The Excellent 11: An Award Winning Teacher's Guide to Raising Children who Love to Learn

by Ron Clark

Now in paperback, the national bestseller that's changing America, one student at a time fter publishing his New York Times bestseller The Essential 55, award-winning teacher Ron Clark took his rules on the road and traveled to schools in 49 states. He met amazing teachers, administrators, students, parents-all kinds of people involved in bringing up great kids. In the best of them, he noticed the same qualities that he'd observed in many of the outstanding individuals he'd worked with during his time teaching in North Carolina and Harlem.

Genres: Education, Teaching, Nonfiction, Parenting, Teachers, Professional Development, School

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Ron Clark has been called "America's Educator." In 2000, he was named Disney's American Teacher of the Year. He is a New York Times bestselling author whose book, The Essential 55, has sold over 1 million copies and has been published in 25 different countries.

--from the author's website

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[teacupsandunicorns · Rating 3 out of 5]

The overall premise and enthusiasm and wisdom of the book I like.
He states a trait, explains why it’s important, and then gives an example of how he showed this to/students and further elaborates on why it works.

However there are points in the book that he explains what he did to fix or heal a situation and then turns around and says “but what I did was really inappropriate. You probably shouldn’t do this.” So I was sometimes left feeling like, “ok, then can you give me an appropriate example to learn from rather than this one?”

Like, if he’s going to turn around tell the reader NOT to do what he did, but it’s not used a cautionary tale, why is he including a problematic example showing how he demonstrated an admirable trait that we should strive for? Doesn’t he have others to choose from?

I found this mixed signal confusing and annoying. I want to see an appropriate way to learn by example. Why would he include something he did and how well it worked and then tell the reader not to do it?

Other than that you can tell this guy loves students and loves wha the does, and it helped encourages me as I go to school to become a teacher.


I recommend this, but sometimes I feel like you gotta take what he says with a grain of salt.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was very inspirational, but the one thing I kept thinking was: "I would so do that if I only had 30 kids instead of 140!" Most of the ideas in this book are just unrealistic for middle school and high school teachers. We teach only one specific subject to dozens and dozens of different students each day. Some of the ideas could be adapted to fit into our classrooms, but most cannot (unless you have hundreds of free hours and dollars at your disposal).

Great ideas for elementary teachers though and very inspirational overall. If you are a teacher, this book makes you feel like you felt back in college before you ever actually stepped foot into a classroom. That same fire and passion comes back to you after reading Clark's stories.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book from Ron Clark. If every teacher in the country could get half as inspired and passionate as him, our future would be so BRIGHT! This book has wonderful tips for teachers and parents. Anyone with kids or going into teaching should take a look at this book.

[Kate Mester · Rating 2 out of 5]

More anecdotal than 55, still lacking some cultural awareness.

[Lindsay · Rating 1 out of 5]

This seemed more like a chance for Ron Clark to write about himself than his students. I was more annoyed than inspired.

[Audra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book. Clark's enthusiasm for learning drew me into the book. His personal experiences give anecdotal examples of how he applies his Excellent qualities. However, the book soon becomes a treatise of extraordinary activities and unrealistic field trips that underscore what a phenomenal teacher he is. After two or three chapters, the self aggrandizement becomes droll and redundant. Personal experiences are wonderful examples, but humility should be one of his Excellent Qualities! Giving realistic illustrations of classroom techniques and using additional case examples of other successful instructors would temper the egotism and make for a more realistic expectation of classroom management.

[Megan Torrance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ron Clark is always an inspiration! Great reminders about keeping the main things in priority and teaching with passion!

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

More anecdotal than evidential but it is a motivating guide to being a top-quality teacher. "The Excellent 11" qualities - enthusiasm, adventure, creativity, reflection, balance, compassion, confidence, humor, common sense, appreciation, and resilience - are as applicable in the business world as they are in the classroom.

[Kirsten Foti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I agree with the overall message, there is a lot on this book I disagree with. Clark sets some unrealistic goals expectations based on his own choices, things many of us are completely incapable of achieving. He also focuses on testing as a measurement of success. In a day wen our kids are severely over tested, this is concerning.

[Kristin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gag me Mr. Savior. Most everything he does is perfect. He saved all the students. His actions as a teacher are unrealistic both monetarily and timewise. This is more of a "praise me" than a guide for current teachers. He took his students to South Africa for crying out loud!

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally, a "teacher memoir" book that actually contains useful suggestions and advice without talking down to teachers!

[Tracy Knierim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Right when I'm burned out and not loving teaching, this book lifted me back up and gave me new ways to approach my students and what I'm teaching them.

[Savanna Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for teachers and parents. Goes over 11 topics to help in the classroom and be successful. It is a good book to refer to when needing advice.

[Tishea · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting read although it didn't resonate as deeply with me as it may have with other people.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of really good advice for teachers, and I love Ron Clark's enthusiasm. It is clear that he LOVES his job and maintains the relationships he has formed over his career. The anecdotal stories also provide authenticity that lacks from other books about teaching. I appreciate how much hands-on learning he was able to do with his students!

That being said, I feel that some of his practices haven't aged well. He talks about making a big deal over students' test scores, and in one of his stories, he describes reading aloud every student's name and test score from the lowest score to the highest. The point was to show how this helped build the confidence of the students at the top of the "testing pyramid," but I couldn't help but wonder how those students whose scores were read first must have felt. He wrote about infusing experiential learning as often as possible, which I agree with. However, he implied that finding the funding to do so really isn't hard and that anyone can do it. Again, this is probably something that just hasn't aged well over the past 18 years.

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I stop reading at "...I told them that I would be only giving two grades: one hundred or zero. Even if they only forgetting one name of forty one presidents, they would only get zero. It sounds harsh, I know. I believe as a teacher we must set the bar as high as possible...."

I don't think it's an era of "memorizing" anymore, no? I don't like that he seems too focused on the result rather than the process (I know, I know he also gave some efforts to make his students memorizing all 41 president name) but that kind of "punishment" (100 of 0) won't do either.

During reading this book, I feel like I'm reading a proposal where he tried to get a job or something? He wrote so much about himself, it's getting boring.

[Renee Beall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ron Clark is such an inspirational speaker to teachers and parents! As a teacher, I value his advice on building relationships with students and modeling respect, humility, integrity, etc. I first read The Essential 55 after learning about it from the school I am student teaching in. We implement the “rules” into our classroom Social Emotional learning time and students have responded incredibly well to it! I highly recommend picking up both books!

[Mike Menth · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can just feel the passion for education that Ron Clark has in every page of his book. While the audience of The Excellent 11 various, as an educator I was able to walk away with many new tools for my own classroom. Beyond providing insight into education and equipping teachers with new ideas, the biggest impact Ron Clark has in his writing is creating a fire for teachers! This book will spark you to enter your classroom with energy, compassion, and a drive to succeed. Highly recommend!

[Marylou Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a veteran teacher, I was not inspired by this book. The movie was definitely better. I needed to work with book as part of a class on how to motivate and inspire our students. The first eight topics were relevant to the goal he attempts to achieve in this book. The last three topics felt like a reach. This might be a good book for the novice teacher. I found that a lot of what he suggests, I already do in the classroom.

[Julie · Rating 1 out of 5]

What in the world is this mess? How has this guy not been buried under lawsuits for some of the things he claims to do in the classroom? I guess things are different where he's from. Also... this is mainly an excuse for him to tell everyone how awesome he thinks he is. I'm very annoyed that I had to read this for a class.

[Cori Dantio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Ron Clark, and this book didn't disappoint. There are definitely some common sense practices in this book, but it also has a few key peices of insight that may not always be at the forefront of the teachers mind. Great and quick read!

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

You will not be disappointed when you read this book. Ron Clark reminds you why you became an educator and how to rejuvenate your classroom.

[Kelly White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practical, inspiring, and just what an educator needs during the summer to get ready for a new school year.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's kind of preachy but in a good way - absolutely full of practical advice and guidance.

[Yvette N. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read. Great book for those in the teaching profession or interested in going into the field.

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s lots of good advice in this book, but I don’t think that he has been in the shoes of a lot of us who teach.

[Marilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great information for teachers and parents of raising successful kids. Wonderful qualities to have at any age.

[Claudia Guerrero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book for ideas in the classroom. Great strategies and honest experiences.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is filled with character traits for teachers (& parents) AND to inspire within students for their success. So many great traits that align with what I believe and what our network teaches.