Moving Image Education

Children are exposed to moving images from a very young age, for example cartoons, films and adverts. Most children enjoy watching moving images so I feel it would only be right to use them in the classroom as a learning and teaching tool.

 Moving Image Education (MIE) is a programme aimed to teach and develop literacy skills using moving image texts. It consists of three elements which have been created to provide opportunities for children to develop within the four capacities of A Curriculum for Excellence. These elements include activities such as discussing and analysing moving image texts, using films as stimuli for imaginative and functional writing, and creating a class moving image piece. MIE provides opportunities for children to develop key life skills which can help them later in life, as Creative Scotland (undated) explains,

 ‘Moving Image Education is about helping young people to question, analyse, explore and understand the meaning of what they’re watching and hearing’ (no page)

Through continuing my research into MIE, it has become obvious that MIE is much more than just a literacy programme, allowing children to ‘develop across the curriculum’ (Scottish Government, p.4). Through having a chance to create my own moving image piece this week I have been able to experience the benefits at first hand. Although I could see the literacy skills which could be taught with the activity another advantage I noticed was the enhancement discussion and communication within our group, through relying on each other in the process of creating the movie. This proved the point made by ‘Scottish Screen’ that the programme is a lot more than meets the eye, and so I look forward to seeing how else MIE can benefit the classroom through more research and experience.

References

Creative Scotland (2009) Moving Image Education. Available online at:

http://www.movingimageeducation.org/ [accessed 28/1/12]

Scottish Government (2006) Scottish Screen, Moving Image Education. Available online at http://www.scottishscreen.com/images/documents/MIE_ACfE_for_ScottishScreen_email.pdf [accessed 28/11/12]