Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement
We have added a new film guide to our library to help you teach with film about political corruption and civic engagement! Political corruption is an abuse of power in which public officials and political leaders use their positions of public trust and influence for private gain. An informed and educated population is essential for a thriving democracy because people can hold government officials accountable and make it harder for them to abuse their power. Government transparency and a free press are also important. Our Civic Engagement Lessons are designed to introduce students to the the mechanics of political corruption and the ways that everyday citizens can play a role in maintaining healthy democracies. These are great tools for teaching Civics, Current Events, Government, Political Science, and Social Studies.
Resources to Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement
Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement: And So It Begins — New Resource!
“How can you have election integrity
if you don’t have integrity of facts?”
Maria Ressa
And So It Begins follows key players in the 2022 Philippines presidential election from two sides of an increasingly dangerous war between press and government. Journalist Maria Ressa faces many legal charges because the government of the Philippines specifically enacts laws aimed at undermining journalistic freedoms and integrity in order to pave the way for increased political corruption. The Philippines is an important case study on the relationship between a free press and political corruption.
Our And So It Begins Learning Guide features a section on Political Corruption and Civic Engagement. It explores the actions that weaken democratic institutions and pave the way for political corruption. It also examines the power of civic engagement and the civic responsibilities of global citizens. This section includes questions for discussion, writing, or personal reflection, as well as extension activities, and additional resources.
More Resources to Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement:
Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement: Navalny
The Navalny documentary provides an intimate portrait of Russian opposition leader, democracy champion and anti-corruption campaigner Alexei Navalny, the man most feared by Vladimir Putin. Our Navalny Learning Guide includes a section on Civic Engagement: Political Corruption, Nationalism, Leadership that explores the civic engagement responsibilities of global citizens. The Navalny film and learning guide make a powerful combination with And So It Begins.
Lesson Grades: 9, 10, 11, 12, College, Adult Learning Subjects: Civics, Current Events, Political Science, Social Studies
Teach with Film about Political Corruption & Civic Engagement: Civics and Civic Engagement Lesson Collection
We recommend the classroom-ready lessons in our Civics and Civic Engagement Lesson Collection to further explore issues raised in the resources listed here. Relevant subjects and themes in this collection include: Civic Engagement and Community Belonging. Community Action and Engagement, Effective Advocacy, Grassroots Work, The Strategic Use of Power, What is Power, and Working for Change.
As educators and communities seek to highlight Black history during the month of February, we want to highlight our free curriculum guides and discussion guides for powerful films for your classroom. These films tell important stories of Black joy, Black history, Black resilience, Black achievement and much more. Teaching with film for Black History Month, or at any time of the year, engages students and brings important stories that shape our world to light.
Among our most popular resources are our curriculum guides for Hidden Figures, Just Mercy, and Summer of Soul. All three of these films, and the free core-based lesson plans we’ve created to accompany them, are award-winning films that tell important true stories of Black History in the U.S. Our Hidden Figures curriculum guide features 8 lesson plans with lessons about U.S. History and Civil Rights as well as STEM lessons to engage students with math and science learning.
Further, for Just Mercy, in addition to four lessons, which highlight U.S. History, Civil Rights, U.S. Government and Civics, we offer an independent student learning packet that can be used in hybrid learning settings. Additionally, many educators pair this film and our resources with their teaching of To Kill A Mockingbird.
All of these resources are completely free to download. Simply visit our library, click on the film and follow instructions to add these free resources to your cart. You click here to browse our library of free resources: https://journeysinfilm.org/library/.
Black History Lessons
???? Update February 2024! Looking for individual lessons for teaching Black history? Check out our brand new Black History Lessons collection, with classroom-ready individual lessons for teaching US Black History and Global Black History.
Expanding the Canon with Film for Black History Month
???? Update October 2023! We’ve added a new Disney feature film to our Black History collection: Chevalier, based on the true life story of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, a renowned fencer, violinist, and the first Black classical music composer in France who took the court of Marie Anoinette by storm. Our Chevalier Discussion Guide provides a springboard for engaging discussions about Race and Identity, Women and Patriarchy, and also Bologne’s legacy and the French Revolution. You can also check out this blog post on Share My Lesson, Teaching about Joseph Bologne and Amplifying Hidden Histories.
We also encourage you to explore the discussion guides we created for LA92and American Inside Out with Katie Couric. LA92 is a National Geographic documentary about the uprising that took place in Los Angeles in 1992 after footage of police brutality against Rodney King rocked the nation. American Inside Out with Katie Couric is National Geographic’s documentary companion piece to their magazine’s race issue.
Furthermore, we encourage educators to include resources and stories during Black History Month that highlight Black experiences from around the world. Thus, in our library, we have a free curriculum guide for Beat the Drum. This narrative film (appropriate for high school students) is about a young South African boy who is orphaned because of AIDS. He journeys from his rural village to the city to find his uncle. It becomes a journey of self-discovery. Our curriculum guide for this film features important lessons about South African, Epidemics/Pandemics and more.
Additionally, Disney’s narrative film Queen of Katwe, featuring Lupito Nyong’o, tells the true life story of Phiona Mutesi, a 9 year-old chess prodigy from Kampala, Nigeria. Our discussion guide for this film helps students dive into Phiona’s story and connect with her inspiring life journey.
Finally, another of our most popular educational resources is our free curriculum guide for The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. This is a powerful narrative film that tells the true life story of William Kamkwambe. William saw a need in his village in Malawi and used education and innovation to meet that need. Our rich six lesson curriculum guide for this film features powerful STEM lessons with hands-on activities, Environmental Science lessons, ELA lessons, World History and much more.
Thus, no matter what subject area you teach, our library has something for you and all of our resources are free!
Free Webinars for Teaching with Film for Black History Month
Through Share My Lesson, you can watch, on demand, our webinars for many of the curriculum guides we’ve featured in this blog. Here is a list, with links to all of the relevant free webinars available through Share My Lesson.
???? Looking for individual lessons for teaching Black history? Check out our brand new Black History Lessons collection, with classroom-ready individual lessons for teaching US Black History and Global Black History. Plus free, on-demand professional development webinars to support teaching Black History.
Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month
Teach about the impact of healthcare inequities on public health and the urgency of healthcare for all with The Invisible Shield (and yes, it talks talks about the Tuskegee Institute, as it should).
February Daily Themes
Feb 1 National Freedom Day (signing of 13th amendment – USA)
Check out our films on gender equity, racial equity, LGBTQ equity, human rights & more in the Journeys in Film library.
Finally, while thematic weeks and months are fun and helpful, we know that media literacy, civics, Black history, and many of the other themes we have highlighted can be integrated into your curriculum any time of year, so we hope these resources inspire you no matter when you find them!
Written by SJ Evans
Around the Web: Educational Resources
Our educational resources and content are often shared by other premium educational organizations like Share My Lesson, Edutopia, Video Librarian and others. On these sites, and others, you’ll find free lesson plans, articles of relevance for educators, film reviews and filmmaker interviews and much more. Here are just a few examples of where you’ll find Journeys in Film around the web!
We’d love to hear from you about your favorite educational resource sites: What are your go-to sites for educational resources? What additional educational sites would you like to see us on? How can we support your teaching initiatives? Get in touch and let us know!
