[8], Roger Ebert gave the film 3.5 stars out of 4 and wrote, "What struck me most of all was Geoffrey Canada's confidence that a charter school run on his model can make virtually any first-grader a high school graduate who's accepted to college. GUGGENHEIM: Weve won the lottery. SCARBOROUGH: Right. >> >> We actually have to change the political environment. But, Mondello If I don't, Ill just be with my friends. endobj RANDI WEINGARTEN, PRES., AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS: Sure. Judith and Jose have decided to enter Daisy into the Kipp lottery. KENNY: Right. There are a couple of things leaders, in which we all are, could do. That is the problem. But when I saw you after the film, and I would -- being macho, hey, Davis, how you doing, man? [31] Ravitch served as a board member with the NAEP and says that "the NAEP doesn't measure performance in terms of grade-level achievement," as claimed in the film, but only as "advanced," "proficient," and "basic." /ExtGState << SCARBOROUGH: 15 seconds. I went up there, Jeff Zucker pushed me to go up there one day. /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] There are also comparisons made between schools in affluent neighborhoods versus schools in poorer ones. BRZEZINSKI: Why didn't you want her to go to a regular public school in your neighborhood? NAKIA: She felt it wasn't fair that other children were being picked and she was just as smart as they were and why not her. Guggenheim, Davis. However, the film shows how even charter schools leave some children behind, as those who are not chosen by the luck of the draw in the lottery system, are not able to attend the charter schools of their choice. I have a 12-year-old that goes to public school. I think what's happened in places like Washington and I saw it compared to New York City. CANADA: Look, no business in America would be in existence if it ran like this. All we're going to do is pay good teachers more money. Or it can't be done. They want to know what good teaching looks like and they want to emulate it. We have to fix this thing and it means the adults have to take leadership. And Im not going to pretend that you can just come in and snap your fingers and things are going to get better overnight. And a lot of times some of the older civil rights organizations have historically aligned with the unions. >> RHEE: You know what, heres the thing. The movie's major villains are the National "[12] The Hollywood Reporter focused on Geoffrey Canada's performance as "both the most inspiring and a consistently entertaining speaker," while also noting it "isn't exhaustive in its critique. Mika and I want to welcome you to this special hour. << /Properties << /T1_1 57 0 R Joe and I saw the movie a few days ago and we literally walked up Broadway, I think it was, in complete silence, both feeling very twisted and angry about what we had seen. [2] The film criticizes the American public education system by following several students as they strive to be accepted into competitive charter schools such as KIPP LA Schools, Harlem Success Academy and Summit Preparatory Charter High School. WEINGARTEN: We need to help them do that for all of our kids. Davis, god bless you. We'll hear from the audience as well. endstream /T1_1 20 0 R Now, a couple of years ago, an independent group called Ed Sector actually surveyed a whole bunch of teachers and asked teachers the question about whether they needed or wanted a union. The film portrays the deep sadness that Bianca and her mother feel when Bianca is not accepted into the charter school as the two embrace one another at the end and Nakia dries her daughters tears (Guggenheim 1:37:35). /Font << We all have to move off self-interest. /Parent 1 0 R Thats just one of the great things that we see. endobj SCARBOROUGH: The reformer. /CropBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] 9 0 obj Feb 22, 2013. BRZEZINSKI: All right. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To come see, geography and love, thats it. /Font << GUGGENHEIM: Absolutely. How do you explain that to a child? And the next morning Im driving my kids in the minivan to school and they go to a great private school in Los Angeles. Ravitch says that a study by Stanford University economist Margaret Raymond of 5000 charter schools found that only 17% are superior in math test performance to a matched public school, and many perform badly, casting doubt on the film's claim that privately managed charter schools are the solution to bad public schools. You do not come off as the hero of this movie. I get to meet all the wonderful teachers out there. /Resources << NAKIA: The schools in my area don't measure up as far as the reading is concerned, the math is concerned. SCARBOROUGH: John Legend, final thoughts? The principal wants her to stay. By what name was Waiting for Superman (2010) officially released in India in English? I think he actually wants to do the right thing. We can't have our school system running like this. But can we really get Geoffrey Canadas in every public high school across America? LEGEND: Yes. 6 0 obj This is about changing the political environment that we're operating in. We're turning to you now. Because we talked to Randi before. But I think we have to get a layer deeper than just the platitudes that remain on the stage. RHEE: Yes, that's right. What were the results of the kids who came in and were about to graduate this June, late May, what is the change that has happened with these children? LEGEND: My last thing I would say, we have to realize that these kids are our kids. If I get in, they give me a better chance in life. The film shows how the audience members, filled with prospective students and their families, all sit with apprehensive looks on their faces as they anxiously listen to the names and numbers of the children who are called and are therefore accepted into the charter school by luck of the draw. "[30], Diane Ravitch, Research Professor of Education at New York University and a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, similarly criticizes the film's lack of accuracy. SCARBOROUGH: All right. Explain to me how that is good for children. This film follows five children and documents them to see what their lives and schools are like. Take a moment. You have to pull out a bingo ball and call your number. But that isn't something that can't be, you know, worked out. What happened there? Waiting for Superman: Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim reminds us that education statistics have names: Anthony, Francisco, Bianca, Daisy, and Emily, whose WebThe documentary Waiting for Superman, directed by Davis Guggenheim, is a film that shows how school systems are today. We increased graduation rates. We increased student achievement levels. The only disagreement that I think our union has had in terms of the way in which things have gone, is that our folks have desperately wanted to have a voice in how to do reform. They do allow us to figure out what's working and we should replicate it and what's not and we should close those charter schools that arent working so that we actually develop a science in our business about what works in what kinds of environments and in what kinds of communities. And I was hurt. /TrimBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] WEINGARTEN: Im just -- that's why there was a cap from the early -- SCARBOROUGH: We have a lot of people that want get involved here. >> First, I loved that town hall today. And the idea that we now can do it means that we have a very moment right now to say let's take those things, let's take those ingredients and bring them into mainstream schools. Randi we'll let you get a response in here and also, Mika, what we're going to do is figure out where everybody agrees. I mean I think that's what this whole debate is about in many ways. Is there any give here? /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] BRZEZINSKI: When the results came down, we watched you respond, we watched her respond. /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] You said, you still cry every time you see it. One of the saddest days of my life was when my mother told me Superman did not exist, the BRZEZINSKI: When we come back, we'll be joined -- SCARBOROUGH: One thing we do agree on -- BRZEZINSKI: We have to go. Let's do this right now and let's look at the best contract in the nation in terms of eliminating ineffective teachers and let's make that the standard across America. GUGGENHEIM: Whats really -- people -- when I hear this conversation, I want to bring it back to parents. /ExtGState << As part of lifting the cap they wanted to make sure that there was accountability for everyone. Ravitch also writes that many charter schools are involved in "unsavory real estate deals" [31], In 2011, many news media reported on a testing score "cheating scandal" at Rhee's schools, because the test answer sheets contained a suspiciously high number of erasures that changed wrong answers to right answers. RHEE: We wanted to give the teachers the tools. 40 years later we're still fighting for equality and one of the biggest barriers to achieving quality is the fact that so many kids in our country can't get a great education. I actually have teachers in my family who really think is this is a terrific movie because it exposes for them how complicated it is, how important it is to get great teachers in the classroom and what a difference they can make. You believe it, don't you, Michelle? GUGGENHEIM: Ive seen the movie hundreds of times. Where you tried to focus on good teachers in Washington. That's what our union has been trying to do for the last two years. 1h 51m. 1 0 obj I just heard a story, I met a teacher the other day. >> "[30] Lastly, Ayers writes that "schools are more segregated today than before Brown v. Board of Education in 1954," and thus criticized the film for not mentioning that "black and brown students are being suspended, expelled, searched, and criminalized. We have to take ownership. BRZEZINSKI: If you leave Washington, D.C. are you going to Newark? endobj 3 0 obj I mean, not all teachers are created equal. BRZEZINSKI: You also knew that a little girl like Daisy can be a vet or a doctor or anything she wants to be if she's given the tools to do it. S/p?G4lt(20}G(8!h-D! 5 The goal of the film is to create a successful public education system filled with great schoolsthat leave no child behind, andit calls for reform from all of usin order to reach that goal. WEINGARTEN: The issue in terms of education is there's no turning back on reform in education in Washington, D.C. Our union is committed to it. I think he wants to do the right thing. /Properties << Why is that? ?zBzD%YC1_PVu,fkGsM'2Hnm^]6_1W|qpff&,+y
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(b]Jl BP> National Assessment of Educational Progress, Bill Gates Goes to Sundance, Offers an Education, "How Davis Guggenheim's Documentary 'Waiting for "Superman"' Will Further Fuel the Education Debate -- New York Magazine - Nymag", "Waiting for Superman Movie Reviews, Pictures", "How did 'Waiting for 'Superman's' ' Davis Guggenheim become the right wing's favorite liberal filmmaker? /MC0 62 0 R [37] It criticizes some public figures featured in Waiting for "Superman", proposes different policies to improve education in the United States and counters the position taken by Guggenheim. This isn't some Hollywood drama or a romance flick. It's about places that have failed for 30, 40, 50 years, we can't do the same thing this year that we did last year. /GS1 17 0 R You get to the nation's capital, the nation's capital, only 16 percent of students are proficient in math. They couldn't add basic first grade skills, they couldn't have it. /T1_1 20 0 R >> He wrote "Shine," the theme song for "Waiting For Superman." They were the right things for kids but they made the adults incredibly uncomfortable. (soundbite of film, "big george foreman: the miraculous story of the once and future heavyweight champion of the world") KHRIS DAVIS: (As George Foreman) Last time they saw me, I looked like Superman. BRZEZINSKI: Youre outnumbered. END VIDEO CLIP BRZEZINSKI: All right. RHEE: I do. Do you think it has characterized you fairly? /BleedBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] We love hard-working teachers. Where has the union misstepped to help us get to where we are today? So the question is, what's New York City doing right? Charter schools are public schools, public dollars, public school children and to talk about them as if they are not public schools, I think does a disservice to that movement. Educational reception and allegations of inaccuracy. I like to follow the evidence. But this is the issue that I think Ive been hearing that I just want to get clear. WEINGARTEN: Yeah, of course. This is a transcript of "Waiting for Superman". Waiting for Superman is a documentary which investigates the different ways in which education is failing students and the development of the American public And when you say that, people say you're attacking teachers. /Properties << The issue is we have to all do this together with good contracts, with all of us on the same side, getting to help good teachers, getting supportive principals, getting a curriculum and the wrap-around services that Geoff does that cradle to college service. And I always -- Im at screenings all across the country. "[7] On Metacritic it has a score of 81% based on reviews from 31 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim reminds us that education "statistics" have names: Anthony, Francisco, Bianca, Daisy, and Emily, whose stories make up the engrossing foundation of WAITING FOR SUPERMAN. 100 percent of the kids pass the science regions. /Length 866 On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. LEGEND: This is a civil rights issue. I'd like to follow up by asking you, that on "MEET THE PRESS" this morning, you said the union has taken steps to make teachers better, taken concrete steps. There's a lot of people in this country that aren't feeling what we feel. Geoffrey, let me ask you this question. You've done an amazing job there in Harlem. /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] CANADA: Sure. Educ 300: Education Reform, Past and Present, an undergraduate course with Professor Jack Dougherty at Trinity College, Hartford CT. David GuggenheimsWaiting for Supermanlooks at how theAmerican public school system is failing its students and displays how reformers have attempted to solve this problem. BRZEZINSKI: Okay. But do you think Michelle Rhee was trying to improve the performance of the teachers in her district, was she trying to make the schools better? We applaud everybody for joining us on this stage. Feel free to edit or add to this page, as long as the information comes directly from the /MC0 28 0 R Of course, Washington has problems going back decades. Yes, there should be fairness. endobj [15] Deborah Kenny, CEO and founder of the Harlem Village Academies, made positive reference to the film in a The Wall Street Journal op-ed piece about education reform. (END VIDEO CLIP) BRZEZINSKI: And there are kids that don't make it. WEINGARTEN: Michelle and I may disagree on the particulars of this, but there are about 50 or 60 districts that are using the proposal that we made and ultimately we think if we do that, if we fix teacher evaluations so it's about teacher development and evaluation, we can fix this problem. That's when we come back as we dive into the issues presented in "Waiting For Superman." SCARBOROUGH: Last in, first out. One of them is Nakia. endobj Let me answer your question first. Michelle Rhee, the former chancellor of the Washington, D.C. public schools (the district with some of the worst-performing students at the time), is shown attempting to take on the union agreements that teachers are bound to, but suffers a backlash from the unions and the teachers themselves. WEINGARTEN: A collaboration issue was where we disagreed at times. /BleedBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] SCARBOROUGH: Were back with our panel, Michelle, one of the stunning parts of many stunning parts in this documentary, in this film, was when Davis showed the proficiency numbers state by state. We even tolerate mediocre teachers. DAISY: I want to go to a medical college or a veterinarian college because I really want to become a surgeon. Since many charter schools are not large enough to accept all of their applicants, the selection of students is done by lottery. Were going to talk to in a second and thats where Jeff Zucker told me I needed to go. I think they put the money into this mayoral campaign because it was a symbol of reform in this country. NAKIA: Shes 7 now. I went up to a school up there. That youre not going to look American with our 15,000 school system and say we're going to charter them, that's just not going to happen in my lifetime. "Waiting for Superman" ( Superman & Lois), an episode of Superman & Lois. >> GUGGENHEIM: The dream of making a movie like this is conversations just like this, the fact that you and NBC and Viacom and Paramount and Get School bring a movie to the table and let people in this room have a real conversation about to fix our schools is essential. And it says that if all of us are actually committed to fixing this, we will follow the evidence of what works, follow it, be innovative, be creative but follow the evidence of what works and we will all work together to fix this so that every single child has access to a great public education, not by chance, not by privilege but by right. We're going to do it with a man who made this film and some of the people who were in it. LEGEND: I think there needs to be an understanding in our community when we fight for our kids we're fighting for our community. If Anthony goes to Souza, odds are he'll enter high school three to five grade levels behind. Thank you for joining us. In response to this problem, many reformers, including Geoffrey Canada, have tried to look for solutions. Its so interesting you say that because Mika, Chris, our EP, myself, everybody thats seen this movie says first of all, they break down and cry at the end of this movie and then when they go home and they look at their children, children who can go to really great schools, they look at their own children differently. /Im0 19 0 R Because politically, these -- the things that we were doing, closing down schools, firing teachers, moving principals, those were not politically popular things to do. /Type /Page >> CANADA: Can I just tell you this? And that still scared the hell out of the Washington union. And what teachers have told us is that focus instead on the tools and conditions we need to do our jobs. Like around here, I mean, I want my kids to have better than what I had. << SCARBOROUGH: And you also, your movie talks about how what's happening in some of these schools is demolished a lie, a bigoted lie that some kids are incapable of learning. /Length 868 [31] The most substantial distortion in the film, according to Ravitch, is the film's claim that "70 percent of eighth-grade students cannot read at grade level," a misrepresentation of data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress. LEGEND: Well, it's been quite a learning experience because I get to meet great educators. BRZEZINSKI: No. We can't achieve equality or humanity and justice for everybody if we can't make sure that every kid gets a good education. Most of them. SCARBOROUGH: First and foremost -- LEGEND: If we care about justice, if we care about equality in this country, we have to care about fixing education. It's going to be mommy's job to get you another school that's better. & CEO, HARLEM CHILDRENS ZONE: I think the real important issue for us to face as Americans is if we don't fix this, we will not remain a great country. I knew -- as Davis said, I knew what was going to happen before she knew what was going to happen. SCARBOROUGH: Really quickly. We should let Randi respond. I knew what the final scene would look like and I still broke down three times. LESTE BELL, DAISYS TEACHER: She chose her college and she wrote a letter to the admissions and asking them to allow her to attend their college. You can't do it with the district rules and the union contracts as they are in most districts. endobj By the time they finish eighth grade, they will have doubled their math and reading scores. You know, in Washington, D.C., under Mayor Fenty who arguably I think is the most courageous politician we have on these education reform issues, we did everything, arguably, that people wanted to see. "[19] Forbes' Melik Kaylan similarly liked the film, writing, "I urge you all to drop everything and go see the documentary Waiting For "Superman" at the earliest opportunity. So we're going to differentiate and we're going to recognize and reward the highest performing teachers and we're going to look at the lowest performing teachers and we're going to remove them from the system.