I’m Kieran Donaghy, an English teacher at UAB Idiomes Barcelona , Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona, and I set up Film English in March 2010. Film English is a site which promotes the use of film in the language classroom. There are lesson plans, a glossary, links and videos to help both teachers and students.
The three main objectives of Film English are:
- promote the critical and creative use of film in the language classroom
- promote cineliteracy, the ability to read critically and evaluate moving images, in the language classroom.
- promote creativity amongst both teachers and students.
To promote creativity I try to follow The Holstee Manifesto which you can read here.
Dear Kieran,
How are you?
I’m writing to you for some advice. I regularly read your website and I’m always inspired by your lessons.
This year I’ve returned to Edinburgh to endure an MSc in TESOL. It has been a very intense year of studying and I’m about to embark on the dissertation which requires a research element. I’m really interested in exploring the potential for video in the esl classroom as a motivational tool or how it can be used to foster critical literacy skills. Due to restricted time to carry the research out I will attempt to find out how ESL teachers use videos in the classroom.
I was wandering if you have any ideas on references or similar studies which you could recommend.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time.
Kind regards
Andy
http://eslimaginarium.wordpress.com/
tweet: @mrcabezamagica
p.s. Just to let you know I have also forwarded this message to Jamie Keddie as your both interested in this particular field. I would be grateful if could you forward this to anyone else you know who could help. Thanks
Hi Andy,
Good to hear from you, I’m very well, thanks. I’ll send you information on different studies and acrticles in the use of film, and the approach I take. I’ve got a presentation at IATEFL next week, and I’m a bit tied up at the moment, but I can give you a detailed response after Easter if that’s OK.
Good luck with the dissertation.
All the best,
Kieran
Hi Kieran,
Thank you very much for your kind and considerate response. I would be delighted if you could give me more detailed information. I’m still unsure whether I should pursue the topic and also concerned about how I will obtain data. I think that your advice would help considerably towards a clearer decision.
Best of luck at IATEFL. I really wanted to go but I have some assignments to complete so it’s not possible. I aim to watch it online and looking forward to watching your presentation.
Thanks again,
Andy
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Greeting Kieran,
I tend to judge movies by a “could I have done that?” approach and the ones that I love the most are films that:
i) i would never have been able to conceive and don’t understand how the writer could have conceptualized the script, let alone form it into reality by sheer force of will…think Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation.
and ii) movies that I could have come up with and made myself if I managed to forced the limits of my own creativity, productivity and focus.
Sir Ken Robinson may be the Charlie Kaufman of the educational world…this website of yours would be me at my absolute best.
good job
you have a fan.
Bob Wallace
English/Media at upper secondary school in Sweden