Waiting for "Superman"

[Brian in Mesa]

Waiting for "Superman"

Release Date: September 24, 2010 (limited)
Studio: Paramount Vantage
Director: Davis Guggenheim
Screenwriter: Davis Guggenheim, Billy Kimball
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: PG (for some thematic material, mild language and incidental smoking)
Website: TakePart.com/WaitingforSuperman

Starring: N/A

Plot Summary: For a nation that proudly declared it would leave no child behind, America continues to do so at alarming rates. Despite increased spending and politicians' promises, our buckling public—education system, once the best in the world, routinely forsakes the education of millions of children. Oscar®—winning filmmaker Davis Guggenheim ("An Inconvenient Truth") reminds us that education "statistics" have names: Anthony, Francisco, Bianca, Daisy, and Emily, whose stories make up the engrossing foundation of "Waiting for 'Superman.'" As he follows a handful of promising kids through a system that inhibits, rather than encourages, academic growth, Guggenheim undertakes an exhaustive review of public education, surveying "drop—out factories" and "academic sinkholes," methodically dissecting the system and its seemingly intractable problems. However, embracing the belief that good teachers make good schools, Guggenheim offers hope by exploring innovative approaches taken by education reformers and charter schools that have—in reshaping the culture—refused to leave their students behind.

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[D-Dogg]

Really good movie.

 

[NJCardFan]

Really good movie.

Let me guess: the teacher's unions aren't even mentioned at a catalyst of the education system's problems. I really don't see this movie taking an honest look at the real problems facing the education system in this country.

 

[Griffin]

Let me guess: the teacher's unions aren't even mentioned at a catalyst of the education system's problems. I really don't see this movie taking an honest look at the real problems facing the education system in this country.

Actually, the teacher's unions are mentioned and are in fact portrayed as the central cause of this country's failing educational system.

 

[Pariah]

Let me guess: the teacher's unions aren't even mentioned at a catalyst of the education system's problems. I really don't see this movie taking an honest look at the real problems facing the education system in this country.

Let me guess: you've already decided this film doesn't fit with your world view and therefor won't see it.

 

[D-Dogg]

Let me guess:

Sure, take a guess.

the teacher's unions aren't even mentioned at a catalyst of the education system's problems.

Sorry. Wrong guess.

The unions are vilified (too much so, IMO, but only a tiny bit).

I really don't see this movie taking an honest look at the real problems facing the education system in this country

watch the movie. It's great. With your pre-set opinions, it will be freaking phenomenal. I already had put my kids in a great books, core knowledge charter school that I lucked the lottery into, so I am not super angry at public schools, but if you are near the b.s. that good teachers have to jump through and bad teachers don't give a crap about, where kids are failing right and left and are held back by dbags that they've carried since second grade, then you will love the movie more than I did.

 

[NJCardFan]

Let me guess: you've already decided this film doesn't fit with your world view and therefor won't see it.

I'm not a documentary kind of guy, unless it's sports related, so you're notion is moot. However, when it comes to my "world view" on the education problems in this country, the main cause of it is rarely mentioned in the media. Since it's been clarified that the unions are mentioned, I'm glad to hear that because they need to be held accountable.

 

[NJCardFan]

Sure, take a guess.



Sorry. Wrong guess.

The unions are vilified (too much so, IMO, but only a tiny bit).



watch the movie. It's great. With your pre-set opinions, it will be freaking phenomenal. I already had put my kids in a great books, core knowledge charter school that I lucked the lottery into, so I am not super angry at public schools, but if you are near the b.s. that good teachers have to jump through and bad teachers don't give a crap about, where kids are failing right and left and are held back by dbags that they've carried since second grade, then you will love the movie more than I did.

The near act of congress needed to fire teachers in this country is the crux of the problem. In NY City, teachers have been known to sit in a place called the rubber room for years at a time before their cases are even heard let alone adjudicated. My wife and I were discussing this today(we're looking to adopt) and we've already decided that we're either going to home school or send our kids to private schools.

 

[devilalum]

OK, I'm a teacher and I have not seen this movie but I have a problem with Hollywood's depiction of teachers in general. I recently saw a movie called Freedom Writers. Good movie about a great teacher but here's the problem. In the movie the main character loses her husband, gets a second job to buy books for her students and basically has NO life outside of her classroom all for a wage less than many unskilled laborers make in a year.

This is becoming the publics perception of what a "good" teacher looks like. I on the other hand always put my family first. If my kids are sick, I stay home and take care of them. My wife and I take turns leaving early after school so we can pick our kids up instead of having them attend some kind of child care. I attend a few after school events a year but not all and I really try to limit the amount of personal money I spend in my classroom. I did win a teacher of the year award a few years back but that was before my children were born. Now I am trying to find balance between career and personal life. I work very hard when I'm with my students but refuse to sell my soul to my profession.

Am I part of the problem?

 

[conraddobler]

OK, I'm a teacher and I have not seen this movie but I have a problem with Hollywood's depiction of teachers in general. I recently saw a movie called Freedom Writers. Good movie about a great teacher but here's the problem. In the movie the main character loses her husband, gets a second job to buy books for her students and basically has NO life outside of her classroom all for a wage less than many unskilled laborers make in a year.

This is becoming the publics perception of what a "good" teacher looks like. I on the other hand always put my family first. If my kids are sick, I stay home and take care of them. My wife and I take turns leaving early after school so we can pick our kids up instead of having them attend some kind of child care. I attend a few after school events a year but not all and I really try to limit the amount of personal money I spend in my classroom. I did win a teacher of the year award a few years back but that was before my children were born. Now I am trying to find balance between career and personal life. I work very hard when I'm with my students but refuse to sell my soul to my profession.

Am I part of the problem?

No you sound like a good teacher.

I know with the funding issues I've seen and heard of teachers effectively doing that kind of BS which only IMO enables the bad funding decisions to fester.

One question.

Has the administrative staff around you grown faster than the student population or at roughly a rate that looks ok for the amount of students?

The reason I ask is because it seems that to me, there's a ton of administrative staff now compared to in the past and it seems that they keep adding more all the time while crying poor about having enough to fund programs.

My own kids elementary school had two assistant principals, who were pulling down near principal money plus a flush staff of office people and I'd say that staff easily doubled during the time my kids went there even though the kids population maybe went up by 25% if that.

Having run a business I'm guessing of you tore apart the budgets that a great portion was going to administrative costs.

One way to run a school is to have a principal for that elementary school, another way to run it is to have one principal for 10 schools.

In their place at the actual school, hire two counselors, who still make half what the principal makes, use video conferencing to standardize meeting across the district, have central offices make the schedules for the whole district and let the counselors escalate the proper discipline problems up to a central office.

Elimintate the assistants, district wide the savings are epic, now fire the bad teachers, give the good teachers a raise, and hire a few more teachers to get the class sizes down and presto, happier schools.

Good teachers don't need much monitoring, they just need some office support, a general district curriculum and there you go.

I'm sure what I lined out wouldn't work, well all of it wouldn't, cause I don't know how the whole thing works, but I bet I'm not far off on some things.

Everyone on this board probably had some good teachers they still remember I know I did, had nothing to do with buying me a notebook or staying late, it had to do with them being a good teacher and learning, that's what it's all about.

 

[MigratingOsprey]

Also the demands/needs can vary by type of school .... in hollywood you get a lot of stories patterned on the low income/rough neighborhood school that has a saintly teacher come in and work through the obstacles in place to get a result that people didn't think were possible

honestly, my main problem with these type of movies is that they paint the accomplishment as being something spectacular - when it's really what should be going on in the first place ..... kids are often doing the same type of things in schools around the countries, but since we have so a lower expectation of certain schools just acheiving the norms on occasion is trumpted and a hard fought battle

when we first moved out here my wife worked at a school in a low income area ..... a lot of ESL, a lot of single parents/multiple children homes, not a very active community, not a cash flush school

her classroom walls were grimy and she had more dead roaches in her room than materials ..... she put a lot of time and money just getting the environment right so she could do her job .... i was there with her scrubbing walls which ran black when hit with water and trying to create an environment for learning

one of the other teachers got involved with her local congressman (state) and the local rotary club who rounded up some surplus books, reference materials, etc

just getting the room up to par and resources in place was a job ..... then you had the additional task of a difficult student & parent population that took more effort and time

after a couple years she switched to one of the better school districts and it was night & day .... very active PTO, sparkling classrooms, microphone systems, smart boards, full resource materials, the tools are in place and the district is willing and able to work on getting additional items you may need ...... most student buy their own notebooks, etc ..... other classroom items are donated by PTO (kleenex, etc) .... the teachers are able to more efficiently apply their resources

my wife works fewer hours and spends less money - but is probably more effective (or at least measurably effective)

 

[jw7]

So I watched this yesterday and I found it really interesting. And kind of depressing.

that I lucked the lottery into

To me that was the most surprising part of the movie (and I'm not going to put spoiler tags b/c it is a documentrary). That part just seemed cruel showing the lot drawings and the balls coming out of a cage potentially determining a kid's future. It just made me think. If parents are willing to go thru this, why not just try to make all schools better?

Also, something I did not know. Michellle Rhee (former DC school superintendent and a very prominent and controversial figure in the film) is engaged to former Suns player and current Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson. Had no idea.