Identifies four motivations adolescents report for viewing graphic horror films: gore watching, thrill watching, independent watching, and problem watching. Argues that viewing motivations are predictors of responses to graphic horror. Finds that viewing motivations were related to viewers' cognitive and affective responses and a tendency to…

An increasingly visual culture is affecting work and training. Achievement of visual literacy means acquiring competence in critical analysis of visual images and in communicating through visual media. (SK)

Explores how teachers can help their students look for meaning in the visual media. Presents the theory that students object to looking for meaning in certain forms of visual media, because they dislike having their world complicated with unnecessary interpretive searching. Discusses the results of several class exercises adapted from David…

Uses the following National Council of Teachers of English Guidelines to show that media literacy works in the classroom and to show it works when incorporated into the conventional English classroom: (1) students need to construct meaning through different media; (2) students need to analyze their transactions with media texts; and (3) students…

Offers an overview of resource information in media literacy, including listings of key organizations; texts and resources for teaching on media literacy; comprehensive texts; sources of thematic curriculum units; and works that explore media genres. (SR)

Deconstructs the "kiddie porn" media frame used by the industry and mainstream media to characterize Klein's ad campaign. Extends scholarship on the construction of youth in the media, showing how the kiddie-porn frame produces and reproduces common-sense beliefs about the nature of youth. Suggests a metadiscourse encompassing the…

In this article, the author describes the difference between debriefing and critiquing. Critiquing art entails examining the use of the art elements and the principles of design. Describing what one sees as well as how the work is organized is a major part of critiquing. Determining what the piece is communicating and whether the piece is…

Video offers an immediacy that can stimulate students' thinking. Sharing the experience of a film documentary in a classroom setting, for instance, creates a bridge between the everyday experience of students and unfamiliar new information. The human faces and voices on the screen and the comfortable structure of narrative can personalize abstract…

Many educators lament the UNESCO study showing that by the time the average teen graduates from high school he or she has spent more than fifteen thousand hours watching television and only eleven thousand in the classroom (Gorebel, 1998). Rather than regretting this "condition," colleges, universities, and educators of adults and children should…

This collection of lessons is meant to be a practical guide to help teachers engage children in art criticism. The lessons generally follow a similar format. Most suggest an age group but may be modified for use with younger or older students. Several authors suggest variations and extensions for lessons that include studio activities. A broad…

Past uses of art reproductions in schools and mass media publications are described, along with political, economic, and aesthetic issues raised by such usage. The presentation focuses on concerns associated with present and future educational use of reproductions, whether electronic or some other form. Issues of selectivity and aesthetics are…

This paper explores possibilities of using the feature film, "American History X," to illustrate and assist in teaching principles of self-concept in an introduction to interpersonal communication course. The paper: (1) summarizes the plot of the film; (2) outlines and defines principles of self-concept that can be discussed in…

Discusses the use of critical thinking and critical observation methods as applied to teaching sociology courses. Discusses how students are taught to evaluate situations holistically. States that critical observation is the ability to identify assumptions and stereotypes interpreted by behavior. Provides an assessment of an exercise model that…

Identifies basic concepts and skills of critical television viewing. Advertisers' and programers' appeals are discussed, and possible critical viewing activities for the elementary school classroom are suggested. (10 references) (MES)

Examines four commonalities of media education in the United States. Outlines the four ideological perspectives that in fact guide media education in the United States: celebration, protectionism, cultural criticism, and educated consumerism. Suggests what all of this means for the future of media education in the United States and what will be…