Mini Project 2

What do people think about the way teachers are portrayed in Hollywood films?

ADMINISTRATION Teachers are either portrayed as being helpful or hurtful in movies. They are always taken to extreme situations, when in reality teachers are typically average. They may have an impact on the students, but not that drastic. -Carrie

TEACHERS In general I feel as though teachers are portrayed well. They are usually seen as positive influences and help make tough situations better. -Liz

STUDENTS       I feel as though Hollywood films do not give the students enough credit. The teachers may have a positive influence on the them but in the end, it is the students that put in all the hard work to succeed. -Morgan

PARENTS Movies make teachers seem as though they truly care about students from not only an academic perspective, but they also care about teaching them life lessons and how to grow as a person. -John

Overall, I feel as though everyone had similar views of how teachers are represented in Hollywood films. However, they each were more concerned about specific parts. For example, being a parent you are concerned that your child is going to be taught good life lessons in school. Therefore, my dad talked about how much he liked seeing teachers care about how the child grows as a person and not only focused on the academic portion. I on the other hand was concerned that the teachers were getting too much of the credit. My cousin, Liz, has been a teacher for a while and likes how teachers have a good reputation in films. My other cousin, Carrie, (high school principal) talked about how movies either exaggerate how good or bad teachers are. She wishes every teacher had that much of an impact on students. The Harvard article talks a little bit about my idea to put more of the focus on the students rather than the teacher. Movies make the teacher look like they are doing all the work, when in reality it is the students who should be rewarded.

Gillard, Colleen. "Good Teachers." Harvard Graduate School of Education. October 2011. Web. http://hepg.org/hel/article/510. March 2013.