Job Discussion Forums

[chryanvii]

I think Chinese students might really get a kick out of some of the slapstick humor in Jackass 3D, and other Jackass movies [taking out all the obscene/over the top stuff, of course].

But, I'm not sure exactly what lesson I can teach along with it. I'm looking for some creative ideas [Other than students performing stunts of their own]!

There's no culture content really [other than the fact that they're americans]. No vocabulary really, other than the typical "dudes" and "woah shits". Maybe I'll just save it for the last day of class. Something for them to remember me by!

What about the music? "You can't roller skate in a buffalo herd." Teach them about buffalos and herding? By the time they watch these videos, they probably won't really care about the lesson. That might be a problem.

thanks for your ideas.

[rogerwilco]

If you want to just show movies with humour, then why not "Mr.Bean" ?

My guess is that showing them the Jackass movies will just confirm to many of them that they actually are intellectually superior to us......

[Non Sequitur]

Poor choice of movie IMHO.
Go for a feel good with language that suits the action.
Certainly no overt sexual content. As a teacher you are loco parentis.
I found The Parent Trap - the Lindsay Lohan one - not the original, was a fave. Of course they know about the current troubles of La Lohan and are generally impressed with her talent.
Choose the movie for your students. Too many teachers choose their favourites.

[vikeologist]

Perhaps you could give everyone in the class a bingo card with actions or events on it. I don't really know Jackass films, but there may be things like 'falls flat on face' or 'crashes a car' which would make good collocations and idioms.

This would be a lot of work though. Might work with a small class.

Anyway, the key teaching thing wouldn't be what they actually say in the film. It would be what they do, and matching that to language that you pre-teach. However, as suggested, Mr Bean is much better for this, and there's worksheets ready to go at http://www.esl-galaxy.com/video.htm

My personal opinion is that Jackass movies, though they may be interesting to some Chinese students, will be markedly less popular than with western people, because we have a culturally different attitude towards risk. I'm pretty certain that a lesson on Jackass would be a disaster, especially with female students, so I strongly suggest trying this for the first time with a 5 minute clip to see how it goes over.

It is intriguing though. I might show a 5 minute clip to my Cultural Communication students at the end of a class if I ever have time to kill, just to see how they react. If, as I suspect, they think it's ridiculous, at least it will provoke a reaction.

[TexasHighway]

I haven't shown movies in years. With easy access to movies on the internet nowadays, the novelty of mesmerizing students with the latest Hollywood blockbuster has long past. I agree that some teachers do put movie clips to good use as a learning too. But it seems in most cases, movies are simply a cop-out to give the teacher a day off from preparing a lesson. If I did consider showing a movie, the Jackass series would probably be at the bottom of my list.

[flyingscotsman]

[Non Sequitur]

Humour doesn't travel that well although I know one or two Chinese jokes that are clever/subtle.

[Guerciotti]

OK, I'll say it. Why the heck would anyone use Jackass for any kind of teaching purpose, or even entertainment? It's just stupid.

[Salvatore]

"American Pie" might work.

Even though it has a few "questionable" scenes that "college aged" students might enjoy, the administration probably wouldn't want their young adults exposed to them, even though I've been told by older (3rd & 4th year) students they get hotel rooms for whatever reasons.

I've shown the movie in the past and must admit that I was surprised when the freshman girls knew what was happening when Skifler drank the beer left next to the bed! Of course, the boys enjoyed the internet scene.

Most of the movie just depicts the typical 18 year olds life in the USA. You could focus on the Prom. You could also point out that most young Americans live in a house, drive a car and don't wear uniforms in high school. Keg parties too!

[vikeologist]

Unfortunately, for me, sometimes you have to choose excerpts of movies or songs that the students can understand and relate to, rather than what you find interesting.

I don't want to suggest either that I spend a lot of time on movies or songs in class. I avoided taking a 'movie watching' class this year as I doubt it would be a good class.

As someone said, students are quite capable of watching western TV or films themselves, so there really has to to be a rationale.

[sharpe88]

Go with Mr. Bean, Friends or for something more current How I Met Your Mother

And if you're going to use this stuff, remember to pre-teach vocabulary, prepare comprehension questions and pause to ask them at intervals. Have discussion questions for after.

[Miajiayou]

Don't make your students watch anything violent or sexual. I don't object to those kind of scenes in movies, not at all. But, I want to be able to choose the time, place, and company. If you are going to show Jackass, explain the content to your students and give them the opportunity to leave class, otherwise you'll be the teacher who forced students to sit uncomfortably through a movie with no educational value.

[MisterButtkins]

Some people might feel that the OP is searching for any way to rationalize showing this movie to his/her class, a movie which is clearly inappropriate and has little pedagogical value.

[Guerciotti]