Five classic films about teachers and schools

Five classic films about teachers and schools

Gregory’s Girl PG

Set in and around a state secondary school in Scotland, Gregory’s Girl is a coming-of-age romantic comedy. Starring John Gordon Sinclair and Clare Grogan, the film is about a slightly awkward teenager who has a serious crush on a football-mad schoolgirl.

Kes PG

Ken Loach’s acclaimed drama is a moving and compassionate film that follows the story of a 15-year-old working-class boy named Billy Casper, who is bullied at school and ignored and abused at home. Everything changes when he finds Kes, an injured Kestrel. As he tames and trains the kestrel, and with the help of his teacher Mr Farthing, it becomes a positive way for him to express himself.

Good Will Hunting 15

A troubled maths genius (Matt Damon) refused to use his gift, preferring to work as janitor and lead a normal life with his friends. Eventually, after one too many run-ins with the law, a university professor university professor persuades him to see a psychologist (Robin Williams), who befriends him and proves the only person able to help him come to terms with his talent and past traumas.

Freedom Writers PG

A dedicated California teacher (Hilary Swank) inspires her class of disadvantaged, racially divided students and finds a way to unify them, apply themselves and pursue an education beyond high school, partly by having them keep journals about their violent, troubled lives.

Lean on Me 15

Based on the true story of New Jersey high school principal Joe Clark (Morgan Freeman), a tough, harsh educator and administrator, who wins the support and respect of his students for his controversial methods in ridding an inner city Eastside High School in New Jersey of violent students and drug dealers.