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? endobj /T1_1 20 0 R What are your thoughts? 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). There's a problem with our system and who know that there are children in this country who are falling behind. BRZEZINSKI: And the reaction that we saw just moments ago was the same, these are people who know. BRZEZINSKI: When the results came down, we watched you respond, we watched her respond. BRZEZINSKI: When we come back, we'll talk more about that. >> Take a moment. 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. 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. BRZEZINSKI: You can hear the distrust here. RHEE: Thats correct. 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. SCARBOROUGH: Okay, Michelle -- WEINGARTEN: We agreed at times. You all have your numbers, right? What's Mayor Bloomberg doing right? RHEE: I don't think they are. It matters who your local representative is. KENNY: Right. "waiting for superman documentary transcript filetype:lua" I knew -- as Davis said, I knew what was going to happen before she knew what was going to happen. SCARBOROUGH: Really quickly. That is the problem. There are a couple of things leaders, in which we all are, could do. They said, look, this work is hard. BRZEZINSKI: They were picked off the street in a lottery. Waiting for "Superman /Contents 36 0 R >> [4][5][6] On Rotten Tomatoes the film has a "Certified Fresh" approval rating of 90% based on reviews from 118 critics. Having said that, we have all done too much about focusing on bad teachers. "Waiting for Superman," a fascinating new documentary, is drawing attention to the state of our public school, directed by Davis Guggenheim, who brought us I think he actually wants to do the right thing. SCARBOROUGH: No doubt about it. WEINGARTEN: Yeah, of course. Because we talked to Randi before. 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. /Contents 33 0 R We could say to everyone in education we have to give a couple of more hours. You said, you still cry every time you see it. [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." It reveals that the two major problems The movie's major villains are the National And the next morning Im driving my kids in the minivan to school and they go to a great private school in Los Angeles. >> >> BRZEZINSKI: Nakia, thank you. Geoffrey Canada: One of the saddest days of my life was when my mother told me Superman did not exist. 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. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think she can do it? A good education, therefore, is not ruled out by poverty, uneducated parents or crime and drug-infested neighborhoods. Of course, Washington has problems going back decades. CNN.com - Transcripts RHEE: You know what, heres the thing. What have you been able to do with them? This is about changing the political environment that we're operating in. There are really, really bad charter schools across America. There is a perception out there that is the union that is standing in the way of principals firing bad teachers. A reminder for everyone, coming up right after this program, MSNBC will re-air that teacher town hall that was hosted by Brian Williams, that's from 9:00 to 11:00 Eastern Time, right here on MSNBC. >> Why? That means politically get involved. >> /ArtBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] If I have kids, I don't want kids to be in this environment. SCARBOROUGH: OK. You talked about it. TRANSCRIPT: WAITING FOR SUPERMAN PANEL /Im0 19 0 R These are your schools, your communities. Waiting for Superman: Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim reminds us that education statistics have names: Anthony, Francisco, Bianca, Daisy, and Emily, whose Didn't get an answer on that. SCARBOROUGH: What we hear, Randi, morning after morning after morning from progressives, from conservatives, from Republicans, from Democrats, from independents, seems to be the same thing. Where has the union misstepped to help us get to where we are today? RHEE: We wanted to give the teachers the tools. How do we let every kid -- SCARBOROUGH: There are two Americas. We're going to lose our nation. BRZEZINSKI: Im sorry, we have news for our audience as well. You can't do it with the district rules and the union contracts as they are in most districts. WebGenre: Documentary Waiting for 'Superman' Screenplay Edit Buy Year: 2010 4,775 Views Geoffrey Canada: One of the saddest days of my life was when my mother told me BRZEZINSKI: All right. /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text ] DAISY: Isnt that when people play and they win money. I think they put the money into this mayoral campaign because it was a symbol of reform in this country. The most influential scene during this segment is when one of the students, Bianca, and her mother, Nakia, wait for Biancas name to be called as the lottery nears the end. You try to make reforms and it causes a problem. "[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. Why not? By the time she leaves Stevenson, only 13 percent of her classmates will be proficient in math. HdT]H|G?GdW{MND)>qOX3cL>NHjr5i:bSqu [31] (The film says, however, that it is focusing on the one in five superior charter schools, or close to 17%, that do outperform public schools.) /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text ] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Daisy and her parents have found one other option. And it started to haunt me, the idea that kids in my own neighborhood, and I live in a pretty good neighborhood, aren't getting what my kids have. This documentary follows a handful of promising kids through a system that inhibits, rather than encourages, academic growth, and undertakes an exhaustive review of public education, surveying "drop-out factories" and "academic sinkholes," methodically dissecting the system and its seemingly intractable People couldn't believe you could do it. 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. When they hear this back and forth, there's the sense of like, you know what, put my head in the sand, take care of my own kids because this debate has been going on for generations. 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. << >> 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. And we're going to figure out, we're going to get people together here. /T1_1 20 0 R /CropBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] An examination of the current state of education in America today. /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text /ImageC ] WebSynopsis. WEINGARTEN: Let me -- SCARBOROUGH: If it wasn't about education, I mean, what was it about? Since many charter schools are not large enough to accept all of their applicants, the selection of students is done by lottery. Broadcast: Saturday, September 25, 2010. Where you tried to focus on good teachers in Washington. I get why that's good for the adults. SCARBOROUGH: Michelle, let me ask you this. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. [39], There is also a companion book titled Waiting For "Superman": How We Can Save America's Failing Public Schools.[40]. When you put a face on this issue, as we talk about the details of it, that's the thing I keep saying to myself, let's not forget as we argue and discuss and learn about this, let's not forget the kids. 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. And what teachers have told us is that focus instead on the tools and conditions we need to do our jobs. And she thought I was crying because it's like Santa Claus is not real and I was crying because there was no one coming with enough power to save us. I just heard a story, I met a teacher the other day. SCARBOROUGH: Geoffrey Canada, some remarkable things are happening in Harlem. ANTHONY: I stayed back one grade. ", "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. And I think seeing what's possible in this film is very inspiring. What did you learn? BRZEZINSKI: It was still painful. Final words with our panel, next after a short break. In fact, those are the very areas where he has success. Waiting for Superman Documentary Analysis - Trinity In fact you come off quite badly. Find low everyday prices and buy online for delivery or in-store pick-up SCARBOROUGH: 15 seconds. LEGEND: Yes. Will they give him a million dollars for re-election if he keeps you in your position? There's a lot of people in this country that aren't feeling what we feel. 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. 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. MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Take a look at some of the reactions from just a few minutes ago as people watched this movie. No one wants lousy teachers. [38] The documentary was directed, filmed, and edited by Julie Cavanagh, Darren Marelli, Norm Scott, Mollie Bruhn, and Lisa Donlan. SCARBOROUGH: This is a civil rights issue? I just think -- SCARBOROUGH: Do you really think he wants to the right thing? There are core values we have to have. I knew what the final scene would look like and I still broke down three times. You are not exactly what some would consider to be a conservative filmmaker. Trying to hide the fact that I had been balling my eyes out, I said I can't -- I knew how this was going to end and I was still crying. I want to be a doctor and I want to be a veterinarian. More importantly than our union, the new mayor is committed to it. We have to go to break right now. << "Geraldo at Large." If I want something for her and I cant get it from there, I'm going to find an alternative. I think he wants to do the right thing. We love good teachers. Davis, I want to go to you on this one. You believe it, don't you, Michelle? I like to follow the evidence. It took a little while to get the money straightened for this green light and 80 percent of the teachers voted for that agreement. I support public schools. [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. BRZEZINSKI: Randi, really quickly. We decreased violent crimes that were happening in the schools. endobj SCARBOROUGH: Right. If I get in, they give me a better chance in life. 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. Waiting for "Superman" premiered in the US on September 24, 2010, in theaters in New York and Los Angeles, with a rolling wider release that began on October 1, 2010. RHEE: First, I think I would be remiss if I did not point out to everybody that there's been a lot of talk about public schools, public schools. Waiting for Superman | Documentary Heaven << 8 0 obj The contract says she has to go. I've never seen anything like it in my life. She was assigned in January. endobj I have a 12-year-old that goes to public school. Are you feeling agreement? We as a country have to get together and have a conversation like this and say how do we let every kid win? [32][33][34][35][36], A teacher-backed group called the Grassroots Education Movement produced a rebuttal documentary titled The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, which was released in 2011. The second thing is, I think the frustrating thing to me about panels like this, when we get going we have to stop. BRZEZINSKI: When the number came down, what was that telling your daughter, what was that telling you? Yet instead of examining this critical issue objectively, the movie Waiting for "Superman" cites false statistics in their effort to scapegoat teachers, unfairly blaming them for all the failures of our urban schools. LEGEND: Well, it's been quite a learning experience because I get to meet great educators. Because what is wrong with what he's saying? [16], The film has also garnered praise from a number of conservative critics. Why 'Waiting For Superman' Didn't Get An Oscar Nod : NPR WEINGARTEN: Theres lots of -- look. GUGGENHEIM: The issue is not just lousy teachers. WEINGARTEN: I think look, again, we had a moment in time where we actually got to an agreement. Why is that? SCARBOROUGH: Right. /Rotate 0 SCARBOROUGH: We really had. It's shameful. 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. /T1_0 24 0 R Obviously at the end most people watching this movie teared up. WebFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. I mean I think that's what this whole debate is about in many ways. SCARBOROUGH: If she's given the chance. >> When you have kids from Harlem going there with first grade reading proficiency and science proficiency and they leave three years later with 100 percent proficiency, it just -- at some point it becomes a moral issue. BRZEZINSKI: These are compelling arguments that we all can agree on but, Randi, let me just put it to you this way. /ExtGState << /Type /Page That means in the midterms. That's why -- SCARBOROUGH: To John's point, though -- WEINGARTEN: So we never -- SCARBOROUGH: Unions fought like hell against these successful charter schools being able to expand in New York State. >> BRZEZINSKI: How do we get to what you're saying, though? 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. And this is not America, the idea that one kid could have a great education and one kid can't. SCARBOROUGH: Right. This is a transcript of "Waiting for Superman". They have to go see this movie and have smaller conversations like this. Waiting for Superman/Transcript - The Altered Adventure If Anthony goes to Souza, odds are he'll enter high school three to five grade levels behind. I want to say something about what John just said. Waiting for 'Superman' Quotes /Producer (Python PDF Library \055 http\072\057\057pybrary\056net\057pyPdf\057) Wouldn't that have been better? So even though we may disagree about that, what this film does, it creates a moment in time. 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. We'll be right back. But it's not just Harlem -- if my movie, I call it, they're breaking a sound barrier. /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] /Parent 1 0 R /MediaBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] /MC0 31 0 R WEINGARTEN: Yes. BRZEZINSKI: Please help us welcome founder and CEO of the Harlem Children's Zone, Geoffrey Canada, Washington D.C.'s school's chancellor, Michelle Rhee, American Federation of Teacher's president Randi Weingarten and filmmaker Davis Guggenheim. waiting for superman documentary transcript That was teachers talking to each other and talking to the world about what teachers needed. Don't make -- Im tired, man, I wake up at 3:30 in the morning. WEINGARTEN: This is not about the adults. /Resources << I'm just wondering. endobj I know, but you didn't have enough money. They clearly illustrate that no matter the area, teachers are failing America's youth at an alarming rate.. First of all, can we start by, we want to thank you for coming here. Michelle, you have been on the wrong side of the debate over here. stream >> SCARBOROUGH: Thank you so much. 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. The superintendent wants her to say. /Filter /FlateDecode We're also joined by Deborah Canny of the Harlem Village Academy. Coming up, right after we're finished here, MSNBC will re-air the two-hour town hall. Acquiring that good education is the daunting challenge they face. /MC0 37 0 R But it's also frustrating when you know what's possible can't be replicated because there are barriers in the way. You could fail those kids for another 20 years, everybody keeps their job, nobody gets the go. GLORIA: Im just so afraid for him. 5 0 obj >> That's not the case with all charter schools across America. But Id like -- I think there is a disconnect here that John Legend talks about. Michelle and I love great teachers. I want to hear what some of those steps are, specific ones. SCARBOROUGH: Hold on a second. WEINGARTEN: John. << Documentary: Waiting for Superman waiting for superman 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. And I couldn't understand that why did it take this much to go through all of this? Waiting For Superman Discussion Guide - Influence Film Club }>=Uw2cS=V. I9kZJw^EAOd j]Y[wl-e06E#/mlyTbE9f}@8 a/ ^} WEINGARTEN: Theres nothing wrong with what Geoffrey just said. GUGGENHEIM: Ive seen the movie hundreds of times. SCARBOROUGH: Because we've been up to Harlem, we've seen what's happening up there. The principal wants her to stay. WEINGARTEN: I live in New York -- RHEE: You put $1 million into a mayoral campaign. SCARBOROUGH: They can't. I said that's right, but that was mommy's choice to put you in that school. By the end of the year she only had half a year of teaching. ]o m P:giwgRG+g;)Y 'J[+AH@f6=D.Ga5&0RL[?Xt6MU*/-waUN Why is that such a frightening concept? By the nature of who my family is. We can run the school the way we want, which is to give our teachers the power to teach. The answer is we need great public education for all of our schools. You believe it. Because there is no downside to failure. New York City on a bad day outpaced Washington on a great day. RHEE: It was actually 12 percent that were proficient in reading but he picked the better statistic because actually, only 8 percent of our children were proficient in math. And that still scared the hell out of the Washington union. Waiting for Superman: Documentary Analysis 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. He wrote "Shine," the theme song for "Waiting For Superman." And systems that actually help create continuous improvement. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you think that most of the kids in D.C. are getting a crappy education right now? 1. SCARBOROUGH: Why would you spend a million dollars to defeat a mayor? 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. Teaching standards are called into question as there is often conflicting bureaucracy between teaching expectations at the school, state, or federal level. I said I don't want to go up. It is about working together to create problem solving contracts and ultimately, Michelle, it's not about you or I. You went into the lottery system for your daughter. The video explores several of the problems within the system, and tells the personal stories of several families and communities who have been impacted and disadvantaged by the broken education system. Guggenheim, Davis. And that is a concept that is so necessary. BRZEZINSKI: Is there a possibility? /Font << 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. 10 Video Games That Need a Live Action Adaptation, 2023's Most Anticipated Sequels, Prequels, and Spin-offs. /ArtBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] /Type /Page >> It was so heartbreaking to see her upset and all of the other children around her not being called and not being picked. Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim reminds us that education "statistics" have names: Educational reception and allegations of inaccuracy. One of the reasons for the high test scores, writes Ravitch, is that many charter schools expel low-performing students to bring up their average scores. /BleedBox [ 0 0 595.27600 841.89000 ] During its opening weekend in New York City and Los Angeles, the film grossed $141,000 in four theaters, averaging $35,250 per theater. It seems to me, Davis, that you done get -- teachers don't get evaluated like every other business. The film recognizes how the American public plays an important role in helping to accomplish the reform goal of making American public schools great.