Ok so here's the thing.
We all love "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". We love that he ditches school, has lots of fun with some friends, sticks it to the man and gets away with it. We love that he gets away with it.
Well, we loved it when we were teenagers, because we wished it was us. We loved it in our twenties because we liked to think that when we were at school we too would have jumped at the chance to ditch school (if we knew we'd never be busted).
As a teacher though, the movie can leave a bad taste in my mouth as I get older. It irks me when students ditch school. It irks me more when they are obviously intelligent kids with lots of potential (like Ferris).
And as a parent? I'm not sure what I think. I know for a fact that if I ever find out my kids have ditched school, they will be in trouble. I also know that I'd like to think my kids will look back on their time at school and know they put in the best effort they could.
But at the same time, everyone needs an experience like Ferris' to look back on with nostalgia and a bit of pride. Kind of an "I beat the rules and had a great time" thing. I would hope that I wouldn't be so uptight that I wouldn't let them have some experiences that would give them those sorts of memories.
Well, I'm not a teacher... but I am an adult. I am all for the ditching once in a while and getting their kicks out while they can - as long as it's not all the time. I never viewed Ferris as being a serial ditcher - so even as I grew up I didn't find a problem with it. He also comes off as not only intelligent, but creative in the movie... and kids like that sometimes need a day away from the desk to survive. That's my opinion anyway :)
ReplyDelete