Choosing Excellence: "Good Enough" Schools Are Not Good Enough

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Summary: Choosing Excellence
Review: How do you choose a good school? John Merrow gives you guidelines to follow and questions to ask in your search. This book is a "must" for all parents. The questions at the end of each chapter are especially helpful.

Rating:
Summary: Choosing Excellence
Review: I found this book thoughtful and engaging. I can't imagine any family concerned with the education of their child not buying this book. It is a must. Besides being a useful tool in evaluating a school, this book is a valuable collection of Mr. Merrow's experiences in his extensive career of covering the field of education.

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Summary: An "excellent" choice for anyone who cares about schools
Review: John Merrow's book is a thoughtful and well-informed guide to finding excellence in public education. It is both an insightful look at what constitutes excellence and a great "how to" book for parents who are trying to choose schools for their kids (I especially like "questions to ask" at the end of each chapter). Best of all, while critical throughout, Merrow remains hopeful that public education can be excellent and offers real solutions for some of the most pressing problems in education today.

Rating:
Summary: Choosing Excellence
Review: Not everyone involved in education is going to enjoy reading this book. This is primarily because there are books that happen to hit too close to home. Choosing Excellence is basically an indictment of teaching kids merely for the sake of performing on mandated exams rather than educating our young citizenry so they can become contributing members of an evolving democracy. In today's preoccupation with improving educational standards, Merrow believes we have missed the boat, or rather, chosen the wrong boat. Instead of improving the way we teach, we test, which, although is economically easier to justify, leads to a shoddy version of a true, growth-oriented education. The problem is, he contends, is that we end up no better than we were before, and even worse because we delude ourselves into thinking that we are making changes to help the kids. He also believes that most of our country's schools fall into the "good enough" rather than the "excellent" category of schools. The ironic aspect is that "good enough" doesn't really mean good at all, but tends to be mediocre at best. Written in a crisp and convincing journalistic style, this book is recommended.

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Summary: Must reading for administrators, parents, and educators
Review: Not everyone involved in education is going to enjoy reading this book. This is primarily because there are books that happen to hit too close to home. Choosing Excellence is basically an indictment of teaching kids merely for the sake of performing on mandated exams rather than educating our young citizenry so they can become contributing members of an evolving democracy. In today's preoccupation with improving educational standards, Merrow believes we have missed the boat, or rather, chosen the wrong boat. Instead of improving the way we teach, we test, which, although is economically easier to justify, leads to a shoddy version of a true, growth-oriented education. The problem is, he contends, is that we end up no better than we were before, and even worse because we delude ourselves into thinking that we are making changes to help the kids. He also believes that most of our country's schools fall into the "good enough" rather than the "excellent" category of schools. The ironic aspect is that "good enough" doesn't really mean good at all, but tends to be mediocre at best. Written in a crisp and convincing journalistic style, this book is recommended.

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Summary: Choosing Excellence : 'Good Enough' Schools Are Not Good Eno
Review: Note: I was forced to give at least one star, this is Amazon's choice, not mine. I read the previous customer reviews and am wondering if perhaps Amazon sent me the wrong book. The comments were quite generous, too generous. And in fact, had they not been so glowing I would have not spent the money for this book. Mr. Merrow has stated the obvious and hopes the reader doesn't notice. This reader noticed. With Mr. Merrow's vitae I would have expected better, but I do believe he is in his decling years as an effective journalist (oxymoron?). The book is weak and I wish to have my money back. Don't waste your time, look at the free sample here on Amazon and you'll see all you need to know. Perhaps this explains why Mr. Merrow can no longer be found on PBS?

Rating:
Summary: Choosing Excellence : 'Good Enough' Schools Are Not Good Eno
Review: Note: I was forced to give at least one star, this is Amazon's choice, not mine. I read the previous customer reviews and am wondering if perhaps Amazon sent me the wrong book. The comments were quite generous, too generous. And in fact, had they not been so glowing I would have not spent the money for this book. Mr. Merrow has stated the obvious and hopes the reader doesn't notice. This reader noticed. With Mr. Merrow's vitae I would have expected better, but I do believe he is in his decling years as an effective journalist (oxymoron?). The book is weak and I wish to have my money back. Don't waste your time, look at the free sample here on Amazon and you'll see all you need to know. Perhaps this explains why Mr. Merrow can no longer be found on PBS?

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Summary: A must read for anyone who cares about our future
Review: This book is entertaining and remarkably thoughtful. It is filled with the wisdom and insights we have come to expect from John Merrow, whose work many of us have followed on NPR and PBS. If you care about our future, read this book. He is critical where criticism is warranted but every chapter contains many useful suggestions for improvement. Every chapter includes the questions we need to ask of our educators and of ourselves.

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Summary: every parent should own this book
Review: This is a book that every parent will want to read. It's full of useful information, it's easy to understand, and it's positive in nature. The pathway to better schooling, and to a better experience for children, leads through this brilliant book. Buy it, or borrow it from your library, TODAY!

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Summary: A must read for anyone who cares about our future
Review: This is an immensely useful, irreverent look at public schools. The author is a former teacher and an award-winning journalist who has worked for National Public Radio and PBS. He is creative and extremely insightful. He says, don't use just one way to judge schools. Do most teachers leave right after the students? What do schools do if there is a bully? Is the school orderly without being rigid? Is excellent student work displayed? Is it creative, or does it all look alike? These are only a few of the excellent, unusual questions Merrow asks.
He also urges families not to make assumptions about a school - whether it's a charter, magnet or neighborhood school - it's location and classification just don't tell you enough.
This is a great book for families to read, even if they are not actively selecting a new school. Merrow describes wonderful - and awful things he's seen in schools all over the world. He is funny, creative,and immensely useful.
Joe N - St. Paul, Minnesota