The basic method...

I follow a method in teaching film that has worked for me and seems to get students engaged and talking to each other. It is simple, straightforward, and can be adapted for any level of students. It is also not anything new, educators have been talking about this kind of method for years. Some call it Understanding by Design, some are using plan-do-review, some call it something else -- to me, it's all the same thing.

Step one: New knowledge. This happens in many different ways. Sometimes it's a reading followed by discussion, sometimes lecture, sometimes descriptive clips. Somehow, we introduce the new concept.

Step two: The Film. Sometimes this is integrated with step one (usually in Film and Culture, almost never in Intro...) but is often separate. We watch the film together (I think the communal nature of film viewing is very important) and look for the applications of the new knowledge in the film.

Step three: Class discussion. First, the opportunity to get gut-level reactions out there. "I liked it" / "I hated it" sort of stuff. Then go a bit deeper -- where did you see the new idea? How does the new idea explain this week's concept?

Step four: Online discussion. Now, a slightly more formal prompt. Extend the floor of the classroom. This is a particularly important step for purposes of differentiating instruction - some students aren't comfortable speaking in class but they are more comfortable posting online.

Step five: Formal application. There is usually some sort of essay assignment or formal assessment that students have to use their new knowledge and apply it in some sort of thoughtful way. They usually have a choice in new ideas to work with (depending on the semester, three to four ideas) and a choice in films. Hopefully the structure of the assignment keeps plagiarism at bay - there is always a component of how the viewer responds to the film, which is often personal and easy to catch when it isn't.