It’s really a bummer when a film you’ve looked forward to seeing for months turns out to be a huge disappointment. but that was the case for me when I saw Waiting for Superman. The documentary seeks to highlight the increasing ineffectiveness of public school systems throughout the United States, and to illustrate the harm these failing schools are doing to our kids–and by extension to our society as a whole, which suffers the effects of a poorly-educated populace: higher crime rates, entrenched poverty, and–according to the film–not enough skilled workers to fill the professional jobs of the future.
I was excited to see Waiting for Superman because I, too, am worried about the current state of education in this country, and I was especially thrilled that the timing of the release landed the movie in theaters just as the public consciousness of problems plaguing our schools has been raised, via articles in the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, NPR, and a variety of other outlets. I would love to see this national discussion we’re having–fractured though it may be–gain in momentum so that we may begin to address the problems that currently plague school districts throughout the country.
Unfortunately, though, Waiting for Superman adds nothing to this national discussion because all the movie offers is an incredibly simplistic look at a very complex problem. If Davis Guggenheim, who directed the film, is to be believed, our educational system has deteriorated solely because tenure and teachers unions have kept horrible teachers in the classroom for far too long. Continue reading
