First Area Screening Announced for Acclaimed Edu-Doc 'Most Likely to Succeed'

On October 1, Shore Country Day School hosts the first North Shore screening of the acclaimed documentary film Most Likely to Succeed. The event, which includes a Q&A with the film’s education advisor, is free and open to the public, and begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Creativity Theatre on Shore’s campus at 545 Cabot Street in Beverly.

The feature-length documentary examines the history of education in the U.S., revealing the growing shortcomings of a more than 100-year-old school model in todayʼs innovative world. Directed by acclaimed documentarian Greg Whiteley, the film has been named “among the best edu-documentaries ever produced” by Education Week, and called a “smart and engaging look at education in the 21st century” by The Hollywood Reporter. Film Threat stated that “this film should be a required course for all parents and educators.” Most Likely To Succeed is an official selection of many of the nation’s top film festivals, including the prestigious 2015 Sundance Film Festival and Tribeca Film Festival.

The documentary criticizes the factory-inspired model of education that is still in place at many schools, and features the voices of innovators and leaders on the steps needed to overturn this model. It closely observes the results of change at San Diego’s High Tech High, where teachers are encouraged to challenge archaic measures of success through project-based learning and the development of character skills like confidence, time management, and collaboration. Free of whining and negativity, the film inspires its audiences with a sense of purpose and possibility, and is bringing school communities together in re-imagining what our students and teachers are capable of doing.

In attendance at the screening will be the film’s education advisor, Greenwich Leadership Partners’ Stephanie Rogen, who will join Shore faculty members for a discussion and Q&A session following the film. “The essential theme of Most Likely to Succeed—that schools must place skills such as creativity and collaboration at the center of their learning model—is one that resonates strongly here at Shore,” says Shore’s Head of School Larry Griffin.

Griffin’s vision of 21st century learning was the driving force behind the construction of Shore’s $20 million Center for Creativity, where the film screening is to be held. The 30,000-square-foot Center houses a state-of-the-art 375-seat Theatre; two expansive studio spaces equipped for visual and ceramic arts; Upper and Lower School music rooms outfitted with traditional and electronic instruments; a digital audio production studio; private music practice rooms; a two-story gathering space and gallery; and the extraordinary Innovation Lab, where students from every grade explore subject areas as diverse as science, history, and music through hands-on work that crosses all disciplines.

“The Center for Creativity is the cornerstone for learning at Shore,” asserts Griffin. “In addition to becoming fluent writers and speakers, our children learn expression, invention, and teamwork through building and creating, composing and performing. Nowhere will you find a better stage for creative education. Nowhere will you find a better venue to screen this important film about transforming learning for the 21st century.”

For more information about the film, visit www.mltsfilm.org. To learn more about Shore Country Day School, visit www.shoreschool.org.