Poor Public Schools

"The War On Kids" film demonstrates how the public school system itself is the culprit behind the issues with American schooling. Despite the popular societal opinion that teachers, parents, insufficient funding or the students themselves are the reason for the failure of public schools, it's actually the authoritarian institution of public schools that needs to be reformed. Teachers are more interested in retaining control of their classes by any means necessary than in taking care of a student's desire to learn. A public school student's protection under the law have essentially been replaced by an environment where a school administrator or educator can subjectively determine whether a breach of rules has occurred and how to handle the situation. Kids are drug-tested, not able to express their opinions verbally and in writing, and searched in schools whose environment now more closely resembles a prison instead of an educational setting.

At first, the idea of instituting metal detectors and searching students was to protect other students and teachers from drugs and weapons. Instead, zero tolerance policies have created a hostile environment void of democracy. Given that the United States was founded on the ideals of democracy, the idea that a public school student is denied simple rights by subjection to intense forms of physical and emotional control is the reason Cevin Soling, creator of "The War on Kids" spent more than six years producing a film that clearly delineates the issues.