Santa Claus is a global icon. But where did this friendly old man in a red suit who brings gifts for children actually come from? How could Santa become a central figure of our consumer society?
The work of Lev Vygotsky is increasingly cited as we reconsider the theory and practice of constructivist education. This program introduces the life, vocabulary and concepts of Lev Vygotsky. The video illustrates four basic concepts integral to his work: Children construct knowledge, learning can lead development, development cannot be separated from its social context, and language plays a central role in cognitive development. Elena Bodrova brings an easy familiarity to these concepts. Deborah Leong’s commentary and the lively classroom examples enable students, teachers in training, and classroom teachers to incorporate these concepts into their understanding of child development.
The myth of Joan of Arc has fascinated people the world over. In the collective memory, she is the young shepherd girl who died at the stake having saved France. But 15th century chronicles report that following events in Rouen, certain people refused to believe she was dead and that another woman was burned instead.
Missing in action in Vietnam for thirty nine years, the remains of Lt. Jack E. Buchannon, U.S.M.C., are found and identified. He is brought home and awarded the medal of honor and is buried as a fallen hero. His three childhood best friends, all ex-marines and Vietnam veterans, get together after attending the funeral to raise a toast, look back on their lives, their friendships and their service to the country.
These film reels had vanished for decades and no one knew about the secret passion of Hitler's second man Hermann Goering. This footage from his private collection shows for the first time how he preferred to see himself: at the height of his power, acclaimed by the masses - as in the annexation of Austria in 1938, as Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe.
The thrilling true story of a NZ-born heroine who became the Gestapo's most wanted woman in WWII. This showcase documentary-drama follows Nancy Wake's remarkable life.
In 17th century India, Maratha warrior Shivaji visits Emperor Aurangzeb's court in Agra. After a confrontation, he's placed under house arrest but orchestrates a daring escape that shakes the Mughal Empire.
The 2008 election of Barack Obama led many to believe we had entered a post-racial America, one in which the nation's traumatic and painful history of racism had finally been erased. In the years since, it's become increasingly clear that the deep roots of racism and white supremacy continue to run through our political, cultural, and religious institutions. Based on interviews and current research, the documentary film White Savior explores the historic relationship between racism and American Christianity, the ongoing segregation of the church in the US, and the complexities of racial reconciliation. Featuring interviews with Lenny Duncan, Soong Chan Rah, Jacqueline Woodson, Jim Bear Jacobs, Dominique Gilliard, and more.
In the heart of a metropolitan city of 15 million people and among the construction of a new billion-dollar transportation network, an archaeological sensation has been discovered: the ancient harbour of Theodosious, lost from the history books for over 1000 years.
World War II in Europe ended on the 8th of May 1945. Hitler is dead. Allied armies have occupied Germany. The death camps have been liberated. But, for the Jews of Europe, the suffering, the dying, and the grief continues, and still continues to this very day.
An immersive documentary reveals the story of a forgotten prince--Henry Frederick Stuart--who was a star of the first decade of the Stuart dynasty in the 1600s but never became king.
The 17th century saw London plunge into a series of devastating disasters. The Civil War, a murderous plague, and the destruction of the great fire should have all but destroyed the small medieval city, but somehow it not only survived - it thrived. Dan Cruickshank explores how London survived the travails of the 17th century.
In the summer of 1942, Rommel's Afrika Korps swept across the Western Desert, sending the Allied forces into full retreat. Driven back deep into Egypt, Montgomery's 8th Army dug in along the El Alamein Line, prepared for battle. This factual film portrays the events leading up to and during, one of the greatest battles in the Second World War, the Battle of El Alamein.
This documentary of repressive political realities in Cameroon begins with the 1990 publication of an open letter to President Biya calling for a national conference - and the immediate arrest of the letter's author and publisher. The narration then examines the nation's colonial history, beginning with the first German missionary in 1901, the establishment of schools, French occupation following World War I, the paucity of books written by and published by Cameroonians, and the repression of the CPU, a leftist organization of the 1950s and 1960s. Cameroon and its people are the lark, its feathers plucked first by colonialism and then by native strongmen: 'Alouette, je te plumerai.'
Three acclaimed researchers unravel the Jack the Ripper murders while prosecuting their cases against three different suspects-shedding stunning new light on the greatest unsolved crime in history.
It deals with the search for a young Argentinian's lost identity during the last military dictatorship, where they organized themselves through dark and unsuspected means to carry out the most atrocious crimes against humanity suffered in this country.