Latest news with #Plutarch
See - Sada Elbalad
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- See - Sada Elbalad
Jesse Plemons to Star as Plutarch Heavensbee in "The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping"
Yara Sameh Jesse Plemons has joined the cast of 'The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping' as a young version of Plutarch Heavensbee. Plutarch was portrayed by Philip Seymour Hoffman in the original films 'Catching Fire' and 'Mockingjay' Parts 1 and 2. Hoffman died in 2014 after filming the majority of his scenes for the 'Mockingjay' films, with only a week of shooting remaining. Director Francis Lawrence did not use any CGI technology to replicate the actor's performance, instead choosing to rewrite scenes and give Hoffman's dialogue to other actors. 'He was one of the greatest actors, I think, of all time and I just think to try to fake a Philip Seymour Hoffman performance would have been catastrophic and I would never want to do that,' Lawrence said at the time. 'I just think this was the best way to be able to get around such a horrible thing.' Plemons and Hoffman previously worked together on Paul Thomas Anderson's 2012 film 'The Master,' with Plemons portraying Hoffman's son. An Oscar nominee for his performance in 'The Power of the Dog,' Plemons most recently appeared in Netflix's 'Black Mirror' episode 'USS Callister: Into Infinity.' Other notable credits include 'Friday Night Lights,' 'Killers of the Flower Moon,' 'Kinds of Kindness' and 'Zero Day.' The acclaimed actor is next set to star in an untitled film from director Alejandro G. Iñárritu and in Yorgos Lanthimos' 'Bugonia' alongside Emma Stone. Erin Westerman, co-president of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, said, 'Jesse is one of the most talented actors of his generation, with a proven record of picking his roles selectively. We are honored that he has chosen to bring his own take to one of the most fascinating figures in Panem and feel that his previous collaboration with Philip Seymour Hoffman makes it all the more special. His Plutarch will be both a tribute to the character fans have already come to know and a portrayal he makes his own. We can't wait for audiences to see it.' The new 'Hunger Games' movie, set to begin shooting this July, is directed by Lawrence, who has helmed every installment of the franchise since 2012's 'Catching Fire.' Billy Ray, who co-wrote the original 'Hunger Games' has been tapped to write the screenplay. Color Force's Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will produce. Cameron MacConomy will executive produce. 'Sunrise on the Reaping' opens with the young Plutarch Heavensbee in District 12, capturing the reaping of the Tributes there. Published on March 18, the novel revisits the world of Panem 24 years before the events of 'The Hunger Games,' starting on the morning of the reaping of the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell. Jacobson added, 'Jesse has been one of my favorite actors since I first saw him in 'Friday Night Lights.' We knew from the start that only an actor's actor could play a young version of Plutarch. Jesse was the dream from the start and we couldn't be prouder to have him join the 'Hunger Games' family.' 'Sunrise on the Reaping' sold 1.5 million copies in its first week on sale in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The 1.2 million copies sold in the U.S. are twice the first week sales of 'The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes' and three times the first week sales of 'Mockingjay.' Meredith Wieck and Scott O'Brien are overseeing the project for Lionsgate. Phil Strina negotiated the deal for the studio. 'Sunrise on the Reaping' is set to be released in theaters on November 20, 2026. read more New Tourism Route To Launch in Old Cairo Ahmed El Sakka-Led Play 'Sayidati Al Jamila' to Be Staged in KSA on Dec. 6 Mandy Moore Joins Season 2 of "Dr. Death" Anthology Series Don't Miss These Movies at 44th Cairo Int'l Film Festival Today Amr Diab to Headline KSA's MDLBEAST Soundstorm 2022 Festival Arts & Culture Mai Omar Stuns in Latest Instagram Photos Arts & Culture "The Flash" to End with Season 9 Arts & Culture Ministry of Culture Organizes four day Children's Film Festival Arts & Culture Canadian PM wishes Muslims Eid-al-Adha News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia Lifestyle Pistachio and Raspberry Cheesecake Domes Recipe News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Arts & Culture Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's $4.7M LA Home Burglarized Videos & Features Bouchra Dahlab Crowned Miss Arab World 2025 .. Reem Ganzoury Wins Miss Arab Africa Title (VIDEO) Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple
Forbes
15-04-2025
- General
- Forbes
Why Standardized Testing Shouldn't Drive Education
High-stakes testing season is around the corner. Is it time to rethink it? Standardized testing has become a major stressor for students Every year, teachers and students across America brace for the usual drill: the next round of high-stakes standardized tests. The students dread it. The teachers dread it. And yet every year, it must be done. Why? It's true we need concrete data on how students are doing so we can applaud their achievements and shore up their weaknesses (in areas like reading, for example). We need a 'fair' way to assess what students have learned. By its very definition, a standardized test is designed to give as objective a result as possible. Every student takes the same test, composed of questions formatted as true/false or multiple choice to allow automated grading. A nice, even playing field—right? Not quite. Critics of standardized testing point out that the structure favors students who thrive on this question format, or even those who are simply good guessers. Tests, graded solely on the right or wrong answer, also fail to measure the problem-solving, critical-thinking skills that students use to arrive at that answer. At best, test scores shed light on just one part of a bigger picture. A student could be a great writer but miss a multiple-choice question about grammar. Another student could possess higher-than-average intelligence, but struggle with test-taking and perform poorly under the pressure. In both cases, the test results present an incomplete picture of the student's abilities. Testing is often described as 'high stakes' because so much depends on it. Scores are often used to make school funding decisions, penalizing schools where students aren't acing the test. Teacher performance and school quality are often judged by test scores, when the biggest factor in a student's score is not their teacher or school, but their parents' income. In most places, standardized testing has become the master rather than the servant—inciting a frenzy of preparation that displaces actual instruction with stress-laden test prep. Is this really fair to our students—or teachers? Around 100 AD, the Greek philosopher Plutarch argued that the mind of the student was not a vessel to be filled, but rather a fire to be kindled. Is public education today kindling a love of learning in students—or the opposite? I believe we actually need to do both vessel-filling and fire-kindling. Students' minds do need to be filled with new information as they grow in their knowledge of the world and themselves. In many ways, I think we do that well. But, now more than ever, we also need to kindle their passion for learning so that they can become self-driven, lifelong learners who can adapt to the changing world we live in today. Our current model, driven by a test-centric learning culture, does not often succeed at this. Sometimes we forget that students are people, too. They aren't little robots to be programmed full of data to spit back out on a test. They need their own purpose for learning, a reason that matters to them. They need us to kindle their fire. And this can only happen when educators take the time to forge a real human connection with them. Students want to feel seen, heard and valued by the adults in their lives; that's where we can build the rapport that makes the student want to hear what the teacher has to say. Education is the transfer of enthusiasm through the conduit of a human connection. But with all-important test prep (and everything else on teachers' plates), forging a human connection with students is exactly what most don't have the bandwidth to do. We need to free teachers to connect with their students on a meaningful level and teach their subject. Testing should just be a blip on the radar—not an annual tornado. I'm not against testing—but I am against the high-pressure, do-or-die ordeal it has become. I'm not against teaching kids new information and assessing how much they've retained—but I am against teaching to the test. I'm not against efforts to make testing equitable and fair—but I am against using test scores as the sole measure of a school's quality, a teacher's ability or a student's future. So where do we go from here? I challenge state and education leaders to demote standardized testing from its role as master of our educational destiny and place it in an appropriate position where it can better serve students and teachers. I challenge all of us to see test scores as one piece of the bigger picture. Test, by all means. But don't make it necessary to spend the preceding six weeks cramming test skills like memorization, recall, and studying into students. Don't hang the threat of poor scores over teachers' heads. Don't make kids feel their value depends on their performance. Yes, test our students—and then let's get to the real business of preparing them for successful, rewarding lives.
