“The film is raw, edgy, spare - so beautiful and inspiring it makes you want to go out and do something for those struggling kids, those impassioned teachers.”
- Phil McCombs, The Washington Post


“...an achingly poignant chronicle...”
- Howard Rosenberg, Los Angeles Times


“...Everyone in America should see this film...”
- Robert D. Putnam, author, Bowling Alone


“...makes one consider a sudden career change.”
- Amy Wallace, Los Angeles Magazine


“...no policy can do what Guggenheim has done: illuminate the deeply emotional bonds the best teachers form with their students...One thing is certain: It's impossible to see TEACH and not be moved.”
- Susanna Cooper, The Sacramento Bee


“Maybe it takes a filmmaker like Davis Guggenheim to teach our politicians the One Big Thing they need to know: all the polarizing debates about schools are a sideshow if we can’t recruit a new generation of talent to the classroom...If enough kids see it [The First Year] before they choose a career, it could change the country.”
- Matt Miller, Nationally syndicated columnist,
Co-host “Left, Right & Center”, KCRW-FM, L.A.