Lean on Me

26th August 2010 (Thursday)


“An arrogant and unorthodox teacher returns as principal to the idyllic high school from which he had earlier been fired to find it a den of drug abuse, gang violence, and urban despair. Eventually his successful but unorthodox methods lead to a clash with city officials that threatens to undo all his efforts. Based on a true story. Written by Keith Loh ”

Extracted from IMDb.com: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097722/plotsummary

Whoa! I must say this is a noisy movie. And what is this place? A school? Sorry to say, it looks more like a hell to me. I don’t think anyone will want to live in there, let alone study there. Yet, despite all those yelling and cursing, this is one of the most interesting movies I have ever seen! All those shouting words make us frown and laugh at the same time.

What would you do if you were asked to turn this type of school within a year? Drastic action has to be taken. And here comes, Principal Joe Clark (played by Morgan Freeman) with his harsh but effective strategies that intimidated almost everyone.

Unlike other movies, this movie talks more about school management, instead of classroom management. Some implications in education that can be found in the movie are stated as below:

1. In discipline, deal with the problem students first.

Since problem students influence and affect other students, either we discipline them or throw them out. Then, others will follow.

Here comes Principal Joe Clark’s famous principle, “Take No Prisoners.”

Joe Clark: I want all of you to take a good look at these people on the risers behind me. These people have been here roughly five years, and done absolutely nothing. These people are drug dealers and drug users. They have taken up space. They have disrupted this school. They have harassed your teachers. And they have intimidated you. Well, times are about to change. You will not be bothered in Joe Clark's school. These people are incorrigible. And since none of them could graduate anyway...

[to those onstage]

Joe Clark: ... you are all expurgated. You are dismissed! You are out of here, forever. I wish you well! Mr. Wright...

2. Discipline First, Teaching Later

Joe Clark: This is an institution of learning, ladies and gentlemen. If you can't control it, how can you teach? Discipline is not the enemy of enthusiasm!

3. Show students their responsibility.

Joe Clark: They said this school was dead, like the cemetery it's built on. But we call our Eastside teams "Ghosts", don't we? And what are ghosts? Ghosts are spirits that rise from the dead. I want you to be my ghosts. You are going to lead our resurrection, by defying the expectation that all of us are doomed to failure. My motto is simple: If you do not succeed in life, I don't want you to blame your parents. I don't want you to blame the White Man. I want you to blame yourselves. The responsibility is yours!

All in all, the movie tells us the importance of managing discipline issues in school and classroom, for it is the main determinant that affects the effectiveness of teaching.