International Review of Educational Cinematography (Jan-Dec 1931)

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— 634 — is perhaps a practicable solution and may secure for the film-roll a fresh lease of life, a matter for satisfaction to us all, once the necessary technical conditions are fulfilled. We do not wish our attitude towards fashion to be interpreted as opposition to a method of teaching, a real means to a real end. We have never thought of excluding either one method or another — anyone with the smallest knowledge of the course of educational and scientific progress would be careful to avoid doing anything so foolish as that. What we are striving to prevent is the abuse due to the universal employment of new improvements and imperfectly developed inventions just because they are or appear to be " new ". All that I am really asking for is a period of trial — in the interests of our schools. Where can our educational authorities — in these days — find the means of defraying the costs of experiment? The fact that circulars sometimes stimulate to the necessary effort only proves the sway of fashion and is no evidence of a real requirement. If a man gives these novelties a trial at his own risk and expense, he is only to be commended, certainly not obstructed. It is to be presumed that he has faith in his experiment and he should therefore be encouraged. But we are wholly opposed to making demands upon the already shrunken public purse. Here again we are not tilting against the principle of experimentation; if public funds are forthcoming, so much the better. We are criticising the constant attempts to present us with ready made solutions, to provide a commodity that clains to satisfy all the requirements of the educational market and thereby to be doing a real service to education, etc, etc. The real hope underlying these activities is to receive valuable hints for future development and at the same time the means of undertaking further experiments. We are also protesting against excess, against the principle of " schoolfilms at any price ". What the teacher has to do is to encourage individual effort by his pupils. If looking at pictures can be associated with personal effort, well and good. But is that always the case? Is a serious effort made to train the critical sense of the pupil and to develop his power of independent judgment? Is real life always recognized as the most important thing, the real goal of teaching? Does the will undergo training, the will, for example, to self-examination? If these questions can all be answered in the affirmative, the projection of pictures by the different methods is the very best of aids. But if not, it is all no more than a bad form of picture-worship worse than any worship of the spoken word could ever be. I happened once to hear a remark which is perhaps responsible for the whole of this article. " Thanks largely to photography and, of late, to the cinema, a schoolboy of fourteen has a better grasp of the universe to-day than a man who had travelled round the world had thirty or forty years ago ". When I first heard that remark uttered by a serious person I was horrified. That is film idolatry, compared with which other forms of super