Educational Representations Through the Media

About

This module provides a general introduction to educational studies through the lens of media. Media is understood here as both fictional sources (e.g. film) and non-fictional sources (e.g. television documentaries).

The module considers how different forms of media ‘re-present’ educational reality—specifically the practice of formal education—and the debates and issues within it. These issues may include the proper functions and aims of formal education, the qualities of a good teacher, the marketisation of education, and the extent to which education promotes or hinders justice in society.

By engaging with selected sources, you will examine how education is represented and what education is understood to be. You will also explore the value of both fictional and non-fictional sources when researching and writing about education, considering them as tools for entertainment as well as insight. This, in turn, raises questions around performativity and reliability in education and educational research, the relationship between representation and reality, and how understandings of reality are shaped by such representations.

Week one
Introduction to the module, including aims, purposes, expectations, outcomes and assessment
Introduction to the ‘language of film’, examining how moving images re-present reality broadly and education specifically, and exploring the relationship between representation and reality
Critical analysis of educational representations in moving-image genres such as short films and advertisements
Analysis of a feature-length film (e.g. Dead Poets Society), considering questions about teacher–student relationships, identities and curricula

Week two
Consideration of how information and ideas are presented in fictional and non-fictional media
Critical analysis of two documentaries (e.g. China’s Ant People and We Were Children) to explore issues such as the function of schooling, academic institutions and wider understandings of education
Excursion to the Ragged School Museum and surrounding streets in East London to consider how the function of schooling may have changed over time
Delivery of assessed presentations

Week three
Analysis of a feature film (e.g. The Great Debaters) to examine themes such as the role of educational institutions in society
Consideration of how different media sources provide broader insights into education
Consolidation of the module and preparation and submission of the final assessment

Course leader

Dr Rowena Azada-Palacios

Course aim

This module aims to:

- Introduce you to a range of contested issues in the study of education through the reading and discussion of theoretical literature on topics such as the proper functions and aims of formal education, the qualities of a good teacher, the marketisation of education, and the extent to which education either promotes or hinders justice in society.
- Develop your critical analysis of different forms of media sources.
- Introduce you to ideas around the relationship between reality and educational representations.
- Give you the opportunity to develop your skills in analytical thinking, scholarly reading, academic writing, public presentation, and collaboration.

Fee info