What is the deal with the dental form?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have refused to submit it. They allow undocumented children to attend school and I need to prove my kid goes to the dentist?!

It's federal law. Do you think it would be better for MCPS to disregard federal law? Do you think it would be better if undocumented children didn't attend school? Can you explain how this is relevant to the MCPS dental health form?

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/forms/pdf/525-17.pdf

NP - The point is that kids are routinely enrolled in MCPS with NO documentation. But citizens are required to comply with numerous requirements for information outside the mission of the school district.

It is a common tactic in public health (my field) to use universal requirements like this to ensure compliance by a small, at-risk population. It is fine for people to push back. A one-time dental form will do nothing anyway. At least if you are going to do it, go full on with the annual form like DCPS. My MD son was a student at a DC private and it was a major pain, but it ensures the kids see a dentist.

The point is that your assertion is factually incorrect.

If the OP wants to pitch a huge fit on DCUM about not filling out the dental form due to lack of time (!), that's fine, but then to make false claims about undocumented kids in the process? Shameful.

The fact that in numerous criminal cases MCPS has been unable to state their own students' ages and addresses show that your assertion is factually incorrect.

Yep, this.

We live in a nonW cluster and our neighborhood has a good number of home rentals that are being rented illegally (no rental license, etc). Many of these are being rented to undocumented immigrants. It is pretty much impossible for the County housing authority to enforce zoning laws/occupancy limits when the residents are undocumented.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have refused to submit it. They allow undocumented children to attend school and I need to prove my kid goes to the dentist?!

It's federal law. Do you think it would be better for MCPS to disregard federal law? Do you think it would be better if undocumented children didn't attend school? Can you explain how this is relevant to the MCPS dental health form?

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/forms/pdf/525-17.pdf

NP - The point is that kids are routinely enrolled in MCPS with NO documentation. But citizens are required to comply with numerous requirements for information outside the mission of the school district.

It is a common tactic in public health (my field) to use universal requirements like this to ensure compliance by a small, at-risk population. It is fine for people to push back. A one-time dental form will do nothing anyway. At least if you are going to do it, go full on with the annual form like DCPS. My MD son was a student at a DC private and it was a major pain, but it ensures the kids see a dentist.

The point is that your assertion is factually incorrect.

If the OP wants to pitch a huge fit on DCUM about not filling out the dental form due to lack of time (!), that's fine, but then to make false claims about undocumented kids in the process? Shameful.

The fact that in numerous criminal cases MCPS has been unable to state their own students' ages and addresses show that your assertion is factually incorrect.

Yep, this.

We live in a nonW cluster and our neighborhood has a good number of home rentals that are being rented illegally (no rental license, etc). Many of these are being rented to undocumented immigrants. It is pretty much impossible for the County housing authority to enforce zoning laws/occupancy limits when the residents are undocumented.

Holy shifting goalposts, Batman.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where do they find these people?
My God, is there anything people do not complain about?

Well, DCUM gonna DCUM!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you remember the Rockville HS case? When details came out about the two accused, it turned out that MCPS had no information about where one of the men were living.

In other words, they did not have an address on file for one student.

Meanwhile, some MCPS schools require all sorts of documentation regarding residency.

Schools are required to enroll any kid who shows up at the door. Like PP said, it is federal law. No much MCPS can do.

Homeless kids are allowed in school, too. I don't want to live in the community that doesn't educate homeless kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you remember the Rockville HS case? When details came out about the two accused, it turned out that MCPS had no information about where one of the men were living.

In other words, they did not have an address on file for one student.

Meanwhile, some MCPS schools require all sorts of documentation regarding residency.

Schools are required to enroll any kid who shows up at the door. Like PP said, it is federal law. No much MCPS can do.

Homeless kids are allowed in school, too. I don't want to live in the community that doesn't educate homeless kids.

That’s cool. But there should still be an address of record on file for the student. Or there should be a way to show the students age.

MCPS has had incidences where they do not have an address or an age for particular students.

Obviously some schools are not requiring the same kind of documentation as other schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Homeless kids are allowed in school, too. I don't want to live in the community that doesn't educate homeless kids.

That’s cool. But there should still be an address of record on file for the student. Or there should be a way to show the students age.

MCPS has had incidences where they do not have an address or an age for particular students.

Obviously some schools are not requiring the same kind of documentation as other schools.

OMG. "Address of record"? Even the kid living in the back seat of a Buick?

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/policy/pdf/jeard.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have refused to submit it. They allow undocumented children to attend school and I need to prove my kid goes to the dentist?!

It's federal law. Do you think it would be better for MCPS to disregard federal law? Do you think it would be better if undocumented children didn't attend school? Can you explain how this is relevant to the MCPS dental health form?

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/forms/pdf/525-17.pdf

DP. It's relevant because somehow citizens are treated worse in this regard than people who are here illegally. If you can't see a problem with that then I don't know what to tell you.

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

"The ESOL program is giving attendance awards to kids who are enrolled in that program. You're not in that program. It's just the same as you not getting awards from Larla's soccer team because you're not on Larla's soccer team."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

"The ESOL program is giving attendance awards to kids who are enrolled in that program. You're not in that program. It's just the same as you not getting awards from Larla's soccer team because you're not on Larla's soccer team."

^^^It's a good example of the reality that not everything is, or should be, for or about you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

"The ESOL program is giving attendance awards to kids who are enrolled in that program. You're not in that program. It's just the same as you not getting awards from Larla's soccer team because you're not on Larla's soccer team."

Stop with Larla/Larlo

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Stop with Larla/Larlo

Why? I'm asking sincerely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it is meant to be a safety net to make sure kids are getting dental care. Same thing in the the district. Does anyone remember a few years ago when that 6 year old up in Baltimore died from an infected tooth?

So MCPS will send my kids to the Dentist and pay for it? Great!

Our MCPS elementary school has a dentist that comes TO the school to provide dental care.

Some schools in Baltimore do this as well. It’s a very popular program and there are often (always) a waiting list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:School says we owe them this form. My older kid never had this and i don’t see how my kid’s dental history is any of their business since there is no inoculation/ public health issue.

Agreed OP. It’s ridiculous.

I’m guessing the dental lobby got together and decided they should encourage this. My sister is an optometrist and I know they have lobbied (in a different state) to require an eye exam before entering Kindergarten.

IMO, it’s enough to require vaccinations. If a kid is seeing his pediatrician for vaccines, or goes to a clinic, it means that someone is likely checking his/her vision and asking about the dentist.

It’s ridiculous that MCPS requires this.

I'd rather see dental and vision exams before K. as more people do vaccinations than those. Being able to see in K. is important.

I agree. It’s not uncommon for students referred for learning and/or behavioral difficulties to have underlying issues with vision, hearing or even dental or other medical concerns. The younger kids don’t know that the world isn’t blurry, for example. Some schools try to screen all kids for things like this in target grades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

"The ESOL program is giving attendance awards to kids who are enrolled in that program. You're not in that program. It's just the same as you not getting awards from Larla's soccer team because you're not on Larla's soccer team."

You might see it that way. But you do need to acknowledge that from the point of view of a six/seven/eight-year old, it can come across as decidedly unfair.

It’s one thing if the award is related to making progress in the ESOL program. In that case, you’re right, it’s the same as being on a soccer team and getting an award. But, the award is for attendance. It can be hard for ALL kids to be motivated to log in for Distance Learning. It’s a bit off-putting when only a certain segment of the students are awarded for attendance, while the rest do not. YMMV, and maybe your seven-year old has no issues with it.

Also, soccer is optional. School attendance is mandatory.

^^^It's a good example of the reality that not everything is, or should be, for or about you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I thought of this thread this morning.

My kid’s elementary school has started giving out awards to ESOL kids who have good attendance. But there is NO award for non-ESOL students.

I can understand why they do this - we have had poor participation from many of our ESOL students with Distance Learning.

But, good luck explaining this policy to the non-ESOL seven year olds, who mostly just see it as unfair. I can see how this would lead to some resentment in younger kids.

"The ESOL program is giving attendance awards to kids who are enrolled in that program. You're not in that program. It's just the same as you not getting awards from Larla's soccer team because you're not on Larla's soccer team."

You might see it that way. But you do need to acknowledge that from the point of view of a six/seven/eight-year old, it can come across as decidedly unfair.

It’s one thing if the award is related to making progress in the ESOL program. In that case, you’re right, it’s the same as being on a soccer team and getting an award. But, the award is for attendance. It can be hard for ALL kids to be motivated to log in for Distance Learning. It’s a bit off-putting when only a certain segment of the students are awarded for attendance, while the rest do not. YMMV, and maybe your seven-year old has no issues with it.

Also, soccer is optional. School attendance is mandatory.

Trying to fix the quotes