Friday, June 11, 2010

The Lottery

Opening this weekend: The Lottery, directed by Madeleine Sackler

Synopsis from the movie's website:

In a country where 58% of African American 4th graders are functionally illiterate, The Lottery uncovers the failures of the traditional public school system and reveals that hundreds of thousands of parents attempt to flee the system every year. The Lottery follows four of these families from Harlem and the Bronx who have entered their children in a charter school lottery. Out of thousands of hopefuls, only a small minority will win the chance of a better future.

Directed by Madeleine Sackler and shot by award-winning cinematographer Wolfgang Held, The Lottery uncovers a ferocious debate surrounding the education reform movement. Interviews with politicians and educators explain not only the crisis in public education, but also why it is fixable. A call to action to avert a catastrophe in the education of American children, The Lottery makes the case that any child can succeed.

2 comments:

  1. All fourth graders are functionally illiterate. A literate person can read at a sixth grade level.

    The film sounds interesting, though. I will look out for it.

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  2. Touché, Helen! Maybe they just mean not-as-literate-as-they-ought-to-be...

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