Analysis Of The Documentary 'Waiting For Superman'

n “The Failure of American Public Education” (February 01 1993), John Hood explains the sundry perspectives on the American education system. Hood tactfully uses cause and effect to demonstrate the viewpoints of a myriad of individuals regarding American schools and their approaches to effectively educating students; he explains how “free-market thinkers believe that applying market competition to the public schools will solve many of America’s educational problems” (Hood) ; “critics believe that public education reforms fail because they are compromised or sabotaged by the education lobbies—teacher associations, administrators, and the legislators in their pockets” (Hood) and “many conservatives believe that American public education is in

There are public schools all over the world and those in public schools are not getting the proper education that they need. It seems public schools only provide the public with the bare minimum. This bare minimum can become very discouraging to parents, students and the entire public community in which the school is. Most Supreme Court rulings agree that school districts across the nation, and across the world, really only need to provide the bare minimum legally. This present an issue, if the professionals are only supposed to give the bare minimum then they themselves will be given the bare minimum.

Did you know that the United States ranks 17th in education performance? That is a huge drop from 1980 when the United States was ranked 1st. Clearly, our education system has gone in a downward spiral and is struggling to keep up with other countries. The documentary, “Waiting for Superman” by David Guggenheim, and the article, “Idiot Nation” by Michael Moore, discuss the weaknesses in our education system. Although both authors offer compelling arguments, “Waiting for Superman” contained a better argument because of its abundance of rhetorical strategies, whereas “Idiot Nation” contained some logical fallacies.

Imagine a school where ______% of the students transfer out and school morale is down the drain. Looking in classrooms you would see disengaged students and tired teachers. This is every teacher’s, administration’s. and community’s nightmare, and was the reality for Elizabeth Forward School District. With prominent truancy and disengagement issues, teachers had obvious trouble reaching students, many feared that their students wouldn’t graduate.

Teachers, especially teachers who specialize in the arts, are now having difficulty finding jobs in their field because of the limited spots available. They are being forced to teach subjects that they are not familiar with just to find a job. School boards are also the ones who have to deal with budget cuts and decide what needs to be taken out of the

problem lies in the fact that most public schools have fixed costs from heating costs to teaching staff that cannot easily be adjusted or downscaled when a few students leave in a given year. The result equates to “squeezed funding at traditional public schools” (Daniel Simmons Ritchie). School choice is not necessary.

Speaker: The speaker of the article is Marc Sternberg, a former principal and the current director for the K-12 education for the Walter Family Foundation. He is a credible source because he has worked in the education system before and has turned a school with a 34% graduation rate to an 86% graduation rate due to him hiring exceptional teachers. Occasion: Marc Sternberg is addressing this topic because of the mayor’s recent decision to employ bad teachers. This is revealed in the beginning of the article. He is frustrated because he is a former principal and knows the effect of an exceptional teacher on the students.

A Superhero is not judged by the power he has,but only by the choices he makes. In the essay,”Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie, the author uses an extended metaphor to explain his relationship with the fictional character Superman. Alexie uses many things in his life to compare himself to Superman. Although Alexie may not be seen as a hero with actual superpowers, he demonstrates the qualities of a superhero in different ways. Alexie is seen as someone that almost resembles an alien in the eyes of his society. Most of Alexie’s comparisons with himself and Superman are figurative. Sherman Alexie and Superman have much more similar qualities than one might realize.

This fact supports the my earlier statements regarding the availability of high quality teachers. Not only that but, the fact that in order for students to receive the best possible education, the teachers are the either the root of the problem or the solution: “North Carolina ranks 34th in academic and work environment quality” (Bernardo). Higher teacher pay means a higher teacher population which, in turn, increases the availability of teachers with better qualifications. This is outlined in the many plans proposed on how to govern teacher pay and its increases: “Knowledge and skills based pay-Teachers earn permanent increased for acquiring new skills and applying those skills”

Summary & Reaction to “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me.” Born in 1966, Sherman Alexie was raised by a lower class family, who had little to no money. Alexie was inspired to write “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me” after teaching himself to read by using pictures from a Superman comic book. Alexie uses strong emotion throughout this slight essay to engage the reader. Alexie starts off his slight essay by going into background information about his childhood, family financial status, and his first discovery of learning how to read.

Districting the New Segregation? Education has been a major influence on government policy and social standards concerning American youth. With hard work and education, one can better themselves and open up more opportunities for financial and social success. Waiting for Superman directed by Oscar winner, Davis Guggenheim, counters that the current education system is failing students by limiting their upward mobility, particularly among minority and low income groups. The documentary advocates for a radical change in the modern education system, modeled after charter school curriculums.

In The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me by Sherman Alexie, Alexie states “A smart Indian is a dangerous person, widely feared and ridiculed by Indians and non-Indians alike” (Alexie 364). I would have to disagree with this statement. He is making it sound like just because he is a minority that received somewhat of an education, he should be feared by others. I believe that anyone who is smart and forceful in a community is dangerous because they have the willpower to go to any lengths to uphold their beliefs. On the other hand, I also believe that just because you are smart, you don’t necessarily have to be feared. I understand the Alexie is stating that Indian’s are tough, but this does not equate to being feared in a community.

This film shows a huge issue with federalism. Within the test cases shown in the video, we see the national law that requires desegregation and the state laws stating that blacks and whites must be segregated clashing. The Brown Vs Board of Education case determined that the "separate but equal" doctrine violated the constitution because it did not offer equal protection to all people. This made some state governments very angry because they believed that ruling schools to be desegregated violated their personal rights, which was obviously not the case. The state governments didn't want to help desegregate the schools because the governors wanted the students to be segregated, but since national law stated that students will not be segregated or discriminated against, they sent help from the National Guard to protect the black students.

Life is full of doors, some are open and some are closed. There comes a time when sealed doors need to be broken open so everyone can reach their maximum potential and goals in life, just like Sherman Alexie did in “Superman and Me.” An example of Sherman Alexie breaking down doors is one of his quotes from “Superman and Me,” “this might be an interesting story all by itself. A little Indian boy teaches himself to read at an early age and advances quickly. He reads Grapes of Wrath in kindergarten when other children are struggling through Dick and Jane. If he’d been anything an Indian boy living on the reservation he might have been called a prodigy. But he is an Indian boy living on the reservation and is simply an oddity.” Sherman Alexie

There are 340 teacher vacancies and ninety-seven special-ed vacancies. Furthermore, the teacher to student ratio is roughly 1:18. Teachers take days off to protest against the school conditions, which hinders students learning more. The students don’t care enough about school and look up to bad role models and follow in their footsteps. This is why violent crimes main causes are poverty, blight in neighborhoods, and the school