Holding out for a hero

You can't relate to a superhero, to a superman, but you can identify with a real man who in times of crisis draws forth some extraordinary quality from within himself and triumphs but only after a struggle. ~ Timothy Dalton 

I had the wonderful opportunity to have lunch today with several young ladies who not only went to graduate school with me, but are also public educators. After our luncheon, I thought it would be an appropriate time for me to see the latest film, "Waiting for Superman," written and directed by "An Inconvenient Truth" director, Davis Guggenheim.   The film has taken the nation by storm with its talk of teacher unions, tenure, and failing schools. What better way to lure this public educator to the theater to see the next "attack" on the job that public school teachers are doing in America.

The good news about this film is that as a public educator, I did not feel attacked by its message. Indeed, I felt rather inspired at knowing how much our students/someone's children are loved by the adults in their lives. They are loved so much that some parents will do anything to help their children receive the best education possible.  For the parents of the children in the film, that meant applying for a lottery where a drawn number decides which child is accepted to smaller prep schools, charter schools, or private schools.

This film looks everyone in the eye declaring that it's not about adults and delivers a RESOUNDING message that all children are entitled to the best education possible. With consideration to that message, audiences will be forced to look at how adults are creating a mindset for kids through attitudes, actions, and choices. Therefore, everyone (parents, students, educators, community members) will benefit from seeing this film.

While everyone will more than likely relate and identify their own situations with bits and pieces of the perspectives presented in this film, no one will escape blame in this film for failing our kids as students. This film is a reminder to all that these children will one day inherit our nation.  They entrust all of us, their SUPERMEN, to prepare them for the world to come. Public schools should not be viewed as the enemy of learning but rather a vehicle for the best learning available to our children.