a powerpoint presentation highlighting films about teachers

A PowerPoint Presentation Highlighting

Films about Teachers

Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

This presentation is designed to share some films about

teachers and teaching…

so, sit back and enjoy the show!


Blackboard Jungle is a movie about the events which

occur at North Manual High School, an inner-city school.

Richard Dadier is a new teacher at the school and is

faced with challenges and disappointments. His students

are rude, unruly, and violent. As a teacher, he finds a lack

of support from students and staff.

The movie features Glenn Ford, Sidney Poitier,

and Jamie Farr. Bill Haley & His Comets’ song

“Rock Around the Clock” is also

featured in the movie.


The Breakfast Club is a movie about five teenage students

who have detention together on a Saturday. Despite the

fact that the students are quite different from one

another, and represent different cliques, they realize they

experience some of the same thoughts and feelings as

teenagers. This movie is considered to be what is called a

cult classic. It has its own group of fans/followers.

The movie features Judd Nelson,

Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason,

Anthony Michael Hall, Molly

Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy.


Cheers for Miss Bishop is a black and white film from the

early ‘40s about a teacher who dedicates her life to

teaching. Family and friends are

important to her, but teaching is her

passion. In many ways, Miss Bishop

exemplifies teaching at its best.

The movie begins with Miss Bishop as a

young teacher and follows her through her

retirement. The movie ends with a

celebration given by her former

students honoring their favorite teacher,

Miss Ella Bishop.


The Chocolate War is a movie about what goes on

behind the walls of a particular elite Catholic School for

young men. As a new student at the high school, Jerry

Renault is faced with the task of selling chocolate candy

bars for a fund-raiser even though he does not want to.

Jerry takes a stand against some of his peers and

teachers, facing consequences which cause him to

question right from wrong.


Coach Carter is a movie based on a true story about a

basketball coach who benched his team. The team was

benched because of the players’ poor grades. In the

movie, Coach Carter finds his students challenging and

disrespectful. He takes the necessary steps to get the

team back on track by setting strict

rules and having high expectations

of them.

Coach Carter refers to a quote by the

well respected Marianne Williamson

throughout the movie. The quote is

about fear and liberation.


Dangerous Minds is a movie about Lou Anne Johnson, a

first year English teacher. On her first day of school, she

finds her students to be apathetic, disengaged, and

tough. She soon realizes she has to take on a tougher

image to get their respect and attention. She does so by

revealing she was an ex-Marine. Yet, she also shows her

“soft side.”

Ms. Johnson gets her students

“hooked” with poetry by using

Bob Dylan’s song “Mr.

Tambourine Man” and leads

them to study Dylan Thomas’

“Do Not Go Gentle Into That

Good Night.” Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Dead Poet’s Society takes place in a preparatory school

for boys. John Keating (played by Robin Williams) is a

rather quirky English teacher who provides his students

with a new outlook on life. He encourages his students to

appreciate what literature and poetry offer.

The title of the movie is from a

literary club Mr. Keating was a

member of when he was a student

at the same prep school. The movie

line “Carpe diem. Seize the day,

boys. Make your lives

extraordinary.” fits the film

perfectly.


The true story of Ernest Green, one of the “Little Rock

Nine.” This movie serves as a reminder of discrimination

toward African-Americans in the ‘50s. Ernest Gideon

Green was the first African-American to graduate from the

previously all- white Central High

School. He graduated on May 27, 1958.

This movie, as well as “Ruby Bridges”

and “The Long Walk Home” serve as

exceptional movies about the

Civil Rights Movement.


This movie is about a young African-American man

named Jamal (played by Rob Brown) who becomes

friends with a reclusive writer, William Forrester (played by

Sean Connery). One day, one of Jamal’s friends dares

him to enter Forrester’s apartment. Jamal does so and

accidentally leaves his backpack inside. Forrester finds it

and reads Jamal’s journals and carefully “edits” them. A

friendship begins.

The two men share the love of

writing and help one another as

writers, but even more

importantly, as confidants.


Freedom Writers is a movie based on the book “The

Freedom Writers Diary.” It is about a new teacher, Erin

Gruwell (played by Hillary Swank) who has a class of at-risk

students. Mrs. Gruwell encounters problems with her

students and her department head. She remains

determined to persevere.

Educating her students about the Holocaust, Mrs. Gruwell

takes on two jobs in order to

purchase materials for her

students. During her teaching

career, she has her students read

“The Diary of Anne Frank” and

invites Holocaust survivors to

speak to her classes. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

The Great Debaters is a movie based on a true story

about Melvin Tolson, a debate coach from Wiley College

and his debate team. The time frame for the movie is in

the ‘30s- a time of Jim Crow laws and lynching.

Discrimination against African-Americans inconvenienced

their use of public facilities and schools. This posed

problems for the Wiley College debate team and their

coach who were African-

Americans. The team had to

travel to and from competitions,

which were held with students

from all-white schools.


This made for television movie is based on the true story of

Liz Murray. Liz is homeless at the young age of 15. Both of

her parents are drug addicts, and Liz and her sister are

faced with the challenge of taking care

of their parents, as well as themselves.

Wanting more, Liz goes back to school

and enters an essay in a contest

sponsored by the New York Times.

She wins the essay contest and earns

a scholarship to Harvard University.


The Karate Kid is the classic movie about Daniel LaRusso

(played by Ralph Macchio), a teenage boy who moves to

Southern California. He and his mother live in a small

apartment, and he learns karate from the handyman, Mr.

Miyagi (played by Pat Morita). Daniel

learns martial arts in order to survive

beatings from another boy at his school.

Daniel learns karate and lessons in life.

Mr. Miyagi and Daniel form a special

friendship and celebrate a victory

together.


Lean On Me is a movie based on Eastside High School in

New Jersey. The students in the school are involved in

drugs, gangs, and violence. The school’s principal, Joe

Clark (played by Morgan Freeman) permanently suspends

the troublemakers.

Faced with problems from staff and

parents, Clark remains focused and

does not give in. In the end, he is put

in jail, but his fans (students) show

their support for him and demand

he be released. The students also

show him that they passed the state

exams.


Matilda is a movie based on the book of the same name

by Roald Dahl. Matilda Wormwood (played by Mara

Wilson) is bright from birth. She belongs to a family who

places no value on education. Her father, Harry (played

by Danny De Vito) and her mother, Zinnia (played by

Rhea Perlman) are neither educated nor effective as

parents. Matilda loves to read and

has a wonderful teacher,

Miss Honey, who inspires her to

challenge herself.

The movie offers comedy, fantasy,

and some suspense.


The Miracle Worker is a movie available in different

versions. It is based on the autobiography of Helen Keller.

As a young girl, Helen Keller became deaf and blind due

to an illness. Her parents hired a young teacher, Miss Annie

Sullivan, to teach her.

The movie’s first version (1962) starred Anne Bancroft. In

1979, Patti Duke played Miss

Sullivan and Melissa Gilbert

played Helen. In 2000, Hallie

Kate Eisenberg played Helen.

The story is also performed as

live production.


Mona Lisa Smile is a movie about a young art teacher

from California who teaches at Wellesley College. The

movie takes place in the ‘50s, a time in which most

females were conservative. Miss Watson (played by Julia

Roberts) is rather liberal and wants

her students to seek more from life.

For this, she is judged somewhat harshly

by her colleagues, administrators, and

some of her students.

Though Miss Watson was at the college

one brief year, she made a lasting

impression on her students.


Mr. Holland’s Opus is a movie about a music teacher

named Mr. Glenn Holland. Mr. Holland (played by Richard

Dreyfuss) teaches music at Kennedy High School for thirty

years. During his thirty year tenure, he faces problems at

school and at home. At home, he has a

son who is hearing impaired, an

unfortunate occurrence for a man who

can never share his passion of music

with. At school, he fights for his music

program. The school has budget cuts

which force Mr. Holland to retire.


Renaissance Man is a comedy about a man, Bill Rago

(played by Danny De Vito) who loses his job and is

assigned a temporary teaching position as an English

teacher at an Army base. His students are in need of

guidance and direction, which he offers.

Rago teaches them about Henry V.,

literary works, and quotes.

In the end, his students prove to be

successful and he signs on for another

year.


Speak is based on the novel by the same name. It is also a

made for television movie about a teenage girl who is

raped by a senior student at her high school. As a result of

the rape she, Melinda (played by Kristen Stewart) does not

speak. When her best friend starts to

date the boy who raped her, Melinda

tells her about the rape incident.

Later in the movie, Melinda is confronted

by the rapist and puts up a fight with

him.


Stand and Deliver is a movie based on the true story of

Jaime Escalante, (played by Edward J. Olmos) a math

teacher at Garfield High School in Los Angeles. Mr.

Escalante had a unique gift of winning the respect and

attention of his students. He tutored them on Saturdays,

and led them to passing the AP

Calculus examination. For him,

they gave their best.

The Educational Testing Service is

surprised with the passing test

scores and demands that the

students take the exam again.

The students comply, and pass. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Take the Lead is a movie about dance, school, and

vandalism. Antonio Banderas plays Pierre Dulaine, a

dance instructor who oversees students serving detention

in the basement of the school. Dulaine encourages his

students to perfect their dance performances and

compete in a dance competition.


This movie is based on a short story entitled “The Palace

Thief” and takes place in a prep school for young men.

William Hundert (played by Kevin Kline) is a professor who

encourages his students to prepare for an annual Julius

Caesar competition.

Mr. Hundert’s biggest challenge is one of his students,

Sedgewick Bell, the rebellious

son of a U.S. senator. Sedgewick

is a cheater, liar, and

troublemaker but Mr. Hundert

tries to help him, only to find he

really didn’t learn.


This movie takes place in an inner city school in London,

England. Sidney Poitier plays Mark Thackeray, an engineer

who has not found a job in his field. He accepts a

teaching job and encounters that a majority of the “kids”

rule at the school. He realizes he has been treating his

students as kids, rather than adults. He adjusts his lessons

accordingly and sees positive results.

Thackeray is able to “reach” his

students, gaining their trust and

respect. They, in turn, learn many

important lessons in life.


Up the Down staircase is a movie about a young woman,

Miss Barrett, who begins her teaching career at Calvin

Coolidge High School in New York City. The school is

overcrowded and filled with unruly students. Several

incidents occur involving some of the students and their

teachers, and Miss Barrett becomes more

and more discouraged about teaching.

At the end of the year, she submits her

resignation. She soon realizes she has

made a positive impact on one of her

students and her plans change.


a powerpoint presentation highlighting films about teachers

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