more time watching movies than they do in any other recreational activity. With this popular resource, youth leaders can present the foundations of Christian faith through a medium and teaching tool that teenagers know and love—the movies.
ReViewing the Movies: A Christian Response to Contemporary Film by Peter Fraser and Vernon Edwin Neal. About this title: Two experts in film offer practical help on understanding and evaluating movies from a distinctly Christian worldview. They discuss the traditional Christian approach toward movies, then suggest one that is informed and proactive. They also explain how a film is created, what the story line means for relative effectiveness, and how films impact adults and children.
Appendix C: Internet Resources for Using Films in Teaching
Christianity Today
http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies
English Learner Movie Guides
http://www.eslnotes.com/synopses.html
Documentary Educational Resources
http://www.der.org/films/index-by-subject.html
The Internet Movie Database
http://www.imdb.com
Intercultural Press
http://www.interculturalpress.com
The Multicultural Pavilion
http://www.edchange.org/transformations/dvd.html
Intercultural Communication Institute
http://www.intercultural.org/resources
Facets DVD Catalog
http://www.facets.org
UC Center for Independent Media
http://www-cmil.unex.berkeley.edu/media
Multicultural Books and Videos
http://www.multiculturalbooksandvideos.com
New Day Films
http://newday.com
Teacher’s Media Company
http://www.teachersmediacompany.com
Insight Media
http://www.insight-media.com/IMHome.htm
Global Film Network Inc.
http://www.globalfilmnetwork.net
