Talking Points: what movie would make a good addition to your school curriculum?
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Clara Chan Hoi-ying, 17, Wa Ying College
Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom immediately comes to mind. This lively biography of the world famous Nobel Peace Prize-winner could teach us the virtues of forgiveness and persistence to being righteous. Students can also learn some history, and reflect on the issue of racial discrimination after watching this movie.
Hillary Lo, 11, Sha Tin College
I would choose Inside Out. Even though it might seem like a children’s cartoon, it really makes us reflect on our emotions and see what is going on in our brains. We can relate different situations in our mind with those happening in the movie because it is a believable story. This could be very useful for psychology and everybody would enjoy watching it and having fun while learning! It also shows the problems children might face if they moves to a new country, and how this could affect their life. It is also a movie for parents and teachers to watch, as it puts them in the child’s shoes, so they can understand how they are feeling.
Rachel Wong, 15, St Stephen’s Girls’ College
The Indian film Three Idiots would make a great addition to Liberal Studies. This famous Bollywood film features three teenagers overcoming their anxieties and accomplishing their life goals, so it would be a great message to spread for the Personal Growth module. The main character, Rancho, points out to viewers that education is not just about grades, but also the actual acquisition of knowledge. This is an important message to not only my schoolmates, but also the whole of Hong Kong. Teenagers under a lot of academic pressure should step back and learn to value learning over grades.
Belinda Ng, 16, South Island School
I would definitely choose the 2014 documentary Virunga; a film documenting the challenges facing conservation in the Virunga national park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is a riveting story that shows the fragile line between conservation and economic development. This helps us learn just how these two factors sit in the greater scheme of things – all the more relevant in our world today. If this was shown in schools, not only would it help promote conservation and raise awareness, it would also help students better grasp concepts they learn in class and apply it to the real world. Also, who wouldn’t love to see adorable baby gorillas?
Snehaa Senthamilselvan Easwari, 16, South Island School
Without a doubt, The Social Network. The movie delves into the origin of Facebook and how this amazing social media platform was founded. As users we just see it as a social media platform that offers a wide range of services, however, here we see the long process of its creation and all the hurdles faced by Mark Zuckerberg (played by Jessie Eisenberg). It’s truly inspiring and encourages students to be persistent, and work hard and to chase your dreams at all times. You’re bound to succeed at some point in your life!
In our next Talking Points we’ll discuss:
What's the worst way to waste your summer holiday?
We are now accepting answers from readers for this new topic. To take part, email your answer with your name, age, and school, along with a nice, clear selfie (make sure it’s not blurry) to [email protected] by lunchtime on Monday, June 27. Don’t forget to include “Talking Points” in the subject line!