The purpose of this activity is to help students critically analyze the media around them, specifically the television shows and movies targeted towards a teenage audience. This activity will ask students to look at a movie or television show with a teen-centered plot and analyze the stereotypical roles of the people within that show/movie.
1. Ask students to consider television shows like "The O.C.", "Beverly Hills 90210" (old and new versions), "Gossip Girl", "One Tree Hill", "Privileged", "Dawson's Creek", "Saved By the Bell", "The Hills", or "Laguna Beach", etc., or movies like Mean Girls, Can't Hardly Wait, The Breakfast Club, Varsity Blues, American Pie, 10 Things I Hate About You, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Dazed and Confused, etc. etc. etc.....
2. Have students take either a television show or movie of their choice and consider the underlying messages of that show that they may or may not be aware of. What stereotypes do they see in this show/movie in regards to:
- race
- age
- culture
- gender
- drug/alcohol use
- socioeconomic status
- teenage sex/pregnancy
- fashion
- school/academic performance
- popularity
- any other cultural/societal "norms"/ expectations
3. Notice what elements are missing? What is intentionally left out? What does that mean for teenagers? Do these forms of media reflect our culture or do we reflect the culture of the media?
4. Then consider the larger implications of stereotypes in the media... why do we make generalizations and stereotypes? Do they help us or hurt us? What are the implications of sending these sort of messages to a teenage audience? How can we change/encourage this?? Lastly, can you think of any television shows/movies that challenge these stereotypes? What are they? What makes them different?
Hi Kim,
ReplyDeleteI like how you chose to use tv and movies that many teenagers are watching as it may shine light on what sorts of things are being geared towards them. And further, it may help them to see what sorts of things they are encouraged to do. An activity to do to possibly enhance this lesson may be to have students think about a time when they feel that they may have been influenced to do things that people did on tv or in movies and how that made them feel. Maybe don't ask them to share the specific behaviors, but more so the feellings associated with that. For example, if a movie encouraged high schoolers to do keg stands and the students found themself doing a keg stand at a college party (and the only reason that they knew what one was was because of a movie), how did that make them feel, if anything.