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FILM. The Impact of Student Made Documentaries. . The rationale. Documentaries are everywhere, covering a great deal of subjects and taking a number of different forms.
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FILM The Impact of Student Made Documentaries.
The rationale Documentaries are everywhere, covering a great deal of subjects and taking a number of different forms. The popularity of reality TV has also boosted the growth of celebrity based documentaries and a familiarity with documentary styles. In the history department we documentaries! What did my students think? When surveyed a great number of students had seen and learned from documentaries... at school. The plan Would empowering the students to making their own documentaries enable them to see the uses of the genre and help their learning? The most popular documentary seen on TV by the surveyed students was... Educating Essex.
Phase 1: Experimentation All 5 of my groups were surveyed. All 5 expressed interest in documentary making. One student in each group volunteered to direct the project. Prior to Christmas the AS Classes started with a planning session for a mini-film on the Bolshevik revolution led by the student directors. These sessions included all students writing and planning short segments.
The students then had 30 minutes to film their planned sequences.
Lessons learnt... Lessons learnt in Phase 1 It is very hard not to get involved as the students are working on the project. Students who do not normally get involved in activities seemed to work in a team on this occasion. Students that watch documentaries have an advantage over those who do not in terms of time limits and how to include facts and concepts.
Phase 2: A2 Documentaries With longer teaching time the A2 Modern and Early Modern documentaries could be created over a greater length of time. Both groups began production shortly after Christmas. Sadly, one group found it difficult to work on the filming and abandoned the project.
Phase 3: AS Modern Britain Now with only 1 AS Group remaining- the toughest module in the AS Modern course was tackled by Henry Weaver and his classmates. The film makers would use some lesson time and film in a different room. All editorial decisions were theirs. The film tackles both content and skills required for the course. When surveyed, the students reported that they had found the process of creating the film helpful.
Some conclusions and lessons learnt. The dangers of ambition. Does not suit control freaks. The journey can be as (if not more) important than the destination. You can trust your students. Timing is vital.
