Thousands Host 'Waiting For Superman' House Parties

Movie Night: Thousands Host 'Waiting For Superman' House Parties

UPDATE: Since this story was first posted, it has been clarified that there is no charge to order the party kit online. The article has been updated to reflect those changes.
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It probably won't be the wildest party you've ever been to, but it's sure to spark debate. On February 25, thousands of people across the nation will host "Waiting for 'Superman'" house parties, celebrating the recent DVD release.

The 2010 documentary about the plight of American schools touches on hot-button issues such as teacher quality and charter schools.

Waitingforsuperman.com urges people who want to draw attention to the need for education reform to host a party. You can order a free house party kit online, which includes a movie guide and popcorn. The DVD is sold separately and includes a $25 gift card for Donorschoose.org, so that the buyer can make a contribution to a classroom in need.

One Los Angeles social studies teacher from a school that was short on computers received $8,000 in donations for student laptops from contributions to Donors.org, reports Take Part. "Mr. P." says he'll host a "Superman" party because he thinks the movie draws attention to the problems with the education system and will hopefully spark change.

"I'm hosting a WFS house party because even though I might not agree with everything in the film, it is doing one important thing: putting education in the spotlight. It offers a forum for people who know very little about the public education system to see the problems I see, and more importantly, to act."

"Waiting for 'Superman'" received both praise and criticism when it was released last year.

TIME said it effectively brought the shortcomings of the education system into prominence.

"Waiting for 'Superman' stirs that discussion, and perhaps moves it to the front of our national concerns, because it is so smartly and feelingly constructed."

The Washington Post, however, said the documentary was rightly shorted an expected Oscar nomination.

"The documentarians who select the films for Academy Award nominations in the feature documentary category got it right: 'Waiting for Superman' was not good/accurate enough to be selected."

If you can't host a party yourself but would like to find one, see the map below or the directory here.

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