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Emily

During the making of Waiting For "Superman," Emily is an eighth-grader in California who hopes to become a teacher one day. She lives in an affluent neighborhood with schools that boast high graduation rates. Her local high school has golf and water polo teams, a state-of-the-art drama theater and amazing test scores. Emily doesn't have to worry about her safety or a lack of resources, but she does have to worry about her academic future.

See Emily on The Oprah Show.

Emily doesn't want to go to her neighborhood school because the school tracks its students. So if Emily isn't considered to be as smart as another student, she says she will be placed on a lower academic track with fewer learning opportunities.

Instead of attending her local high school, Emily dreams of attending Summit Preparatory Charter High School, where there is no student tracking. Every student is held to the same set of high expectations, so Emily will learn more and improve her chances of getting into the college of her choice. She is one of 455 applicants applying for 110 places, so she has a 24 percent chance of being accepted.

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