“Waiting for Superman” Hits a Nerve

Thanks to Jimmy Dunne, President of Inspire — an entertainment and branding company partnering on music and DVD initiatives with Whole Foods Market — for providing this blog post.If you didn’t catch Waiting For Superman in the theaters, I can’t recommend enough that you check it out on DVD. (It will be sold in most Whole Foods Markets in March and April.)Davis Guggenheim’s documentary gets under the skin of the public school system in America and, more than anything, it’s a frightening look at how our educational system is broken – and we’re meaningfully falling behind on the global scorecard. It is particularly critical of the teachers’ unions — examining how their position on issues, such as tenure, is affecting the quality of the system in towns all across America. It’s gotten a lot of buzz and has stimulated quite a bit of debate around the relationship between schools and teachers’ unions.I was impressed that, unlike many documentaries that take on an industry or group, the filmmakers didn’t try to make a one-sided case. They articulated the history of the unions – and the noble, passionate causes of their founding fathers. The filmmakers showcase how the unions’ founders couldn’t have imagined the predicament we’re in today – and the filmmakers make a strong case for what they believe must change if we have any shot of turning our national educational system around.The film follows five kids, and your heart will break seeing how much these kids (and their parents) yearn for a good education. It’s engaging, it’s enraging – and it is sure to make you feel how paramount it is that education becomes an enormous priority on our country’s to do list.I’d love to hear your thoughts and impression of the film.