I have been tutoring my cousin in reading for a few weeks now for my READ-411 class and everytime I go to visit her, we get into the same debate. She tells me that reading is boring, it takes too long and movies are easier to watch/understand. And while there are a variety of comprehension reasons that I can logically reason through and try to help her develop to enjoy reading a little more, I can't really argue against her position that watching movies is easier than reading. I also cannot argue that this opinion about movies is unpopular - infact, most people choose movies over books. My discussions with my cousin normally center around Harry Potter, and even when I tell her that the books are more interesting because the movies lose much of the detail and plot that the book can develop, she calmly explains to me that the movie is maximum 3 hours and reading the 500 page book may take her weeks when you add it into her school work, soccer practice and visiting friends. Again, I can't argue.
I also stumbled across this blog post when googling the issue of movies versus books:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/85938
42% of college graduates never read another book! I wish I could argue with that ... but in talking to recent college grads, as well as watching my parents growing up, reading just isn't as easy or calming as watching TV/Movies.
I can give a million practical/academic reasons why reading is important. I can give even more reasons why reading is emotionally/psychologically important.
So I'm asking for some help - how do I get my cousin to enjoy reading? How do I get students to pick the book over the movie?
I've had many teachers ask the students to read the book first, and then show the movie after the book has been read, or show sections of the movie while completing sections of the book. Is this helpful/useful, or does it demonstrate even more how easy it is to watch instead of read?
Lizz,
ReplyDeleteI have this debate constantly. It is usually with myself. I am an avid reader and love to read books that are then turned into movies. There is always something that entices me to read something that they will then adapt to the medium of film. It always interests me because I hope that they show a different vantage point than that of the author or the imaginary setting and appearances I created while I was reading. It always inspires my own creativity and makes me analyze a text through someone else's eyes. I come from a family of readers but they never like to read books that are then turned onto the silver screen. They too would rather just see the movie even though I persist that there is ALWAYS so much that is excluded when a book turns onto the big screen.
We will have this debate with our students probably a million times. It will take their own experience with seeing films based upon books that they have read to notice the importance of reading a book first and then going to see the film. I have started to influence my sister and hope to be influential in this debate with my future students. I have seen so much and read very much as well, but knowing what was cut out from books is always interesting when examining a film that everyone thinks was fantastic, which was truly mediocre in its transition.
Lizz,
ReplyDeleteI feel that this is a prevalent issue, particularly in Language Arts classrooms. Students very often would rather allot time to watch a movie than to read a book. Getting students to enjoy reading may be challenging, but it definitely is possible. The first step I would take is to find a book that aligns with your cousin's interests. You mentioned in your post that she enjoys soccer, so I would suggest attempting so select a book which pertains to this, possibly a novel whose protagonist plays soccer. In response to your question if showing a movie is beneficial or not, I would argue that it is most definitely useful. I feel that through showing a movie after reading a novel, particularly one which does not fully capture the essence of the text, you can show students how much the film lacks and demonstrate the shortcomings of movies in comparison to written works.