Stand and Deliver
Movie Review by:Jonah Fliegelman, American University

I think that all teachers through their style of teaching and activities planned show you why they teach. I have had teachers who are very strict and are very serious about strictly learning the material and nothing else. The class of the teacher who I am thinking of was not very interesting and it was hard, but everyone in that class new algebra like the back of their hand. I would say that his reason for teaching would be for students to become educated and learn the material in the curriculum strictly. He taught in an old school kinds of style but he was effective. I had another teacher that was big on student involvement in the community and socially. She would always assign projects that would involve us helping out at a soup kitchen or other socially conscience organizations. She would incorporate math and writing lessons through these volunteer jobs we would do. I would say her reason for teaching was to create students that are socially aware and she tried to motivate students that they can promote positive change in this world. I have also had some teachers discuss the reasons why they teach with us in class. One teacher told us that the reason she is teaching so she can become a principal one-day and then get involved on the board of education in a district.

Escalante made a huge personal and professional sacrifice in order to accomplish his goal of promoting his students to higher education in a low achieving inner city school. I would definitely be willing to make the same sacrifices that he made. I think he had a strong will to succeed and it takes sacrifice to take on a goal that has not been achieved yet. He also was trying to make a huge change in an inner city poor school, which is unconventional and very respectable by me. I hope to carry his tradition of making change in inner city neighborhoods through education. I will be willing to make sacrifices personally and professionally while I teach in order to make changes in my school that I hope to work for.

I already knew the reason why I wanted to teach and it seems to be very similar to the reason the Jaime Escalante wanted to teach. This movie gives me hope and inspiration to do the things that I want to as a teacher. Knowing that it is possible to create change in schools as shown through Escalante’s persistence and creativeness gives me more inspiration to continue on the this education track.

Follow-up activity: Blurb for a website- Come out on Friday night and see real change being made in action in the portrayal of Jaime Escalante’s persistence to change an underprivileged inner-city school. Stand and Deliver, the true story of a man who made personal and professional sacrifices for change.