What 'Waiting For Superman' Got Wrong

The author of this article gets it wrong. The movie does not glorify lotteries, where students are chosen at random for a better publicly funded school. The audience wants all the featured students to get into the charter schools. Their dreams are discussed and their parents shown putting in work to get them into the lottery.

Another sad fact is that there are lotteries at all. We really need to be asking ourselves why our tax dollars are being used to promote a system where parents and students feel that they have to be one of the lucky ones.

I believe socioeconomic factors are at work. But it needs to be pointed out social and economic factors don't necessarily go hand in hand.

For instance, being a Chinese, I can tell you that no matter how poor a family is, education is looked upon as a way out. This might be in part due to the long standing importance of the Imperial Examinations as a way of securing a government position.

I'd say poverty is a problem, but it is a poverty of imagination. Gangsta Rap doesn't help, because it perpetuates the illusion that criminal activities are the only valid choice.