He Got Schooled: M. Night Shyamalan on closing the education gap

A film maker best known for his horror pictures ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, in 2008 M. Night Shyamalan decided to take an active role in fixing the American education system. Although a novice to the world of classrooms and teachers, he believed there must be better ways to help our schools. To educate himself, he and his foundation spent the next four years examining research in papers, journals and studies.

His conclusion that many commonly held assumptions are wrong, like the belief that smaller class sizes are key to increased academic achievement, has brought criticism and dismissal from educators and reformers. But he stays steadfast in his conviction there are five basic keys to education success – no roadblock teachers, the right balance of leadership, feedback, smaller schools, and more time in school.

Monday, January 13 M. Night sat down to talk with KPCC’s Tess Vigeland about his ideas, which he outlines in his new book, I Got Schooled.  His subtitle says it best: this is “the unlikely story of how a moonlighting movie maker learned the five keys to closing America’s education gap.” With them was Ana Ponce, CEO of Camino Nuevo Charter Academy, one of 50 schools that M. Night says are successfully using this method. 

Host and moderator: 
Tess Vigeland: KPCC host; reporter, producer and editor for public radio for more than 20 years

Guests:
M. Night Shyamalan: film maker and advocate for education reform; author, “I Got Schooled”

Ana Ponce: Chief Executive Officer, Camino Nuevo Charter Academy

This program is made possible in part by L.A. Universal Preschool and its support of our education programming.