Journeys in Film has developed curriculum guides for numerous films that address a variety of global issues. Students challenge traditional gender roles in New Zealand’s Maori culture, learn about refugees through young, soccer-loving Tibetan monks, explore compassion in the Middle East, experience unconditional love between a South Korean boy and his mute grandmother, and grieve the loss of family members from the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa. Upcoming guides will feature compelling films from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.
+ Learn more about our curriculum guides
Journeys in Film was founded in 2003 to broaden global learning through the powerful combination of age-appropriate films from around the world and interdisciplinary classroom materials designed to develop 21st century academic skills. Our program uses film as a "window" to help students in America's classrooms mitigate attitudes of cultural bias and racism, develop a deeper understanding of global issues, and prepare youth for effective participation in the world economy.
Journeys in Film curricular materials provide innovative standards-based lessons that foster deeper learning with real-life connections, resulting in an immersive high-impact experience for secondary students in any educational setting. This approach helps educational systems enrich their academic offerings without increasing personnel or operating costs, while meeting their federal and state educational performance mandates.
- Teach cross-cultural competence to young global citizens.
In today’s increasingly interdependent world, youth must develop 21st century competency skills to effectively participate in the global economy. Journeys in Film provides an opportunity for youth to experience a “day-in-the-life” of their peers living in other cultures, while addressing current issues that matter.
- Use media for today’s media-savvy young minds.
The integration of compelling, age-appropriate, subtitled foreign-language films with comprehensive interdisciplinary curriculum guides supports various learning styles, promotes literacy, transports students across the globe through visual storytelling and fosters deeper learning while meeting core academic objectives.
- Meet federal and state mandates for academic standards.
As a national program, Journeys in Film uses the national McRel standards system, which is consistent with “No Child Left Behind” requirements. Educators can easily identify and align the corresponding subject-area standards for their states with the delineated standards provided in each Journeys in Film lesson plan.
- Provide professional development and interdisciplinary curricular options.
Journeys in Film offers professional-development workshops to ensure effective integration of program materials into various educational formats. Each custom-designed workshop trains educators to integrate film into their lesson plans in a way that reinforces the core academic skills of reading, writing, math, science, social sciences and art, while simultaneously promoting healthy attitudes towards other ethnicities, cultures and countries.
- Present developmentally appropriate and culturally sensitive material.
Journeys in Film develops quality learning materials by enlisting the writing and editing assistance of specialists representing the issues and culture depicted in each film. Selected films examine current world issues such as environmental sustainability, conflict resolution, religion, public health and more. The curriculum guides also explore universal youth topics such as bullying, culture change, coming-of-age, gender roles and diversity.
