Customer Reviews

Choosing Excellence: Good Enough Schools Are Not Good Enough

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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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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!

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.