superman? let's start with adequately compotent normal guy

As one of the few "perks" of Teach for America, I participated in an advance screening of the much-hyped "Waiting for Superman" documentary, which focuses on the public education system.

I have to say, it's quite the Debby Downer.

The film, praised by the likes of Oprah and countless others, crusades against drop-out factories, rubber rooms, teachers unions, school lotteries, and an overall broken system. It follows the fates of a handful of kids trying to get out of their assigned public neighborhood school and into either charter or magnet schools in both suburban and urban communities. Spoiler alert: only two of them make it out.

As a teacher working in just such a failing school, as measured by state tests scores for English and Algebra, discussions of this nature are bittersweet. While Oprah's overflowing promises that "this is the movie that will finally change your life" are well-intentioned, I can't help but be somewhat skeptical. Reformers from the KIPP network and Harlem Success Academy are highlighted as heroes; Michelle Rhee, chancellor of D.C. public schools, is set up to as almost a martyr for the case against bureaucracy. But what the film never really tells you is that these 5 kids are stuck in a lottery for a reason: it's terribly difficult to replicate these successes on a large scale. The recipe for success in the gumbo of a successful school is more than just teachers; principals, efficient budgeting, parent support, intervention resources, and those are just the stalk ingredients. Forget the spices to taste for differentiated curriculum, attendance monitoring, extracurricular support, etc.

I'd love for superman to swoop in and start cooking the gumbo. But for now, I'd just settle for slightly better than chaos.