Beyond the Classroom: The Enduring Legacy of "Stand and Deliver"

Introduction

The film "Stand and Deliver," released in 1988, tells the story of Jaime Escalante, a high school mathematics teacher who inspired his Latino students at Garfield High School in East Los Angeles to master advanced placement calculus. While the film gained widespread recognition and acclaim, its impact extends far beyond the silver screen, raising important questions about education, representation, and the power of inspiration.

The Story Behind the Film

"Stand and Deliver" is based on real events that took place in the early 1980s. Jaime Escalante, a Bolivian-born teacher, arrived at Garfield High School and saw the potential in his students, who were primarily from low-income, working-class families. Despite the challenges they faced, Escalante believed in their ability to succeed and pushed them to excel in mathematics.

The film portrays Escalante's innovative teaching methods, his unwavering dedication, and the obstacles he and his students overcame. It shows how he motivated them to study hard, attend extra classes, and believe in themselves. The culmination of their efforts was the Advanced Placement (AP) calculus exam, which all 18 students passed.

However, their success was met with skepticism from the Educational Testing Service (ETS), who questioned the validity of the scores, suspecting cheating due to identical mistakes, and standard procedure to grade the test with the identity of the student concealed. This led to a controversial retesting, in which the students once again proved their knowledge and abilities.

The Making of the Movie

The journey of "Stand and Deliver" from a news story to a major motion picture is a story in itself. Ramon Menendez, a film school graduate, discovered Escalante's story in a Los Angeles Times article and collaborated with Tom Musca to write the screenplay. Securing the rights to the story was a challenge, but Escalante eventually agreed to the project for a nominal fee.

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Initial attempts to secure funding were unsuccessful, as the subject matter was deemed commercially unviable. However, with the help of grants and support from various organizations, the film was eventually made on a modest budget. Edward James Olmos, who played Escalante, attributed the film's realization to a concerted grassroots effort.

Themes and Impact

"Stand and Deliver" explores several important themes, including:

The power of education: The film highlights the transformative potential of education, showing how it can empower students from disadvantaged backgrounds to achieve their dreams.
The importance of representation: By portraying Latino students in a positive light, the film challenged stereotypes and provided role models for young people.
The role of teachers: Escalante's dedication and belief in his students serve as an inspiration for educators, demonstrating the impact they can have on their students' lives.
Overcoming obstacles: The film shows how students can overcome challenges such as poverty, discrimination, and lack of resources with hard work and determination.

The film's impact was immediate and far-reaching. It received critical acclaim, earned Olmos an Academy Award nomination, and brought national attention to Escalante and his students. The film also sparked a national conversation about education reform and the importance of investing in underserved communities.

Criticism and Controversy

Despite its success, "Stand and Deliver" has also faced criticism and controversy. Some critics have argued that the film oversimplifies the challenges faced by students in low-income schools and that it promotes a "white savior" narrative. Others have questioned the accuracy of certain events depicted in the film, such as the ETS investigation and the students' retesting.

The film gives the impression that the incident occurred in the year Escalante was teaching, after students from his first year took a summer session for the calculus prerequisites. In fact, Escalante first began teaching at Garfield High School in 1974 and taught his first Advanced Placement Calculus course in 1978 with a group of 14 students, and it was in 1982 that the exam incident occurred. In the first year (1978), only five students remained in the course at the end of the year, only two of whom passed the AP Calculus exam.

Jerry Jesness stated, "Unlike the students in the movie, the real Garfield students required years of solid preparation before they could take calculus. So Escalante established a program at East Los Angeles College where students could take those classes in intensive seven-week summer sessions. Escalante described the film as "90 percent truth, 10 percent drama".

Jay Mathews found that nine of them had made "identical silly mistakes" on free response question six. Mathews heard from two of the students that during the exam, a piece of paper had been passed around with that flawed solution.

Where Are They Now?

Many of the real-life students who were portrayed in "Stand and Deliver" went on to achieve great success in their respective fields. Some became doctors, lawyers, engineers, and educators. They credit Escalante with instilling in them a love of learning and a belief in their own potential.

Sandra Munoz, an attorney who specializes in workers' rights and immigration cases in East Los Angeles, was pulled out my sophomore year and put in his class, and I took math with him. He would teach anybody who wanted to learn - they didn't have to be designated gifted and talented by the school.

Arícelí Lerma, an attorney, reels off a partial list of where she and other Escalante students from the class of 1991 went: Occidental, Harvard, Stanford, Dartmouth, MIT, Wellesley.

Dolores Arredondo, who is now a bank vice president went to Wellesley. She said that one year, Escalante appeared at the Pachanga celebration for Latino students that the Ivy League and Seven Sisters colleges held on the East Coast. It was a home-style Thanksgiving for those who couldn't afford to fly home. "Someone told me they'd asked Mr. Escalante to speak, and he did," Arredondo says. "Not only did he come, he came with a suitcase full of tamales made in East L.A."

They have also given back to their communities, working to improve educational opportunities for other young people.

The Debate About the Movie

Despite the feel-good message of "Stand and Deliver," some educators have reservations about showing it to their students. The concern is that it can perpetuate the "white savior" complex, where white educators swoop in to transform the lives of students of color. The author vividly remembers the days police officers disrupted classes at Castle Park Middle School to search for drugs. They'd line us up against the wall as a police dog came around sniffing for anything suspicious. The first teacher who made us watch "Stand and Deliver" was a math instructor with a dry sense of humor. He was also very fond of district data and often showed us where we ranked compared with other schools. When it came to academic performance, we were always at the bottom. I guess this, along with making us watch "Stand and Deliver," was supposed to inspire us to surpass all the challenges we faced, but it just confirmed what we all knew: Everyone thinks we're dumb.

Instead of relying on movies to inspire students, educators should engage them, learn about their lives, and understand the systemic challenges they face.

Escalante's Later Years and Legacy

After leaving Garfield High School, Escalante continued to teach and inspire students at other schools. He remained a passionate advocate for education reform and a role model for teachers across the country. Escalante died in 2010 at the age of 79, but his legacy lives on.

Jaime Escalante, the charismatic former East Los Angeles high school teacher who taught the nation that inner-city students could master subjects as demanding as calculus, died Tuesday. He was 79.The subject of the 1988 film "Stand and Deliver," Escalante died at his son's home in Roseville, Calif., said actor Edward James Olmos, who portrayed the teacher in the film. Escalante had bladder cancer.

His story continues to inspire educators and students alike, reminding them of the power of education, the importance of representation, and the potential for success that lies within every individual.

The Enduring Popularity

Olmos attributed the film's enduring popularity to its inspirational message and universal themes. He also described "Stand and Deliver" as the most significant and impactful project of his career. The film has been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry, and Escalante has been honored with his own commemorative stamp.

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