Review of Waiting for "Superman" (2010) by Simon D — 25 Jul 2011
This is the best doc i've seen this year, all parents and educators should see this. not that everyone will necessarily agree with the thesis that guggenheim presents - that teacher unions and tenure, among other things, have been detrimental to our public education system.
in this film, we follow 5 or 6 kids and their parents as they try to get out of their failing school ("dropout factory") and into a charter where they will have better chances for success. along the way we learn about history of public education, how it works in other countries, and some of the luminaries in the education world (like geoffrey canada, did you hear the 'this american life' podcast a few years ago on his NYC school? killer episode).
and you wanna get mad? do a little research into NY states "the rubber room" (another TAL episode). at the conclusion, we see the kids all go to their lottery drawings...where a few lucky ones get picked but most get sent back to their failing school.
one of the most heartbreaking things i've seen in a while, it made my allergies act up. put this in your queue.
This review of Waiting for "Superman" (2010) was written by Simon D on 25 Jul 2011.
Waiting for "Superman" has generally received very positive reviews.
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