Dead Poets Society
Movie Review by: Alana Collins, American University

Mr. Keating uses a variety of instructional techniques, many of which are described as effective teaching methods in Chapter 3. Two of the first subjects broached in the chapter are the ideas of academic learning time and classroom management. Classroom management provides a means to increase engaged time and academic learning time. The idea is that the more engaged the students are, the more time they will spend actually learning. Mr. Keating uses a variety of classroom management skills to increase his students engaged, learning time.

The first step in being an effective manager is to have a plan so that class is ready to go, without missing a beat. On the first day, Mr. Keating walks into the classroom ready to go. He uses another device, as he whistles mysteriously and beckons the students to follow him. He is using both intrigue and variety in his teaching to keep the students interested. But even though he is creative in his classroom activities, he is still able to control those things that are unconventional.

He shocks them by telling them to tear the introduction from their textbook. They are intimidated at first, but soon relish in the spontaneous and liberating festival of ripping. Another teacher walks by and mistakes the classroom activities as chaos, but Mr. Keating simply tells them to continue ripping despite his colleague’s shock. Mr. Keating knows he has controlled chaos in his classroom. Because of this management he is able to take the students into the hallway or outside for a lesson without worrying about controlling their behavior because he maintains structure through his engaging dialogue and his manner. He also uses alerting to control the tempo of the class. He constantly throws out questions. “Mr. so and so, what do you think?” And then he quickly moves to another student for an answer. He keeps them listening because they know they may be called upon next.

In regards to Mr. Keating’s reactions to students, he demonstrates each of the four reactions listed in the text, but he uses mostly praise and remediation. When he does use criticism, it is quick and witty. He does not damage the students’ self-esteem and in fact he borders on a remediation because he encourages the student to keep thinking. “Ehh! Wrong, Mr. Dalton, please play again.” He also uses praise frequently, especially after Todd’s poetic performance or Neil’s acting debut. And his praise includes all the components of productive feedback as outlined by researcher Jere Brophy in the text. Mr. Keating, among other things, is sincere, specific and lets them know how important their accomplishments are in his praise.

One thing not specifically mentioned in Chapter 3, but covered extensively in Chapter 2, is Mr. Keating’s utilization of the different intelligences as a means to teach his material. This is using variety as mentioned in this chapter, but it goes deeper than that. Keating has the students use their kinesthetic intelligence and musical intelligence to process bits of prose. He takes them outside and as they listen to classical music they are asked to read their poetry and kick the soccer ball in exclamation. In another scene Keating demonstrates the importance of looking at the world in another way by standing on the desk and then jumping off. He taps into their spatial intelligence by forcing them to look at the room from a different angle. By encouraging them to write poetry, he forces them to use their intrapersonal intelligence. His encouragement of the class as a community and the “Dead Poet’s Society’ appeals to their interpersonal intelligence. He even stimulates their naturalist intelligence as their meetings are in a cave and they are encouraged to “suck the marrow out of life” using all means necessary. So his understanding of these different ways of learning not only speaks to variety and getting students engaged, but it also encourages authentic and real learning experiences for every kind of learner and intelligence.

So the question remains, is Mr. Keating’s style of teaching an art or a skill. There is indeed a fine line dividing the definitions of these words. To be skillful is to have an ability to do something well. A skill is usually gained through experience and training. It can certainly be determined that Mr. Keating is a good teacher. The fact that one can witness a transformation in the students’ ideals and attitudes by the end of the movie shows the audience that he is good at teaching. He accomplished what he set out to do. It can be assumed that because he was a teacher at such a prestigious school, that he had training and he spoke of his experiences in teaching elsewhere

However, Mr. Keating’s abilities go deeper than skills. An art form is something beautiful, thought provoking and done in such a skillful manner that it can be seen as artistic. This definition encompasses the essence of Mr. Keating’s ability. It is a testament to his teaching, although dramatized through Hollywood, that he touches the audience (ok, I cried) as they watch this movie. The boys go home after the first day of class thinking about his first lesson of “carpe diem.” The way he pulls Todd from his shell in front of the class is truly an artistic moment. He draws Todd’s imagination and creativity out just as an artist extracts images from a blank canvas. He is thought provoking and it is a beautiful thing to see the transformation in all of the boys. So while Mr. Keating has mastered his teaching skills, he has transcended them and developed his teaching into an art form.

Mr. Keating appealed to the students’ affective domain. He changed their way of thinking with his first class and its lesson of “Carpe Diem.” He forced them to transfer their locus of control onto themselves. It was no longer everyone else who told them what to do or not to do. Mr., Keating taught them to embrace accountability. Knox decided to “suck the marrow” out of life and to pursue Chet’s “girl.” The others thought he was crazy, but he was bold enough to read her poetry in front of her classmates. And when he returned he was gleaming simply because he had done it. She had not even responded, but he knew through Mr. Keating’s example that he had lived life and taken a chance despite what others might think. He had questioned the standard or normal response and eventually it did pay off. He got the girl.

After the first day, all the boys were questioning. They went to the library and discovered Mr. Keating’s former “Dead Poet’s Society.” When questioned about it, Mr. Keating did not directly encourage a new chapter of the club, but after Neil took the initiative, Mr. Keating secretly left the club’s book in his dorm room. The club encouraged them to continue asking the questions they were encountering in class. It was a means for the boys to voice those questions without authority or even Mr. Keating there to judge or guide them. They questioned the status quo and began to dig deeper into themselves. Through their new sense of self they started growing up and becoming men. So while Mr. Keating did not specifically initiate cognitive or academic questions within the class period, he stimulated a whole new way of thinking for the boys. He forced them to question themselves and each other. He wanted them to take every opportunity and to literally seize the day.

This movie centers on students at a prestigious, all boys preparatory school in the 1950s. The boys share a bond in their struggles to achieve away from home and family. They become a family in themselves relying on each other for support and friendship. Because they are all experiencing similar pressures to be successful “men”, they can relate to one another’s trials and tribulations. Because of the time period and their gender, they are being directed towards an idealized conformity. That is they are expected to do and be a certain way. Mr. Keating changes all that and forces them to break free from external forces that are pushing them and look within to find their path. He does not want them to become cookie-cutter images of each other. He wants them to seize the day and to explore their individuality.

I think this theme of non-conformity could translate easily onto a movie about an all-girls school or a historically black school. While the dynamics between the students would be different, the message could stay the same. While the boys talked about girls and pressures to become doctors or lawyers, the girls might talk about boys and pressure to become mothers. The black students might bond over their feelings of inferiority or hopelessness in a white man’s world. But if a teacher were introduced into the setting, similar to Mr. Keating, those same themes of individuality would easily emerge. Gender and race would only change the context or specifics of the repression. Carpe Diem is universal theme across gender and race lines. The different groups would just be reaching or overcoming different obstacles.

Follow-up activity: You’ve read about the effective questioning and seen “on screen” effective questioning in action. Now take a turn at practicing these techniques. Compose a classroom discussion of Dead Poet’s Society. Write out a sequence of questions from the six levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.

Level 1: Knowledge

Requires student to recall or recognize information. Students must rely on memory or sense to provide the answer.

·What are the four pillars of education at the prep school in Dead Poet’s Society? ·What play does Neil get cast in towards the end of the movie?

Level 2: Comprehension Requires student to go beyond simple recall and demonstrate the ability to mentally arrange and organize information. Student must use previously learned information by putting it in his or her own words and rephrasing it. ·The students are on an all-male campus. Describe their daily routines in this setting. · Why does everyone have high expectations for Todd at the prep school?

Level 3: Application Requires student to apply previously learned information to answer a problem. At this level the student uses a rule, a definition, a classification system, or directions in solving a problem with specific correct answers. · In what way could you incorporate the theme of “carpe diem” into your life? · What does having the boys stand on the desk demonstrate or teach the boys?

Level 4: Analysis Requires student to use three kinds of cognitive processes: (1) To identify causes, reasons, or motives (when these have not been provided to the student previously), (2) To analyze information to reach a generalization or conclusion, (3) To find evidence to support a specific opinion, event, or situation. ·What was the reason for firing Mr. Keating? Was there only one reason? Explain what you think the factors were in the decision to get rid of him.

Level 5: Synthesis Requires student to use original and creative thinking: (1) To develop original communications, (2) To make predictions, and (3) To solve problems for which there is no single right answer. ·Could Neil’s decision to commit suicide have been prevented? Write about what you think could have been done to avert the tragedy.

Level 6: Evaluation Requires students to judge the merits of an aesthetic work, an idea, or the solution to a problem. ·Do you think Mr. Keating’s methods would be more accepted in today’s school system? Would he still face resistance from parents or administrators? Explain.