Hollywood Films about Schools: Where Race, Politics, and Education Intersect

What do the Hollywood 'school films' of the 1980's and 1990's communicate about education and race? This book looks at The Graduate , Blackboard Jungle , The English Patient , Dead Poets Society , Pulp Fiction , Ghost , The Wizard of Oz , Top Gun and Forrest Gump to answer the question.

"Hollywood Films About Schools: Where Race Politics and Education Intersect should be read by anybody who has ever inquired 'what do these films about schools attempt to teach'? This book is a noteworthy contribution to the study of movies as complex 'cultural artifacts, economic products and political statements.' One of the most remarkable aspects of this project is the careful identification and exploration of three discursive patterns organizing the 'Hollywood movie curriculum': the connection between the urban and the undesirable; the centrality of the White educator; and the reliance on disparaging stereotypes of racial minorities. Ronald Chennault's theoretical bricolage has articulated some of the best traditions in Critical Pedagogy, Media Literacy and Cultural Studies discussing complex notions in simple yet, eloquent language. This book is a timely and most welcomed intervention in the current debates about media and education." - Gustavo E. Fischman, Assistant Professor, Arizona State University

RONALD E. CHENNAULT is Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Policy Studies and Research, DePaul University, USA.