Download or read book Reel Dialogues written by Joseph E. Flynn (Jr.) and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dissertation is a qualitative inquiry into a professional development activity for secondary school teachers that attempted to create a space in which they could mount conversations about race and Whiteness. As part of a larger professional development plan for a Midwestern suburban high school with a predominantly White staff and student body, this study examines the use of film as a means of fostering conversations about race with a specific focus on how the participants did and did not talk about Whiteness. Participants were involved in a film series that included Crash (2005), Six Degrees of Separation (1993), and Whiteboyz (1999) in which they were asked to screen the films in order to specifically engage the notion of race. The primary questions this research seeks to explore are: First, as a pedagogical tool for professional development around diversity issues, in what ways do educational professionals talk with one another about race, in the context of viewing and discussing films? Second, how do elements and aspects of Whiteness enter conversations about race? And finally, how can teacher educators use film (and other visual media) more effectively to engage the often-difficult issue of race?