Race to Nowhere - A film about the stress in today's schools

On Thursday evening, I had the opportunity to attend a screening of the documentary Race to Nowhere at River Hill High School in Clarksville, Maryland. The film was created by a concerned mother, turned filmmaker, who takes aim with her camera at the high-stakes, high-pressure culture that has invaded our schools and our children’s lives, creating unhealthy, disengaged, unprepared and stressed-out youth.

Featuring the heartbreaking stories of young people across the country who have been pushed to the brink, educators who are burned out and worried that students aren’t developing the skills they need, and parents who are trying to do what’s best for their kids, Race to Nowhere points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating has become commonplace, students have become disengaged, stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant, and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.

Race to Nowhere is a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens. In a grassroots sensation already feeding a groundswell for change, hundreds of theaters, schools and organizations nationwide are hosting community screenings during a six month campaign to screen the film nationwide. Tens of thousands of people are coming together, using the film as the centerpiece for raising awareness, radically changing the national dialogue on education and galvanizing change. (Source Race to Nowhere Website: http://www.racetonowhere.com/).

I would recommend that parents, educators and policy makers watch the film and begin to review our current practices and more importantly the way we measure student progress. In my opinion, an emphasis on innovation, creativity, problem-solving and effective interpersonal skills should be our focus. Unfortunately,  in this age of high stakes testing and accountability, we have a very narrow view of student progress and success.

While I don't agree with all aspects of the film, I do share the film makers concerns about the stress and burnout that a large number of students are feeling in our schools. As a result of the film, I plan to have a discussion with my staff about ways we can reduce stress for our students as we continue to have high expectations for achievement. I look forward to hearing their ideas.

Do you have any ideas on how to do this? 

Please leave me some comments...

I want to thank the Clarksville Middle School staff for allowing me to sit with them during this viewing and to my wife for getting me the ticket!