Thoughts on 'Waiting For Superman'

So PJ watched Waiting for Superman, and quite frankly, it awakened his dormant educational juices. As fast as Geoffrey Canada could present his views, thoughts and questions began darting through PJ's mind not unlike bats flying in a cave.

Here are but a few he can remember:

1. When he was a kid, who were his best teachers? Well, they were the no-nonsense, demanding, 100 percent on-task types.

2. When did he first realize that he was going to college? Never. It was always understood tacitly. It was an unstated cognizance that existed in a home that placed an emphasis on learning.

3. Half a lifetime ago, when PJ was an English teacher, he observed that many of his students' understanding of the future never extended beyond tonight. Forget about even the consideration of college. These kids were all about now.

4. Society requires us to act mannerly. Yet many of the kids referred to above acted on impulse, often listening only to the wants and needs of their bodies. Sometimes this was an obstacle to learning.

5. Early in his teaching career PJ learned from a wise colleague the process by which we acquire language and knowledge. The progression goes something like this: Listening. Speaking. Reading. Writing.

Think about it. An infant first listens, and then, when the words are in his listening vocabulary, he speaks. Reading comes next, but will make sense only when the words are in his listening and speaking vocabulary. And only then is the most difficult step, writing, at all possible. The wise colleague explained that it was important to maintain this process in the classroom. So don't be handing out a list of 20 vocabulary words, all beginning with the letter "A" and assign two sentences each. That's not how we learn, he explained. It won't work. Teaching, PJ realized early on, is an art and a science.

6. PJ has always believed that the great strength of this country is its public school system. It brings us all together. Consider this: Some may think it took an unduly long time, however, it was only two generations after the Supreme Court segregated the schools that what was unthinkable when PJ was a kid happened, namely, an African American being elected President.

7. PJ has doubts about the Charter School movement. Handpick the kids, the ones with the involved parents, and they'll make your school look good.  After all, that's what all the research shows. Maybe, Mr. Canada, it is not the charter school. Perhaps, instead, it is the careful selection of students with parents who care that will doom your schools to success.  All successful schools must be a partnership among kids, parents, and teachers.

8. PJ observed many gifted teachers during his career, but, yes, everyone was aware of the few whom Geoffrey Canada says the system protects.

9. He observed students make great progress, yet still lag several grade levels behind. He saw many of them fall through the cracks once they reached high school. How sad.

10. PJ knows that nothing breeds success like success. Let's catch kids doing the right thing, instead of focusing on the negative.

11. He saw No Child Left Behind extract the spontaneity and spark from a system that is now devoted to testing kids at every grade level. Relentlessly.

12. And finally, he must admit, he does not have a single answer, just a lot of thoughts, questions, and ideas. He's seen grouping work. He's seen it fail. He's seen inclusion work. He's seen it fail.

Certainly, Geoffrey Canada is right, it is great teachers who are the answer. They will succeed anywhere. But only in Charter Schools? Give us a break!

Mr. Canada has it all figured out: Want to fix public education? "Simple," says he. Eliminate all the public schools, replace them with charter schools, and, yup, we'll be right up there at the top of the list with Finland. Mr. Canada, however, neglects to mention that according to the latest study, 83% of charter schools under perform their neighborhood public counterparts.

Ah, if it were only so simple.