ARE "PICTURES" EDUCATIONAL.

Northern Advocate, 14 August 1919, Page 6

ARE "PICTURES" EDUCATIONAL.

"MOVIES" IN SCHOOLS

The experiment about to be made by the Board of Education of the Auckland district in the way of introducing moving pictures into schools will no doubt be watched with very great interest (says the "Ha-' wera Star"), it is understood that in the United States of America a start on similar lines has already been made, but whether that be so or not certainly the movement is being encouraged in England by educational authorities who see great possibilities in it. There is, for instance, a news article in "The Times' " Educational Supplement of June 12, in which there is reported to be a strong general tendency towards securing the cinematograph as an aid to instruction, if not in the theatre, then in the school. It is recognised that the moving picture has come to stay. The people are not tiring of it, as was at one time scornfully predicted they would do. MAIN POINTS. The questions now are how soon and in what way it can be employed for purposes of definite instruction as well as for the entertainment and amusement of the passing hour. So far as the cinematograph is a business proposition, it is only reasonable to assume that the direct financial return will be the first consideration. Experience has not given much encouragement to the theatre proprietor to present purely educational pictures. That is found to be the case in England, and we have no doubt that the same may be said in respect of New Zealand. The writer has seen not very far from Hawera that a magnificent plant-life study reel quite failed to draw a decent house, and also noted that the evidence of appreciation was but slight in comparison to the enthusiastic reception given to the antics of the redoubtable Charlie Chaplin. BEST BRAINS NOT IN THE BUSINESS. Opinions differ as to how far'this is attributable to what film manufacturing proprietaries regard as unalterable public, taste or lack of continuous effort to create a better taste. The "Times'" writer takes the lat-' ter view. He says: "Up to the present time it must be confessed the best brains of the country have not been attracted to the industry, and it is obvious that the real development of the educational film will have to be encouraged from outside. The producer of pictures seems unable to rcognise that it may be worth while paying attention to films even i though they may be outside the scope tof the average picture theatre entertainment. The general theory is that the publjc wants, when it goes to the 'pictures,' to see one heart or nerve-racking drama of four or five reels, a comedy with little plot but a wealth of action, and a picture of topical events in the way of Royal processions or labour demonstrations. In three-fourths of the picture theatres of the country the programme is built up on these general lines.