8 Mahesh JA parna K

Significance of Quality, quality, quality. Ours is an age of quality. In

the marching trend of the commercial arena there lies

TQM in quality an indispensability of the presence of this essence of

acceptability of any commodity. In the academic are-

na, with an information backed age, the teachers have

induction and gathered a revolutionary phase of education system.





enhancement of ex- A Shift from Industry to Schools: -



Moving the Theory from Industry to Education In

cellence in engi- adapting quality management, originally developed

for business enterprises, it is important to keep in

mind certain differences between education and busi

neering education ness:



• The school is not a factory. • The student is not a

Author:- Mahesh P.Joshi “product”.

& Aparna V.Kulkarni

Abstract • The education of the student is the product.

Quality as an everlasting strategy has

been the need of the day. What strategy has to be ap- • Successful completion of the product requires the

plied in today’s educational arena is a thoughtful con- student to participate as a worker, comanaging the

cern on the part of the management to dwell into. For learning process.

carrying on any work effectively, a plan is required

and after preparing the plan an act is to be decided. If • Teaching and learning are two different processes.

such planning and selection of means or methods is Teaching is more akin to management than to detailed

not done, work will take place in an unorganised and supervision of activities. Learning is more akin to re-

haphazard manner and the cumulative effect of it, will search and development (R&D) than it is to an assem-

not be beneficial to the concerned. For this, the aware- bly process. Attempts to organize R&D as though it

ness of the faculty, with different teaching strategies were merely an assembly of ideas to be managed in

which can be adopted in institutions or higher and the the style of an assembly line have been disastrous. The

usage of those strategies would contribute to a better same is true in education.

teaching-learning process at all levels

Keeping the educational qualitative • In industry, quality management requires every man-

analysis in view, the education industry is witnessing ager of every process to identify a customer. If a pro-

growing competition. Previously, this competition was cess has no output for which there is a customer, why

limited by geography, but with the advent of degree do it?

programs and specific courses being offered over the

Internet by prestigious organisations such as Harward, According to the Kothari Commission report, of all

MIT and Stanford, Universities and Colleges now the factors which influence the quality of education

have to deal with competition outside their local geog- and its contribution to national development, the

raphy. To stay competitive, Universities are looking at quality, competence and character of teachers are

new methods of reaching more students outside their undoubtedly the most significant.

local geography, while minimizing the cost structure

for delivering this demand for education. Presently if the teachers realise their importance, their

commitment to their profession will increase. They

1. INTRODUCTION should be aware of their role and responsibilities for

their effective functioning. Till past years it was more

“Implementing TQM In Education ” than of an instructor but now they are well graded as

a nationbuilder. Secondly, the role of the teacher as an

Motto: animator of development or catalyst of change also

“A country’s competitiveness starts not on a fac- envisages a prominent and high value role to the

tory floor or in the engineering lab, it starts in the teacher.

classroom.”









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 1

communication is diluted and the teacher is forced to

WHAT IS THE PHILOSOPHY OF TQM? distribute his/ her attention amongst all students. The

Institution of Teacher-Guardians seeks a happy com-

Since the attainment of Quality depends not merely on promise between the ancient ideal and modern reali-

tools and techniques but on the people, the students ties.

and the teachers together striving for it, a novel idea

has been developed by Professor K. Ishikawa of Japan The Quality assurance in education can thus be termed

in the sixties. The whole idea was termed as Quality as a burning issue for all academicians. Every educa-

Circle (QC) approach, under which the task perform- tionist, teacher and student feels the need of it and has

ers at the grassroot level are given the privilege of definite perception of the falling standards. Every one

participating in progress and to have a say in the work seems to feel the urge to contribute his/ her share in

they do. As an everlasting strategical individuality, the reviving quality.

Quality Circle concept to upgrade the qualitative anal-

ysis has had a unique acceptability in nearly all fields Keeping in view the necessity, the evolution of Educa-

of commerce, in nearly all parts of the world, with the tional Technology has had emerged with a wide pro-

tide. The QC concept as the result of the interaction motional acceptance. Under the prospective of the

between the American statistical method of quality data available through the research papers, the associa-

control and Japanese Organizational practices, is a tion for educational communications and technology

people-building rather than a peopleusing approach. It has identified the five domains that of Design, De-

aims at making every worker a decision-maker con- velopment, Utilization, Evaluation and Management.

cerning his or her own work.

Along with, the method of discussion can well be

At the part of the upgrading, the QC is humanistic, adopted to make the teaching more effective. Under

straight and very useful for exploiting the latent poten- this method, the very class can be divided into groups

tials of our people. In academics, where ranking and the very same can be arranged on different aspects

method based on examination rules the most, where of a subject. After this the group leaders shall report to

many students’ creative energies remain untapped and the entire class and prepare the summary of the dis-

slowly mellows down due to want of recognition, mo- cussion in their groups. This is also possible by simply

tivation and participation, the quality circle may open floating the questions in the class for discussion at

up new avenues for the students to expose off their large. The debate method at this juncture can be effec-

hidden talents. tively used to highlight the opposite view points on

any subject. With the revolutionary usage of audiovis-

Another concern for Universities as well as primary or ual devices, the students can also be asked to write

secondary schools, is providing current technology as papers on a particular subject and after the presenta-

part of the learning experience, and the need to share tion of papers, the discussion shall take place on the

resources to minimize costs. Most primary and sec- respective subject. Under this method of imparting

ondary schools use PCs in the classrooms as an ad- knowledge of literacy, the thinking, writing and

junct to standard class work. The need to train chil- presentation skills of the students can be kindled. Now

dren to use PCs in today’s world is similar to that of with the march of time and tide, there has been a novel

training children to use Calculators, 20 years back. way of teaching through the framing of Quality Con-

Children coming out of secondary school without PC trol Circles in Academics. Under this the value based

Skills, will be at a severe disadvantage in the universi- concept could be very rightly adapted for infusing a

ty and the job market, under the category of excel- spike of excellence, emotional development, humane-

lence. ness and self discipline. The main objective of QCC is

to build the people of tomorrow. A family chatting

Along with, much to the acceptability, the interface around the fire place of a weekend evening, or at the

between the teachers and students involve the main dinner table on a routine basis, discussing what hap-

components of quality in teaching, which include pened today and what needs to be done tomorrow,

communication skills of the teacher, qualification of sums up the spirit of “QUALITY CIRCLES”. In the

the teacher, innovative methods of teaching, need family there is warmth, comfort and mutual concern.

based curriculum, adequate training input for teachers There is a sense of belonging and collective pride.

and learner centered teaching. Along with, in the work arena, this has to come about,

to be created as QC aims at just that.

More-so-over, the effectiveness of the teaching pro-

cess depends on the quality of communication be- All in all, quality circles need careful nurturing. It is a

tween the teacher and the pupil. With many teachers simple concept, easy to understand. But it also re-

teaching a large group of students, the quality of quires conviction. Conviction that people can contrib-









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 2

ute and in the process be creative, given a chance. It schools that embrace TQM often try to assess student

demands patience and perseverance. In the present day progress regularly throughout the school year. By do-

situation of liberalization and intense competition, ing so, they avoid bringing problems to students’ at-

when distancing could take place between the individ- tention at the end of the year, when it is too late to do

uals and their organisations, an effort like the quality anything about them. The same sort of process is used

circles needs to be encouraged by one and all. to evaluate teachers and administrators as well; instead

of basing teacher evaluation on one classroom visit,

According to David Hutchins, who is responsible for teachers are evaluated throughout the year

bringing the concept of quality circles to Europe and is (Blankstein).

ranked amongst the world leaders in its implementa-

tions. A “Quality Circle” is defined as a “small group WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF

of work people who, under the leadership of their own TQM IN EDUCATION?

foreman or supervisor, are trained to identify, analyze

and solve quality-related problems on a voluntary ba- In a TQM school or college, improvement teams and

sis and present their solutions to their managers.” In individuals are constantly working on improving ser-

the field of academics, the quality circles are framed vice to customers. The concept of a service being

among the students with a teacher as a facilitator and “good enough” is considered inadequate. The follow-

the circle framed among the teachers is basically ing are the required expertise towards TQM in

termed as a QUALITY IMPROVEMENT TEAM schools:

(QIT). Under this in contrast to the norms of any com-

pany, the main objective is to create an institution in 1. Awareness and Commitment for Everyone -

which everyone becomes involved in working to make

their organisation a better place to be, to share equally The linguistic, kinesthetic, visual, and/or mathematical

in its success, to feel a part of the total community, to talents of a student will not be developed to their full-

develop a sense of pride and loyalty and to feel that est potential unless EVERY member of a teaching-

their company/ institution is better for them being learning partnership promotes the highest possible

there. quality at each step in the development process. A

transformation from “good-enough” or traditional ed-

ucation (where marks or grades of “A” and “B” are

HOW DOES TQM CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT good enough even if they do not represent best work)

THAT PROMOTES QUALITY? should begin with everyone being made aware of the

potential and the elements of TQM. An excellent way

TQM is more than just a philosophy. In addition to to begin is with a total staff meeting with parents and -

proposing new theories about the workplace, it advo- school board members participating. The meeting can

cates specific changes that managers need to make if provide:

they want to improve the system. These changes are

best described in Deming’s “14 Points,” which are 2. A Clear Mission -

condensed under the four categories below:

Managing continuous movement toward progressively

* Customer Relationships: Customers can be either higher quality standards depends on defining those

internal or external to an organization. Just as a cus- standards. If a TQM steering committee is formed in a

tomer is the person buying a product in a store, an school (See element #10a.), it should determine the

employee is the customer of management. Managers answer to this question—Does the school have a clear,

need to realize that quality work will not be done un- customer-focused mission statement and a functioning

less they provide process for divisions and/or departments translating

this statement into exit outcomes for graduates? If the

answer is “no”, that problem must be addressed with

* The Role of Teachers: TQM calls for changes in local, state, national, and employer standards. These

teachers’ relationships with both students and admin- standards should emphasize developing students’ abil-

istrators; teachers need to view education through stu- ities to solve real-life problems rather than just memo-

dents’ eyes, and they need to work with administrators rizing subject matter. The latter does not represent

as a team. This teamwork is largely the responsibility quality for either students or employers.

of administrators, who need to delegate some of their

responsibility and power to teachers (Rhodes 1992). 3. A Systems Planning Approach -



* Testing and Evaluation: Instead of using standard- Traditional education has become excessively com-

ized tests and grades to measure students’ progress, partmentalized. Teacher X provides an English course;









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 3

science teacher Y might focus heavily on a student’s once. Meanwhile students who have mastered the ma-

knowledge of scientific principles without paying terial move to enrichment learning or assist with in-

much attention to developing that student’s ability to struction of those who have not achieved mastery.

use English principles in writing a technical report. This system of mastery learning can result in much

Subconsciously, the student begins to view English as more complete learning for most students, in effect, a

a “course” instead of as skills to be USED. If higher positive movement of the “normal” curve. This im-

levels of student competence are to be developed, provement in learning is a basic purpose of TQM in

there must be higher levels of system-wide and cross- the classroom.

department PLANNING for instructional improve-

ment in schools and colleges. Lack of system planning 8. Development of Student TQM Skills-

is a serious obstruction to higher quality in student

learning. Compare this school-wide reading develop- In addition to using TQM to improve learning in gen-

ment plan in a middle school with what you know eral, every school district should specifically equip its

about many narrower traditional remedial reading students to understand and use TQM. This is a basic

programs. part of schools contributing to readiness for work in

the global economy. Whether a school staff decides to

integrate learning TQM into existing courses or to

4. Teaming Replacing Hierarchy - provide it as a separate course, it is important that stu-

dents DO and not just study about TQM.

The hierarchical organizations of yesterday are still

dominant in too many businesses and schools. Such 9. A Humanistic and a Brain Compatible Focus in the

organizations tend to promote individual effort “good Learning Environment -

enough” to satisfy a supervisor who sometimes knows

less about how to achieve quality than those he/she Dr. William Glasser has provided one of the best

supervises. translations of TQM principles into suggestions for a

very productive learning environment. Every educator

5. Enablement AND Empowerment Replacing Fear- can profit from reading his book: . The Quality

School Teacher, by William Glasser, M.D. (1993)

Traditional do-it-to-them evaluation systems by them- Harper-Collins Publishers, Inc.

selves generate fear and lack of initiative. Staff mem-

bers focus on doing whatever is enough to keep the

boss happy. However, if volunteer members of em- It provides information on six conditions for quality

powered improvement teams are given opportunities schoolwork:

to become experts and/or to use experts, that enable-

ment generates excitement and dedication. a. There must be a warm, supportive learning envi-

ronment.

6. Focus on Mastery Learning- b. Students should be asked to do only useful work.

c. Students should be asked to do the best they can do.

In traditional classrooms, teachers often follow this d. Students should be asked to evaluate their own

sequence: work and improve it.

e. Quality work should always feel good.

1 Plan—————————> 2 Teach—————— f. Quality work should never be destructive.

—————> 3 Test



The normal curve that usually results stands as testi- 2. WHY TQM IN EDUCATION ?

mony to the fact that many students fail to learn at the

highest possible level in this system. The TQM alter- TQM applies a systematic methodology for improving

native is: organizations’ processes, based on rigorous data gath-

ering and analysis. The approach focuses on helping

1 Plan—> 2 Teach (DO)—> 3 Check**—> 4 Revised organizations produce products and services better,

Teaching (ACT)—> 5 Test** faster, and smarter by improving the capability of pro-

cesses to meet customer requirements. TQM identi-

In the “check” step, formative (not-for-grade) testing fies and eliminates costs that add no value to custom-

is used to determine which learning some students ers. Unlike simple cost-cutting programs, however,

have missed. Then non-mastered material is retaught TQM delivers cost cuts while retaining or improving

in some different way or style. If advisable, the check- value to the customer.

ing and revised teaching can be repeated more than









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 4

TQM is a highly disciplined process that helps an or- work environment for the teachers and school campus

ganization focus on developing and delivering near quality life.

perfect products and services. The methodology is

based on established statistical process control tech- CONTROL: Involves the process of closing the prob-

niques and data analysis methods. It features system- lem by putting in the right procedures and manage-

atic training of all personnel involved in the activity or ment statistics.

process targeted by the program.



APPLICATION OF TQM IN EDUCATIONAL IN- “TQM is a Quality Philosophy. It's a philosophy that

STITUTIONS: - talks about attainable short-term goals while striving

for long term objective.”

The following are some of the common processes in

the educational institutions which can be significantly

improved by applying the Six Sigma methodology: 3. IMPACT OF IT ON QUALITY EDUCATION -



* academic achievement The marching trend of the computing arena has

* the process of college admission marked a revolutionary stroke to the developing edu-

* teaching and academic programs cational arena. With computers making a headway in

* study program and process every walk of life with increasing software expertise,

* institutional effectiveness the very base of our social infrastructure, the schools

* student learning performance have had a good pace of advancement. The computer

* evaluation of the instructional delivery education has introduced an interesting phase among

* the accreditation process. the students..



The implementation or application starts with the Tomorrow is not far away to them when there will be

recognition of a problem, and the defining of a project more intelligent use of computers. It is certainly

to cure or alleviate that problem. The dependence of through this mini desk top tool that the students can be

any standard of academic or production is totally de- best empowered for creativity of operations for better

pendent on the following format for DMAIC. prospects and overall development at all levels. These

The project is undertaken by a team using DMAIC, machines are certainly going to prove as the indispen-

meaning DEFINE, MEASURE, ANALYSE, IM- sable substitute to pencils,papers and books.

PROVE and CONTROL. These are defined well as:

There is a novel nomenclature of Edutainment, the

DEFINE : The definition of the project/ assignment, latest buzzword of the day, as the conglomeration of

using process map, application area, desired im- education and entertainment, with each element play-

provement, likely benefits etc. The importance lies of ing a significant role. With the series of operation re-

having the chance of a high successful delivery of search over it, with the development of various soft-

better quality and saving costs in totality. Here in con- ware of educational nature have provided a boon to

text of academic strata, the failures include the defini- both the learners and the deeply involved educators.

tion of the problem in as an identity. The others may For the learners, there is an impressing attraction to-

include projects like real life problems pertaining to wards the educational CDs, and has become a fun

“DISTRACTIONS IN THE CLASS ROOM” for ex- filled experience. Along with, the educators, the

ample. teachers are getting aided with this tool and has made

teaching easier and interesting.. They are edutainment

MEASURE: This involves the analyses of the process programs aimed totally at the needs and abilities of

to determine its present state and the future, as ob- children as young as two years of age. They are even

tained. The data collection is a well suited frame for given pace to use underactivity, bright colours, music

this. and sound effects keeping little children interested

while introducing them to basic concepts. The prod-

ANALYSE: This involves the data analysis for identi- ucts in this category address a wide range of skills and

fication of parts of process which affect the quality of concepts. These programs are mainly supportive of

the problem. exploration and experimentation..



IMPROVE: This adds to the process to find a perma- . This novel way of powerful animations and video,

nent solution to the problem. This may involve better fascinating fagots, and exciting activities provide

forecasting, better scheduling, better procedures or hours of interactive learning. With this, the student

better equipment, specifying, teaching techniques, workforce is bound to come up with unique excellence









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 5

like writing stories on the computers, print out their the Department of Electronics.

own books and learn to use spread sheets and similar

programs in math projects. The interactive nature of computer based learning and

With this journey of excellence in academic arena, the the facility to individualise the learning experience,

next unique operation under way is of accessing on to the needs of the learner are the two most important

schools through computers sitting right at home. This aspects of computer assisted learning. The capacity of

is sure to make even a bed ridden child attend the the computer functions somewhat like a traditional

class. Also through this, to the level best, all the chil- teacher through the use of a suitable educational soft-

dren would use the school’s electronic resources for ware. In this mode, the computer can be used to teach

help with home work or for independent studies. Like the learner through tutorials, drill and practice, games,

many other path breaking efforts these limited bids in simulations or a combination of any of these strate-

education technology too have considerable following gies. Besides the computer can be programmed in

skeptics. According to them the software wizardry such a way that tutorial lessons can be given to the

applied to schools will rectify the creation of haves pupils. With this, students will be able to learn at their

and have NOTs’. It is going to build up a huge infor- own performance independent of the teacher.

mation gap, with well financed schools at the one end

and those in remote cities on the other. But with the Using quality educational software packages, good

march of time this gap is going to be filled up through learning environment can be created in schools. As

developments. We as educators are to execute our such, it is necessary for all citizens to understand what

expertise in this direction to promote the essence of computers are capable of. Students should be aware of

“QUALITY IN ACADEMICS”, for overall excellence the many uses of computers, such as their use in

in the schools all over. teachinglearning, information storage and retrieval.

Any country’s social and economic well-being de-

Today, in the traditional educational arena, the teacher pends entirely on how well equipped its people are for

performs different functions like planning, evaluating a literacy-intensive technology in order to promote

and locating appropriate instructional resources, de- overall quality oriented academic excellence. If com-

veloping complementing instructional resources, han- puters can assist us in the teaching process then there

dling administration, laisoning with students/ parents/ is a good reason to welcome their appearance. Hence,

administration and teach as well. In addition the it is absolutely essential for all those involved in edu-

teachers do have to take care of slow learners changes cation to become computer literate.

in syllabi, discipline and adhering to the overall devel-

opment of the child. With the irritation of leakage of question papers of

academic arena, there appears a tough tasks to exist

The University of tomorrow will certainly be serving for the academicians. Accordingly, there appears to be

in the information society, this irrefutable fact has a great phobia of the mass designing of the question

important implications for the strategies each institu- papers of N sets manually.

tion should adopt as it enters into the next century due

to the significant impact the information society will The quality in this direction is highlighted with the

have on higher education in general and each Univer- quick declaration of results, regularization of sessions

sity in particular. It is important that each University and all in all bringing out overall satisfaction of the

take full cognizance of the changes in the information students and the parents. This further brings the profit-

society and face one of the most complex of all cam- able aspect of the organisation in long run as more and

pus planning operations pertaining to acquisition, dis- more fame isgathered for the same and the rush of

tribution and management of computing and related admissions produce more revenue monetarily bringing

technologies. Hence each institution must make its boon the education industry at large.

plans and develop its strategies to be proactive with

respect to the environment context and must not lag

behind society in general and other educational institu- 4. QUALITY CIRCLES APPROACH OF TQM -

tions in particular.

What ever may be the workstation, whether it is indus-

Under this, keeping with the marching pace towards try oriented or institution oriented, the main object

the promotion of literacy, the idea of providing which lets the ball rolling is the quality of the outcome

knowledge about computers in schools was put into product in totality.

practise in the country through a pilot project called

CLASS, (Computer Literacy and Studies in Schools) The human resource management is the key factor in

in 1984, by the Government of India as a joint venture the improvement of not only product quality and

of the Ministry Of Human Resource Development and productivity but in also improving the concept and









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 6

purpose of living, of an human identity.

This man making tool when applied to schools marks

Quality Circle was started by Americans but perfected the right implementation as of an accepted concept to

by Japanese. It has really become effective on linking a nourishing age. At this tender age, the tablets of

with productivity Improvement programers. In order quality are sure to nourish as a fertilizer to the blos-

to understand the philosophy and actual concept of soming environment of qualitative nation builders of

QC and its contribution to increasing productivity, it is tomorrow. This is sure to acknowledge the wants and

first necessary to peep into the Japanese philosophy needs of the students and of course the parents of their

towards life. The western employee is not happy, not optimum demand of a “Good and Smart” tag in their

satisfied in-spite of very high monetary benefits. On wards.

the other hand Japanese employees have a very high

degree of motivation in-spite of comparatively lower We as teachers have no option but to adopt this phi-

monetary benefits as compared with the western coun- losophy as a religion and propagate the effectiveness

tries. through the chain of excellence and productivity.



The very purpose of Quality Circle starts with: -

Not only at the industrial arena, but the academics

force at the grass root level do not know how to read have yielded results out of the framing of the quality

and write, up to the upmost level of literacy at times. circles as the integral part of the school curriculum.

In this regard QC bases its solution after obtaining Implementation of Quality Circles in Academics

accurate data collection which leaves no scope for ‘I sounds to be a very easy task, with emphasis on the

know, I know’. QC is panacea in removing bottle- following modules as a practice.

necks. It brings in a feeling of comradeship among

workers, staff and management. QC improves the On the first day of the course, describe the purpose of

quality of service to customers. Every colleague the quality circle (to acquire continuous feedback for

serves another colleague as his client. improving the course now and redesigning it for next

year) and ask for three volunteers.



⇒Education and training Assure to meet every other week throughout the term.

⇒Team Work/ participative culture

⇒Competitiveness for excellence The time burden is modest: the discussions are limited

⇒Standardization in work to 30 minutes, and they usually follow a class meeting

⇒Procedure so travel time is minimal.

⇒Accurate factory layout/ workstation

⇒Human Resources and workstation The quality circle, its purpose, and the meeting sched-

⇒Development ule are also described in the syllabus.

⇒Motivation

⇒State of Art Technology When the quality circle first meets, It is required to

⇒Bubbling with ideas note that giving and getting feedback are learned skills

⇒A joint mass movement on both sides, and that the members would have to

⇒Fearlessness self-consciously work to get it right. If the students

⇒Non apologetic cultural change make the Facilitator, the teacher, feel defensive, it is

⇒General Common language required not to get their message in record.

⇒Setting of novel standards

⇒Reduction of costs It is also required to make an announcement that the

⇒Reduction of repetitive operations student volunteers to the entire class at the next meet-

⇒Ignorance of conflicts ing, suggesting that complaints can be safely chan-

neled through them. QC members often take the initia-

tive to sound out their classmates before and after

In Schools, when there is an existence of an education class.

industry, there has to have a flow of TQM as a philos-

ophy. This can well imbibe a healthy spirit of overall As a pre-preparation, the members should have even

excellence. Quality Circle, which is the vital ingredi- e-mailed/ intimated all of their fellow students just

ent of Total Quality, aims to develop humanware ra- before a QC meeting to take complete stock.

ther than developing the product. It is basically a man

making tool and aids well in the Human Resource At the meet, it is also required to provide the quality

Development cell of any organisation. circle members with an excerpt of the course syllabus









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 7

covering the past two weeks. Which topics, readings, by teaching in coaching institutes. The parents of this

and cases, to ask, worked, and which didn’t and why? felled lot, have no option but to get their wards admit-

Some topics are not well connected with the thrust of ted into these so called coaching (scorching) classes,

the course, one may access. Some modules appear too in order to benefit their wards as their ultimate duty.

old and too boring. On the flip side, some may work This sorry figure has been practised by over a majority

extremely well, clearly “keepers” for the following of the Government schools, producing a blow to the

year. philosophy of quality in academics. This even leads to

the ridiculous aspect of this philosophy. But we as

Focus discussion on: - teachers have a bound responsibility to produce a rev-

olutionary phase of change in the academic arena

classroom ecology, course readings, problematic stu- which would develop a strong cell of commitment

dents, cases & exercises, evaluation & grading, course towards the teachers of these affected lot, in order to

topics, your communication, course assignments, clar- bring laurels to the society.

ity of instructions, classroom culture, your movement,

exams and projects. Gone are the days when “Education” was considered

as a ‘Social Work’ for the masses, and literacy a gift

At the next course meeting, QC members and the fa- to the mankind. Today is the age of professionalism.

cilitator make brief reports on feedback & actions. Here we treat the students as a product and a custom-

er, which has an expectation of total students as a

Finally access the outcome of the circle operations as product and a customer, which has an expectation of

a part of the result. Make the presentation before the total satisfaction through the school, the once known

management i.e. the principal or the incharge teacher temple of learning. It is highly debative of the fact that

for implementation of the steps derived by the circle education is an industry, as the majority of us support

research & study, for the eradication of the specified being against the same. But when we see the real

problem. If the topic of study pertains to the course phase of its existence to our surprise, there is certainly

expertise, the same may be applicable to the next an acceptable fact to this saying. After the declaration

batch of study for the same module. of this an industry, the experts have come across to

implement the concept of quality management in this

Looking at the set standards of any organisation, the arena, through the implementation of quality circles,

quest for quality is an everlasting strategy. Quoting the and much to the surprise, it has had a wide acceptance

lines of CERVANTES, through commitment, world wide. It is through this basic concept, the stu-

dents are given the liberty to come up with their prob-

⇒ To dream the impossible dream lems, find probable solutions and produce the same

⇒ To fight the unbeatable foe before the management for implementation. All in all,

⇒ To bear with the unbearable sorrow the management theory in this direction, practically

⇒ To run where the brave dare not go involves the promotion of the sense of belongingness,

⇒ To fight the unrightable wrong without which, the work force consider it normal to

⇒ To love, pure and chaste, from afar rapaciously grab whatever they can lay their hands on

⇒ To try when your arms are too weary with ease, without keeping the interest of the company

⇒ To reach the unreachable star they are working for. Under the streams of personal

⇒ This is my quest... management, which covers the promotional activities

of the employees towards profitability, an organisation

. can be truly effective if the employees feel satisfied,

In the educational arena, the commitment on the side are continuously developed in skills, knowledge and

of the teachers plays an important role as it brings in behavior, show commitment to the objectives of the

totality the better result and not only for the betterment institution/ organisation and are ever willing to rapidly

of the students and the community but also fame to the change the way things are done as soon as they realize

organization at large. Comparably, to the that the utility of something is over. The sound ap-

highlightning fact of the education industry of the pre- plicability of the flow of inspiration through the de-

sent scenario, there has had a rough weather of satis- partment heads and the tablets of motivation out of

faction of the parents, the ultimate customers, due to every success from the side of the management, repre-

the existing ‘TUITION Mafias’ of the schools. Unfor- senting the top manager, is the main result oriented

tunately, this sorry figure has been the alarming issue capsule in this direction. Conviction and commitment

for producing quality, in the march towards TQM in are the two root causes or any organisation to progress

academic cell. The teachers, under this category, with the aid of total work culture of the employees and

don’t take interest in their job of conduct, during the it results applicable for Total Quality. Through the

class hours and are often interested in minting money framing of the quality circles, there is a certain in-









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 8

volvement of the pertaining participative culture, with them in the most efficient manner, by utilizing their

commitment, conviction and ownership among the talents and capabilities tactfully. This is basically

employees with a step towards the attainment of brought out by setting the basic requirements of the

TQM. This small group activity is certainly a big ac- students, the ultimate customers and the parents.

tivity, yielding big results for a big growth of the or- Alongwith, the job satisfaction through the redesign of

ganisation. It is also worthwhile to remember of the work enables the employees of the organisation to get

fact that the due recognition to a workman at the ap- away with the monotonous operation. With the advent

propriate time will give him the satisfaction of deriv- of the new technology like that of information tech-

ing the benefit of participation in QCs. It helps to nology, for example, the work environment has be-

promote this concept within the organisation and sets come more interesting and encouraging.

up an example for others to show off their hidden tal-

ents and interest for the organisation. Surely, but in a No organisation can attain TQM without the setting up

slow pace, this set up is bound to render happiness on the goal to attain. In this regard, the MISSION and the

the part of the worker and results in auguring well for VISION play an activate role as a catalyst for Total

the organisation at large in the long run. Quality. Without the VISION and the MISSION an

organisation is similar to the arrowing in the dark as

The sense of ego is the act of retardation of success in no one knows what to achieve and what is being

any organisation, among the masses in relation. It is achieved for.

the duty of the manager/ principal to ensure the sense

of harmony and unity among the roll of workforce and According to the set standards of the TQM philoso-

the employees, best communication skill and conduct phy, the following shifts are required to be executed at

of meetings as a regular module on the site. The sense times for the further improvement of product and ser-

of discipline plays an active participation with the vice quality in order to increase the customer’s satis-

promotion of complete involvement of the employees faction:-

in the operation of conduct. To avail total quality, the

principals must rely in totality of the abilities of the ⇒ A move from the ultimate product orientation to

QC activities in order to bring out the potentials of the the process orientation, with a more emphasis on the

people involved and develop a happy and lively work process involved like humanware as the prime re-

environment where every individual is committed to source for the production/ service of any economic

the objectives of the institution. activity at large.



⇒ A step towards continuous improvement of the

5. TQM IN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS- process involved rather than stagment to the available

ultimate progress achieved.

Total Quality Management (TQM), is a novel ap-

proach to the improvement of product and the service ⇒ A switch over from the existing available hi-tech

quality in order to increase the customer’s satisfaction resources involved to the more involved and commit-

by the renovation of the existing management princi- ted workforce through result oriented training for the

ples. This is a concept of overall excellence being de- attainment of better quality organisation wide trans-

rived from people, through creativity, flexibility, formation.

teamwork, participation and ownership quality among

them. ⇒ With the movement of managers to think and

plan, there has to be a change under which they are

In the field of education which is having the stamp of required to guide and substitute the other responsibili-

an industry there has to be an indispensable inclusion ties of thinking and planning to the workers who as

of this philosophy for the overall growth and excel- well implement the same in their field of operation for

lence of children in totality. It not only involves pol- the result oriented stream of excellence.

ishing the quality of the students but also covers the

participative culture of the employees working in the ⇒ With the old management strategy of winning and

institution, as teachers, office staff etc. The quest for loosing, there has to be an advent of a win-win strate-

the continuous improvement is the core of this theory gy which has an alarming feature of a proven concept

as there is no end to the limit of progress. As an organ- of TQM in any organisation.

isation, the management is equally responsible for

developing the human resources, in the school. Once ⇒ With the lone objective of achieving profit as the

the institution is set, the task of the management is to main outcome, there has to be a major shift in the em-

add the manpower through suitable deployment. After phasis on quality leading to profits.

this, it is the duty of the manager to make the most of









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 9

⇒ And finally, under the category of involvement THE PDCA Cycle:-

and responsibility, in the ultimate • Standardize solution/s • Take follow-up action • Re-

view team’s progress

PAMS, the well nomenclated acronym for principles, To further improve upon the said implementation, Dr.

actions, measures and strokes finally pertain to the K.Ishikawa, the father of Quality Control, developed a

move towards the journey of total quality. The ‘p’ for new approach assisting the PDCA cycle as :

principles represent the guiding set of rules and objec-

tives the institution is heading for. The planned mis-

sion of the institution depicts the planning of the prin- PLAN:

ciples keeping in view the strong devotion of the em-

ployees. Secondly, the ‘A’ for actions represent the (a). Pondering over the objectives and targets.

code and conduct of the workforce under the strong

leadership headed by the management. With a small (b). Methods of achieving the objectives.

group activity, the involvement of the members in a

group is accessed periodically for a well result orienta- DO:

tion implementation to achieve overall excellence. The

‘M’ for measures regulate all the operations that are (a). Execute education and training.

checked within the organisation for a result oriented

decision making activity by the leaders. They basical-

ly contribute the main items which have a long and (b). Conduct the outcome/ result.

important stay in the institution for the betterment.

And finally, the ‘S’ for strokes pertain to force of mo- CHECK:

tivation, inspiration and encouragement in the form of

rewards and promotions. (a). Check the outcome/ result.



6. PROBLEM SOLVING TECHNIQUES TO AT- ACT:

TAIN TOTAL QUALITY

(a). Undergo Action.

To analyse any problem is easier than to solve as it

requires a wide spectrum of research and development Once the action has been taken, it is the duty of the

through data analysis and reasoning. To gather the manager/Principal to validify the strength of the pro-

stroke of momentum towards attainment of total quali- cesses or the action. The result so obtained has to be

ty the solving of such a problem has to undergo large analysed for final implementation for excellence if

amount of statistics involving calculations as well. applicable.

And hence, this technique of problem solving is also

referred to as statistical quality control (SQC). The Plan-Do-Check-Action cycle is a systematic ap-

proach to making improvements and solving work

For any organisation to flourish with the logo of total place problems.

quality management towards excellence, the SQC or

the problem solving techniques utter prime importance It as an approach used by work teams to: -

at large. Accordingly, about 95% of the problems • • • • • • agree on a topic for analysis, identi-

within an organisation can be solved by the usage of fy the main cause/s,determine possible solutions

these tools. through consensus, recommend and implement the

solution/s, track the benefits to the team and for the

The result oriented categories in this direction which organization, formalize the new work method/s so that

applicably sum up are divided into categories as: they are part of the work procedures



Deming Wheel - This is a rough standard under which The cycle also allows the team to continuous chal-

Dr. Deming explains a four layout for any organisa- lenge the improved procedures to make further im-

tion to have a proper control over quality. With the provements in the future. This is the meaning of con-

age, this got developed as a Deming Wheel. With an tinuous improvement.

explanative view, it is basically a PDCA cycle for

effective controlling and minimisation of the problems For a wide implementation and quest for excellence,

within an organisation. the three sub categories are evolved for statistical op-

erations featuring elementary statistical methods, in-

PLAN - DO - CHECK - ACT termediate statistical methods and advanced statistical

methods.









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 10

It is an art to conduct the floating of new ideas out of a

The elementary statistical tools have fetched a lot of group of members of the same environment. It is the

importance as the seven indispensable tools for any best judged tool for innovation of ideas for the identi-

organisation to flourish to the zenith of excellence. fication of any problem and also facilitates in yielding

They feature as: solutions pertaining to the said problems as a group

activity.



Þ FLOW DIAGRAM With the march of high competitive standard in the

Þ BRAIN STORMING quest for quality, this tool of Brainstorming has had its

Þ DATA COLLECTION pace as an accelerating one of importance for solving

Þ GRAPHS quality problems.

Þ STRATIFICATION

Þ CAUSE AND EFFECT DIAGRAM This is the omnipresent tool and can well be used as a

Þ SCATTER DIAGRAM Þ HISTOGRAM ‘ready’ tool at various sessions of problem solving

Þ CONTROL CHART process. Any time, any problem or any concern which

involves decision making can well be shared as a

group activity and the leader can shoot out the prob-

1. FLOWCHART or THE FLOW DIAGRAM: lem before others to get ideas through Brainstorming.

This can be conducted in three ways as Unstructured,

It is a graphical or a pictorial representation of a prob- Slip Method and Structured Method.. Under the un-

lem or a process. It depicts a clear picture of what is structured mode of conduct of this tool, there is no

being involved within a said process of execution. It is boundation of the presentation of ideas, it comes up

the reflection of all theinvolved with clear description randomly before

and explanation. It facilitates planning and decision

making over the potential problems availing through

the process involved. It is through this tool that all the Modes of brainstorming -

members of the circle understand the problem in order

to solve the same. Unless or until the problem is clear, The most common mode of brainstorming is the face

tit is stupidity to conduct other operations in detail. A to face mode.

well conducted study of the Flowchart conducts the

task for designing the strategy with the data available, Face to face

estimating the total cost involved, explaination of the

present process and due changes as per the decision The persons involved come together for a meeting.

made, planning and making available, the required The rules for brainstorming are used to generate the

guiding of abilities to develop and maintain a compe- ideas from everyone. The following roles are assigned

tent workforce in such a manner as to accomplish with :

maximum efficiency and economy the functions and a. Leader

objectives of the organisation. b. Recording member

c.Time keeper

2. BRAINSTORMING: d. Resource person

e. Secretary

A brainstorming session is an effort by a improvement

team to list as many ideas and views regarding a topic Other modes

or subject. It can be used to list the “gaps”.

Sometimes it may not be possible to meet the mem-

It can also be used when the team wants to list the bers for a brainstorming session. The team may use

experiences of the members regarding the work situa- any one of the following modes to achieve the same

tion or identifying possible countermeasures. result required for brainstorming.



It is crucial for a team to obtain the ideas and views • Memos A memo with the required information is

from everyone who may affected by the likely change circulated to all affected. The ideas and views are

to the situation. listed by each person and passed on to the next.



There is a need to also get others outside the team to • Notice boards A flip-chart-size paper is put up on a

contribute their views. This ensures that the topic is stand or notice board. The participating persons re-

thoroughly examined. spond to the requirements indicated at the top of the

paper. Ideas and views are written down on the chart.









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 11

• Telephone, Facsimiles, Email The persons involved Check lists - by first listing do’s and don’ts or “go”

could pass the ideas and views by phone, on a format- and “no go” items. This is

ted facsimile or via email. The ideas and views are followed by making observations and marking off the

sent to a central point for collation. items accordingly as they



• Interviews Sampling - by selecting a grouping that represents the

situation that is being studied.



Rules for brainstorming- 4. CHECKSHEET:

1.Announce an exact definition of the topic to be

brainstormed. Check sheet is a form designed for recording observa-

2.Write the topic or subject boldly on the board or flip tions. It is a means for collecting continuous or dis-

chart. crete data. The form is made user friendly so that ob-

3.Obtain ideas and views from each person turn by servations can be promptly recorded, as and when they

turn. occur.

4.Tell one idea or view per person per turn.

5.Say “PASS” when there is no idea or view from a A check sheet can be in the form of columns and

person. rows. Check sheets may also take other forms such as

6.Stop any criticism or challenge to the ideas or views. the defect location check sheet. Shown below are the

7.Go for as many ideas and views. different types of check sheets.

8.Insist on ideas and views that are observable from

experience. Preparing a check sheet

9.Accept combination of similar ideas or views.

10. Remain focused on the topic or subject. Step one

11. Time the session to keep to the time.

12. Evaluate ideas and views only at the end of the Identify the observations that are required. Make sure

brainstorm. that the factors listed describe the problem or issue

that is examined and is relevant.

3. DATA COLLECTION:

Step two

Under this category, a lot of research work is in-

volved. It contributes collection of all the facts, figures Decide on the time frame required for recording the

and assumptions to be undertaken in figures for the observations. Choose a time frame that realistically

statistical manipulation of the problem. If facilitates in represents the frequency of occurrences. All the

decision making and sound conduct of operations. members are involved in collecting the data.



In the QC arena, the collection of data is entirely ap- Step three

plicable to the problem solving than decision making.

In the field of education industry, this rectifies the Design the form for recording the observations.

periodic study of concerns denoting absenteeism, aca- Members should be able to collect data easily. Label

demic standard and teachers’ evaluation. the columns and rows.



The team needs to examine the nature of the problem •The time frame is always indicated in the horizontal

or area of improvement selected in terms of how often column at the top.

it occurs, the amount of time it takes or its impact on •The factors are listed in the vertical columns on the

the overall work performed by the work group. This right side.

means that the team needs to gather data and infor- •The columns to accumulate the total should also be

mation. Data may be collected in many ways. They included.

are:

Step four

· Past records - by studying previous occurrences, in-

formation from files, log books, job cards etc. are ob- Begin the recording of occurrences. Each member

served. · does not permit the collection of all the data. should record the occurrences on their own.

Observations - by using check sheets. In-

spections - by troubleshooting, checking the present Step five

condition etc.









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 12

Gather all the check sheets from the members and

collate the observations. Draw up the final check

sheet that shows the totals for each factor.

5. STRATIFICATION

Step six

This is the tool to categorise the available data into

Analyze the results and draw the conclusion. groups. The further classification in this direction

makes an easy gathering of the solution to the prob-

Now that the data is collected, the team should decide lem. It facilitates testing theories for study and com-

on how the data should be analyzed and presented. parison over the other classified groups and sensing of

The graph or chart can best represent the data. the most important one is done accordingly.



4. GRAPHS: 6. PARETO DIAGRAM



Graphs and charts are pictorial representations of data. This is an art to identify the most preferable problem

Large amount of data is summarized and helps in ana- out of the many.

lyzing the nature of the problem or the issue under

study. The Pareto diagram is a graph that shows discrete or

quantitative data. This graph is used to rank the oc-

Under this the discrete data is presented by using the currences in descending order of occurrence. Based

line and bar graphs and pie charts. In fact, your unit on the Pareto 80-20 principle the graph identifies the

or department may already have the software to help vital few or main occurrences.

you draw up graphs in your work systems.

It is important to remember that the Pareto diagram is

This tool of the control of quality represents numerical only useful when there are many occurrences and the

values as a visual. Through this, at a glance approach vital ones are not easily identifiable. As a guide, there

is examined for the study of the situation. The basic should be at least 4-5 occurrences.

idea of this tool sum up as to provide an explaination

to others, comparing with the past and the present and The Pareto diagram is a useful method to prioritize the

analysing the results. issues or causes that affect a problem, theme or sub-

ject under study. It can be used to define the problem

There are two major categories of graphs as the gen- under the heading “grasping the present the situation”.

eral purpose and the special purpose. It can also be used to identify the vital few causes after

a cause and effect analysis.

Under the general purpose graphs, the constituents

are: Through this the arrangement of data is made accord-

ing to the priority of their importance over others. i.e.

*Line Graph from “Trivial Many” to “Vital Few”. The QCs get

*Pie Chart benefitted out of this tool in order to make decisions

*Bar Graph while solving problems of interest. The decision mak-

*Pictorial Graph ing in this direction is totally based on the facts which

And under the special purpose category, the graphs are reflected through the diagram. This as structure is

include: a combination of a bar and a curve, where the bar rep-

*Pyramid Graph resents the data as per the tally sheet and the curve

*Float Graph denotes the cumulative value. The further identifica-

*Belt Graph tion of the contributing factors which contribute over

*Compound Graph 50% i.e. the majority, are made to be represented as

*Strata Graph/ Area Graph vital few and are given preference for tackling.

*Radar Graph

*Gantt Graph

7. CAUSE & EFFECT DIAGRAM :

It is basically on the nature of the problem to manipu-

late the selection of the type of graph to be used for It is also referred to as Fish-Bone or Inshikawa Dia-

solving the problem. The decision for the same does gram. It is quite explanatory in its own and provides

not entirely depend upon the leader but is a group de- an overall idea of the possible causes of a chosen

cision out of brainstorming. problem. For any concern the four main causes

through which the whole story is built are MAN,









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 13

MACHINE, METHOD and MATERIAL, as because of people present.

any cause of improvement involves the four M’s cate-

gorically. This tool functions to find out the relation- All the scatter diagrams show a positive correlation

ship and through this the study is conducted to execute i.e. all the three causes contribute to the time taken to

the measure to solve the problem. issue items to servicemen. However, in the case of

scatter diagram C, the dots are closer to each other in a

As a structure, the effect is put in a box with different tighter formation compared to the rest. This shows

causes connected to the straight line joining the effect that the number of employees queuing at one time is

similar to a structure of a fish bone. Apart from 4 Ms’, the main cause. The team therefore decides to tackle

the ENVIRONMENT, TOOLS, EQUIPMENTS and this cause.

OPERATOR, conduct the contribution of the basic

causes for any specific problem. To make the under- Preparing the scatter diagram

standing more simple, each cause is further divided to

present the further causes. Step one



Identify the number of causes that are to be examined.



CAUSESEFFECT Step two



Plot a X and Y axis. On the Y axis show the problem,

The Brainstorming once again brings facilitation un- theme or subject under study. On the X axis place any

der this category for listing out the causes, sub-causes one of the causes. Use separate graphs for each of the

and further sub-causes for resolving the whole issue. other causes.

The final interpretation of the root cause pertains to

lively brainstorming over the floor among members, Step three

potential members and even the facilitator at times is

required. A hasty decision in the selection of the prime Scale the X and Y axes from the lowest to the highest

cause among others, at times causes confusion. There frequency.

has to be a proper R&D over the same as the whole

case study involving this step as well, has to be well

explained and queried before the management for Step four

implementation.

Record the observations by correlating the cause

8. SCATTER DIAGRAM : against the factor on the Y axis which is the problem

under study.

This pertains to the evaluation of relationship between

the variables related to the study of the problem. The Step five

causes and the effects relate to the strength but of what

nature is examined by this diagram. A correlation is Observe the pattern formed by the dots. Also consider

obtained between the variables signifying positive the spread of the dots. A positive correlation exists

nature, negative nature and zero correlation. This is when the dots increase and rise diagonally from the

calculated by statistical formula by applying the plot- left to right.

ted data values recorded truly over the actual existing

conditions of the organisation. The scatter diagram is a 9. HISTOGRAM :

correlation chart. The X and Y axis of the graph cor-

relate two factors with each other. Let us use an ex- This tool is a simple graphic image used to show the

ample. variation of process oriented factors according to the

A team analyzed the causes to the problem “Time tak- comparable variable. The frequency distribution is

en to issue items to employees”. The causes identified analysed and plotted signifying the variation.

were: -

The histogram is also known as a frequency chart. It

• Errors on request forms - measured in terms of fre- identifies variances in the measurements. The ar-

quency of errors rangements of the bars show the distribution of the

frequency. The pattern that emerges helps to define

•Number of items requested - quantity of items re- the problem, theme or subject under study. The histo-

quested gram is used to show the overall occurrence of a

•Number of servicemen queuing at one time - number measured value such as time, dimensions, degree or









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 14

the range of frequency within a particular occurrence. rangement of the room. It is also helpful to leave some

open space in the room where students can stand up

The depiction of mean indicates ideology of decision for oral exercises.

making for problem solving. This is rightly used to

reflect the following features: * Encourage Student Participation and interaction:

Encourage students to express their opinions and to

*Relative Variation ask questions not only to you, but to who ever they

*Controlling Capacity feel like getting a clarification as well.

*Probable Improvement over the existing stage

through further decision making. * Eye Contact: Eye contact is a polite way to com-

municate that speaks a person’s honesty. If it is diffi-

cult for a student to make direct eye contact, he/ she

10. CONTROL CHART : can look at the other person’s eyebrows.



This tool is used for on-line control of problem solv- * Pacing Lessons: Watch your students’ faces, and

ing. The process involved as a direct inclination of check for comprehension. Do the students need more

depicting the central line marked as the controlling explanation? More time to practice? Pacing is also

line with a target representation. The upper and the important in asking/ answering questions.

lower lines signify the upper control limit and the

lower control limit respectively. The periodic meas- * Group Rules and Respect: Cultivate a spirit of

urement of quality is plotted accordingly for the gen- cooperations and respect within the group. Help par-

eral assessment of the process. ticipants to understand that everyone in the group is a

student and that everyone is also a teacher.

The selection of the tool out of the set of 10 is de-

pendent on the nature of the problem to be solved. It is * Dealing with dominators: If a particular student

not at all necessary for a circle to make use of all the tends to dominate the conversation- or to anser all of

ten SQC tools available. Generally, in concern of the the teachers’ questions- teh leader can give other stu-

nature of the problem to be solved, the conduct of dents an opportunity to speak by using the student’s

Brainstorming is the only subsequent alternative for name to interrupt them.

selecting the type of problem solving techniques for

the circle in operation. * Encouraging Shy Participants: If a student is not

participating encourage him/ her in the same way, by

7 : DEVELOPING STUDENT LEADERSHIP using the student’s name.

SKILLS TOWARDS TOTAL QUALITY :

Good leaders always seem to be able to “get things

The Quality of an educational environment is wit- done”. Ever wonder how they do that? The skill they

nessed with the harnessing efforts of the staff, students have most likely mastered is the skill of prioritizing.

and the collaborative parents at large. The leadership

of all counts towards the perfection in practice for all As a matter of fact, the implementation of TQM in an

the levels of learning and teaching. As a matter of fact, organization necessitates wholehearted efforts towards

Today’s youth are living with an explosion of techno- quality improvement, quality development and quality

logical advances especially in the areo fo the Internet, maintenance to satisfy customers. Productivity needs

mobile applications and the multi-player gaming. This to be increased by improvement in quality in all our

increases the need for proper supervision and mentor- activities and working together to eliminate errors and

ing as they may be overwhelmed by the sheer prevent wastages. Some of the basic requirements fro

overlaod of activities and information. successful implementation of TQM in an organization

are as follows:

. In order to practice Group Leadership Skills the fol- a. Management Commitment and Teachers’ Participa-

lowing are the essentials for practice at schools: tion: This is one of the responsible features of Quality

Culture within a school. This is the very basic need

* Classroom Environment: We can help our students towards TQM with the commitment of management to

by establishing a supportive, relaxed and respectful achieve total quality. The organisation should have a

learning environment. Be warm and welcoming. Do clear objective and mission that should be clearly spelt

not raise your voice when they ask for clarification. out in the Quality Policy of the school. Here the con-

cept and implementation of TEI, i.e. the Total Em-

* Physical arrangement of the room: As soem of our ployee Involvement is equally important. One way to

class sites, it is not our prerogative to change the ar- achieve this target of TEI is through installing Quality









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 15

Circles (QCs) and Quality Improvement Teams cess, but also in success’. Assuming a direct co-

(QITs) in the school. relationship between ‘success’ and quality, one can

argue that the national policy sees no conflict between

b. Training and Communication: Together with suc- quality and equity, and it conforms to the international

cess lies the importance of training. A Clear under- trend, which advocates, ‘The successful schools in the

standing of the TQM is the second most important post industrial era will be ones that achieve excellence

requirement for its success. The need of implementing and equity simultaneously indeed one that recognizes

TQM in the organization should be properly spelt out. equity as the way to excellence.’

Until employees feel a need, it will be very difficult to

get them involved and take initiative in this direction. It further says that, Any quality improvement pro-

In fact, TQM starts with training and awareness of gramme in schools/college has to keep these perspec-

employees in this subject. Continuously upgragind the tives in the background., it is proposed to provide a

skills of the staff is the key to the good results of the small lump sum amount each year to implement new

philosophy of TQM. programmes and initiatives which are not covered by

the preceding paras. It could be for any activity which

c. Parents/ Teachers relationship: As a matter of fact, has great bearing on the improvement of quality in

all the activities in a quality organization should be education.

towards Parents satisfaction. If fact, the external cus-

tomer, the parents who buys a product in the form of The real criticism should be of our lack of commit-

educating his ward, is considered the best designer of ment to support education at all levels. To the fact,

a product. It is his requirements, which are to be, un- known to all, education has always been politicized,

derstood, designed and manufactured by the organisa- and there will always be those who will use the

tion. Attitude of “Parents’ First” is a real must for a schools and colleges to advance their own political

school to succeed in its march towards quality and the fortunes. Unfortunately, the criticism of our schools

bottom lines of all its decisions must be looked into never adequately answers the question. Also to meet

the prospective of “Parents’ Happiness”. new expectations, teachers need to deepen their con-

tent knowledge and lean new methods of teaching.

They need more time to work with colleagues, to criti-

8. CONCLUSION :- cally examine the new standards being proposed, and

to revise curriculum. They need opportunities to de-

One ought to be proud of the fact that no single aspect velop, master and reflect on new approaches to work-

of our future has been debated more hotly than educa- ing with children. All of these activities fall under the

tion. Our hope for the next century is that education general heading of professional development. Also in

finally will make the individual’s dream a reality for persuasion, historically, state policy makers have paid

every member of our society regardless of race, eco- little attention to the form, content or quality of pro-

nomic background, gender or religions affiliation. fessional development. If today’s teachers are to be

There is no question that the technological develop- adequately prepared to meet the new challenges they

ments during the last several years are creating more are facing, this laissez-faire approach to professional

educational opportunities for our citizens -- or at least development must come to an end. The needs are too

for some of them. Educators from pre-schools toddlers urgent and resources too scarce to simply continue or

through college have embraced the new technology, expand today’s inefficient and ineffectual arrange-

and most believe it will provide an increase in learning ments.

opportunities for students. Inspite of the fact that

school corporations and colleges have spent tremen-

dous sums of money on technology, many are still left DEMING’S 14 Points on TQM: -

behind. Spending more and more money to support

technology, that too, affectionately referred to by edu- 1. Create constancy of purpose

cators as the toilet that keeps on flushing, may be .

achieving the intended purposes for some, but is it 2. Adopt a new philosophy

really achieving the intended purposes for all. Or for

that matter, is technology, in fact, helping more stu- 3. Cease dependence on mass inspection

dents than was the case previously.

4. End the practice of conducting business on cost

The spirit of this model has been well captured in the alone

National Policy on Education as modified in 1992,

which says, ‘To promote equality, it will be necessary 5. Constantly improve processes

to provide for equal opportunity to all not only in ac-









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 16

6. Institute training order of importance, are the parents of the students,

the students themselves, and the middle school to

7. Institute leadership which the students are headed. As the maturity of the

students increases, the students replace the parents as

8. Drive out fear the most important customer. In a training situation,

the most important customer is the organization that

9. Break down barriers needs the individuals trained. Regardless who your

. primary customer is, it is essential that the students be

10. Avoid obsession with goals and slogans included in the list of customers.



11. Eliminate numerical quotas It is come out of the belief of many educators that the

Deming’s concept of TQM provides guiding princi-

12. Remove barriers to pride of workmanship ples for needed educational reform. In his article, “The

Quality Revolution in Education,” John Jay Bonstingl

13. Organization-wide involvement outlines the TQM principles he believes are most sali-

ent to education reform.



14. Define management’s responsibilities to make it He calls them the “Four Pillars of Total Quality Man-

happen Management, at every level but particularly at agement.”

the very top, must take and show pride in adopting the

TQM philosophy. Principle #1: Synergistic Relationships -



The meaning of each of the 14 points as related to the According to this principle, an organisation must fo-

mission must be clear to all involved. This is not a cus, first and foremost, on its suppliers and customers.

trivial process; a good deal of time must be spent in In a TQM organisation, everyone is both a customer

analyzing the various processes and discussing how and supplier; this confusing concept emphasises “the

the 14 points relate to those processes. The time spent systematic nature of the work in which all are in-

in this effort forms the foundation for all of the TQM volved”. In other words, teamwork and collaboration

implementation. are essential. Traditionally, education has been prone

to individual and departmental isolation. However,

according to Bonstingl, this outdated practice no long-

APPLICATION OF THE 14 POINTS er serves us: “When I close the classroom door, those

kids are mine!” is a notion too narrow to survive in a

The above 14 points are very general. When TQM is world in which teamwork and collaboration result in

successfully applied, it is a result of a careful study of high-quality benefits for the greatest number of peo-

each point and a clear determination of how each ap- ple. The very application of the first pillar of TQM to

plies to the situation at hand. No two applications of education

TQM will be the same. The form that a particular im-

plementation takes is dependent on many factors such emphasises the synergistic relationship between the

as the size of the institution, whether the institution is “suppliers” and “customers”. The concept of Synergy

private or public, and the strengths of the people in- suggests that performance and production is enhanced

volved, but the most important variables are the ma- by pooling the talent and experience of individuals.

turity of the students and the involvement of the em-

ployer. Careful consideration of all aspects of the edu- In a classroom, teacher-student teams are the equiva-

cational system will help determine just how the TQM lent of industry’s front-line workers. The product of

implementation will ultimately look. their successful work together is the development of

the student’s capabilities, interests, and character. In

The principles of TQM can also be applied to high one sense, the student is the teacher’s customer, as the

school, middle school, and elementary school educa- recipient of educational services provided for the stu-

tional processes as well as to training situations. The dent’s growth and improvement. Viewed in this way,

principle differences in the implementation of TQM the teacher and the school are suppliers of effective

will be the result of the relative weight assigned to learning tools, environments, and systems to the stu-

each of the customers at the different levels of educa- dent, who is the school’s primary customer. The

tion. The weighting that is applied is primarily the school is responsible for providing for the long-term

result of the maturity of the students, but there are educational welfare of students by teaching them how

other considerations as well. For example, in elemen- to learn and communicate in high-quality ways, how

tary schools the most important customers, listed in to access quality in their own work and in that of oth-









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 17

ers, and how to invest in their own lifelong and life- text in which students can best achieve their potential

wide learning processes by maximizing opportunities through the continuous improvement that results from

for growth in every aspect of daily life. In another teachers and students working together. Teachers who

sense, the student is also a worker, whose product is emphasize content area literacy and principlecentered

essentially his or her own continuous improvement teaching provide the leadership, framework, and tools

and personal growth. necessary for continuous improvement in the learning

process.

Principle #2: Continuous Improvement and Self Eval-

uation - According to the practical evidences, the TQM princi-

ples help the schools in following clauses:

The second pillar of TQM applied to education is the (a). Redefine the role, purpose and responsibilities of

total dedication to continuous improvement, personal- schools.

ly and collectively. Within a Total Quality school set-

ting, administrators work collaboratively with their (b). Improve schools as a “way of life.”

customers: teachers. Gone are the vestiges of “Scien-

tific management”... whose watchwords were compli- (c). Plan comprehensive leadership training for educa-

ance, control and command. The foundations for this tors at all levels. (d). Create staff development that

system were fear, intimidation, and an adversial ap- addresses the attitudes and beliefs of school staff. (e).

proach to problem-solving. Today it is in our best in- Use research and practice-based information to guide

terest to encourage everyone’s potential by dedicating both policy and practice.

ourselves to the continual improvement of our own

abilities and those of the people with whom we work (f). Design comprehensive child-development initia-

and live. Total Quality is, essentially, a win-win ap- tives that cut across a variety of agencies and institu-

proach which works to everyone’s ultimate advantage. tions.



According to Deming, no human being should ever In order to achieve the above as opportunities to the

evaluate another human being. Therefore, TQM em- academic scenario, in addition to patience, participa-

phasizes self-evaluation as part of a continuous im- tory management among well-trained and educated

provement process. In addition, this principle also partners is crucial to the success of TQM in education;

laminates to the focusing on students’ strengths, indi- everyone involved must understand and believe in

vidual learning styles, and different types of intelli- principles. Some personnel who are committed to the

gences. principles can facilitate success with TQM. Their vi-

sion and skills in leadership, management, interper-

Principle #3: A System of Ongoing Process - sonal communication, problem solving and creative

cooperation are important qualities for successful im-

plementation of TQM.

The third pillar of TQM as applied in academics is the

recognition of the organisation as a system and the

work done within the organisation must be seen as an Quality Circles in Schools/colleges - A Narration:-

ongoing processes. The primary implication of this

principle is that individual students and teachers are Quality cannot be achieved accidentally. It requires

less to blame for failure than the system in which they intelligent and international effort. The key to rapid

work. Quality speaks to working on the system, which strides on the parth of success and progress in 21st

must be examined to identify and eliminate the flawed century is going to be selfreliance, self-discipline and

processes that allow its participants to fail. Since sys- exploiting synergy of team- work. For schools to fos-

tems are made up of processes, the improvements ter and sustain quality educational standards, to keep

made in the quality of those processes largely deter- pace with the globalization and to implement infor-

mine the quality of the resulting product. In the new mation technology, they will have to be dynamic, cre-

paradigm of learning, continual improvement of learn- ative and collaborative hubs of energetic activity.

ing processes based on learning outcomes replaces the

outdated “teach and test” mode.

These in turn will help to have total quality manage-

Principle #4: Leadership- ment in educational institutions. Total quality man-

agement brings about a radical change in culture and

The fourth TQM principle applied to education is that the way an institution functions. It is easy to infer that

the success of TQM is the responsibility of top man- a continued qualitative growth is possible only if tis

agement. The school teachers must establish the con- stakeholders earnestly want it and pursue it.









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 18

school is to remain dynamic and wishes to prepare

indivisuals fit to take on the reins of the nation tomor-

row, each school will have to have collaborative

school management.

What is Quality for Human Beings?

Collaborative School Management Requires:

Quality is excellence. It is emotional development. It

is character building. It is cooperative living. New Vision of School Leadership: The Principal is

the school leader. He/ She develops sense of educa-

What is Quality for a School? tional purpose in the staff and students. He/ She is

responsible for formulating broad policies and ensures

It is how a child is received, welcomed, cared for, that they are implemented. He/ She brings individual

supported, trained, educated, and prepared to meet the skills together to obtain best progress. He/ She should

challenges of life. QUality means quality of work, provide opportunity to the staff for participation in the

service, education and curriculum. continuous development of the school and its students

should meet parents’ expectation for quality. While

Total Quality achievement in education is based on doing all this, he/ she remains the facilitator rather

many aspects such as schooling process, collaborative than the dictator.

school management etc.

Shared Visions and Goals: Visions and goals are over-

The Schooling process comprises of defining and all sense of direction in which the school should head.

taking following steps: The mission and gaol statements must be jointly writ-

ten down. The brainstorming sessions enable to jointly

* Objectives of the school : Schools function in differ- arrive at the vision an institution must look for. If all

ent geographical, economic and social areas and thus stakeholders are well aware of the goals the path to

objectives of one school definitely will vary from that excellence is smooth.

of the other school. A school may want to specialize in

developing good sports persons yet another may de- Less Hierarchical Distance: The Principal should be

velop good research talent and yet some school may approachable to the staff and students; similarly the

decide to produce best board results. Each one in its teachers should be easily approachable to students.

own right has its objectives firmly defined. This eases the communication and speeds the deci-

sion-making.

* School Climate: It is characterized by the definition

of discipline, expectations from the students and staff, To sustanin and foster the collaborative school/college

freedom enjoyed by the students and staff in setting management quality circles must be developed. As we

their standards. know,



* Methodology of Teaching: Though all schools pro- TOGETHER IS BEGINNING,

fess to have designed methodologies which adhere to STAYING TOGETHER IS SUCCESS,

the lates developments in pedagogies, each one of WORKING TOGETHER IS PROGRESS.

them will have to keep in sight the desired objectives

of the parents, quality of the students and the level of

technological advances possible for the school to

maintain the technology available for the students to

use outside the school.



* Management and administration: School administra-

tion must facilitate achievements ofthe school. The

management of the school concerns itself with the

growth and development of the people. The ideologies

and philosophies of the management and capability

and flexibility of the managers will determine the ex-

tent to which a school can take plunge into improving

its standards.



* Collaborative School Management: No matter what

objectives are and what school management is, if a









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 19

RESOURCES :-



(Acknowledgement)



Blankstein, Alan M. “Lessons from Enlightened Cor-

porations.” EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP 49, 6

(March 1992): 71-75. EA 526 563.



Deming, W. Edwards. OUT OF THE CRISIS. Cam-

bridge, Massachusetts: Massachusetts Institute of

Technology, 1986. 507 pages.



Fuchsberg, Gilbert. “Quality Programs Show Shoddy

Results.” WALL STREET JOURNAL (May 14,

1992): B1, B9.



Olson, Lynn. “Quality-Management Movement Spurs

Interest in New Awards for Education.” EDUCA-

TION WEEK 11, 26 (March 18, 1992a): 8. “Schools

Get Swept Up in Current of Business’ ‘Quality’

Movement.” EDUCATION WEEK 11, 25 (March 11,

1992b): 1, 24-27.



Rhodes, Lewis A. “On the Road to Quality.” EDU-

CATIONAL LEADERSHIP 49, 6 (March 1992): 76-

80. EA 526 564.



Rocheleau, Larrae. “Mt. Edgecumbe’s Venture in

Quality: How One Superintendent Learned the Differ-

ence between Managing and Leading.” SCHOOL

ADMINISTRATOR 48, 9 (November 1991): 14-16,

18. EJ 434 405.



Using Six Sigma to Solve Issues in Public School Sys-

tem.htm: www.isixsigma.com

Quality Learning through Quality Teaching by

Dheeraj Mehrotra









Towards Quality Learning For All Page 20