“Waiting for ‘Superman'” Sparks Dialogue

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Author: Jack Greenbaum

When “An Inconvenient Truth,” directed by Davis Guggenheim, hit theaters in mid-2006, audiences were faced with the real disaster that is global warming and walked away from the film shocked at the state of the planet. With Guggenheim’s latest documentary, “Waiting for ‘Superman'” they will not only leave shocked, but anguished for the children who suffer through the public education system. Guggenheim’s film discusses a significant problem that will see its worst effects years down the road.

“Waiting for ‘Superman'” approaches the problem of public education on two fronts, the first is national and state statistics and practices. The second focus of the films is the stories of five children attempting to get the best education they can from the system. While the data on how schools are run will stagger the mind, the children’s struggle for education will wrench the soul.

The five children and their families live across the country: Washington D.C., Harlem, Los Angeles, the Bronx and Redwood City; but all are faced with the same challenge of finding a school that will meet the children’s needs. The public schools in their areas are not preparing the students for where they want to go: college. Therefore, they all apply to the best charter schools in their area.

The film depicts charter schools favorably because of their willingness to attempt different academic approaches to learning, their ability to defy teacher unions and their high success rates, regardless of the neighborhood they are in.

However, Guggenheim contends that while they have achieved great things there is a limited opportunity for students to get into these schools. The central focus of the film, consistently revisited, asks: this school is doing something right, so how do we make it applicable to all schools ?

The film does expose one major failure of the charter system: lotteries. By no fault of their own, charter schools are obligated to hold lotteries for applicants to attend their schools in order to make the process fair for everyone.

Guggenheim follows the five families as they await their fate at each of their respective lotteries. No scene is more emotionally heartbreaking than watching these families sit in anguish, waiting to learn whether their children will win the chance to attend a better school, and consequently, a better life.

With regards to the information-based elements of the film, “Waiting for ‘Superman'” does indict the teachers unions to be one of the major contributors to the problems within the school system. It exposes many of the loopholes that bad teachers hide behind to protect their jobs and accuses these teachers of making it impossible to change things or try new programs. While some may see this as a slanted argument, examination worthy evidence exists that stands to change minds.

“Waiting for ‘Superman'” has already sparked controversy nationwide due to its bias towards charter schools and against teachers unions, and if nothing else, this film is worth seeing in order to join in the debate. Education should be our government’s number one priority. By improving education there will be a reduction in crime and poverty and an increases in ingenuity and prosperity. The film covers a wide range of the issues the public school system is wrestling with and successfully enlightens the audience of them, even if people disagree with proposed solutions. The movie is creating a discussion on the different ways to approach the flaws in the public school system. By arguing methods and considering alternative tactics maybe there will be a breakthrough in the way children learn. And if that’s a possibility, even if it’s slight, then that’s a conversation everyone should be having.

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