Journeys in Film, a project of The Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, is helping to shape a national plan for film education that is comprehensive and deliberate.

We harness the power of film to enrich the educational experience of today’s students, by developing film-based study guides across school subjects that help teachers prepare students to live and work as informed, media-literate and globally competent citizens.

The Film Industry is changing

The film industry is undergoing rapid changes in how it delivers content to viewers. It is easier now, more than ever, for teachers to access films for classroom teaching.  Filmmakers are able to broaden their audiences for films that have the potential to provoke thoughtful discussions of universal, timeless topics, which can be translate into powerful learning experiences.

Education is changing

At the same time, there is a surge of interest in teaching with new media and digital platforms, including film.  Forward thinking leaders in education are supporting innovation in teaching methods and professional development services for their teachers.

Film-Education is just beginning

The key to using movies for education is the quality of the lesson plans and discussions that follow after the lights go on.  Journeys in Film has developed an innovative and interdisciplinary template to use film as an intellectual framework for teaching core academics in America’s schools.

We use film as springboards for developing interdisciplinary lesson plans in subjects ranging from math, science, language arts and social studies to topics which have become critical for students to learn more about—like environmental sustainability, poverty and hunger, global health and immigration.

Teachers need consistency in learning to integrate film into their lessons

Journeys in Film is committed to helping shape a national plan for film and education that is comprehensive and deliberate. Although many teachers have used film in their classrooms, not many have been trained to teach with and about film. When middle and high school teachers look for models for the effective use of films in classrooms, the choices are slim, and what is available is varied.  There is a myriad of companion material for films, to choose from.  There are discussion guide formats, lessons based on the subject of the film, film-making techniques, and film–perspective etc.  These materials are valuable in certain settings outside of the school day, however, more deliberate, and professional methods are needed for film-based education.

Teacher effectiveness is critical to student achievement

Although many teachers have shown movies in their classrooms, not many have been trained to teach with and about film.  Journeys in Film provides teachers with the resources and the expertise to introduce film into their teaching with our prepared curricula, through customized professional development workshops. We not only provide teachers with comprehensive training, but also with creative ways of infusing a global perspective into their teaching.

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