The educational screen (c1922-c1956])

April, 194} Page 137 k-cture a wet-k for each area, of about titty minutes 111 k'ligth, l)ut liekl in the evening so that a rini-over will not be awkward. Of these, about one in five is fictional or narrative, and these are deliberately allowed to run for about double the usual time. This is possible because narrative holds the attention unobtrusively over a longer period. .About a third of each period is devoted to analysis and discussion. With the longer narrative film, the time for sucii discussion is reduced. The lecturer begins with an introduction to the subject illustrated by the film, .stressing things to be observed. This may be pointed u]) with slides. The film is shown, followed by discussion which is ii.sually stimulating and ])roves the value of the method. It was found that students do not know how to interpret a film without Mime preliminary hints to make them more alert and watchful. .Showing the film, di.scussing it. and showing it again for more careful analysis is time-consuming, and very often the quality of the film does not justify running it twice. The e.xhibition of photographs ar- ranged in an adjoining gallery, presenting the same material, in diflferent shots and with a different cast, and usually more objectively, gets better results. Furthermore, the exhibition is there for further study or for check u]) in the week or so afterward. One lecture of this kind a week jK-r area has seemed to be adequate in view of the difficulties of scheduling. Selecting films probably is never easy. .Mthough the available guides are helpful. pre-.screening is the only safe basis for selection. The films on the market, nu- merous as they are, all seem to attempt to cover the whole story in one or two reels, and the amount of <luplication is inordinate. The titles or sound track jjre.sent real difficulties too. .A bia.sed point of view may not appear in the description of the film but is rarely absent in the editing, which is marred further by being directed toward the \oung or immature. Ver%' seldom is one found that is directed toward a highly educated audience. It is possible, however, to select a small number for pre-screening, and it has been found that the majority of the.se are useful. In general the Latin .\merican films from the Office of the Coordinator of .American affairs are good and we are using all of them. Xone have been found yet which are directed specifically to the use to which we wish to put them or which are edited objectively for the intellectual level normal to the other area courses taught by such men as \\. H. Cham- berlain and Hugh Byas. The re.s])ective merits of .sound and silent films are not yet clearly established. The silent films are often l)€tter since they make greater demands of the student. He is not distracted by canned comments. He may <lraw his own conclusions, and he must make more effort himself to under.stand and observe. The silent films permit comment by the teacher during the screen- ing. They also permit the lecturer to arrange appro- priate recorded music. If such music is related to the area shown in the film, still another funnel to the brain is opened up. This fle.xil»ility makes some silent films superior educationally to sound films. The accessibility of films is another stumbling block. .Although this is global war and one of its consequences is to develop further international coojieration, never- theless much footage that would be highly useful is so r'tc^v ..f I'o.iriliiiMt I'l* Iiitfr-AnK_'riL-au AflFairs. The National Museum of Guatemala. restricted as to be virtually unobtainable. The docu- mentary films of .some of our allies, even, are not readily available. Unquestionably the reels on deposit in this country contain suitable footage. What remains to be done— and it may have to be done cooperatively, for it is a colossal job—is a comprehensive assembling and edit- ing program. Films from two to three reels in length should be prepared to deal with the following aspects of each area: physical geography, racial types, agricul- ture, industry, political system, transportation, educa- tion, religion, art, architecture, recreation, dailv life, army and navy^ etc. These films should be edited as objectively as possible, without racial or religious preju- dice, without propaganda, and with a liberal use of visual contrasts, animated maps and charts. We are delighted with the results achieved so far with the extension of visual education to the field of Foreign .Area Studies and with the part films are play- ing in it. .As our experience is enlarged, we may have occasion to revise some of the conclusions reached in these first weeks. We are convinced, hovvver, that the men who have undergone this intensive three-phase visual education, because of it, will be able to contribute more effectively to world understanding. When they arrive on the scene of their future duties, they already will be familiar with it. For them, the first shock and bewilderment, and the consequent delay while they are adjusting to something wholly une.xpected, will have been reduced if not eliminated. That others confirm the conclusions reached in the Yale experiment is indi- cated by the fact that this program is beifig widely adopted elsewhere.