Books by Diane Conrad

Why are educators and their profession the focus of so much film and theater? Diane Conrad and Monica Prendergast bring together scholars and practitioners in education, examining dramatic portrayals of teachers and teaching to answer this very question. Films such as Freedom Writers, Bad Teacher, and School of Rock, to name a few, intentionally or inadvertently comment on education and influence the opinions and, ultimately, the experiences of anyone who has taught or been taught. The chapters gathered in this collection critique the Hollywood "good teacher" repertoire, delve into satiric parodies and alternative representations, and explore issues through analyses of independent and popular films and plays from around the world. By examining teacher-student relationships, institutional cultures, societal influences, and much more, Teachers and Teaching on Stage and on Screen addresses these media''s varied fascinations with the educator like no collection before it. Why are educators and their profession the focus of so much film and theatre? Diane Conrad and Monica Prendergast bring together scholars and practitioners in education, examining dramatic portrayals of teachers and teaching to answer this very question. Films such as Freedom Writers, Bad Teacher and School of Rock, to name a few, intentionally or inadvertently comment on education and influence the opinions and, ultimately, the experiences of anyone who has taught or been taught. The chapters gathered in this collection critique the Hollywood ''good teacher'' repertoire, delve into satiric parodies and alternative representations and explore issues through analyses of independent and popular films and plays from around the world. By examining teacher-student relationships, institutional cultures, societal influences and much more, Teachers and Teaching on Stage and on Screen addresses these media''s varied fascinations with the educator like no collection before it.

This reflective practice case study completed for my master''s degree involved creating and delivering a unit for inner-city high school students integrating drama and media literacy/production with a focus on advertising. It used socially critical or issues- based drama to examine the relationship between youth and media advertising, to draw out and question their meanings/understandings, towards finding appropriate ways of teaching media studies. Analysis of students¿ responses to the work and the media messages they created saw these young people as sophisticated readers of advertisements who made meanings that spoke to their needs, desires and life experiences. The study forced a re-evaluation of the critical perspective brought to the teaching, which led to a more pluralistic stance that allowed the intersection of public and private realms of knowing and the acknowledgement of students¿ desiring identities. In representing the research data the study took an alternative arts-based approach by depicting significant teaching/learning moments through scripted scenes.