Not Waiting for Superman

Oh, it's so hip to trash and bash teachers and their unions nowadays.  The "documentary" slash melodrama Waiting for Superman opened in Atlanta this weekend and my wife and I went to see it yesterday at Tara Regal Cinema-the only independent/alternative movie theater left in Atlanta.

My verdict is the film pointed the fingers at public schools and bad teachers as the main culprits of the state of American school system.  The movie demonized teachers' unions and bureaucracy of the Department of Education. The only solution it seems is charter schools, specifically the KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program).  I've seen several of these schools here in the Atlanta area. Don't believe the hype!

It is intellectual dishonest to blame it all on the bad teachers and the schools conditions while ignoring the accountability of the students and their parents.  As we all know, it is a complex problem with many variables including poverty, environment, different economic, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. Saying that teachers should be held responsible for students' test scores is akin to telling doctors should be held accountable for the fact that someone is morbidly obese. Nonsensical and ridiculous but it is happening with the current state of affairs. The movie looks and feels like a slick Hollywood version of an infomercial for KIPP charter schools.  A very expensive and long (1hour 42 minutes) well-executed but sadly misleading  commercial for charter schools. I also found it ironic when they compared the US to Finland as having the best public school systems in the world. Finland is 100 % unionized and spend four times as much on education for their children compared to us. Just the fact that Finland's teacher's force is completely unionized made the whole argument fell apart.  If the best school system in the world is unionized, then why are we condemning teachers unions?

Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change. -Stephen Hawking

* I had my longest run ever today:  8.5 miles in 1 hour 30 minutes. Got my second wind around mile 5, switched shoes, felt great and could have ran another 2,3 miles. Music on my MP3: Joe Arroyo with some Colombian salsa, the Klezmatics, Beastie Boys, reggae, the entire Putumayo World Music collection, Beck, Depeche Mode and Red Hot Chili Peppers...