I love teacher movies… who doesn’t? As a student, I had several good and a few great teachers. As a teacher, I’ve had a number of good and a few great students. Our administrative team of central office staff and building principals in the Graves County Schools created a list of five beliefs that succinctly define our district’s educational philosophy. Coupling our beliefs with representative teacher movies makes the perfect vehicle to highlight five of my all-time favorites.Belief No. 1: “All students can learn and rise to our expectations.” “The King’s Speech” (2010): This isn’t a traditional movie about an inspirational classroom teacher who motivates students from low-income, underprivileged backgrounds, shocking the education establishment with their achievements. In fact, Colin Firth as the United Kingdom’s Prince Albert-turned-King George VI, suffers not from lack of privilege, but rather from an excess of it! Nobody can tell him “no” or scold him when he acts like a spoiled child. Geoffrey Rush, as Lionel Logue, a failed actor scratching out a living as a speech teacher-for-hire, must balance achieving their common goal with dodging the king’s tantrums. There’s no way this movie won’t end with successful delivery of the king’s speech. (After all, that’s the name of the movie!) Still, the plot and the relationship between the two takes unique twists and turns along the way.
Belief No. 2: “Everything we do should be student-centered.” “Mr. Holland’s Opus” (1993): One Internet Movie Data Base description explains, “Glenn Holland is a musician and composer who takes a teaching job to pay the rent while, in his 'spare time', he can strive to achieve his true goal - compose one memorable piece of music to leave his mark on the world. As Holland discovers 'Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans' and as the years unfold, the joy of sharing his contagious passion for music with his students becomes his new definition of success.” Ironically, when Mr. Holland loses himself in teaching music, he finds himself and creates his true masterpiece: the effect his teaching has on his students. His turning point as a young teacher occurs when he finally and genuinely connects with his students. They learn what he’s teaching through the rock’n’roll they love, rather than the classical music that frustrates them both, but for different reasons. Mr. Holland grows from being self-centered to becoming student-centered.
Belief No. 3: “Teachers influence learning more than any other factor.” “Dead Poet’s Society” (1988): Robin Williams, in his Academy Award-winning portrayal of teacher John Keating, embodies this point, perhaps better than any other teacher in movie history. Again, it’s not lack of privilege or resources that’s the obstacle here. Instead, it’s the polar opposite: the narrow expectations of tradition and pride that often result from wealth and privilege. Keating encourages his students to think for themselves so they live life fully as individuals, rather than seeing education as simply a means to an end. His academically gifted students embrace his lessons of both the poetry and the passion for living today that have been missing from their lives.
Belief No. 4: “Students learn more when authentically engaged.” Virtually all quality teacher movies illustrate this point. An especially good one is “The Great Debaters” (2007): Based on a true story, Denzel Washington play Professor Melvin B. Tolson, coach of the debate team at the all-black Wiley College in 1935 Texas. Ultimately, his team of four students debates a team from Harvard University on national radio. Increasing the stakes of authentic engagement in this David vs. Goliath story, of course, is the race issue. Enhancing the drama and the students’ drive to succeed are story strands portraying the effects of racism, bigotry, and violence in that era, even toward highly-educated, professionally-accomplished black educators.
Belief No. 5: “As a team, parents and communities help students reach their highest potential.” “Pay It Forward” (2000): Kevin Spacey as middle school teacher Eugene Simonet and his student Trevor McKinney challenge one another to step outside their comfort zones, to reach beyond their own expectations, and to make a difference in the world. Helen Hunt, as Trevor’s mother and Eugene’s potential love interest, figures into the equation as well. One legacy of this fictional movie – ironically or not – is the reality of the “Pay It Forward” movement the movie spawned that, in turn, inspired numerous random acts of kindness around the world.
Question of the Week
Which teacher movie(s) reflects a key educational belief that you hold?