On Thursday, January 24, I woke up and began my usual morning routine. I read my morning newspapers—Inside Education, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and the Washington Post—as I enjoyed my morning coffee laced with ghee and coconut oil. Because I finished the newspapers quicker than usual, I decided to check out Facebook before heading into the bitter cold to teach two composition classes and a film class; all of which I had already prepared. I planned on spending my morning catching up on paperwork.

But my plans for the day changed when I read a Facebook post by Dr. Aaron Kashtan in which he cited a National Public Radio interview on “Why Camera Angles and Bias Support Different Opinions” which had been aired the previous day. The interview concerning the viral video “Indigenous Peoples March Washington, D.C.” Someone who had read Dr. Kashtan’s post before I did mentioned camera angles in the Today Show interview “Nick Sandmann on encounter with Nathan Phillips: ‘I wish I would’ve walked away’.” This commenter also cited what Mr. Sandmann wore for his interview and the camera angles used by the Today Show.

My morning immediately got busier. I had just been presented with the tools to develop a great lesson for the film class I was teaching later in the day. And I only had three hours to get to campus, complete a high priority task, and prepare the new lesson. It also meant that I would walk away from the course materials I had already prepared for my film class.

When I arrived on campus about 45 minutes later, I completed the high priority task.  I then re-read the article posted by Dr. Kashtan and found the viral video in YouTube.  I had seen the video earlier in the week but needed to re-watch it.  I then found and watched the Today Show interview.  I did not have time to locate “Don’t Doubt What You Saw With Your Own Eyes” which had been posted in another discussion earlier in the week, but remembered enough of the article to cite it during the class discussion.

Needless-to-say, I did not spend my morning catching up on paperwork which had been my original goal for the morning.

During my film class, I screened the viral video before listening to the NPR interview.  I then read the comments about the Today Show video before screening it.  This was followed by discussion.  We did not limit ourselves to a discussion of camera angles but included costuming, mise-en-scene, ideology, sound, and other basic film concepts that needed to be covered in the course.  After considering these issues in the context of the viral video and interview, we decided to assume that we were directors making conscious decisions about filming a scene.  We played with different concepts and considered how our changes would impact the viewer experience.

This was one of the best lessons I have ever taught concerning basic film concepts.  And I will never be able to replicate it.

Students were particularly interested in the current event that served as the basis for the class discussion. They immediately connected to the content.  This connection lead to greater engagement than I could likely have mustered had I waited to teach these concepts later in the semester.  The reason I needed to teach this lesson on January 24 was because news cycles move so quickly that—even a week later—the story might not still be current.  Although I could theoretically teach this lesson again, I cannot replicate the excitement that results from integrating a current event into the class.

Although I acknowledge that some courses might benefit from tight daily schedules, I am typically skeptical of daily schedules designed prior to the beginning of the semester; especially if the professor is unwilling to deviate from the schedule in the face of a great teaching opportunity. It would be a shame if I were unwilling to jump on Dr. Kashtan’s Facebook post for the benefit of my students. Afterall, I can still teach my planned lesson on Using Films as Teaching Tools next week. In fact, because of the discussion on camera angles (and more), students will learn more from my intended presentation when I eventually give it.

January 24 was not the first time—or even the first time this semester—that I have walked away from a lesson when something better came along. As long as the course competencies are met by the end of the semester, we should adopt a pedagogical approach that takes advantage of what is presented to us by the world outside our classrooms. Our students benefit from such a pedagogical approach.

–Steven L. Berg, PhD

---

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.