American Teacher [HD]

A so-so look at what's wrong with teaching today...
I'm a 5th grade teacher and watched this with the hopes that the problems of education would be beautifully elaborated in this documentary. Admittedly, I wanted support for my own arguments when I encounter someone who suggests my job is easy or, at least, not as hard as most other jobs out there. To put it simply, I was a bit let down.

The film follows a few educators, some of whom still work in the field and a few who have left due to the ridiculous demands of the job. Each one comes from a slightly different walk of life, but they all share the same problem: Teaching is tough. Well, most of us knew that already. Why is it tough? The film points out that having a newborn baby and finding time to pump breast milk don't coincide with a productive teaching day. It also suggests teaching can cause divorce, as is the case with one of these teachers who works evening jobs to make ends meet and doesn't appear to have enough time for his family. Yet another realized he could make...

A Well Meaning Documentary About Trying To Make A Difference In A System That Undervalues Your Contribution
The challenges facing the public education system in America is a topic worthy of contemplation from every angle. There are so many contributing factors in the decline of our schools, it would be hard to address even a fraction of the issues in one forum. One thing that seems abundantly clear, however, (to me, at least) is that qualified teachers who are trying to make a difference tend to be undervalued. As someone who contemplated going into the field and student taught in the middle school arena, I appreciate the amount of work and commitment necessary to be an impactful and positive influence within the increasingly problematic public school system. While Vanessa Roth's heartfelt documentary "American Teacher" doesn't really try to address the more complex issues, it does focus on a small and diverse group of teachers (or former teachers) sharing their successes and trials. And the personal stories really do come together to give you a good overview of many of the issues...

Lacking in Solutions
Teaching is a tough job. That much is made clear in the documentary American Teacher. It's a job that pays highly-educated professionals very little for such long hours. Teaching also requires great personal sacrifice, such as spending individual funds on classroom supplies, forgoing family time to attend school functions or grade papers, and even working a second or third job in order to barely cover the expenses of an average family.

The documentary brings attention to the popular public opinion that teachers have short workdays and lots of vacation time. In reality, the presumed workday of a teacher is 10-11 hours long, with another 15 hours spent on planning and grading at home, for a whopping 65-hour work week. As a former English teacher with six years of classroom experience, I can vouch for the accuracy of that estimate. One former teacher in the video referred to "the insane work hours" required.

Another popular opinion is that "anybody can teach." The...

Click to Editorial Reviews