Friday Night Lights

Friday Night Lights
Production Company: NBC
Release Year: 2006

Summary:
This television-drama (based on a book) centers around a high school football Coach in present-day Texas. The fictional town of Dillon is a small, close-knit community in rural Texas. Coach Taylor and his family are the center of the show but many various players and friends play crucial roles in the plot development as well. Much more than a typical sports show, Friday Night Lights uses the backdrop of Dillon to address many issues facing American society including family values, school funding, racism, drugs, abortion, and lack of opportunity.

Qualitative Analysis:
This TV show could be categorized as Slightly Complex. As far as organization, the show is very clear. The events occur chronologically and the story lines are very straight-forward. Its language features are largely explicit and easy to understand. All vocabulary is familiar and conversational although some football-specific terminology is used. The meaning is clear and consistent throughout the show. However, there are multiple story lines occurring at once which the viewer must be able to keep straight. The experiences portrayed are common to many people and multiple themes are explores throughout the show. The media-content is fairly basic as the messages are easy to follow and analyze however the viewer will definitely form opinions about certain things that happen throughout the show. The viewer will be forced to think a lot. The media literacy is quite unique in that the show is filmed in a very unconventional way and the framing of certain scenes and pictures give different views than typical frames.

Content Standards:
This show connects well with an English unit to go with the book or a physical education unit on team sports/football.

CA English Language Arts Standard Grade 9/10
Comprehension and Analysis of Grade-Level-Appropriate Text
2.3 Generate relevant questions about readings on issues that can be researched.
2.4 Synthesize the content from several sources or works by a single author dealing with a single issue; paraphrase the ideas and connect them to other sources and related topics to demonstrate comprehension.
2.5 Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis, evaluation, and elaboration.

CA Health Standard Grade 7/8
Standard 2: Analyzing Influences
2.1 M Analyze internal and external influences on mental, emotional, and social health.
2.2 M Analyze techniques that are used to pressure someone to engage in or be target of violent behavior.2.3.M Analyze the influence of culture on family values and practices.

Personal Response:
I truly believe this is one of the best shows to ever have been on television. It is a gripping, emotional drama that very accurately portrays high school life and a small town obsessed with football. The characters are complex and really make you think. They are relatable and the viewer will soon love them all. I have never used this show as part of my class but I could see it being excellent with high school students.