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Waiting For Superman (Film/Education Related)

therecordpeddlertherecordpeddler 229 Posts
edited August 2010 in Strut Central
Anyone excited about this documentary coming out next month?

Waiting For Superman Wikipedia

I saw a screening of it tonight and gotta say, I thought it was pretty compelling. It's by the people who did An Inconvenient Truth and focuses on the United States education system. It definitely paints a pretty bleak picture but also highlights a lot of positive change recently and further solutions for moving forward.

Major topics include teacher unions and the current tenure situation, inner city districts, not prepping kids for college, and charter schools.

I'm hopeful that it will make an impact and lead to some positive conversation on this pretty depressing topic.

  Comments

  • dayday 9,611 Posts
    Depressing. This country is on the verge of making Idiocracy look like a documentary. And not just with education. Even though thats the start, there are fundamental problems that are coming home to roost. When Spencer Pratt and "the Situation" make more in one year than any professor or teacher will make in their lifetime, it's time to re-evaluate.
  • therecordpeddlertherecordpeddler 229 Posts
    Haha, I think that's the point of the whole documentary - it's time to reevaluate. Sure it's getting a release by a major studio and will probably make someone a good chunk of money but fuck it, if that's what it takes to get dialogue going amongst the general public, it's fine by me.
  • dayday 9,611 Posts
    And I agree completely. Will it make a change? Maybe, but it will be minimal. Restructuring the entire education system is impossible. It's like putting a band aid on a broken arm at this point. And that's not to sound negative, but realistically, we need to re-prioritize the importance of roles here.

    The point I was trying to make is indicative of a greater problem that has existed for the last 30+ years. Motherfuckers who get paid to pretend (or just EXIST for that matter) get insane amounts of money while the people who are actually guiding the future minds of this country can barely eek out a living. Where is the motivation to become a teacher? Not to mention situations like this film where your work is basically for naught. Watching amazing kids with incredible potential get thrown to the streets.

    There are a million dynamics to the problem at hand and I'm talking about probably the smallest one. I think I'm just tired of watching this society hold empty, temporary fame over something that will benefit the future as a whole.

    There needs to be some balance. Girls wanting to be the next reality star instead of Sally Ride or whatever. We're doing it wrong.
  • therecordpeddlertherecordpeddler 229 Posts
    Yeah man, I agree with your point too. It's all wrapped up in bigger social/cultural issues, which ironically enough are fueled by media. And you're right, any potential changes over the next decade or so, whether a result of this movie or otherwise, will likely be minimal.

    But for what it's worth, minimal positive changes are better than continuing a downward spiral. I guess I just thought it was cool to hear the stories of a few people who were actually doing some pretty inspiring things. If you can't fix the whole system, why not work to change as much as possible?

    I guess in the end, all I'm saying is that I think it's worth seeing.
  • dayday 9,611 Posts
    therecordpeddler said:
    Yeah man, I agree with your point too. It's all wrapped up in bigger social/cultural issues, which ironically enough are fueled by media. And you're right, any potential changes over the next decade or so, whether a result of this movie or otherwise, will likely be minimal.

    But for what it's worth, minimal positive changes are better than continuing a downward spiral. I guess I just thought it was cool to hear the stories of a few people who were actually doing some pretty inspiring things. If you can't fix the whole system, why not work to change as much as possible?

    I guess in the end, all I'm saying is that I think it's worth seeing.

    I only watched the trailer so maybe I'm missing some of the optimism here.

    Besides that, I completely agree with you my man. It's just frustrating.
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