blog




  • Essay / The representation of education through films

    There is no doubt that the educational system of the United States of America is facing new challenges related to the increasing complexity of society, especially with the technological revolution. Fostering high-quality educational experiences for students becomes an obstacle that students, teachers, and ultimately society must overcome in order to continue to thrive in an ever-changing 21st century environment. In this essay, I attempt to explore the possibilities of examining how the education system is represented through popular films. In order to examine the cultural values ​​displayed in the film industry, I decided to choose the following three films: Precious (II), Freedom Writers, and Bully. I will include information about each film separately and in the end I hope to arrive at an answer about the importance of how the standard depicts the education system and the struggles that students and teachers must go through. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The first movie I'm going to talk about is Precious. Precious was produced in 2009 and tells the story of Claireece Jones, a sixteen-year-old high school student who was mentally and physically abused by her parents and often by her classmates. Claireece or Precious, her middle name which she uses to introduce herself, is a black woman, illiterate, pregnant and overweight. Precious lives with her mother (Mary) in Harlem, New York. Mary is described as a lazy person who doesn't even look for a job, lives on welfare, and watches TV all the time. She also appears to be a person who just smokes and is involved in fraud regarding her social status. On the other hand, Precious seems very ambitious, at least through what she said at the beginning, despite the adversity she had to face on a daily basis. His ambition also shines through in his daydreams of being safe and healthy; things she didn't have at the time. For Precious to be successful, I believe she realized that she needed to stay in school so that she could continue her education and, later, break free from the unforgiving and harsh environment in which she lived. The school principal has decided to move. in an alternative school where she can learn to read and write. Precious had difficulty adapting, and as she was not very well accepted in the current school environment because she was overweight and could neither read nor write like people her age. So even though Precious went through difficulties within her micro-society (family), she also had difficulties outside of her home. As a result, it is very difficult for Precious to learn, thrive, and gain knowledge. As the film progresses, we realize that Precious was raped by her father and as a result, she became pregnant. On top of that, Precious discovered she was HIV positive. I think the film's production team did a great job portraying how she was emotionally abused by her mother telling her, "Take the fucking shit off me" and by her peers calling her fat and sexually harass. The film showed how she was physically abused by her mother who beat her and we could see flashbacks and memories of when her father raped her. All of these examples account for the struggles and responsibilities that Precious had to take on at this very young age. The second film which is Freedom Writers, unlike the first film which focuses on a student, this time this film gives the center of attention to a professor fromfrom a middle class family and who appears to be educated, handsome and very intelligent. The school Erin taught at was in Long Beach, California. Erin didn't know what she was getting into, as she was unprepared for the nature of the classroom. Erin just started her first teaching job. Being in such a diverse population, where Latinos, Whites, Blacks, Asians and others didn't seem to get along very well. Many students were involved in gang groups, and almost everyone in the class knew someone who had died from gun violence. At this point, Erin has done her best to change the situation and has made it mandatory to write daily journals, however, she will not read them until the students give her permission to do so. Erin also sacrificed two main things in my opinion: first, her time and money, and second, her relationship with Scott. Erin had to find other jobs to pay and support students and she struggled to find the right time to think about her wedding. Erin continued to inspire her class and put herself at risk of losing her job as many administration staff members were concerned and very supportive. Erin also motivated young students to pursue education beyond just a high school diploma. Once Erin gained the students' trust and they became close to her, it allowed her to share her knowledge, love, care, and attention; the basics that everyone in this school needed. The film ends on a very positive note where many of Erin's students continue their education beyond high school. The third movie I'm going to talk about is called Bully. According to the National Center for Education Statistics and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, “between one in four and one in three American students report being bullied at school. Far fewer have been victims of cyberbullying. Unlike other films, this is a documentary that shows how many of us are victims of bullying. Not only that, but sometimes you don't need to directly be a bully, you just need to be a bystander who stays silent or indirectly bullies someone. This documentary does a great job of providing statistics and real-life examples of children whose lives have been greatly affected by bullying. The bullying crisis causes many children to become unmotivated on their first day of school, and even leads to the absence of hundreds of thousands of students across the country. Bully mainly tells the story of five teenagers (Alex, Kelby, Tyler, Cody and JeMeya) who were exposed to different types of bullying. These teens have had different stories ranging from nervousness about going back to school in Alex's case, to Kelby being a young lesbian girl who doesn't feel welcome anywhere in town or at home. school and who, therefore, might think about suicide, to Tayler who committed suicide as a result of bullying where his peers pushed him into a locker and verbally abused him as his father described, to JeMeya who was sent to juvenile detention while carrying her mother's gun (not to hurt anyone but enough to scare the other kids who bullied her). All of these stories touched me personally and showed me how bullying can cost many lives. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay To conclude, through the three films discussed above, we can perceive a general trend in the general problems faced by..