MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

Waiting for Superman Rated PG

Directed by Davis Guggenheim.  Documentary

Photo © 2010 Paramount Pictures
Movie Review by Rev. Bruce Batchelor Glader

Geoffrey Canada is an educator who is making a difference by running a charter school in Harlem dedicated to standing alongside every child, from early elementary level to college graduation. 

The neighborhood had been known as one of the worst parts of New York City, but it is being changed one child at a time.  There is no superhero that’s going to come to do it for them; they have to take responsibility for education if things are going to improve.  Well said. 

And the statistics that come flying at you in this documentary (many of them animated in amusing ways) are unflinching as they announce how America has been falling behind other countries in educating our kids. 

No one is as underserved as the poor, so the film concentrates primarily on several great kids growing up in homes where their parents (often a single mom) have prioritized school and learning, only to become frustrated at 1) The high cost of parochial school or 2) The odds against getting into the good charter schools (where the demand is so high that applicants have to place their names in a public lottery to get in). 

Waiting for “Superman” criticizes public schooling by blasting teachers’ unions, highlighting ineffective tenured teachers, and pointing us toward the few alternatives to public education that currently exist. 

Sure, teachers’ unions often defend bad teachers, but they have also been responsible for providing good teachers with the salary and benefits they deserve. 

But shouldn’t Christians be concerned about quality public education for all? 

What I appreciated most about this film was the opportunity to get to know these struggling families and how much they cared about each other, making personal sacrifices for a higher purpose. 

But, when all is said and done, there are no easy answers to a culture that is technologically advanced and still dumbed-down beyond measure. 

Good parents will continue to stand by their children and assist them in the learning process and the poor and undervalued will continue to be left behind. 

The answer will not be found in more quality charter schools, but in an informed public that demands, (and works for) quality education for everyone. 

That’s where you and I come in and that’s where we need to stay, one child and one school at a time.

Pitchfork/Halo Ratings:
Three halos.
A heartfelt plea for better schools that is unable to bring us much good news.

One pitchfork.
For the continuing class divide over education and opportunity in the wealthiest nation on earth.

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