Teaching abouty documentaries

[Mike Gange]

Teaching students to write and understand documentaries is a tough task. The kids have a dfficult time knowing the difference between show-me and tell-me styles of journalism. They can understand the concept of telling a story, but they can not see the validity of adding sound to their piece; somehow they think it takes away from the veracity.

 

I have just come across Reality Radio: Telling True Stories in Sound ed. by John Biewen and Alexa Dilworth. (UNC Press, $22.95, 208 p.) If you get no further than the first chapter, you have got your money's worth in this rich resource. In "Are We on the Air?" by Chris Brookes, you get an introduction to many media literacy key concepts. Brooks lives in St. John's, Newfoundland, and works not far from where the first transatlantic signal was allegedly received. I say allegedly, because Brookes casts some doubt on the plausibility of what most of us have taken for granted as a factual, historical incident.

 

Brookes writing is sharp and clear. Better yet, though, is the voice he takes through this piece. He mentions a scene, then he shows you how it works in his radio script. He adopts the role of teacher, leader, companion taking us -- the listerners, readers -- into the world that makes this kind of reporting so alive. He shows just how to add the most subtle of sounds: the hint of an echo, the fluttering of birds wings and the use of a female voice to counter that of the male narrator.

 

Scott Carrier's piece, called "That Jackie Kennedy Moment" will appeal to teenagers because of its sense of injustice, its indignation at corrupt society, and its haunting use of voices from beyond the grave. One of the subtle things to learn from his piece is the hook of Jackie Kennedy at the beginning and the completion of the circle at the end of the chapter. Its subtle enough not to be heavy handed, but direct enough that it can't be missed.

 

 Reality Radio shows us how to teach show-me journalism.

[Frank W. Baker]

Recently I created a resource page for those teaching with and about docs in the classroom. Check it out.