I'd rather watch the movie than read the book

Abstract

Geographers have been using film as a pedagogic device for some time, but it is not until recently that the full power of this medium has been recognised within the discipline as a forceful determinant of cultural norms. When using film in the classroom, I argue that there is not only a need to consider carefully the narrative of conventions followed by film-makers but also a need for awareness of the possibility subtexts within the film which mark significant cultural and political biases. This is equally as true of 'objective' documentary cinema as it is of narrative or fictional cinema. Examples of movies that I have used in the classroom are discussed in order to suggest that narrative cinema can make an important contribution to the geography curriculum in higher education.

Visuality, Aurality, and Shifting Metaphors of Geographical Thought in the Late Twentieth Century

“…I am, for example, mildly worried about the decline of good visuals, especially good maps, in geography-related scholarly outlets (Wheeler 1998). Theoretically minded geographers' "mapphobia" (Wheeler 1998) is disturbing when we consider the dominant roles of visual images in our society in general (Stephens 1998) and among our students in particular (Aitken 1994). We should never let our concerns for local sensibility blind our vision for a global sense; nor should our quest for a global sense deafen our ear to local sensibilities.…”

Disciplining Subjectivity and Space: Representation, Film and its Material Effects

“…13 Please see Pitman (2002) for a discussion on the representation of the missing women's issue. 14 For a more in-depth introduction on geographer's work on documentary discourse please refer to Aitken (1994) and Gold (2002) on documentary, geographical inquiry, and pedagogy; Natter and Jones (1993) on power, representation and subjectivity; Jenkins (1990) on the construction of ''reality' ';and Kennedy and Lukinbeal (1997) for a very helpful overview. 15 The officers of The Odd Squad view their drug awareness work as a preventative crime measure, which they understand to be a component of community policing.…”

Disney-Pixar to the rescue: harnessing positive affect for enhancing children’s active mobility

“…The most obvious application of the arguments in this paper would be in school and university teaching, where issues of mobility are being discussed. Popular films can make an ''important contribution to the geography curriculum in higher education'' (Aitken, 1994). They could also be applied in conferences and seminars or in workshops with planners or government policy makers.…”