Get off the bench and get in the game

On Monday and Friday Oprah had episodes concerning the public schools in the United States. According to the statistics the United States has fallen way behind other developed countries in many areas of education, such as math and science. What they are predicting is our schools are not doing the job to educate students, which will lead to this generation of students being less literate. The high school drop out rates in many places are reaching 50% in some schools, which is appalling. The reason Oprah talked about this on her show was because of a new documentary that came out on Friday in select theaters called "Waiting for Superman", which is about a few students who are trying to get into a good school that will give them a good education and an opportunity to go to college. The only way these students can get into these schools is if their number is picked from a lottery. As a future teacher this is devastating. I can't believe that children are basing whether they will have the opportunity to go to college and have a good future by a lottery. Some parent said that this lottery will decide whether their children will go to college or end up in jail. I honestly knew about many of these statistics, but I was unaware of the lottery situation that some children are going through to get a good education. These statistics and this problem with our public schools is one of the main reasons why I wanted to  be a teacher. I want students to be excited about learning and want to come to school everyday because they can't wait to get involved with the classroom and to learn to benefit their future. When I was watching Oprah I was becoming infuriated, but not because it was giving teachers a pretty bad reputation, but because I am one of those people that will do anything to make sure my students are learning all they can and pushing themselves to do better. It gave me goose bumps watching because I want to be one of those people that makes a difference and be recognized as a great teacher. One of the things that Oprah emphasized on that I really liked was that talking about this issue on national television was starting a conversation that needs to be talked about everywhere in the United States, but you cannot just sit there and talk about it. You have to get off your seat and do it. Get off the bench and get in the game. You can't depend on other people, or one person to do it all. It's time to stop blaming the teachers, unions, parents and economy. We need to start working together and making a difference.
I know that this movie probably shows teachers in a very bad light and I wish Oprah (and I have heard the movie) would talk about how their are some really great teachers out their that are doing a fantastic job because there are many fantastic teachers and districts in our country, but we need to make sure that these people are spreading their good ideas and successes to other teachers and districts. It's time to make a difference in every students' life and give every single child an opportunity to succeed in this world. Who wants to join me in making a difference in our schools?