A Class Divided

Episode aired Mar 26, 1985
TV-MA
1h

IMDb RATING

8.5/10

203

YOUR RATING

News Documentary

An expanded edition of William Peters's classic study of the unique eye-color lesson in prejudice and discrimination taught by Iowa schoolteacher Jane Elliott. This new edition continues the... Read allAn expanded edition of William Peters's classic study of the unique eye-color lesson in prejudice and discrimination taught by Iowa schoolteacher Jane Elliott. This new edition continues the story of Elliott and her sixteen third-graders of 1970, eleven of whom returned to their ... Read allAn expanded edition of William Peters's classic study of the unique eye-color lesson in prejudice and discrimination taught by Iowa schoolteacher Jane Elliott. This new edition continues the story of Elliott and her sixteen third-graders of 1970, eleven of whom returned to their hometown in 1984 for a reunion with their former teacher. Peters reports on that meeting a... Read all

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

8.5/10

203

YOUR RATING

4User reviews

See production info at IMDbPro

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User reviews4

8.5203

Featured reviews

10popescu_octav

Excellent film for teachers and trainers and for everybody actually

This movie has been an inspiration for me and many more, to do something in the fight against discrimination. And this is big considering I am male, Caucasian, I belong to the majority nation, I am heterosexual... I belong to the dominant group and yet I was really moved by the idea of the movie, moved toward action! I really recommend this movie to everybody, from young pupils to teachers, parents, politicians, minority groups, everybody! I really want to thank Jane Elliott for her efforts and even though I don't have her agreement yet, I hope I can use this movie in the Romanian schools for the promotion of tolerance, understanding and respect for the minorities.

10sanchapanza

Extremely powerful and necessary

This was an amazing exercise. I believe everyone needs to see this. This was so powerful. We watched it in my class during my senior year and it made many students come to a realization about prejudice and racism.

BFenster

Powerful

Despite the comments of another poster, this documentary and the experiment contained therein was not sadistic. Had the teacher implemented the brown eyes/blue eyes hierarchy in the classroom and then done nothing to debrief -- that would be sick. Instead the students in her classroom understood discrimination in a way that I, as a fellow teacher, have no ability to do regardless of the number of days I show "Eyes on the Prize" or devise ways of comprehending the evil underlying the Holocaust. The film's follow-up with her old students demonstrates the lasting effect her teaching had.

Although modern ethics -- and a lawsuit happy public -- preclude a teacher from doing this kind of thing these days, we can still screen the film for our students and discuss the issues. Not quite as effective, but still powerful.

5richnlp-40474

Good for today's racism against blue eyes

I think many need to rewatch the importance of this, for it is happening to people with any eye color other than brown. Systematic racism is definitely going on. When the prez admits he is hiring people strictly because they are gay and/or black.... Good doc for today's racism against the blue-eyed, straight people of the world.