Fwd: Understanding No Child Left Behind

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Sep 14, 2005 10:03 AM

Understanding " No Child Left Behind "

 

 

 

> If you don't understand the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT, this may help. If

> you do understand, you'll enjoy this analogy.

>

>

> The Best Dentist... " Absolutely " the Best Dentist...My dentist is great!

> He sends me reminders so I don't forget checkups. He uses the latest

> techniques based on research. He never hurts me, and I've got all my

> teeth, so when I ran into him the other day, I was eager to see if he'd

> heard about the new state program. I knew he'd think it was great.

>

>

> " Did you hear about the new state program to measure effectiveness of

> dentists with their young patients? " I said.

>

> " No, " he said. He didn't seem too thrilled. " How will they do that? "

>

> " It's quite simple, " I said. " They will just count the number of

> cavities each patient has at age 10, 14, and 18 and average that to

> determine a dentist's rating. Dentists will be rated as Excellent, Good,

> Average, Below Average, and Unsatisfactory. That way parents will know

> which are the best dentists.

>

> It will also encourage the less effective dentists to get better, " I

> said. " Poor dentists who don't improve could lose their licenses to

> practice. "

>

> " That's terrible, " he said.

>

> " What? That's not a good attitude, " I said. " Don't you think we should

> try to improve children's dental health in this state? "

>

> " Sure I do, " he said, " but that's not a fair way to determine who is

> practicing good dentistry. "

>

> " Why not? " I said. " It makes perfect sense to me. "

>

> " Well, it's so obvious, " he said. " Don't you see that dentists don't all

> work with the same clientele; so much depends on things we can't

> control? For example, " he said, " I work in a rural area with a high

> percentage of patients from deprived homes, while some of my colleagues

> work in upper middle class neighborhoods. Many of the parents I work

> with don't bring their children to see me until there is some kind of

> problem and I don't get to do much preventive work. Also, " he said,

> " many of the parents I serve let their kids eat way too much candy from

> an early age, unlike more educated parents who understand the

> relationship between sugar and decay. To top it all off, " he added, " so

> many of my clients have well water which is untreated and has no

> fluoride in it. Do you have any idea how much difference early use of

> fluoride can make? "

>

> " It sounds like you're making excuses, " I said. I couldn't believe my

> dentist would be so defensive. He does a great job.

>

>

> " I am not! " he said. " My best patients are as good as anyone's, my work

> is as good as anyone's, but my average cavity count is going to be

> higher than a lot of other dentists because I chose to work where I am

> needed most. "

>

> " Don't' get touchy, " I said.

>

> " Touchy? " he said. His face had turned red and from the way he was

> clenching and unclenching his jaws, I was afraid he was going to damage

> his teeth. " Try furious. In a system like this, I will end up being

> rated average, below average, or worse. My more educated patients who

> see these ratings may believe this so-called rating actually is a

> measure of my ability and proficiency as a dentist. They may leave me,

> and I'll be left with only the most needy patients. And my cavity

> average score will get even worse. On top of that, how will I attract

> good dental hygienists and other excellent dentists to my practice if it

> is labeled below average? "

>

> " I think you are overreacting, " I said. ''Complaining, excuse making and

> stonewalling won't improve dental health'....I am quoting from a leading

> member of the DOC, " I noted.

>

> " What's the DOC? " he asked.

>

> " It's the Dental Oversight Committee, " I said, " a group made up of

> mostly laypersons to make sure dentistry in this state gets improved. "

>

> " Spare me, " he said, " I can't believe this. Reasonable people won't buy

> it, " he said hopefully.

>

> The program sounded reasonable to me, so I asked, " How else would you

> measure good dentistry? "

>

> " Come watch me work, " he said. " Observe my processes. "

>

> " That's too complicated and time consuming, " I said. " Cavities are the

> bottom line, and you can't argue with the bottom line. It's an absolute

> measure. "

>

> " That's what I'm afraid my parents and prospective patients will think.

> This can't be happening, " he said despairingly.

>

> " Now, now, " I said, " don't despair. The state will help you some. "

>

> " How? " he said.

>

> " If you're rated poorly, they'll send a dentist who is rated excellent

> to help straighten you out, " I said brightly.

>

> " You mean, " he said, " they'll send a dentist with a wealthy clientele to

> show me how to work on severe juvenile dental problems with which I have

> probably had much more experience? Big help. "

>

> " There you go again, " I said. " You aren't acting professionally at all. "

>

> " You don't get it, " he said. " Doing this would be like grading schools

> and teachers on an average score on a test of children's progress

> without regard to influences outside the school, the home, the community

> served and stuff like that. Why would they do something so unfair to

> dentists? No one would ever think of doing that to schools. "

>

> I just shook my head sadly, but he had brightened.

>

> " I'm going to write my representatives and senator, " he said. " I'll use

> the school analogy...surely they will see the point. "

>

> He walked off with that look of hope mixed with fear and suppressed

> anger that I see in the mirror so often lately.

>

> written by John S. Taylor, Superintendent of Schools Lancaster County

> School District.