Brian Finch

Citation

Thesis Title
Children's film viewing practices: A qualitative investigation into engagement with a feature film

Read article at Massey Research Online:

Mr Finch investigated the understandings that children developed of a film, Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets, which they had repeatedly watched in their own homes. A group of children aged 9 or 10 who all nominated this film as a favourite, were observed while viewing the film again, in pairs. They were then involved in discussion to provide the researcher with evidence about their understandings. An analytical framework was developed to describe different levels of response to, and understandings of, the complexity of the film. The study showed that the children had developed a wide range of understandings about the film’s characters, narrative structure, causation and special effects. The research shows that through viewing films at home, children develop educationally relevant understandings. The findings have implications for teachers’ classroom programmes, for parents and for educational policy.

Supervisors
Professor John O'Neill
Associate Professor Geoffrey Lealand