Saturday, February 27, 2010
Straight Education
The question is can a straight school increase the ability of its students to score better in the non-straight portion of the National Board and at the same time not decrease the quality of the straight chiropractic product? In other words, is the better our students do on Parts III,IV etc., the less straight they will be when they get into practice?
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Is there a straight portion of the National Board?
ReplyDeleteI think memorizing for a test is different that execution in practice. I know all the stuff I needed to pass the boards, but practice "straight".
ReplyDeleteI think the education and the "reality" presented in schools in very NMS/treatment oriented and very diagnosing/treatment plan oriented (to get top insurance billing, of course...).
Just a matter of showing students the benefits of OSC, leading by example and providing sound strategies to practice this way. This should be much easier than uprooting the non-straight powers that be.
Just my thoughts.
In health,
Brandon Schultz, D.C.
Claude: I know that National Boards didn't exist wayyyyy back then when you went to school (wink, wink), but yes, there is a straight part of the boards, albeit only 1 part: Part 2, Principles of Chiropractic (philosophy)!
ReplyDeleteJoe: Board scores are a tricky gauge of the straight chiropractic product. I believe the quality of that product is formed:
1) before the student even begins school. Long ago people went to chiro school because they had been receiving chiropractic and loved the benefits they received and wanted to share that with the world. Nowadays the number of students entering chiro school who have NEVER received an adjustment is staggering. It's all about getting that D-R in front of their name or any other number of non-chiropractic reasons.
2) through the program itself from teachers who are constantly reinforcing the straight chiropractic message and that much of what we are forced to learn has little to no bearing on what we will be doing in actual practice. And that what's important is to get that piece of paper granting us the ability to go into practice.
I have, as I know you have, seen students who score low on the boards and go out and become great straight practitioners as well as those who go out and become the broadest of broad scope practitioners. We've seen graduates who scored the highest on the boards as well go out and become great straight practitioners as well as those who go out and become the broadest of broad scope practitioners. I believe you did a study a number of years back of the top three graduates from each class from over the years and found an amazingly high percentage of them weren't even in practice. I wonder how that number correlates to the "bottom of the class" as well.
I might get flamed for the next statement (it wouldn't be the first time), but I think the board review classes are tremendously beneficial in helping students negotiate the boards. Now before any broad scope practitioner reads this (if there are any) and complains, "That's the only way those straights can get licensed!!", let me remind you that by the same token we have a certain board review program (that I shall not name as you've probably taken her program) to thank for getting a HUGE, HUGE, HUGE number of broad scope practitioners licensed as well! (after all there are wayyy more of you guys than there are of us!)
Funnily enough when I was getting ready to take my state exam, which back then consisted of 3 days of oral examination, I sat in on a few days of review given by the above review program. The class was monstrous! During a few of the breaks given throughout those days I met a number of people from other schools. The ones I was most intrigued with were from of all places, National (2 guys), Western States (1 guy), Northwestern (1 woman). In meeting with these people I asked the same basic questions to them all, 1 question being why did you come HERE to take the review class. They all said the same thing. 1) that review classes weren't offered for them 2) it was looked down upon by the school for their students to attend these programs. 3) the reason they came to this program was so that they weren't found out taking a review class (the 2 guys from National told me this). I asked them all if other students take review classes and they all said yes, all at locations all over the States. As Claude would say, "Isn't that AMAZING???" So, a long answer to a short question, without question the review classes help both sides of the equation to negotiate their boards.
I'm sure I don't need to say this but, Chiropractic is NOT the only profession that takes board review classes to help students negotiate their boards. And it doesn't make those who take them any less proficient to practice their chosen field.
Some 40 years ago i believed that the best DC's were those who graduated with a B-C sort of average, and my experience in the field supported this observation. I then particapated in the "elevation" of educational standards for both enterance and graduation for 30 years. Now it is questionable as to whether we graduate enough Straights to replace those who die. Interesting????
ReplyDeleteJoe D.