1. The Chorus Les Choristes
Dina Au, Cedric Cheng, Johnson Chu, Doris Chung, Edmond Kar, Ken Lau, Charisse Mok, Ahmood Tsang

2. Plot Summary

3. Struck! France Background Post WWII Financially Psychologically
Struck the students!!!

4. The School: Bottom of the Pond Fond de L’Etang
Aged ~8 - 16
Underprivileged
Orphans
Juvenile Delinquencies

5. Students Parents died in WWII Pierre Morhange /pi:'ɛʀ 'mɔ:ʀɔ:ʒ/
Protagonist
Single-parent
Angel face; Devil mind
Pierre Morhange
/pi:'ɛʀ 'mɔ:ʀɔ:ʒ/
Pépinot
/'peɪpɪnɒ/
Parents died in WWII

6. Students Mondain /mɔ̃'dɑ̃/ Corbin /'kɔ:ʀbɑ̃/ Wrecker
Kind-hearted score stand

7. Teachers & Staff Mr Clément Mathieu /'kleɪmɔ̃ mɑ'tjœ/ Principal Rachin
Protagonist
Music teacher
Mr Clément Mathieu
/'kleɪmɔ̃ mɑ'tjœ/
Principal Rachin
/'ʀæʃɑ̃/

8. Teachers & Staff Mr Chabert /'ʃɑbɛʀ/ Patriotic PE teacher
Uncle La Père Maxence /lɑ pɛʀ mæ'kʃɔ̃s/
Kind-hearted Janitor
Mr Chabert /'ʃɑbɛʀ/
Patriotic PE teacher
Mr Langlois /lɔ̃'glwɑ/
Piano-playing mathsteacher

9. Principal Rachin Principal @ Fond de L’Etang “Action – Reaction”
A real educator?

10. Activity 1 Ahmood  Principal  Rachin
Doris  Miss Teacher Nice  Mathieu
Johnson  Mr Teacher Bad Cop  Chabert
writes something bad about the headmaster Rachin on the white board
When Rachin comes into the classroom….

11. Activity 1
How do you feel when Rachin asks Mathieu to pick someone as scapegoat and punish the whole class?

12. Activity 1 (video)

13. Activity 1
Discuss with your groupmates, what philosophical perspectives are observed?
Hints :try to think of some Chinese philosophical perspectives 

14. Rachin – A Legalist?
Legalism 法家
Han Fei Zi 韓非子

15. Rachin & Legalism Legalism Believes that human are inherently bad
Merely education is not adequate to rectify the bad nature of human
Clear rules/laws have to be set on people have to obey the rules/laws in order to maintain a stable society
People have to obey what the head says

16. Legalism in the movie Rachin Emphasize strict obedience the rules
Students must obey and follow the rules
Always requires students to keep silent
‘action-reaction’
punishment, rather than teaching or inspiring students, is a better way to make students obey the rules

17. Principal Rachin’s Educational Philosophy?
Rotten Idealist
Desperate Realist

18. Rachin’s Educational Philosophy?
Selfish
Profit
Fame
Fortune

19. Rachin’s Educational Philosophy?

20. ~ A Realist
Reasoning
Corporal punishment
Discipline

21. ~ A Realist

22. Mondain: A victim of Realistic Principal

23. Mr Clément Mathieu Employed as school teacher
Was a composer, but didn’t went very successful
Inventory teacher?
A teacher of love?

24. Activity 2

25. Activity 2 Uncle Maxence was seriously hurt by Le Querrec
If you were Mathieu, what would you do? Would you punish Le Querrec and take him to the principal?

26. Activity 2 : Any alternative way?

27. Activity 2
Discuss with your groupmates, what philosophical perspective is evident?
Hints : try to think from the Chinese philosophical perspective 

28. Mathieu great believer of student's potential
promote personal expression
thrive hard to arrange environment that encourages them to find areas of interest
Example:
setting up of a choir → stimulates children to use their potentiality

29. Idealists Idealists’ Perspective:
believes developing perspective only be attained in :
a deliberate, slow, gradual, maturing process.
→ simply use humanistic, warm, sensitive approach as a wake-up call to their inner heart.

30. Pragmatist Both Dewey & Mathieu believe :
→ music, voices as a tool can transcend minds.
the role of a teacher (Dewey) :
→ to orient learners toward experiences that lead to growth
→ to provide continuity to those experiences.

31. Postmodernist raise the kids that is underrepresented, marginalized.
this school seemed to be the last resort for 'hopeless kids'. And unlike his principal, he treated them with heart.
e.g. orphaned boys, or boys whose parents don't have means to support them (financially and/or socially)

32. Why not Realist ? X basic skills X scientific
X prepare for world of work
X Realist usually feel conforming to the school order / administration would be wise.

33. Confucianism What is Confucianism in educational perspectives?
Believes people are teachable,
improvable and perfectible
through personal and communal
endeavor.
Emphasizes self-cultivation,
emulation of moral exemplars,
and the attainment of skilled
judgement rather than
knowledge of rules.

34. Confucianism Requires a teacher be one who has developed their
What is Confucianism in educational perspectives?
Requires a teacher be one
who has developed their
own character.
Does not use structured
classes but encourages the
strengths of students and
improves their weaknesses.

35. Confucianism and Mathieu
Teaching methods from Confucianism
Application of Mathieu in the film
To develop students’ interests in learning
To observe students’ behaviors and to communicate with them in order to have a comprehensive understanding of them.
Mathieu asked their students what they wanted to do when they grew up.
Mathieu found that the students had a good voice for singing so he composed for them every day.
Mathieu has positively recognized the students’ incentives so as to maintain their self-esteem.

36. Confucianism and Mathieu
Teaching methods from Confucianism
Application of Mathieu in the film
Uses music as a tool for teaching and cultivating “li” (propriety ; 禮).
Believes people possessing the same potential, and that education is the corrective means to stray from ethical behaviors.
Establishes a harmonious relation between teachers and students.
Mathieu has tried to use music to cultivate his students.
Mathieu believes different students have the same potentials to be explored.
Before teaching the music
Students were naughty and did not follow the rules.
After teaching the music
Students became obedient and established a sense of trust to Mathieu.

37. Mencius and Mathieu Teaching methods derived from Mencius
Application of Mathieu in the film
Believes people at birth are naturally good (kind-hearted).
Recognizes the importance of human education and cultivation.
Le Querrec has hurt Maxence but Mathieu has not punished him or taken him to the principal.
On the other hand, Mathieu requires him to help look after Maxence every day after class by working at the infirmary.
Rather than punishment, Mathieu gives the opportunity for Le Querrec to compensate his fault.

38. Music (choir) in the eyes of Rachin

39. Music (choir) in the eyes of Mathieu
“Music has helped with discipline”

40. Music in Confucianism :
a device for self-cultivation
a vehicle of self-expression
a force of social stability
a political tool
a medium of communion between man, nature and supernatural powers

41. Music in Confucianism :
“Personal cultivation begins with poetry, is made firm by rules of ceremonials, and is perfected by music.”
(Lunyu, in the chapter “Tai Po”

42. Music in Confucianism :
capable of completing the personal development of the individual
one’s ethical values are cultivated and one becomes the ideal Confucian gentleman
an honourable person, a paragon of moral integrity.
Moral integrity = Confucian idea of humaneness (ren 仁)

43. Music in Confucianism :
the essence of music is humaneness
A man who is not virtuous cannot claim to be a musician nor have anything to do with music

44. HAN Yu, Tang Dynasty, “What is a Teacher?”
Conclusion
唐。韓愈《師說》
HAN Yu, Tang Dynasty, “What is a Teacher?”
To Preach the Ethics 傳道
To Solve the Confusion 解惑
To Teach the Knowledge 授業

45. Reflection
Why do you think music is chosen as a vital subject to change the kid’s life and not math or physics instead? What does music mean to you?