Ipswich High School - Tiger Yearbook (Ipswich, MA)

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of Boston University. This commit- tee, aided by John D. Rockefeller, built up a series of pictures based on charac- ter education from films which were no longer being distributed to the theatres. This scries, entitled “Secrets of Success was welcomed by public schools and other educa ion2l institutions. A Commission of Human Relations was developed under Dr. Alice Keliher to govern selections and grade them for educational purposes. Specifications were set up on subject matter, effective- ness of presentation, and expected edu- cational results. It was found tka ' the pictures having the greatest educational possibilities were those dealing with physical phenomena. Always remembering that motion pictures are an aid, never a substitute, for real educa ' ion or even for books, still we cannot minimize their growing importance among modern teaching methods, and we must consider them along with textbooks and reference books as valuable teaching aids. Nor is their value limited to any particular field. Animation in films helps the pupil in biology to visualize such les- sons as the interaction of the neurones on the spine or the passage of food in the digestive tract. One of the most popular subjects of visual education which can be used as an example to illustrate its application is botany. The student may be informed beforehand of he features to be observed in the film- ing. If the botanist is instructing his pupils on pollination, microscopP||f « studies may be viewed by the students after they have seen the motion pictures. Without the use of sound the instructor may lecture during the viewing of the film. Although a student of botany can learn many things in the course of a year from a book plus his imag’n- ation, he can benefit much more by a graphic presentation of his subject on the screen as a supplement to his book. Films can easily be adopted also to teaching foreign languages. The appli- cation of films in class may be bene- ficial to students not only in learning French or any other particular languag: but may also be instrumental in ac- quiring the cultural background of the language. With the showing of the films students may use dialogue copies from which to study. In studying English, famous plays may be brought to the classroom through the use of film. Dramatic classes may learn act- ing technique from the showing of a silent film. Many films become suit- able for several departments; for ex- ample, if “Gone With the Wind were the type of film to be distributed for educational purposes, it would be of value to the history department for its data on the Civil War and Reconstruc- tion Period of the South; a home eco- nomics class, interested in costume design, would be intrigued by the period dress; the English department would be interested in Miss Margaret Mitchell’s plot construction and in the acting; whereas the boys would marvel at the settings, the architecture, and especially 23

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ganda and not succumb to it? To do this is a difficult task, but through alertness and education it can be done. In the first place, we should note the source of the article. Is it “from high official circles” or sources close to the government?” Note how indefinite these phrases are. In all probability what follows is pure propaganda. Or is the article from reliable news agencies such as the Vatican, Associated Press, or Uni ' ed Press? Secondly, we should scrutinize the general tone. Is it over- whe lming in its praise or censure? Does it conceal a party’s faults or virtues? If so, it may be propaganda. In the end, however, education and alertness of mind are the best weapons with which one may combat this invasion, for for- eign propaganda is nothing more than an invasion. For the youth of America there is one thing to do if propaganda is to become ineffective, and that is to seek after ed- ucation. By the study of sociology and history the youth of the na ' ion will develop into a broad-minded citizenry, careful in its credulity and in forming its opinons. By study young people will learn of past instances where prop- aganda worked and bearing these for- mer lessons in mind, they will direct their present day thoughts and ac ' ions accordingly. In my opinion by true education which encourages straight thinking will the nefarious activities of propagandists be rendered ineffective. For as long as the people remain un- educated, cagey leaders will work on their emotions and evil propaganda will go on unchecked to bear is insidious fruits of hatred, prejudice, and war. VISUAL EDUCATION THROUGH THE MOTION PICTURE by Eleanor Wallace F ROM time immemorial, vision has been used along with the other senses to educate from bir ' h. A child observes, discovers, and pries into things, but on entering school this flair for learning through actual seeing is un- fortunately halted. Since vision is the most used of the senses, why not con- tinue to exercise it and bring life to the school room through the use of film? About eighteen years ago this very thought came to educators. Instead of forcing pupils to plod dully through a lifeless book, why not, they said, en- able them to see life it self, or phases of it, in action? However this idea slum- bered until 1933, principally because a great number of cheap and commonplace pictures were being produced to the ex- clusion of worthwhile films with edu- cational value. With the advent of the censor’s office of Will H. Hays, the type of mo ' ion picture was improved, and first attempts to utilize it in education were made by the Committee on Social Values of the Progressive Education Association under the leadership of Dr. Howard M. Le Sourd, Dean of the Gradua ' e School 22

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the color photography. The drawback to the use of feature films taken from popular novels is the fact that the pro- ducers try to please the masses, thus frequently distorting the story and the characters as conceived by the author — the part interesting to education. Many other types of film have proved their usefulness for educational purposes. Sound films are being used for music appreciation and for studying the tech- niques used in playing various musical instruments. Even in the realm of social contacts children, studying human relations through films, recognize their own experiences and at ' empt to estab- lish better relations with society. The March of Time, which is made available to schools through membership in the Association of School Film libraries helps to teach government, economics, sociology, and human relations. Travel- ogues and newsreels also help to broad- en the experience of the student. School- rooms in dis ' ant, out-of-the-way places need no longer be isolated but may be connected with other parts of the world through the use of ' he travelogue. New Zealand may be brought to an Alaskan schoolroom; China, to one of our own community classes. The President’s address to Congress sheds a new light on the study of civics when a newsreel is used. In addition to the educational value of the subject mat ' er itself, there are modern devices which are not only tri- umphs in science and photography but which greatly increase the educational possibilities of motion pictures. The action similar to that of the growing of rees which takes place in nature over a period of time can now be compactly observed by the student by means of time-lapse photography. On the other hand action which occurs too rapidly for analysis may be slowed down for study in science and in physical educa- tion. Through slow motion photo- graphy the elasticity of glass under ter- rific strain may be studied. The strobo- scopic method of photography recently developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is another invaluable aid to study. A film consists of a series of images projected on a screen with such rapidity as to produce an object in mo- tion. In the stroboscopic method, con- trol of light rays enables the camera to catch an object in motion — ' he wing; of a humming-bird in flight for example — an achievement v hich without the stroboscope would not be possible. An interesting experiment was carried cn in Greenwich High School of Green- wich, Connecticut where a course was developed to make studen ' s more aware of the sociological, economic, and in- ternational aspects of the motion pic- ture. With the development of this course, other courses interlocked. The services of the English classes were en- lis ' ed to send out numerous letters for information on the subject. Elocution was utilized in making the necessary records to accompany the film. Literary 24