This teaching strategy uses a film clip to help students consider the source of the information they seek.
Film: Day After Tomorrow
Complete citation:
Gordon, M. (Producer), & Emmerich, R. (Director and Producer). (2004). Day After Tomorrow [Motion picture]. United States: Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation.
In some of my library instruction classes for freshmen level English, I show a 2-minute movie clip from the film "The Day After Tomorrow." This clip shows a group of people who found shelter in the New York Public Library during a catastrophic storm, contemplating whether to head south or to stay in the library until the storm ends. During the clip, they hear from two sources: the main character's government-official dad, who cautions to stay put and another character's sister saying the weather is fine in Virginia and they should head there.
After watching the clip, I ask the class to think about what they would do based on the information they obtained from the clip. Then I ask them why they made the decisions they did. This often leads to a discussion about sources and evaluating them. Following this, I segue into a discussion on the variety of sources they may encounter in their research and how they will need to evaluate them just as they had done with the movie clip.
ACRL Standards (Higher Education IL Standards)
Evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system