Ignore the claims of shallow character development, predictable plot, over the top performances. If you have children in urban or suburban public schools, you know they are failing your children, and that the big city school bureaucracy is unable to change fast enough to help your children. If you have tried to improve your child's school, you will know this movie is true, you will cry in recognition of kindred souls, you will be energized to keep trying. Go see it.
In our situation, we have some public school choice within our county system. Our older child (4th-graders) was selected by lottery to go to a magnet school for high achievers. Our younger twins (2nd-graders), did not get selected in the lotteries we put them into. So we pulled them out and put them into a new (year-old) hybrid "brick and mortar" / cyber academy. On-site teachers work in conjunction with on-line teachers, using the K-12 online learning platform to deliver the state school curriculum. My wife and I are excited about this model, although it is more work for us as it includes daily monitored online involvement with each child's learning activities and interaction with their teachers, plus volunteer commitment at the brick and mortar school. There is opportunity for more-individual pacing of learning, and more-flexible school-day requirements.
In our situation, we have some public school choice within our county system. Our older child (4th-graders) was selected by lottery to go to a magnet school for high achievers. Our younger twins (2nd-graders), did not get selected in the lotteries we put them into. So we pulled them out and put them into a new (year-old) hybrid "brick and mortar" / cyber academy. On-site teachers work in conjunction with on-line teachers, using the K-12 online learning platform to deliver the state school curriculum. My wife and I are excited about this model, although it is more work for us as it includes daily monitored online involvement with each child's learning activities and interaction with their teachers, plus volunteer commitment at the brick and mortar school. There is opportunity for more-individual pacing of learning, and more-flexible school-day requirements.