Educational screen & audio-visual guide (c1956-1971])

be related to the expected behavorial outcomes. For example, a film dealing with the social applications of arithmetic could hardly be expected to help a class improve their skill in arithmetic computation. This principle directly relates to tlie selection of films for teaching purposes, but should also be noted by |)roducers in connection with their statement of purposes for their films. Such a film as Is There Communication When You Spenk? (McGraw-Hill Book Company, .\pril) which describes simply, but without serious distortion, the constituents of the communication process and the conditions and rec]uirements for effective (ommunication, may reasonably be expecteil to serve not only to cultivate more effective speech and comniiniitations behavior but also to impress the audience with the fundamental nature of a process in which everyone is almost continually involved. Subjectivity. Research seems to indicate that learning is facilitated when the film content is subjective for the audience or when the audience is involved in the film action. El Cumpleiinos De Pepita. (International Film liurcau, May), a Spanish language film, bv interspersing the scenes of preparation for a .surprise birthday party with scenes of Pepita as she is on the island, encourages the viewers to share the suspense and excitement. Rate of Development. Producers of educational films as well as users should be aware of the fact that research evidence indicates that a slower rate of film development is generally superior to a more rapid rate. .According to this principal The Human Body: The Digestive System (Coronet Instructional Films, May) should gain instructional effectiveness because, as our review indicates, the repetition of facts with different visuals re-emphasi/es the important points and, in addition, provides "breathers" for collection of thouglits before proceeding to new material. Reinforcement. Researcli has shown tliat films are effective in reinforcing or strengthening ideas already held l)v the audience. Reviews of several films during the year have pointed to tliis principle. For example, the review of Russia (Julien Bryan, International Film Foundation, October) states that "anyone seeing the film may find either revelation or confirmation. It is more likely that he will find both." Instructional Variables. Hoban and \an Ormer report that such instructional variables in films as orientation of the audience, repetition, informing the learner about how much he has learned, check-ups or tests, and audience participation also aflcct learning. In Country of Islam (Cliurtliifl-Wexler Film Productions, .April), for example, it is expected that students will identify themselves with Mostafa and by empathy, .share his environment, activities and problems; to the extent that this occurs, attitudes of understanding and appreciation concerning the welfare of an underprivileged and struggling people will be evoked. Facts concerning the moon and the earth which might in some educational environments seem to have little or no immediate point of contact with intermediate-grade pupils' interests occur in the film A Trip to the Moon (Encyclopaedia Britannica Films, ,\pril) and its imaginary trip into space immediately involves the pupils. Conclusion. The re\iews of the forty-one films included in "Evaluation of New Films" in Educational Screen and Audio-Visual Guide during 1958 bring to 733 the total of reviews prepared by staff members of the AudioVisual Center of Indiana University since they assimied responsibility for the department in 1940. In addition to the above film elements, a comparison of the films reviewed during the year just ending with tliose reviewed in the first year of Indiana University's activities reveals some distinguishable trends in educational film production. Users frequently now have a choice of the film title in either black and white or color. The average running time is now somewhat longer than it was ten to fifteen years ago — the average length of films reviewed in 1958 being approximately twenty minutes. There are many new producers — only a few of the producers having films reviewed during 1958 were producing films fifteen years ago. .Among the newer •sources of educational films are producers and distributors of films produced for television purposes or from telecasts. Compared to earlier films the more recently produced films are more specific both in terms of purposes and intended audience. .As Neal Miller emphasizes in Graphic Communication and the Crisis in Education, there is a need for increased discrimination with reference to the various factors in graphic communication media that influence audience behavior. This discussion of 1958 film reviews, it is hoped, has singled out for consideration some of these characteristics and will help to alert film producers and users to the importance of such learning factors as drive (motivation), cue (stimulus), response (participation), and reward (reinforcement). 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