Clarity Sponsors Oregon Premiere of Most Likely to Succeed Documentary

For most of the last century, entry-level jobs were plentiful, and college was an affordable path to a fulfilling career. That world no longer exists. That’s why—on a day dedicated to professional learning and improving the process and practice of teaching—Clarity Innovations and the Organization for Educational Technology & Curriculum ("OETC") are sponsoring the Oregon Premiere of Most Likely To Succeed , a critically acclaimed documentary about the growing shortcomings of our school model in today’s innovative world.

Update: Tickets are sold out. For other screenings, visit the film website .

Each year, school districts across Oregon designate the second Friday of October for teacher professional development. Educators participate in a variety of workshops, seminars, conferences, and activities about instructional strategies that improve student engagement, life-long learning, and academic achievement. Among the organizations producing events this year are the Oregon Writers Project , the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry , the Northwest Film Center , The Science Factory , and the Oregon Council of Teachers of Mathematics .

This year, parents, school administrators, and community members, are invited to join educators in attending this special screening of Most Likely To Succeed and participate in a discussion afterwards about how we can bring about the change we want to see in our local schools. As the Oregon Chalkboard Project has indicated in its research, “A great teacher changes a life. A whole state of them changes our future.”

“For more than a hundred years, the model we use for education has remained mostly the same, while the world around us continues to change dramatically,” says Thor Prichard, President & CEO of Clarity Innovations. “This film frames this stark contrast while also giving examples of how we can reinvent our approach to education.”

The feature-length documentary will be shown at the Academy Theatre at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, October 9, 2015 . Tickets include a free beverage (of the adult or kid variety) to enjoy while watching the film. Tickets are sold out available online : MLTSpdx.splashthat.com

About the Film

Directed by acclaimed documentarian Greg Whiteley, the film has been named “among the best education documentaries ever produced” by Education Week , and called a “smart and engaging look at education in the 21st century” by The Hollywood Reporter . Edutopia states “this film should be watched by every caring parent and educator who wants to improve the learning process.” Most Likely To Succeed is an official selection of many of the nation’s top film festivals, including the prestigious 2015 Sundance Film Festival and Tribeca Film Festival . View the trailer online: MLTSfilm.org

Whiteley reflects on what motivated him to film the documentary in a recent interview:

“Two years ago, if you’d asked my wife and me to describe the ideal school for our two kids, I’d have probably said, ‘the school that will get them into the best college.’ If you pressed me to get more specific about the curriculum or what the teachers would be like, I would have probably cited some school with the highest test scores. I knew our nation’s schools were less than ideal, but I attributed their shortcomings to a general laziness, which caused us to trail China and India in math and science scores. As a result, I was sympathetic to the notion that the school day ought to be lengthened, more homework ought to be required, and teachers and administrators ought to be held accountable for poor test scores.

Three years ago, I met Ted Dintersmith, who in turn sent me a copy of Tony Wagner’s book The Global Achievement Gap. Over time, I started to realize that our school system, and the ways we assess it, have become obsolete. But after filming in well over one hundred classrooms across the U.S. and speaking extensively with people like Ted, Tony, Thomas Friedman of the NY Times, Sal Khan of Khan Academy, Laszlo Bock of Google and Sir Ken Robinson, my eyes began to open to what school could and should be.

I wanted to curse all of them as I can’t express what a helpless feeling it was to be making this movie and then dropping my own kids off at a school I was now convinced was wasting their time. I can’t think of an issue more pressing or more personal than education.”

About the OETC

The OETC is a non-profit organization formed by over 900 educational institutions throughout the United States. The OETC provides aggregated technology procurement and professional development to improve the integration of technology in education. (OETC is a client of Clarity Innovations.)

About Clarity Innovations

Clarity Innovations is a mission-driven company that makes innovative ideas clear through strategy and development. Drawing on our blended expertise from the classroom and looking ahead to where technological trends may lead, our unique perspective informs and illuminates. Whether it’s to define, design, or develop, we deliver results that improve the process and practice of teaching and learning.

Download a copy of this press release here .