Waiting for Superman

“Waiting For Superman” is a eye-opening documentary of the short comings of the American public school system and the struggles in the lives of the students and their families. Featured are students from across America that have been negatively affected by the public school system. Each of these students and their families have great hardships to overcome yet have a strong will to succeed and a never give up attitude. The parent of these children do not like the way that their children are being taught in their current school. It shows what they parents go through in making sure that their child has a good educations, from constantly trying to communicate with teachers and school officials that have no interest in helping them, entering Chartered School Lotteries, and actually paying for private school while being low income. Also featured are people that invest their time in trying to improve the public school system and do everything they can to make school about what is best for the children. Geoffrey Canada and Michele Rhee are two of the people featured here, Geoffrey started a new chain of schools that have a high success rating for the children whom attend. He also talked about his childhood story about waiting for superman, and finding out he was not real and worrying about who was going to save his community. Michele Rhee ran for Chancellor for the Washington D.C. school district, a job which many attempted but failed or resigned shortly after obtaining the responsibilities. Also reveled in this documentary are very hard truths and shocking issues concerning the public school system. In 1970 the government funded $4,300 now $10,000 is spent per child, yet student scores are still the same. It was once assumed that failing neighbors equals failing schools, but now it is understood that failing schools equal failing neighborhoods. It cost the government $132,000 for one person to serve a four year sentence, it would have been cheaper to send them to private school for kindergarten until 12th grade. Tenures that were meant to protect college professors’ jobs from being taken due to “not agreeing” with their teachings, where being used at the public school level and after getting their tenures they are then ’invincible’ and many stopped caring for their responsibilities as a teacher because they cannot get fired, because of this school officials are now forced to do what is called “the dance of the lemons”, which means they pass around the “bad teachers” around in hopes they get a better one. In New York they have their “bad” teachers sit in a room and read and still get paid. After watching this movie I was shocked to learn of all the selfishness in the public school system, and that the people that we trust with our children and their futures, take their jobs so lightly and show no care or interest in something with such great importance such as persons educations. I feel that children learn by example and the examples that a being lead by some of these educators are not acceptable and that is why some of the youth today is going down the wrong path. Not every teacher is like this the people like Geoffrey Canada, and Michele Rhee, are good examples of people who care about the students and work hard to give children a chance at a great education, and a productive future.