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As the movie opens, why is LouAnne Johnson applying for the teaching job?
she had just left military service
she needed a change of pace
she was in the middle of a divorce
Divorce can be financially challenging. So, it's no surprise that LouAnne needed money while things settled down.
she had moved across the country
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What was LouAnne's first surprise?
the fact that there were no questions asked beyond the normal
the offer to immediately start teaching
LouAnne was immediately offered a teaching job, because a class needed an instructor right away. But she wasn't briefed properly.
the sudden job interview
the speed of processing for the job
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What was the academy class?
it's a program for troubled teens
It's common for many schools to have special classes for at-risk students. In "Dangerous Minds," this was given a particular focus.
it's a catch-up class
it's an additional tutorial class
it's the losers class
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What happened to LouAnne on the first day of school?
she ordered pizza for the entire school
she was harassed by a student
LouAnne Johnson may be a tough lady in the movie, but personal harassment can be a shock to anyone.
she was told she would have a delayed salary
she was given a dirty classroom
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LouAnne's nerves were frazzled. What does her co-teacher and friend do to calm her down?
tells her the pay is good
ignores her
buys her a drink
Tells her to “Shape up or ship out!"
Griffith, Johnson's friend, tells her that these kids are troubled. But when LouAnne starts wavering, he gives her some tough words to make her think about what she should do.
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What was the first outward sign that Johnson was shaping up to be the right teacher?
she wore more street-savvy clothes
Johnson began dressing in a hipper set of clothes, to break the psychological ice between her and the students. It also came with a bit more attitude.
she started preparing for her class
she started ignoring the books on how to teach
she kicked the harassing student's behind
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What was it about Michelle Pfeiffer that made filming her scenes a bit challenging?
she had a stunt accident
she had come in from a hospital stay
she was pregnant
Michelle Pfeiffer was pregnant during the filming. Even though the movie was shot out of sequence to get full-body shots out of the way, in some scenes it was still hard to hide the fact the was pregnant.
she was sick with continuous fever
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What was the name of the book from which the movie "Dangerous Minds" was based?
The Tough Girl Teacher
Nowhere to Go but Up
The Forgotten Students
My Posse Don't Do Homework
The original book was named "My Posse Don't Do Homework." The real-life LouAnne Johnson wrote it.
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It may not have been traditional, but how did LouAnne Johnson begin her first real day of teaching?
she taught her students some martial arts moves
LouAnne made her first connection with a martial arts demonstration. She taught two of there students a few moves in front of the class.
she talked tough to them
she did not introduce herself properly, and gave them the cold shoulder
she told them it was their choice to drop out or not
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It's controversial, but what was LouAnne's first non-traditional announcement to her class?
she would pass everyone
everyone already has an "A"
As part of her way of catching their attention, LouAnne said that all students already had an “A” in her grading sheet. The challenge would be keeping that grade.
she wouldn't hand out disciplinary measures
she would be their mom and gunnery sergeant
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Why was White Bread the students' initial nickname for LouAnne?
because she loved sandwiches
because she was white
because she was totally unlike the students
It wasn’t just about race, though the term "white" makes it seem like it was. It was about the students seeing LouAnne as traditional and weak.
because she was passive
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How did the real LouAnne Johnson react to the movie adaptation of her book (and her life)?
she thinks it was OK, but it could have been better
she supports the movie
she thinks that the adaptation made it a better story
she was not impressed
The real LouAnne Johnson reportedly said the movie made matters worse, because it stereotyped the students. And this was not the point of the book.
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Why was the verb "choose" the most powerful of the day, according to Callie?
sometimes , it's the only thing you can do
Callie, one of the more sullen and passively hostile students in class, came up with a brilliant explanation for using the verb "choose" in a sentence.
because it makes you believe you have control
because it is your right
because it's the truth
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Why was LouAnne Johnson called to the principal's office?
she was not handling her class well
she was making the other teachers look bad
she was not teaching in the approved way
Johnson was mildly reprimanded for doing things that could get her in trouble. Things like teaching martial arts in class, and using what could be seen as a suicidal note for an exercise on sentence construction.
she had no teaching skills at all
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What was another "controversial" teaching tactic that Johnson used in the movie?
rewarding with books
rewarding with chocolates or candy
It’s sounds like it's more for a kindergarten class, but it can be effective for engaging students who aren’t interested. The downside, of course, is that they'll be expecting it more.
rewarding with new clothes
rewarding with food stamps
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What were Callie's words of advice on how to get the class to listen to a teacher?
kick Emilio out of the class
be more strict
don't lie
get Emilio on her side
Callie told LouAnne, if you want to get a group to listen, you have to know who controls or leads the group. In this case, it's apparently Emilio.
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What was was the implication, according to how the students read it, of Bob Dylan's song, "Mr. Tambourine Man?"
the man was into drugs
The poetry reading in class gives an insight into the students' backgrounds. And, given when the song was written, Mr. Tambourine Man could probably have been a "flower child" with experience using drugs.
the man was crazy
the man was smart
the man was just a dream
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What two literary figures were commonly mistaken for each other as a gag?
Bob Dylan and Bob Frost
Bob Dylan and Dylan Thomas
Bob Dylan and Dylan Thomas were mistaken for each other in the film. This actually makes a bit of sense, since Bob Dylan took his stage name from Dylan Thomas.
T.S. Eliot and Dylan Thomas
Byron and Shelley
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How does Griffith deal with the incredible stress of teaching hostile students?
he smokes a lot
he leaves it all at work
he simply does not care
he finds humor in his work
Griffith is shown making fun of students' homework and tests. As mean as that may be, it obviously keeps him sane and ready to teach them again the next day.
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How does LouAnne finally connect with Raul, one of her students?
she takes time to visit her house
she understands that he has to survive
she stands up for him to his parents
LouAnne visited Raul's home, and told his parents that Raul was defending himself. She also told them he was a class favorite.
she tells him that's he's worth something
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How did LouAnne get her students to understand the symbolic language of poetry?
she renamed it as a "code"
LouAnne understood that her students knew a lot of street language. She was able to get them to understand by linking poetry to the code language of the streets.
she laid it out for them
she made sure she explained the symbols in black and white
she gave tests
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Aside from being the lead star, what else was Michelle Pfeiffer's involvement in the film?
she put in her own money for the movie
she owned the Via Rosa production company
"Dangerous Minds" was produced in part by Michelle Pfeiffer's production company, Via Rosa. The success of the movie established her status as a producer, not just an actress.
she helped direct it
she chose the songs to be included
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How did the breakthrough moment in class happen?
Emilio engaged in the conversation
LouAnne finally gets Emilio interested in class by saying that everyone has a choice to stay in school. This also illustrates how literature and poetry connect to people.
the poem was worth reading
they finally gave up on intimidating her
Johnson snapped
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What's the real aim of the Dylan-Dylan contest?
students are engaged
students stay out of trouble
students start following the teacher
students learn to research
The Dylan-Dylan contest pushes people in the class to learn how to research a subject. It also encourages them to analyze poems.
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The Dylan-Dylan contest somehow backfired, and Raul had to go into debt to buy a $200 dinner jacket just to eat at a swanky restaurant. How did LouAnne turn the situation around?
she would cover for it, but he has to pay her back after he graduates
LouAnne played on Raul's sense of honor and work ethic to make sure he would stay in school.
she would cover for it, no questions
she would get him a part-time job
she would talk to the cops about the other guy
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What did the real LouAnne Johnson say about the sexual harassment scene?
she would have had the boy kicked out
she would have ignored it
she would have kicked butt
The real LouAnne said that if that had actually happened in real life, she would have taken the student down hard. Of course, she probably would have been fired.
she would have failed him
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Why did Callie have to drop out of the class?
her family couldn’t afford it anymore
she already had a job
she had to help out in the family
she was about to become a teenage mother
While visiting Callie at work, LouAnne finds out that she is pregnant. It seems she is being sent to another school, which has a teenage parenting program to go with regular classes.
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What's the real secret of LouAnne's divorce?
it was a one night stand
she was an abused wife
In order to make Callie rethink about going to another school, Johnson talked about her own marriage, and how it failed because her husband abused her.
it was an arranged marriage
she got pregnant as a teenager
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Which song from the "Dangerous Minds" soundtrack has become so famous, it even has a Weird Al parody?
Feel the Funk
Put Ya Back Into It
Gin & Juice
Gangsta's Paradise
Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" is arguably faring better as a cultural touchstone than the movie itself. In fact, Weird Al parodied it with "Amish Paradise."
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Like some great movies, "Dangerous Minds" was given a sequel of sorts. Where did it go to next?
another movie
another book
a TV series
"Dangerous Minds" made the jump to TV, with Annie Potts playing the part of LouAnne Johnson. It only lasted one season, from 1996 to 1997.
a comic book series
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Andy Garcia had some scenes in the movie that ended up on the cutting room floor. Who was he supposed to play?
Johnson's husband
Andy Garcia was brought in to play LouAnne's husband in a few scenes. After reading the script, he said he didn’t think the scenes were necessary, but he shot them anyway. None of his scenes ended up in the final cut.
Johnson's friend in the army
Johnson's flirty co-teacher
Johnson's neighbor
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In the movie, LouAnne nearly quits after one class because of how intense it is. In real life, what did she do as a teacher?
taught only the worst
full load, full career
The real LouAnne Johnson taught a full load for five years, and became a department chair.
really did resign
taught a "normal" class
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In real life, what happened to Emilio, the guy who was killed?
died of natural causes
killed, but not the way it happened in the movie
died in an accident
still alive
In real life, Emilio was saved by a police officer and survived.
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According to the real LouAnne Johnson, she strictly refused one major change in the story. What was it?
the movie would show her dressing and talking in "street" style
the movie would emphasize how cool she was
the movie would show a teacher-student affair
Johnson said that the movie writers wanted her character in the movie to have an affair with a student. She said no, and stuck to it. She was reportedly never invited back to the set after that.
the movie would show her browbeating a student
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How were the class lessons different in the movie, compared to what really happened?
Johnson used easier poems
Johnson used modern songs instead of classic poems
The real LouAnne Johnson actually used rap songs (such as "911 is a Joke") and other modern texts to connect with her students. She felt that by doing that, she could engage the students more.
Johnson didn't teach as much
Johnson just taught what was in the standard lessons
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