What is Good Enough?

A few years ago I ran across a document that I have used in a number of different situations when discussing expectations and quality work.  The data is a little old, but what I have read on web sites is that many of the numbers would actually be higher.  However, the point is made when one looks at accuracy and excellence.

Over the years there have been numerous arguments regarding grading.  Issues like grade inflation different types of scales have been debated at length.  Teachers have often struggled with defining grades and quality standards.  There is no question in my mind that significant changes need to be made in the way we grade, and in fact, that is happening in a number of places.  However, that is a discussion for another day.

One aspect of the conversation is the issue of quality.  I hear teachers, parents, students and others make the comment “he just wants to pass” or “she is satisfied with getting by.”  I have students tell me “it’s good enough.”  I don’t understand the philosophy, but I also don’t understand why anyone would shoot any lower than the absolute best they can do.  This takes me to the data.  To introduce it, I will suggest that on a 100-point scale, a grade of A should be given for 99% and above.  Hey!  That’s too high, isn’t it?  Well, that actually may be a little low.  Why?  Let’s take a look.

If society, bosses, institutions, or whoever is in power is satisfied with 99% accuracy, then:

·      12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily.

·      114,500 mismatched pairs of shoes will be shipped each year

·      18,322 pieces of mail will be mishandled each hour of each day

·      2.5 million books will be shipped with the wrong covers

·      103,260 income tax returns will be processed incorrectly this year.

·      Two plane landings daily at O'Hare International Airport will be unsafe.

·      291 pacemaker operations will be performed incorrectly this year.

·      880,000 credit cards in circulation will turn out to have incorrect cardholder information on their magnetic strips.

·      55 malfunctioning automatic teller machines will be installed in the next 12 months.

·      20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions will be written in the next 12 months.

·      114,500 mismatched pairs of shoes will be shipped this year.

·      107 incorrect medical procedures will be performed each day.

·      315 entries in Webster's Third New International Dictionary of English Language will be misspelled.

·      Every minute 1,314 telephone calls would be misdirected by telecommunication services.

·      22,000 checks would be deducted from the wrong bank account in the next 60 minutes.

·      12 newborn babies would be dropped on delivery each day.

·      Southwest Airlines would have 702 planes crash annually.

·      32,000 missed heartbeats per person per year.

·      268,500 defective tires would be shipped this year.

·      2,000,000 documents would be lost this year by the IRS.

So, when we look at expectations and set standards, where should the bar be set?  If we settle for anything less than the best, is that acceptable?  Certainly the words “I can’t” need to be removed from our language, but what can we expect from students who are stretched by taking eight classes and involved in a multitude of different activities?  By the same token, is that a good thing?  In education circles, the focus is on depth not breadth, with an emphasis on quality of learning over quantity.  At one time, Made in America was the best one could get.  If we are going to sustain our place in the world economy, that bar needs to be raised.