Waiting for Superman Journal

     The documentary ‘Waiting for Superman’ is about the state of public education. The documentary mainly talks about the decline of the public school system and the alternatives. The decline is across all socioeconomic classes. The alternatives to the public schools are private, charter, and magnet schools. Unfortunately, the number of available seats in the alternative schools cannot accommodate the number of students trying to get in. Parents, students, and educators are frustrated with the politics surrounding education.  

     The public school system is just as much about politics as it is about educated students. For example, the teachers unions protects the teachers even when the teacher is not doing their job. The union created tenure which protects a teacher’s position whether they are providing students a quality education or not. A tenured teacher’s contract is renewed automatically from year-to-year. It takes more than a handful of reasons before a teacher can be dismissed. If a tenured teacher’s position is eliminated they can bump an untenured position. A tenured teacher that has been terminated they can appeal and request a hearing before the Superior Court. The teachers union is also the biggest contributor to the Democratic Party. Another issue is that there is no single decision making body.

     There are options for students, while somewhat limited, to achieve a quality education. A couple of obvious choices are private schools and magnet schools. An intriguing option are charter schools, which do not have to abide by the rules of the teachers unions. Charter schools have established that they have created a system that put’s the student first and the teachers are dedicated to ensuring their success. Ninety percent of the students that attend a charter school attend college.

     This documentary provides numerous topics to write about on the education provided to students in the United States. Politics, options, educators, demographics, and society are just a few topics. Bottom line is our education system is failing students and changes are needed.