Next school year, English teacher Andrew Smith and video production teacher Debbie Drew will start a new English and Film class. The class will focus on modern literature and film studies and help seniors get two English and art credits from the class.
Regular days in this class will be project-oriented with both English and video parts to each project, which is what makes this class so different from a regular English class. Ideas for units include silent films, graphic novels, supernatural thrillers and music videos.
Smith explained that in some ways the class will not be different with students still being able to achieve a senior English credit. He added, “[The class is] different [through] the way we get there… you would still demonstrate the same standard but it would be doing that through the medium of video and film.”
The idea for this class was brought up to Smith and Drew through Pathways coordinator Rachel Steil. The idea was to have a combination of art and English classes. Drew and Smith have both taught together in the past with Smith teaching video production at Stillwater Middle School and Drew teaching the same class at Oakland Middle School. Drew still teaches art at Oakland and Smith now teaches freshman English.
Junior Nolan Kohn has been one of Drew’s students since 2023. He indicated his plans to take the class next year expressing his love for video production and Drew said, “She is very nice and kind.”
Even if a student is not planning on going into a career in acting or video, this class can still be a great help. Before he became a teacher, Smith majored in theatre and communications at St. John’s University and began his career in business and marketing.
He explained that many of his friends had coursework similar to theatre. However, his friends were in pre-law using those skills standing up in litigations and working with clients. Smith added that when he worked in marketing, he encountered a lot of overlap from his theatre days.
“Both Ms. Drew and I have real-world… experience [from] before we became teachers that I think inform [much] of this work… there’s a lot of real-world influence. There are a lot of paths that she and I both [took],” Smith said.
Classes with multiple subjects taught in them could be the future of teaching. The class will be the first in Stillwater to be run through CAPS. CAPS stands for the Center of Advanced Professional Studies and is planned to give students a more real-world experience in the classroom.
“I think it’s… a new way of learning, and… it’s making it a more creative and fun way to learn,” Drew said.
Smith believes anyone with a STEM mindset should take something in philosophy or art, “Giving students creativity to be able to share their ideas and to… do things in a… different way [is good].”
This new class will be a new and exciting adventure for both Smith and Drew. Both hope to be able to teach together for many years.
“This is my 29th year [teaching and,]… I still like my job… I’ll be here for at least a couple more years,” Drew said.
As next year comes around, Modern Literature and Film Study will officially begin giving seniors new options for completing their credits while learning new skills.
In final remarks, Kohn said, “I love video class… [and] look forward to this new class coming next year.”