{"id":3134,"date":"2012-03-31T18:26:44","date_gmt":"2012-03-31T17:26:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/eltchat.com\/?p=3134"},"modified":"2012-03-31T18:26:44","modified_gmt":"2012-03-31T17:26:44","slug":"how-can-you-make-the-most-of-films-movies-in-and-out-of-class-eltchat-summary-28032012","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eltchat.org\/index.php\/2012\/03\/31\/how-can-you-make-the-most-of-films-movies-in-and-out-of-class-eltchat-summary-28032012\/","title":{"rendered":"How can you make the most of films \/ movies in and out of class? #ELTchat Summary 28\/03\/2012"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a summary of the #eltchat which took place at 9pm (GMT) on Wednesday 28 March 2012. It was contributed by Steve Muir @steve_muir https:\/\/twitter.com\/#<\/span><\/a>!\/steve_muir<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Apart from the odd occasion when I\u2019ve lurked a little, this was my first #eltchat since I started using Twitter just over a year ago. It had been on my to do list, but with a class at midday, and dinner getting in the way of the evening session, there had always been a reason or excuse not to join in. When I saw this week\u2019s topic though, I put dinner on hold, poured myself a generous glass of Rioja, and settled down to chat about using films in and out of class.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>I\u2019ve always enjoyed using video in class; I remember visits to the UK in the early 90s when I\u2019d pore over the Radio Times, highlighting anything that sounded as if it might have even the slightest possibility of classroom use. At the end of my stay, I\u2019d set off for the airport with my suitcase stuffed with tea bags, sausages, and videos where I\u2019d recorded everything from documentaries to chat shows and sitcoms to soap operas, which I then topped off with films bought using my last few pounds at the duty free HMV. Since those days, the only thing that\u2019s remained the same is my enthusiasm for using video.<\/p>\n

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So, on to the summary:<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n

I say I settled down to chat – perhaps settle down is the wrong choice of word as that might imply I was relaxed; by the end of the chat, my brain was exhausted and buzzing and rushing and inspired. Especially inspired. The discussion was fast-paced and lively, ideas were coming from all directions, my fingers were tapping furiously, so much so that a lot of of my own tweets went over the 140-character limit and didn\u2019t make it into the chat. Many others didn\u2019t make it into transcript because I kept forgetting to include the hashtag, and it wasn\u2019t until I read the transcript that I realised there was a stack of tweets I\u2019d missed entirely.<\/p>\n

Why (not) use films?<\/span>
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I got the feeling that everyone wanted to get down to the how rather than the why, perhaps because we all know that a well-chosen video can be motivating, inspiring, engaging, memorable, educational and entertaining.<\/p>\n

As @theteacherjames says, \u201cmost people like film, why not use it?\u201d \u00a0However, he recommends checking students\u2019 tastes before doing a movie module in case you come across a student who isn\u2019t at all interested in film.<\/p>\n

Something else to take into account is the students\u2019 culture, points out @Victor_K.<\/p>\n

@Naomishema says that the beauty of film is that you can find something acceptable to ALMOST every population. If not, don’t use.<\/p>\n

Just be careful that the film doesn\u2019t become a babysitter, warns @SueAnnan.<\/p>\n

What are they good for? Any guidelines?<\/span><\/h2>\n