Chapter's 3 and 4 deal with film techniques and critical approaches to media text. When I began reading chapter 3, I immediatley flashed back to my senior year in high school when we studied film and remembered watching scenes from Hitchcock's Psycho. Beach talks about using Hitchcock films to help students familiarize themselves with purposeful use of film techniques.
I have always liked the idea of showing films in class, but wanted to make sure they were worth the time viewing them. Websites like rottentomatoes.com help me with that. They provide ratings for films that can help me dictate which films are worth my students viewing.
When studying film and film techniques, I think it is important for students to get background information on how films are made. The site Annenberg: How are Hollywood Films Made? does just that. It is very easy to navigate through and see what it takes to make a hollywood movie, from screenwriting to directing, and costume design.
As far as using a film/television clip in the classroom, I thought it would be beneficial for students to see the progress television has made in the past twenty years in terms of technique and issues addressed. We could compare clips of the old police drama, Hill Street Blues (which Beach mentions) and today's hit crime drama, Law and Order. Students could focus on the difference in lighting, camera angles, and sound. They could also discuss the various issues that each show addresses to see if the issues have changed according to the times. Both shows take place in an urban setting and deal with urban issues, so students may find these shows a little more realistic and easier to relate to.
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