Educational Media Reviews Online

Original Minds introduces the audience to five high school-age teens who attend special education classes and have been labeled as learning disabled. As part of a special class assignment, the students introduce the audience to the way in which they think, the areas of learning that cause them difficulty, and their particular strengths and uniqueness. In addition, significant family members, friends, coaches, and counselors contribute their observations about the students as well.

The framework for this assignment was a special semester-long class entitled, “Ways of Learning” focusing on metacognition for which students earned one work-study credit. The class met off campus for three hours once-a-week and students were recruited from two San Francisco area high schools, one private and one public. Students learned to use video cameras, microphones, and make video diaries. They also had to agree to have their life “invaded” to a certain extent during the 16-week semester. To ensure a common vocabulary for describing the experience of learning, Dr. Mel Levine’s model described in the book, A Mind at a Time, was adopted. This model of metacognition focuses on eight areas of brain function that Levine theorizes must work together to accomplish learning: attention, sequential ordering, spatial ordering, memory, language, neuromotor functions, social cognition, and higher-order cognition. The model emphasizes each individual’s uniqueness and stresses that understanding particular strengths and weaknesses in these areas is key to maximizing the ability to learn.

The stories of these five teens are inspiring and uplifting. In turn, each student takes the audience into their internal world as they understand it. The difficulties, differences, and disabilities are not sugar-coated. But neither are they catastrophized. It is as if, in the telling of their stories, the students discover their strengths. This insight helps them identify new avenues for dealing with their difficulties. The additional information provided by each student’s coaches, counselors, and parents adds to both the audience’s and student’s understandings. It is noteworthy that each student begins to find their way with the identification of a strength and not a weakness. It is also noteworthy that each student has an evident web of support in the process.

The clips describing each student are well chosen and move rapidly enough to maintain audience interest. The situations are easy to relate to and the settings identifiable. The amount of time given to each story is even, allowing the audience to bond with each student and feel invested in their success. This would be an excellent film for students who are studying to become educators, psychologists, or counselors. A 30-page study guide is available on the film’s website to augment use within an educational setting. The film would also serve as an encouragement to high school students and their parents experiencing similar kinds of challenges. Recommended.