Superman?

I really enjoyed seeing Waiting for Superman. I thought it was an important insight into the life of practicing teachers and students' parents in less-than-privileged life situations. I particularly liked how the issue of tenure was addressed in the movie. I do not believe that teachers, or anybody for that matter, should be protected from job loss when they are not qualified to do their job. Tenure exists so that teachers and professors can't get fired for addressing controversial issues in their classrooms, or being on an unpopular side of an argument, not so that teachers can do their jobs for a couple years, then not do them until they retire. This issue really burns my biscuits. I do think that it is important for teachers to have job security, as they are absolutely vital to every child's development, but I do not think that that security should be granted if it is unearned, or continually granted if the situation changes.

The only criticisms that I had for this film would be its minimal coverage of NCLB, which is a huge part of the education system today, and its focus on charter schools as the answer to failing educational systems. Charter schools are great in most cases, but they are not available to every student in need, as clearly demonstrated in the film. The main problem, I think, is getting rid of incompetent or uncaring teachers. It is up to each and every one of us as educators to assume our role as Superman in our students' lives. The actions that we take or do not take can have a huge impact on them, and therefore it is our responsibility to do everything within our power to assure that it is a positive impact.