RHEE: I'm just wondering, if the AFT was putting a million dollars into mayoral campaigns all across the country just based on who the teachers liked, I would buy that argument. We love hard-working teachers. 9 0 obj You get to the nation's capital, the nation's capital, only 16 percent of students are proficient in math. Waiting for "Superman" is a 2010 American documentary film written and directed by Davis Guggenheim and produced by Lesley Chilcott. ", "Film's anguished lesson on why schools are failing", "Protesting teachers give 'Waiting for Superman' an 'F', "Catching up with WAITING FOR SUPERMAN's Davis Guggenheim", "At the Critics' Choice Awards: Winners Are Social Network, Inception, Firth, Portman, Leo, Bale | Thompson on Hollywood", An Inconvenient Superman: Davis Guggenheim's New Film Hijacks School Reform, "Michelle Rhee's Cheating Scandal: Diane Ravitch Blasts Education Reform Star", "Waiting for Superman" star on cheating scandals, Eager for Spotlight, but Not if It Is on a Testing Scandal, FRONTLINE: The Education of Michelle Rhee, "NYC teachers counter 'Waiting for Superman' with film of their own", "Waiting For "Superman": How We Can Save America's Failing Public Schools", Critics Say Documentary Unfairly Targets Teachers Unions and Promotes Charter Schools, Black Reel Award for Outstanding Documentary, Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Documentary Feature, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, DallasFort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Documentary Film, Summer of Soul (Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), National Board of Review Award for Best Documentary Feature, Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse, Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills, Producers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Motion Picture, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Waiting_for_%22Superman%22&oldid=1118430069, Documentary films about American politics, Documentary films about education in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 October 2022, at 00:08. But, Mondello Waiting for Superman on iTunes BRZEZINSKI: How old is she? 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. You don't have all sorts of external rules. Compute answers using Wolfram's breakthrough technology & knowledgebase, relied on by millions of students & professionals. Our guests will include Governor Chris Christie, Newark Mayor Corey Booker and U.S. secretary of education Arne Duncan. SCARBOROUGH: What have you learned since getting involved? She was assigned in January. Will they give him a million dollars for re-election if he keeps you in your position? So the kids who came to us in 8 plus 3 they would couldn't the like this. Broadcast: Saturday, September 25, 2010. /GS0 47 0 R /MC0 28 0 R PG. Didn't get an answer on that. Why is that? It affects good teachers, too. WEINGARTEN: Theres nothing wrong with what Geoffrey just said. And I don't want to make this about the presumptive mayor. In response to this problem, many reformers, including Geoffrey Canada, have tried to look for solutions. Somebody who's fighting for kids like Daisy is John Legend. Find low everyday prices and buy online for delivery or in-store pick-up I said I don't want to go up. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The space with the Xs is for all of the fifth grade students moving into the sixth grade for next year. /Type /Page /Contents [ 9 0 R 10 0 R 11 0 R 12 0 R 13 0 R 14 0 R 15 0 R 16 0 R ] /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] CANADA: Can I just say this -- [ applause ] this is the one area and Ive heard, Ive heard this suggested. waiting for superman documentary transcript 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? SCARBOROUGH: OK. You talked about it. [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. 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. Thank you for joining us. BRZEZINSKI: Is that a fair shot, Randi? What if I made a movie that gets people to care about other peoples children and fight for other people's children as much I fight for mine. Yes, there should be fairness. I mean, not all teachers are created equal. And the audience in this room just finished watching an extraordinary powerful film called "Waiting For Superman" which opened just a few days ago. LEGEND: My last thing I would say, we have to realize that these kids are our kids. /Im0 19 0 R But this is the issue that I think Ive been hearing that I just want to get clear. S/p?G4lt(20}G(8!h-D! 5 We just don't want lousy teachers to be able to keep their jobs and kids not get an education. Waiting For "Superman" is an inside look at the problems with education in America. /BleedBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] endstream No one can go home and stick their head in the sand. WebWaiting For "Superman" has helped launch a movement to achieve a real and lasting change through the compelling stories of five unforgettable students such as Emily, a 3 0 obj We can't achieve equality or humanity and justice for everybody if we can't make sure that every kid gets a good education. [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. I think we all have to look in the mirror and say, what have we done wrong up until now and what do we need to do better? At the end of the film, there is writing that states: The problem is complex but the steps are simple. This is about the kids in the movie, and this is about how those of us on this stage help kids. /T1_0 24 0 R BRZEZINSKI: What happens to these kids? We as a country have to get together and have a conversation like this and say how do we let every kid win? 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. "[14] Geraldo Rivera praised the film for promoting discussion of educational issues. waiting for superman BRZEZINSKI: Why didn't you want her to go to a regular public school in your neighborhood? Waiting for 'Superman And I think seeing what's possible in this film is very inspiring. One of them is Nakia. SCARBOROUGH: The reformer. WAITING,FOR,SUPERMAN,DOCUMENTARY,TRANSCRIPT But I do think though Davis even though we may disagree there wasn't a public school or a public school teacher that was pictured in this film, people have done amazing jobs. But it's also frustrating when you know what's possible can't be replicated because there are barriers in the way. [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. /ArtBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] Acquiring that good education is the daunting challenge they face. We increased student achievement levels. "[13] Variety characterized the film's production quality as "deserving every superlative" and felt that "the film is never less than buoyant, thanks largely to the dedicated and effective teachers on whom Guggenheim focuses. 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). He wrote "Shine," the theme song for "Waiting For Superman." /Count 5 Andrew O'Hehir of Salon wrote a negative review of the film, writing that while there's "a great deal that's appealing," there's also "as much in this movie that is downright baffling. /Filter /FlateDecode SCARBOROUGH: As far as -- well -- LEGEND: Why is there a cap? (d acJ4@%Q8C/! That's the first thing. >> SCARBOROUGH: You mean against -- RHEE: Against Fenty, my boss. "[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. This film follows five children and documents them to see what their lives and schools are like. Waiting for Superman Fox News. 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. The principal wants her to stay. /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text ] /GS1 17 0 R Make sure the tenure is not ever construed as a job for life. "[20], The film also received negative criticism. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Next year, Anthonys class will move up to junior high. /Rotate 0 BRZEZINSKI: Is there a possibility? We should let Randi respond. "[7] On Metacritic it has a score of 81% based on reviews from 31 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". I think that teachers are not the problem, they are the solution to the problems that we face. We have to fix this thing and it means the adults have to take leadership. WEINGARTEN: We need to help them do that for all of our kids. /Pages 1 0 R Geoffrey Canada: I was like what do you mean he's not real. endobj Why is that such a frightening concept? Statistical comparisons are made between the different types of primary or secondary educational institutions available: state school, private school, and charter school. The filmmakers made sure to film how Nakia becomes increasingly more anxious and concerned as time passes during the lottery, but fewer spots become available and her daughters name has not been called (Guggenheim 1:32:49). SCARBOROUGH: Welcome back to our education nation special on "Waiting For Superman." Waiting For Superman Discussion Guide - Influence Film Club GUGGENHEIM: When the media asked me to make the film, I originally said no. All of my kids have gone to public school. So let me say, because I get told a lot that Im teacher bashing. I mean I think that's what this whole debate is about in many ways. It was not simply about education. GUGGENHEIM: And the stakes for them. CANADA: Well you know what? /ArtBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] We can't wait and talk about this another seven, eight, ten years. And Im not going to pretend that you can just come in and snap your fingers and things are going to get better overnight. BRZEZINSKI: It was still painful. /ExtGState << You talked about evaluations like every other business. /CropBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] Thank you so much for doing this and also sharing your story in the movie. In this incredible movie, "Waiting For Superman," Davis Guggenheim introduces to us some of the heroic parents who struggle to provide a better future for their children. /Parent 1 0 R SCARBOROUGH: If you're going to lock kids in Harlem out of that process and let a few see the light and see the -- that seems to me to be immoral. << No one wants lousy teachers. The lottery in this movie is a metaphor. /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] It matters who your local representative is. 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. My kids have won the lottery. And at the same time, have some due process so that we guard against our arbitrariness. /BleedBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] The site's consensus states: "Gripping, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, Waiting for "Superman" is an impassioned indictment of the American school system from An Inconvenient Truth director Davis Guggenheim. If I have kids, I don't want kids to be in this environment. I think we all need to take more responsibility. By what name was Waiting for Superman (2010) officially released in India in English? DAISY: Isnt that when people play and they win money. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think she can do it? But we need to have real evaluation systems, which is what the union has been focused on, so that teachers are really judged fairly. And that's something that no parent wants their child to ever be a witness or to hear when they're going to school. Gripping, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, Waiting for Superman is an impassioned indictment of the American school system from An Inconvenient Truth Nakia joins us here tonight. SCARBOROUGH: Crying uncontrollably because it is unbelievable, some of the conditions that our kids are forced to learn in right now. I have a good feeling about this. Davis Guggenheims Documentary, Waiting for Superman explores the corrupt American School system. We're just saying --. BRZEZINSKI: When we come back, we'll be joined -- SCARBOROUGH: One thing we do agree on -- BRZEZINSKI: We have to go. Like around here, I mean, I want my kids to have better than what I had. This isn't some Hollywood drama or a romance flick. 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. /Parent 1 0 R It is a revolution. We'll be joined also by Grammy award-winning singer/songwriter John Legend and our friend at "MORNING JOE" as well. 1. I think the point of departure between Michelle and I may be that I see, just like in Finland and Singapore and other places, that we need to all actually work together, focused on instruction, focused on how we help people do the best jobs they can and then -- BRZEZINSKI: Wasnt that what she was doing? BRZEZINSKI: And the reaction that we saw just moments ago was the same, these are people who know. All we're going to do is pay good teachers more money. So even though we may disagree about that, what this film does, it creates a moment in time. /Type /Page 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. We're going to lose our nation. Thats just one of the great things that we see. "[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. And while our guests enter the stage, let's show you a little clip of the movie, because "Waiting For Superman" is about our system, but what really gets to you in this movie is the individual stories of each child. She was a teacher in Indianapolis. I actually don't -- I think we could continue one city at a time. They want to know what good teaching looks like and they want to emulate it. NAKIA: I was disturbed. 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? Why were you frightened to send her to school. NAKIA: Yes. Seventy-eight percent of them, this is not our survey, this was their survey, said a union was absolutely essential to them to try and stop school politics or principal abuses. DAISY: I want to be a nurse. Davis, I want to go to you on this one. But I think it's quite frankly a little disingenuous for the union president to stand up and say we liked what Michelle was doing, we wanted it to continue to happen, when the national AFT poured $1 million into the campaign in Washington, D.C. a million dollars in a local mayoral race you know clearly sends a message that they didn't want things to continue as they were. SCARBOROUGH: Thank you so much. You know that process has to be fixed. 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? I was really tired. /GS1 17 0 R 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. I think the question about whether school reform can continue at as an aggressive rate under him is whether hes going to be able to stand up to the fact that SCARBOROUGH: Let me ask you this Michelle. 6 0 obj 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. We can't have our school system running like this. 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. /TT0 48 0 R I love teachers. How do we let every kid -- SCARBOROUGH: There are two Americas. He's a Grammy award winning songwriter. [3], Geoffrey Canada describes his journey as an educator and recounts the story of his devastation when, as a child, he discovers that Superman is fictional, that "there is no one coming with enough power to save us.". CANADA: Look, no business in America would be in existence if it ran like this. Go. >> SCARBOROUGH: All right. >> 4 0 obj 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. DAVIS GUGGENHEIM: No. %PDF-1.3 "[10] Joe Morgenstern, writing for The Wall Street Journal, gave the film a positive review writing, "when the future of public education is being debated with unprecedented intensity," the film "makes an invaluable addition to the debate. It starts with teachers becoming the very best, leaders removing the barriers of change, neighbors committed to their school, you willing to act (Guggenheim 1:45:05-1:45:28). /Parent 1 0 R We spruced up -- modernized the building. Towards the end of the film, there is a segment that illustrates the charter school lottery as it takes place for different schools. >> Mika and I want to welcome you to this special hour. Tomorrow morning Joes going to be live from Learning Plaza. I want to be a doctor and I want to be a veterinarian. These are our communities. (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. /GS0 18 0 R endobj [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. "[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. We've been talking about the teacher town hall hosted by Brian Williams earlier today. The issue is about how we create the best environment for kids. It took a little while to get the money straightened for this green light and 80 percent of the teachers voted for that agreement. 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.